COVID-19, Pregnancy and Birth – What we know so far
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Your baby’s myelin sheath, a fatty substance that covers and protects the spinal cord, nervous system, and neurons within the brain, starts to form. This process will now continue throughout pregnancy and the first year of baby’s life. This process is called myelination.
You are now at the end of your second trimester and moving into your third trimester. During your third trimester your Midwifery appointments will become more regular. You will also be encouraged to book your antenatal classes. The NHS recommends booking your antenatal education between 30-32 weeks however you may want to book it sooner, particularly if it is online content that you can come back to, as aspects like communication techniques, love languages, and exploring your past experiences are best completed in a non-hurried environment and improve the more you practice them so starting earlier gives you more time.
If you are rhesus negative, you will be offered an Anti-D injection around this time. For more information on Anti-D see this blog post “Rhesus status, Anti-D, and Rhesus Incompatibility”. Some hospitals will offer you one dose of Anti-D at 28 weeks, then another one after birth if your baby is rhesus positive (this is tested using blood from the umbilical cord once baby is born). Other trusts offer two doses in pregnancy, one at 28 weeks and a second around 34 weeks. The NHS states that there is no difference in effectiveness between the two methods other than that the one dose approach being a more effective use of time and resources.
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