What Are The Stages Of Pregnancy

Second Trimester: The Baby At 24 Weeks

• The baby’s bone marrow begins to make blood cells.
• Taste buds form on your baby’s tongue.
• Footprints and fingerprints have formed.
• Hair begins to grow on your baby’s head.
• The lungs are formed, but do not yet work.
• Your baby has a regular sleep cycle.
• If your baby is a boy, his testicles begin to descend into the scrotum. If your baby is a girl, her uterus and ovaries are in place, and a lifetime supply of eggs has formed in the ovaries.
• Your baby stores fat and weighs about 1½ pounds, and is 12 inches long.

First Trimester: Changes In A Woman’s Daily Routine

Some of the changes you experience in your first trimester may cause you to revise your daily routine. You may need to go to bed earlier or eat more frequent or smaller meals. Some women experience a lot of discomfort, and others may not feel any at all. Pregnant women experience pregnancy differently, even if they’ve been pregnant before. Pregnant women may feel completely differently with each subsequent pregnancy.

Changes To Your Body That May Indicate Pregnancy

You may first realise that youre pregnant when you miss your period. Thats a good time to take a pregnancy test or speak with your doctor.

In early pregnancy, you may experience some of the following symptoms:

• aches and pains
• morning sickness, which may be nausea or actual vomiting, and does not just happen in the morning
• fatigue, or lack of energy
• nasal problems, or shortness of breath
• larger, tender breasts.

Better Health Channel has more information about these pregnancy symptoms.

If any of the symptoms become difficult to manage, talk to your doctor about what to do. In particular, if any morning sickness, aches and pains, dizziness or breathing difficulties make it hard to get through your normal day, ask for advice.

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Effects Of Pregnancy On You

Your body goes through lots of changes in early pregnancy.

• Missing your period is often the first sign that youre pregnant.
• Your breasts may feel fuller and tender. Your nipples and the area around them may get darker.
• You may find you need to pee more often, as your womb gets bigger and starts to press on your bladder.
• You may feel very tired and sleepy.
• You may get pulling pains around the sides of your tummy, as your womb grows and stretches the ligaments around it.
• You may feel sick or be sick. This is often called morning sickness, but it can happen at any time of the day. Its very common early on in pregnancy. You may find your symptoms get better if you eat little and often and stick to blander foods. If your sickness is severe, you may have hyperemesis gravidarum , and might need hospital treatment.
• You may get constipation because food passes more slowly through your digestive system. Make sure youre drinking lots of fluids and getting plenty of fibre in your diet.

Many of these symptoms will go away as your pregnancy continues. But some things for example, constipation may carry on or get worse. If you have any pregnancy problems, its important to speak to your GP or midwife.

Before and during your pregnancy, keep yourself as healthy as possible. You may need to make some changes to your lifestyle. These changes may include:

• giving up smoking if you smoke

Pregnancy Weight Gain Distribution

Women gain weight all over their bodies while they are pregnant. Fetal weight accounts for about 7 1/2 pounds by the end of pregnancy. The placenta, which nourishes the baby, weighs about 1 1/2 pounds. The uterus weighs 2 pounds. A woman gains about 4 pounds due to increased blood volume and an additional 4 pounds due to increased fluid in the body. A woman’s breasts gain 2 pounds during pregnancy. Amniotic fluid that surrounds the baby weighs 2 pounds. A woman gains about 7 pounds due to excess storage of protein, fat, and other nutrients. The combined weight from all these sources is about 30 pounds.

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Cramping And Spotting During Early Pregnancy

From weeks 1 to4, everything is still happening on a cellular level. The fertilized egg creates a blastocyst that will develop into the fetuss organs and body parts.

About 10 to 14 days after conception, the blastocyst will implant in the endometrium, which is the lining of the uterus. This can cause implantation bleeding, which may be mistaken for a light period. It does not occur for everyone. If it does occur, it will usually happen around the time you expect your period.

Here are some signs of implantation bleeding:

• Color. The color of each episode may be pink, red, or brown.
• Bleeding. Implantation bleeding is usually much less than your usual period. Its often described as light bleeding that never turns into a flow or enough to need a tampon.
• Pain. Pain is usually milder than your usual menstrual pain. It may involve some cramping. It can be moderate or severe, but its most often mild.
• Episodes. Implantation bleeding is likely to last less than 3 days and does not require treatment. It can sometimes last only a few hours.

