Many moons ago, when you saw that blue line on the pregnancy test, you were given a date, a magical date, carefully conjured up in a high-tech way by an internet site calculator, or in a low-tech form by your doctor with a little plastic wheel. In went the date of your last menstrual period, (perhaps half guessed), and out came your due date. At every check up since then, the first thing you are asked for is your due date. It must be exact, precise, not a day here or there, this is your date, your EDD. It is further honed by your scans, which, based on the length of you child’s leg bones and spine on a given day, lead to further bartering on the due date, up a day or down two.

So, how many babies arrive on their due date? Well, actually, only four per cent! With 50 per cent coming within a week of the due date, and over 90 per cent within two weeks. It is, therefore, far more accurate to think of a ‘prepared period’, two weeks either side of your due date.

The EDD was established by Dr Naegele, a German obstetrician in the early 1800s. He declared that a pregnancy ‘should last ten moon months, that is, ten months of four weeks each.’ Calculated at forty weeks from the date of your last period, the due date is based on the assumption that you have a regular 28-day cycle, and that you conceived fourteen days after the first day of your period.

According to Dr Sarah Buckley, author of Gentle Birth, Gentle Mothering, ‘Menstrual dates will be most accurate for women who know the actual date of conception [usually a little more memorable!] and count 38 weeks ahead.’ Some studies have shown that calculations based on menstrual dates are likely to underestimate the due date, compared to dating scans at between twelve and 22 weeks. This then leads to inductions of babies, who are not actually overdue.

As well as the length of your cycle and the size and development of your baby, environmental factors also have an effect on when your baby arrives. Chances are that, if you’re ill, going through stress or not getting enough sleep, labour might not start until your body is strong enough to go through it. Midwives also report that there is a noticeable increase in the number of women going into labour around the time of the full moon!

A study of US mothers showed the average pregnancy length for first-time white mothers was 274 days (41 weeks and one day) from ovulation. Black women, women younger than 19 and older than 34, women with previous births and women pregnant with boy babies all tend to have shorter pregnancies.

Of course, every pregnant woman is sure she is going to go early. Most actually will it to happen (despite earlier misgivings about the act of giving birth), since they are usually big and uncomfortable and want ‘this thing out of me, like, yesterday!’

But it’s not only the woman, who wants her baby to come. Overdue friends – myself included – are bombarded with text messages and Facebook posts telling you to get a move on – as if pressure on you is going to help matters!

Pressure from the medical establishment is particularly strong, with some care givers wanting to give overdue scans only a couple of days after the due date is passed. According to Ina May Gaskin, induction of labour in the US was shown to have doubled during the 1990s from about ten per cent to about 20 per cent, in large part because of the introduction of a new range of induction drugs.

Of course pre-eclampsia is of concern, as is foetal distress and a reduction of amniotic fluid, but all of these are quite unusual, and more often than not, baby will come when it’s good and ready. But, once you’re past a week over due, you start coming under real pressure with threats, sorry, offers of membrane sweeps and induction. Most hospitals have 42 weeks as their upper limit before induction or caesarean are compulsory. Currently up to a third of pregnancies are induced, despite World Health Organisation recommendations that ‘no geographic region should have rates of induced labour over 10 per cent.’ So your due date is looming. Is there anything you can do to help things along?

Castor oil has been safely used by indigenous peoples around the world to induce labour. No one knows exactly how, or why, it is so effective, but it is thought that its laxative properties, which may well send you rushing for the toilet, also stimulate labour. A tablespoon can be taken in juice or scrambled eggs at breakfast time after the due date has passed, with another later in the day if no effects have been felt.

Sexual activity is also a great starter. The contractions of the uterus during orgasm can start labour contractions and semen contains prostaglandins which can help to ripen the cervix. Nipple stimulation produces oxytocin which is needed for labour. Sex is perfectly safe at full-term, provided your waters haven’t broken – in which case, I’m guessing, you wouldn’t be up for it any way!

Walking is another effect way to help get the uterus contracting, blood flowing and baby’s head engaged in the pelvis. Getting out of the house also acts as a distraction.

Deep sleep is very important, as the primal part of the brain, which activates labour, is interfered with by our logical, rational brains, which are used for speaking, thinking and modern daily life. It is no coincidence that a majority of labours start at night.

Sharon Dempsey

Measuring and recording blood pressure is an essential part of your antenatal appointment, but few of us ever give it a second thought until a problem arises.

During a healthy pregnancy the hormone progesterone makes the arteries relax. This means that the heart does not have to work as strongly to force the blood around and, as a result, our blood pressure is lower than normal, especially during the early stages of pregnancy.

It is, however, fairly common for high blood pressure (hypertension) to develop during pregnancy. This is usually not serious, but, for some women, it becomes very high and can be harmful to both the mother and baby.

High blood pressure (hypertension) means that the pressure of the blood in your arteries is too high. Blood pressure is recorded as two figures such as 140/85 mmHg. The first number is the systolic pressure – the pressure in the arteries when the heart contracts, while the second number is the diastolic pressure. This is the pressure in the arteries when the heart rests between each heart beat. The average blood pressure range is between 110/70 and 120/80, although this varies a lot in pregnancy.

