What is the real definition of "overdue"?

[tinyshoes]

from The Man, aka ACOG:
http://www.acog.org/publications/pat...tion/bp069.cfm

Most women give birth between 38 and 42 weeks of pregnancy. But very few babies are born on their due dates. It is normal to give birth as much as 3 weeks before or 2 weeks after your due date
...
It can be hard to predict the exact date. Only 5% of babies are born on their due dates.

So how come the minute a mama passes the 40th week mark, people start using the term "overdue"? And the induction threats from care providers begin, the worries about malfunctioning placentas, the biophysical profiles....aaaahhhhhh!

Did we all go thru puberty at exactly 14.2 years of age? no! it's okay! it's ok for a little variation!

A full-term pregnancy is anywhere from 37 weeks to 42 weeks. Thus, OVER 42 weeks is a post-term or 'overdue' baby.

Now that we're in April, our due date club, I wanted to remind us all that 'overdue' doesn't happen 1 minute past the estimated due date.

[celestialdreamer]

Thank you for this. My first 2 were "overdue" in the sense that they went 1 week and 2 weeks past their EDD. My MW this time is very laid back about these things and I'm really grateful for that. I kept reminding people last time that "its a due date, not an expiration date!" :

[mama_ani]

I had a baby 26 days "overdue" and a baby 11 days "overdue" and one 1 day "overdue." Okay, I totally felt overdue with baby who came 26 days overdue but really 11 days and 1 day were not overdue!! Yet when a doctor or midwife looks at my chart they say "I see you had 3 overdue babies."

I hate the word overdue. Baby will come when baby is ready!!

[Ironica]

Overdue indeed. Do they charge you 15 cents per day after your EDD?

[mama_ani]

Originally Posted by Ironica

Overdue indeed. Do they charge you 15 cents per day after your EDD?

Nah, it's up to $1.25/day now.

[chely7425]

I have always wondered about this... seemed very weird. I mean, they call it an ESTIMATED due date for a reason right? I mean, I can totally understand FEELING overdue, really... I'm 38.5 weeks and ready to be done But it isn't like you have an expiration sticker on you... especially not at 1 or 2 days past your due date!!

[~NewMa~]

Yeah!
Last visit (just yesterday) the NP who works in the midwifes office was telling me to make 2 appointments for next week.
I told her I'm not gonna schedule anything until next week because I'm hoping to go before then but asked why 2 appointments.
She told me I'd have to start getting NST's twice a week and they'd start to monitor amniotic fluid levels because it would put me "past due"
I'm "due" Monday.
I feel like I have some important homework to finish this weekend so I don't get in trouble Monday.
I can't believe she's already talking about testing for problems if I don't go by the exact date!
I may just not schedule anymore visits...
The baby WILL come!
I felt like telling her "thanks for the encouraging thoughts" She's nice enough but I left feeling mad at her :

[lobster]

Just what I needed to read tonight, thanks for that. I'm not even near my "due" date yet, and already feeling like I've expired. It was helpful to read this post.



On another note, I met a mama at the park yesterday who was hugely pregnant like myself, and due this coming Monday. Her husband proudly told me that the baby is coming Saturday - mama is being induced because her first daughter was "late" and "had" to be induced, and the Dr. thought that this time mama just wouldn't go into labour on her own.

Um... yeah... because if it weren't for inductions, babies would just stay inside forever...