When will my baby be born? As the pregnancy progresses, it is normal that the illusion grows and also the desire to have that day that many people define as the happiest of their lives. It is also normal for you to feel nervous and uncertain, as birth is a time that causes anxiety for most pregnant women, don’t worry, you will see how everything will work out.

We know you want to have everything organized in detail, and surely you would like to try to calculate the most likely due date. 

In this article, we are going to give you the necessary tools to estimate it on your own, knowing of course that this is not math.

Calculating your due date

The most effective method of calculating the due date is Naegele’s rule, which has that name because of the German obstetrician who developed it. 

It consists of a very simple calculation: to the date of the last menstruation, seven days are added, three months are subtracted and finally, a year is added. So, if you had your last period on March 20, 2020, you would have your most likely due date on December 27, 2020. 

Of course, this is an imperfect formula, with many variables not considered, but it serves to make a rough estimate that is met in most cases. 

If you don’t want to do the numbers, here is an online due date calculator that will answer your question in a few seconds. You only have to fill in the blank fields and click on “calculate”. 

Is the gestation counted in weeks or months?

Does a pregnancy last 9 months? Maybe because you’ve heard it so many times you’ve come to believe it, but the reality is that that’s not entirely true. 

The standard length of gestation is estimated at 40 weeks (280 days). More specifically, between 37 and 42 weeks, a pregnancy is considered to be “full-term”, meaning that the baby can be born at any time because it is already fully formed. 

The measurement in weeks is more accurate since – let’s say a little of the obvious – they all have the same days. This is not the case when it has to do with months, which can be 30, 31, or even fewer days in the case of February. So, although it may sound strange now, you will see that as your pregnancy progresses, you will get used to talking in weeks and not in months.