Many pregnant women with high blood pressure go on to have healthy babies without any serious problems but, for some, high blood pressure can be dangerous for both the mother and the child.

If you have high blood pressure prior to pregnancy, then you are more likely to have certain complications during pregnancy than a woman, who has normal blood pressure. Sometimes long-standing high blood pressure (chronic hypertension) is diagnosed for the first time during antenatal check ups.

Some women develop high blood pressure while they are pregnant (after twenty weeks). This is called gestational hypertension. High blood pressure can be dangerous and can affect the mother’s kidneys and other organs and it can also cause low birth weight and early delivery. If your blood pressure is too high, your doctor may prescribe medication to control it (Duley 2009). The earlier gestational hypertension sets in, the greater the chance of your blood pressure rising to a level where it needs controlling with medicine. In the most serious cases, the mother develops preeclampsia, which can threaten the lives of both the mother and the baby.

If you have pre-existing hypertension (high blood pressure pre-pregnancy), or gestational hypertension, it means you are more likely to develop pre eclampsia. Your midwife or doctor will carry out checks on your blood pressure and test for protein in your urine each time you have your antenatal appointment, as these are signs of preeclampsia.

During normal pregnancy, your blood pressure tends to fall during the first and second trimesters (up until 24 weeks of pregnancy). With pre eclampsia, high blood pressure develops after around the 20th week of pregnancy and stays high until the baby is born.

Your blood pressure will be checked again following the birth. If you develop high blood pressure during your pregnancy (after 20 weeks), it is likely to return to normal after your baby is born, but it may take a few weeks. If your blood pressure remains high, you may need to take medication to control it for a few months after the birth (RCOG 2006).

Isabella Oliver’s Maternity collection uses signature ruching and wrapping to ensure that you and your bump will look and feel great at every stage of your pregnancy. Style and comfort is the key to Isabella Oliver’s fabulous range of silhouette enhancing dresses, to ensure that you are dressed to perfection for all occasions.

Isabella Oliver’s effortlessly chic dresses come in a range of vibrant colours such as Lagoon, Hot Pink and Scarlet. The Ruffle Wrap dress is an ideal style for a christening and the Wrap Cocktail Dress offers a selection of different looks perfect for numerous wedding invitations and garden parties. Other styles such as the Ruched One Shoulder Dress and Satin Bow Dress will ensure that you look picture perfect for every eventuality.

Visit IsabellaOliver.com now to view the rest of the Isabella Oliver Maternity.

Ever since that iconic photo of a heavily pregnant Demi Moore on the cover of Vanity Fair back in 1991, bumps have been ‘in’.  Or rather, I should say, bumps have been very much ‘out’. Annie Leibovitz’s shot of a gorgeously rounded and glowing Demi ushered in a new era of celebrity bumps. The days when a pregnant belly was to be tucked quietly away behind something loose and nondescript were thankfully well and truly over. Those of us less accustomed to life in front of the lens rejoiced in a revolution in maternity wear that left behind the wasteland of pinafores and boring elasticated slacks, and instead brought us an ever-expanding (if you pardon the pun) selection of funky, stylish designs.

From the classic and understated, to the loud and irreverent, maternity design emerged to cater for every taste. Bumps had finally found their voice and hordes of grateful pregnant women rushed to buy the T-shirts. Women can now celebrate their new shape and have a giggle at the same time. Companies, such as Nappy Head (nappyhead.co.uk), produce a range of maternity clothing with slogans such as ‘FBI – Funky Baby Inside’, ‘My Bump Rocks’ and (my personal favourite): ‘It’s not over till the fat lady screams’.

The trend of celebrity pregnancy hasn’t been all positive though. It can be demoralising for ordinary mortals, who are perhaps struggling with morning sickness and exhaustion and unsure of how they feel about their new body shape, to see stunningly beautiful models and movie stars glowing serenely from the airbrushed pages of a magazine. And then there are those galling celebrity bikini photos, taken at about six weeks after the birth that seem to say ‘baby? What baby? This body’s as perfect as ever’.


It can be wearying to find the all-pervasive ‘culture of thin’ invading the sacred space of pregnancy. If ever there is a time to show fad-dieting the door it’s during your pregnancy when you really need to concentrate on eating healthy foods for both you and your baby. Forget about size zero and concentrate on staying healthy and getting your proper intake of minerals and vitamins. Pregorexia is not a medical term, but a newly-coined phrase used to describe an eating disorder that affects pregnant women who have an obsession with being thin. Nutrition is hugely important during pregnancy so, if you suffer from an eating disorder, it is now more crucial than ever to talk to your doctors about getting help.