What Are The Signs Of Pregnancy

For a lot of people, the first sign of pregnancy is a missed period. Most pregnancy tests will be positive by the time youve missed your period. Other early pregnancy symptoms include feeling tired, feeling bloated, peeing more than usual, mood swings, nausea, and tender or swollen breasts. Not everyone has all of these symptoms, but its common to have at least 1 of them.

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Things To Do And Try At Hospital:

• Try not to tense up during contractions. Your body is trying to release something, not tighten up.
• Find positions that feel comfortable. Walk the corridors slowly, lean on the walls, use the Swiss ball and La-Z-boy chairs. Try to stay off the bed, unless for a short rest.
• Water is great for relaxation and coping with contractions. If you don’t have use of a pool, try the shower.
• Bring music and a player, if it relaxes or calms you.
• Bring an electric oil burner and use your aromatherapy oil.
• Continue to take refreshments and drink small amounts frequently.
• Phone calls are a distraction from your tasks of giving birth and looking after your new baby. Encourage family and friends to phone one designated person for updates.

Second Trimester: Physical And Emotional Changes In A Woman

Some changes you may notice in your body in the second trimester include:

• Back, abdomen, groin, or thigh aches and pains
• Stretch marks on your abdomen, breasts, thighs, or buttocks
• Darkening of the skin around your nipples
• A line on the skin running from belly button to pubic hairline
• Patches of darker skin, usually over the cheeks, forehead, nose, or upper lip. This is sometimes called the mask of pregnancy .
• Numb or tingling hands
• Itching on the abdomen, palms, and soles of the feet.
• Swelling of the ankles, fingers, and face.

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Apen Analyses And Comparisons

Based on the ApEn, Figure 5 shows the characteristics of the pulse movement during pregnancy. The graph distinguishes the ApEn values of the three stages of pregnancy, in which the values of entropy in the three stages are very different. Usually, the mean value of ApEn in E stage is smaller than the M stage’s, and the value of he M stage is less than that of the L stage. Notably, most of the ApEn values in the E stage of pregnancy were concentrated in the range of . The ApEn of the M stage is slightly higher than that of the E stage of pregnancy, as is shown in Figure 5 by the blue curve and the red curve, respectively. The maximum ApEn appears in the L stage of pregnancy, where the average value is about 0.9. All of the approximate entropies are typical enough to stand for their groups, respectively. The analysis indicates that the longer the gestational weeks, the more variable the pulse will be.

Early Changes To Breasts: Tingling Aching Growing

Breast changes can occur between weeks 4 and 6. Youre likely to develop tender and swollen breasts due to hormone changes. This will likely go away after a few weeks when your body has adjusted to the hormones.

Nipple and breast changes can also occur around week 11. Hormones continue to cause your breasts to grow. The areola the area around the nipple may change to a darker color and grow larger.

If youve had bouts with acne before your pregnancy, you may experience breakouts again.

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When Should I Reach Out To My Healthcare Provider About A New Pregnancy

Most healthcare providers will have you wait to come in for an appointment until you have had a positive home pregnancy test. These tests are very accurate once you have enough hCG circulating throughout your body. This can be a few weeks after conception. Its best to call your healthcare provider once you have a positive pregnancy test to schedule your first appointment.

When you call, your healthcare provider may ask you if you are taking a prenatal vitamin. These supplements contain folic acid. Its important that you get at least 400mcg of folic acid each day during a pregnancy to make sure the fetus’s neural tube develops correctly. Many healthcare providers suggest that you take prenatal vitamins with folic acid even when you arent pregnant. If you werent taking prenatal vitamins before your pregnancy, your provider may ask you to start as early as possible.

Third Trimester: Changes As The Due Date Approaches

Other changes are happening in your body during the third trimester that you can’t see. As your due date approaches, your cervix becomes thinner and softer in a process called effacement that helps the cervix open during childbirth. Your doctor will monitor the progress of your pregnancy with regular exams, especially as you near your due date.

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Second Trimester: The Baby At 16 Weeks

As your body changes in the second trimester, your baby continues to develop:

• The musculoskeletal system continues to form.
• Skin begins to form and is nearly translucent.
• Meconium develops in your baby’s intestinal tract. This will be your baby’s first bowel movement.
• Your baby begins sucking motions with the mouth .
• Your baby is about 4 to 5 inches long and weighs almost 3 ounces.

