30 weeks pregnant: symptoms and baby development
Their eyes can focus now.
Third trimesterMonth 75 min read
By Solesia, from public clinical guidanceUpdated
The dreams start to get strange around now: vivid, detailed, sometimes about the baby and sometimes about nothing that makes sense in the morning. Sleep itself comes in pieces, broken by bathroom trips and the search for a position that works. Meanwhile, inside, the brain is the story of the week. It is growing faster now than at any other point in pregnancy, and two things follow from it: your baby’s eyes can focus, and they can hold their own body temperature for the first time. Stairs take more out of you than they used to. All of it is your body carrying more than it ever has.
How big is your baby at 30 weeks
About the size of a cabbage
15.7 in long·3.4 lb
Baby development at 30 weeks
At 30 weeks your baby measures about 15.7 inches from head to heel and weighs around 3.4 pounds, roughly a cabbage. Their eyes, open for a couple of weeks now, can focus. Inside there is little light to practice on, but after birth they will fix on a face held about ten inches away, which happens to be the distance to yours when you feed them.
The brain is putting on weight and folding into deep grooves so more of it fits inside the skull. Billions of connections are forming every day. One result is that they can now regulate their own temperature, a job the amniotic fluid and your body have been doing for them until now.
Their bone marrow has taken over making red blood cells, a job the liver and spleen were doing before. The fine hair on their body is beginning to fall away as fat takes over keeping them warm, and the hair on their head may be coming in thicker. They still have room to turn, and many babies are still switching between head up and head down.
Your body at 30 weeks
Broken sleep is expected at 30 weeks. Your bladder is squeezed, your bump makes turning over a project, and your baby may pick 2 a.m. for their gymnastics. When you do sleep, dreams can be unusually vivid or unsettling. That is partly hormones and partly that waking often means you remember more of them; it says nothing about how things are going. Keep your bedtime steady, keep the room cool, and nap when you can rather than trying to make up for lost hours.
Stairs, hills and hurrying all leave you winded sooner than a few months ago. This is expected: your lungs have less room, you weigh more, and your heart is moving about half again as much blood as before pregnancy. Give yourself extra time, and take the rail.
Your bump may feel heavy and your posture may have shifted to balance it, which is why your lower back aches by evening. The habit that helps is small: tuck your bottom under when you stand, keep your shoulders back, and sit with your feet flat and your back supported. A warm bath at the end of the day does more than it sounds like it would.
Common pregnancy symptoms at 30 weeks
- Vivid dreams. Hormones and lighter sleep. Ordinary in the third trimester; a cool, dark room and a steady bedtime help.
- Breathless on stairs. Less room for your lungs. Take them slowly and hold the rail.
- Headaches. Tiredness, tension and dehydration. Water, rest, and acetaminophen if you need it.
- Dizziness on standing. Blood pools in your legs when you get up fast. Rise in stages, and eat regularly.
- Constipation. Slower digestion and iron supplements. Fiber, water, and a walk each day.
- Hemorrhoids. Pressure from the uterus on the veins below. Avoid straining; a cold pack eases them.
- Bleeding gums. Softer, more swollen gums. A soft brush; dental treatment is safe now.
When to call your provider at 30 weeks
Two things are worth a same-day call at any point in pregnancy: bleeding that is more than spotting, and pain that is severe or does not ease. From the second trimester, add fluid leaking and any change in your baby’s usual pattern of movement. You do not need to be sure something is wrong to call; that is what the number is for.
What to do at 30 weeks
- Prenatal visit. Visits are every two weeks now, so this is often one of them: blood pressure, urine, bump measurement and your baby’s heartbeat. Short, and worth keeping.
- Choose a pediatrician. The hospital will ask for a name. Many practices offer a short meet-and-greet before the birth; ask friends, check who takes your insurance, and book one.
- Childbirth class. If you are in one, keep going; if not, there is still time for a short course or an online one before week 36.
- Tdap by week 36. If you have not had the whooping cough shot yet, it belongs in the next few weeks. It is one shot, and it protects your baby before their own vaccines begin.
Common questions at 30 weeks
Why are my dreams so vivid at 30 weeks?
Pregnancy hormones change how you sleep, and waking often means you catch dreams you would normally sleep through. Worry about the birth and the baby finds its way into them too. It is common, it is not a sign of anything, and it settles after birth when sleep, eventually, does.
Can my baby see at 30 weeks?
Their eyes can open and focus, and they react to a bright light shone on your bump. There is little to see inside, so the practice comes after birth: at first they focus best on things about ten inches away, and they will not follow a moving object until around three months old.
Is my baby head down at 30 weeks?
Perhaps, but there is no need for them to be yet. Many babies are still turning at 30 weeks and settle head down over the next month or so. Your provider checks position at each visit and will only talk about options if they are still head up at around 36 weeks.
How much weight should I have gained by 30 weeks?
It depends on where you started. For a woman of average weight before pregnancy, about 18 to 22 pounds by now is typical, with roughly a pound a week from here. Your provider tracks it at each visit; the trend matters more than any one number.
Written from public clinical guidance, including NHS: Week 30, ACOG: How your baby grows, ACOG: Changes in your body, ACOG: The Tdap vaccine and pregnancy, NHS: Headaches and NHS: Tiredness. This page is general information, not medical advice, and does not replace your provider.