Even women comfortable with their new body shape will still succumb to twinges of ‘bump envy’. It’s only natural that we feel the need to sneak sly glances at our pregnant comrades to see how they are shaping up, so to speak , but even those with an iron resolve find it hard not to draw unfavourable comparisons with their own bellies. Is my bump too small?  Or too big?  The situation isn’t helped by the pronouncements of well-meaning friends, or even complete strangers, who will stop you on the street and declare that you are looking ‘very neat’, or carrying ‘high’ or ‘low’, or that ‘it must be twins!’   When out and about, it can be disconcerting to find that the bump is what it’s all about and your belly is rubbed and patted like a lucky Buddah.  If this bothers you, you could always consider investing in one of those ‘Hands off the bump’ slogan t-shirts. That should get the message across!

As someone fortunate enough to have waddled my way through three pregnancies, I can say that bumps vary not just from woman to woman, but also from pregnancy to pregnancy. So dress that bump up in some glad rags and enjoy your new shape. Now may not be the best time for glitzy high heels, (especially if you can no longer see your toes!), but you will get great value out of a few well-chosen key maternity pieces that you can wear again and again. To those who question investing in maternity wear, I always point to my black Boob nursing top; a treasure when breast-feeding and still a wardrobe favourite to this day, despite the fact that my youngest has recently started playschool. Finally, for the entrepreneurial among us, there’s always the option of making the bump pay its way with some bump slogans of your own. How about ‘your advert here’, for example?  Now there’s the mother of all marketing ideas!

Going under cover

While maternity underwear once consisted of high-waisted pants and tights that wouldn’t have looked out of place in Little House on the Prairie, maternity lingerie now offers contemporary style in a range of luxurious fabrics.

You will generally need to purchase maternity lingerie from around the sixteenth week of pregnancy. You’ll know you’re ready when your bra begins to bind or pinch you and, no matter how much you adjust the straps, the bra simply won’t rest comfortably on your shoulders.

Buying just one size of maternity bra for your entire pregnancy will probably not work. Your breasts are apt to continue to grow, requiring you to purchase new bras at least a couple of times during your pregnancy. You may be tempted to buy a bra with a larger cup-size in order to avoid replacing bras on a regular basis, but this isn’t recommended. For a start, maternity bras are specially designed to fully cover your enlarged breasts and to provide that extra support that you won’t find with a fashion bra. By around the fourth month, the weight of your growing abdomen is already putting pressure on your back, so you need all the support that you can get. A bra that is the wrong size will be uncomfortable and could cause even more discomfort to your already tender breasts.

A maternity bra that fits correctly will help to:

·                     relieve pressure on the back
·                     ease breast discomfort
·                     support the weight of your breasts

A word of warning! Some controversy exists as to whether underwired bras are in the best interest of pregnant women; the primary concern being that the wire might put pressure on the breast and lead to blocked ducts.

To ensure that you get the correct size of bra and the answers to any maternity lingerie questions that you may have, it’s a good idea to go to a specialised maternity shop, where a trained professional can help you select the right bra for you.

Here are some top tips from maternity professionals:

‘When your body starts to change during pregnancy, add a maternity bra to your shopping list.  Matching sets are a must…even if it’s your essentials! Choose one that fastens on the tightest hook to make sure it expands with you. We love the Luxury Set in deep purple satin and, what’s even better, ten per cent of sales of these sets is going to the Wellbeing of Women charity! For nursing we recommend buying nursing bras towards the end of your pregnancy, as it’s nice to be prepared. Try the Everyday Beauty range with all the extra details and soft fabrics. The sling design is great and the clips are easy to use, but – best of all – they are so pretty!’ Mamas & Papas

‘It’s vitally important that you ensure that you get measured and fitted by a professional in stores at all times during your pregnancy and beyond. Naoi Mi Maternity Store in Cavan stocks HOTmilk designs, which incorporate sumptuous fabrics, exquisite detailing and fashion forward prints and colours, while also allowing for the practicalities of discreet feeding, comfort and well-supported silhouettes. The brand supports and encourages breastfeeding through elegant, luxurious designs, which, in turn, promote and elevate HOTmilk’s importance. HOTmilk Lingerie celebrates just how fabulous a breast-feeding mother can be!’ Naoi Mi Maternity Store, Cavan

‘With the constant and immense changes to your whole body, your breasts will go through a lot of changes. The correct fitting bras can make a lot of difference to your daily comfort and self-confidence. Most women will find their breasts changing, from three to four months. We would advise women to have the first fitting at this stage and a second between and six and seven months. A non-wired bra is not necessary for your entire pregnancy, however, if wearing underwired, it is imperative that it fits correctly at that time. As breast is tissue, not muscle, it could be damaged by an ill-fitting bra. With advances in the styling of maternity lingerie, women should now find a much wider range of maternity lingerie and nightwear. We would recommend another fitting at eight to nine months to prepare for nursing’. Orchid Lingerie, Belfast

When purchasing maternity lingerie, don’t forget about maternity pants and tights, which have extra-wide waistbands to fit over your growing bump. This means that they won’t constantly roll down into an uncomfortable wad below your stomach. Maternity support tights can also help prevent varicose veins and allow you to stand on your feet longer without feeling tired.