How Early Can I Know Im Pregnant

From the moment of conception, the hormone human chorionic gonadotrophin will be present in your blood. This hormone is created by the cells that form the placenta . Its also the hormone detected in a pregnancy test. Even though this hormone is there from the beginning, it takes time for it to build within your body. It typically takes three to four weeks from the first day of your last period for the hCG to increase enough to be detected by pregnancy tests.

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When To Ring Your Lead Maternity Carer Or Our Labour & Birthing Suite :

• Your contractions are coming every five minutes, lasting longer than 50 seconds and have been getting stronger for at least two to three hours.
• You have severe or constant abdominal pain with a tight abdomen.
• Your water has broken and it is clear or has a tinge of pink. Put on a sanitary pad and check it after an hour. If it is wet, please ring us.
• Your water has broken and it is green or brown. Call us immediately – you will be advised to come into hospital.
• If there is a change in the pattern of your baby’s movements..
• You notice any vaginal bleeding – bright red vaginal bleeding is not normal.

What Pregnancy Trimester Is The Most Critical

The first trimester is the most crucial to your babys development. While you may not be showing much on the outside yet, on the inside, your babys major body organs and systems are forming. Its also during this time that the fetus is the most susceptible to damage from alcohol, drugs, certain medications, and illnesses. Thats why it is so important to ensure youre doing what you can to help your baby stay healthy during this critical time.

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What Happens During Week 3

The fertilized egg moves down your fallopian tube and divides into more and more cells. It reaches your uterus about 34 days after fertilization. The dividing cells then form a ball that floats around in the uterus for about 23 days.

Pregnancy begins when the ball of cells attaches to the lining of your uterus. This is called implantation. It usually starts about 6 days after fertilization and takes about 34 days to be complete.

Pregnancy doesnt always happen, even if an egg is fertilized by a sperm. Up to half of all fertilized eggs pass out of your body when you get your period, before implantation is complete.

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Your Feelings And Emotions During Pregnancy

During pregnancy you will probably feel many ups and downs. You may experience some or all of these emotions :

• surprise if your pregnancy is unexpected. You may then feel joy or fear or both
• happiness, particularly if you have been trying to have baby and you feel well
• anger, which can result from your bodys hormonal changes, from a sense of being vulnerable, or from pregnancy symptoms that are uncomfortable or painful
• fear for the babys health, if you have concerns about your baby having an illness or disability. If you are worried about a particular risk, talk to your midwife or doctor
• fear of birth, which is a recognised psychological disorder. Counselling and talking with your midwife or doctor can help you overcome this fear
• love for your baby, your partner and your family
• sadness or disappointment if you have illness or complications during your pregnancy, or you cant have the birth plan that you would prefer
• general sadness about the world, whereby you find it hard to watch the news or hear sad stories about children or families
• grief, if you suffer a miscarriage, a loss at a later stage of pregnancy, or a stillbirth
• prolonged sadness from perinatal depression. In this case, you will need the help of health specialists.

Placenta And Embryo At About 8 Weeks

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First Trimester: The Baby At 8 Weeks

At 8 weeks, the embryo begins to develop into a fetus. Fetal development is apparent:

• All major organs have begun to form.
• The baby’s heart begins to beat.
• The arms and legs grow longer.
• Fingers and toes have begun to form.
• Sex organs begin to form.
• The face begins to develop features.
• The umbilical cord is clearly visible.
• At the end of 8 weeks, your baby is a fetus, and is nearly 1 inch long, weighing less than & frac18 of an ounce.

First Trimester: 0 To 3 Months

While you may not yet âlookâ pregnant, your body is growing a placenta, adding breast tissue, producing amniotic fluid, and increasing blood volume all to create and nurture your baby. Many pregnant people experience physical symptoms, such as fatigue, nausea, morning sickness, breast tenderness, frequent urination, and lightheadedness.

• Learn more about the first trimester using Allina Healthâs to-do list and week-by-week guide to your babyâs development.

Preparing for your first prenatal visit? Find out about what to expect and questions to ask at your first prenatal visit.

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Early Signs Of Pregnancy

A missed period for most women is the first sign of pregnancy . Other common early signs are nausea, fatigue, breast tenderness, and mood swings . However, not all pregnant women experience these symptoms. The symptoms vary, but usually, one or more symptoms are experienced.

Many women do a home pregnancy test or go to their doctor to confirm pregnancy after a missed period. The most common test for early pregnancy detection is the human chorionic gonadotropin hormone test. Your doctor tests for the presence of this hormone by taking a blood or urine sample after a missed period. This hormone is specific to pregnancy as it is produced by a woman’s placenta at the time of implantation .