Week 25 of Pregnancy

Puffy Hands, Sweaty Boobs and a Whole Lotta Baby Building

Let's face it, Week 25 is weird. You're far enough along to be Googling "third-trimester symptoms" but not so close that you're timing those contractions. You are probably hearing "when are you due again?" 24/7. questions, wonder what's suddenly making every single bra feel like a medieval torture device. This is mid-pregnancy at its mid-pregnancy-est — a mix of awe, exhaustion, puffiness and a periodic crying jag because someone just ate the last pickle.

You are likely more pregnant than you've ever been, physically speaking, but mentally? It's a psychological power struggle between "I can do this!" and "What the hell is even happening to my body right now? Your baby is an expanding fullfledged human ("They have fingerprints!") and an about-to-break-out, fully fledged one, with tiny heartbeats and back story (literally, a spine: 33 developing vertebrae, 1000 plus ligament and 150 odd joints, now mostly in miniature, the story of your life, taking place mostly behind the scenes). You are meanwhile wiping the sweat out of your favorite hoodie so you can type your next outraged tweet regarding the Shouting Cheeto in the Oval Office, wondering if your hands are going numb or if you just have carpal tunnel syndrome (here's a hint: it's almost certainly both).

Week 25 doesn't call for the to-do the first kicks and baby shower prep do, but this period? It's crucial. It's observing the small shifts — in your body, in your symptoms, in your emotions — and recognising that those shifts are worth paying attention to. So yeah, go get your favorite snack (salt and vinegar chips, I guess?), and check out all that Week 25 has to offer you.

👶 Baby at Week 25: Baby Fat, Spine, and Flexing Those Little Fingers

Your little gymnast now is about the size of a rutabaga (admittedly, I had to look that one up too), or about 13 inches from crown to heel, and weighs about 1.5 pounds. They're not only getting longer — they're filling out with some of that delicious baby fat that will have them go from skinny alien to chubby-cheeked cuteness in just a couple of weeks.

✨ Major Developments:

• Skin development: Baby is not see-through anymore! It's becoming more and less opaque, it's starting to get some real colour!
• Hands and fingerprints: Your little one's hands are fully developed, and they truly do have those one-of-a-kind fingerprints!
• Spinal construction: The big spinal construction begins over the next couple of weeks. We are after all talking about the growth of vertebrae, and joints and ligaments — you know, the things that ultimately will help your baby keep their precious noggin aloft one day.
• Brain & Lungs: Baby's brain waves are now much more active, responding to sounds and touch. Lungs are becoming air sacs, but they will have to wait a few weeks to mature.

Baby's lungs are getting a decent workout (even if it's just gulping that amniotic fluid — yum?), gaining muscle tone, and learning how to declare themselves with all those more forceful jabs, rolls and hiccups.

💪 Your Body at Week 25: The Glow and the Swell and the Sweat

You're just three weeks away from the third trimester, and your body is really gearing up for it. It's playing all the extra time — and then some. If you're hot, or tired, or feel like your extremities are staging a revolt, believe me, that's all part of it.

🔥 Why You're Constantly Sweaty (Yes, Even in Winter)

Are you living as though you're sealed up inside a sauna? That's thanks to:

• An increase of blood volume (from 20% up to 50%!
• Your lungs in overdrive, taking extra oxygen for two
• It's as though your metabolism is cranked up to high gear permanently

This trinity equates to one smoking mama. You may wake up soaked through your sheets, rip off layers in the middle of the grocery store and generally wonder whether your deodorant is broken.

💡 What helps:

• Water, water, water (as in gallons): minimum 8-10 glasses a day
• Wear breathable materials like cotton, bamboo or moisture-wicking mixes — even in winter.
• Keep a cool mist fan, or a water spray bottle for spontaneous cooling.

✋ That Weird Wrist Pain? Probably Carpal Tunnel

If your hands are numb or tingly, especially in the morning or after typing, you're not crazy. Enter pregnancy-induced carpal tunnel syndrome, where the added fluid retention puts pressure on the median nerve in your wrist.

💡 What you might feel:

• Thumb and first 2 – 3 fingers going numb/problems with tingling.
• Pain shooting up your arm
• Weak handshake (not to mention dropping happens to be your new hosting trick)

💡 How to deal:

• Wear a wrist splint in particular overnight
• Try elevation and ice to try to address swelling."
• Cut portablepages (OK, fine, lay off the TikTok scroll for a while)

Good news? It has a tendency to go away after the baby is born. Bad news? You still have a few months yet. But with a little guidance, the discomfort can be kept to a minimum.

⚠️ Know the Symptoms of Preterm Labor

You're not there yet — but it's smart to become more aware of what is not normal. If you experience any of these symptoms before your 37th week, call your provider. :

• Menstrual-like cramps
• Diarrhea (and it's new or coming out of nowhere!)
• That nagging backache that won't go away
• Pressure in the pelvic area
• significant change.Case Report mucus aIn irregularities in mucus.
• Five or more contractions an hour

Your provider will tell you what to do if any of those develop. So hold off, sit tight — your gut is more precious than ever right now.

🛒 Product Deep Dive: The Stroller Situation

For new parents, choosing a stroller can be anxiety-inducing.

Let's talk gear. Strollers, that is — which, let's be real, could probably use their own Netflix docuseries, as far as that's concerned. Weeding through them can feel almost as alien to God's reign as car-shopping. And in a way, you kinda are. You are about to be ramming this thing through airports, malls, craggy sidewalks and emotional roller coasters.

🧠 Ask Yourself:

• Do you live in a walk-up or a similar building? → Weight and foldability is THE thing.
• In and out of a car multiple times? → Find one that fits in your trunk without needing a PhD in geometry.
• Do you walk, or do you trail walk? → You'll want more ground clearance, and a stronger frame.

💸 Budget Breakdown:

Strollers come in cheap (less than $100) as well as designer-dreamboats north of your rent payment. Do the math on how often you're likely to use it — and if it's possible, try it out in store. (Pro tip: carry a bag of groceries to make up for weight.)

🛑 Registry Regret Alert:

Travel systems seem like a stroke of genius all in a one-and-done product — but strollers can also tend to feel clunky. Instead get something like the snap in car seat frame for the early months and get a good quality stroller when your LO can sit up.

✅ Week 25 To-Do List

• Check the stroller's reviews on Reddit, or on any of the many mom forums (they can be brutally honest).
• If you're having any funky symptoms (and that can be a lot) tell you OB about them.
• Start counting baby's kicks — movement counts do indeed matter right now, and you might even notice a pattern forming.
• Jot it in a pregnancy journal (or jot it in your Notes app — it's the same vibe).
• Get your bedroom ready for hot flashes — put in a fan, take off the heavier bedding, get a cooling pillow.

❤️ Lexi's Final Word: Cry, Snack, Repeat

Week 25 It's this odd intermediary bizarro chapter where the spells are being cast behind the curtains but somehow also, magically, you're the star of the show. With the bloating, the heat and the occasional wrist drama, it's hard to feel like yourself. That's okay. You are making a whole human, and how could that be anything but messy? It's part of the story.

So if you're tearing up after two frustrating sprints or cursing at your water bottle because you always forget to fill that thing up — SAME, girl. Same. That secret shaming voice in your head is wrong, mate.

Now, go fetch that second snack, unclip your bra, and guess what?

We got this.