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Day 254 of 280 · 36 weeks + 2 days

The last working day

Last reviewed · 3 min read · 4 sources · Plain-text version

Thirty-six weeks and two days. The NHS suggests thinking about stopping work around now. Today you pick the date, say it out loud, and start the handover.

Size this week
about the size of a romaine lettuce
Length this week
around 47.4 cm from head to heel
A South Asian woman with a full bump in a loose cardigan at an office desk, writing a handover list on a notepad beside a closed laptop, late afternoon window light.

Thirty-six weeks and two days. Some people work right up to the first contraction; some stop weeks before. Neither is braver. Today is about choosing your last day on purpose, instead of having it chosen for you.

Your baby

A single head of romaine lettuce on a plain pale wooden table, soft window light.

Your baby is around 47.4cm from head to heel, about the size of a romaine lettuce (NHS). Around now they can suck and digest breast milk, and the NHS notes that breastfeeding helps protect babies against infections (NHS). The skills for the first feed are in place, a few weeks early, just in case.

Your body

Considering when to stop work, and checking the leave and pay you're entitled to, is on the NHS's list for this week (NHS). MedlinePlus says most pregnant women can keep working, some until delivery (MedlinePlus). What decides it is usually your body and your job, not a rule.

If you're still working, the same page has practical limits: most women are advised to lift only objects under 20 pounds (9 kilograms), and if you stand a lot, ask your employer for 15 minutes of sitting for every hour of standing (MedlinePlus). Compression stockings may reduce leg swelling, and routine bathroom breaks may lower the risk of a urinary infection (MedlinePlus). Backache, swollen feet, and broken sleep are all on this week's list (NHS), and none of them get easier at a desk or on a shop floor.

Try today

  1. The last-work-day decision

    Time: 20 minutes

    1. Pick a date. Count back from your due date, then ask yourself honestly how the last week felt at work.

    2. Tell your manager the date today, in writing, so it exists somewhere other than your head.

    3. Start a handover note: what you do, who to ask, where things live. Add to it each day.

    4. Ask HR, or whoever handles leave where you work, exactly what leave and pay apply to you, and write the answer down.

    Make it work:

    Write the handover as if you'll leave tomorrow. Babies don't read the calendar, and a half-finished note is still useful.

Watch for

  • Normal

    feeling dizzy if you stand up fast; dizziness is on this week's list (NHS).

    Call your provider

    right away for dizziness or fainting; both are on the CDC's urgent warning list (CDC).

  • Normal

    being tired by mid-afternoon.

    Call your provider

    for overwhelming tiredness, which is on the same list (CDC).

  • Normal

    both feet a bit puffy after a long day; swollen feet are on this week's list (NHS).

    Call your provider

    right away if one leg is swollen and painful and the other isn't, which can signal a blood clot (MedlinePlus).

For you

Leaving work can feel like relief and loss in the same afternoon. You may miss being the person who knows the answer. That's allowed.

For the stress that comes with it, MedlinePlus's list is plain: talk with a partner or friend, keep your prenatal care, eat well, stay active, and sleep enough; if stress persists, raise it with your provider (MedlinePlus).

If you're the partner: ask about your own leave this week too. Know your first day off before the baby picks it.

Sources

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

Get each day’s note the morning it applies

Add your due date to a free Chorevia household, and every morning until the birth the day's note arrives in the app and by email: what's forming, what your body is doing, one thing to try, what to watch for, and a word for you.

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