Due
Date
Calculator
The
most common question during pregnancy or around the end of pregnancy
is when will I have my baby.
Please
note that pregnancies can last anywhere between 38 and 42 weeks from
the date of conception. This is why doctors give you an estimated
due date or EDD. No one can say with 100% accuracy when you will
have your baby. However, there are signs that may indicate pending
labor or the onset of labor.
How
to Calculate your Due Date:
To
calculate your due date, begin with your last monthly period (LMP).
You will add 7 days to first day of your last normal period. Then
add 9 months and this is your estimated due date.
For
example, let's say the first day of your last monthly period was
January 1, 1999. You would add 7 days which would be January 8th
and then add nine months. Your estimated due date would be October 8th
in this example.
You
can also count back 3 months rather than counting forward nine
months. This gives you the same estimated due date as counting
forward nine months. Remember you must add the seven days before
either counting forward nine months or counting back three months.
What
are the statistics on due dates?
Only
4 in 100 women will deliver on the due date provided by the doctor (EDD--estimated
due date). The calculations of the doctor (or the from LMP) adds an
additional 2 weeks to your pregnancy. This is due to calculating
from the last monthly period. Actually, you conceived approximately
2 weeks after your period (ovulation time) and this is the reason
many women do go over 40 weeks.
One
way you can tell if you are going to go over 40 weeks is to look at
your past menstrual cycles before pregnancy. If you had cycles
longer than 28 days, you are more likely to deliver after the 40th
week. If you had cycles 28 days or shorter, you are more likely to
deliver between the 38th and 40th week of
pregnancy. This is because the ovulation time may have occurred
earlier or later than 14 days after the first day of your last
monthly period.
Other ways to
pinpoint due date:
|
Pregnancy
Cues:
|
Week of
Pregnancy:
|
|
Fetal
Heartbeat detected
|
10 to 12
weeks (doppler)
|
|
Height of
Fundus
|
20 weeks
(reaches belly button)
|
|
First fetal
movements (quickening)
|
1st
pregnancies: 20-22 weeks
Subsequent pregnancies: 16-18 weeks
|
