Pregnancy Stages: Stages Of Pregnancy

Pregnancy is an incredible time of change. As the embryo grows and develops into a baby, your body also undergoes many changes.

Adjusting to the growing baby, you may probably have changes in your mood, nausea, stress, fatigue, and backaches. In any case, don’t worry all these things are normal and will go away as your pregnancy progresses.

ALSO READ Pregnancy Pains: Common Discomforts of Pregnancy.

Trimesters

Each pregnancy is divided into three periods called ‘trimesters.’ The first trimester covers week one to the end of week 12, the second trimester covers week 13 to the end of week 26, and the third trimester includes week 27 to the end of the pregnancy.

First trimester (0-12 weeks)

The first trimester doesn’t give women a chance to prepare their mind for pregnancy as the uterus is low in the pelvis and there is no visible bump. In most cases the woman feels tiredness, the breasts may feel tingly, uncomfortable or full.

Morning sickness also called nausea might appear at any time of the day. It is caused by increasing levels of pregnancy hormones in the circulation. However, it doesn’t mean that you’ll have nausea while being pregnant. It depends mainly on individual organism. To exclude or at least reduce morning sickness, try to eat small, regular meals. Your taste may also change, and you’ll stop enjoying certain things such as coffee or spicy foods. The main thing you should remember is that first trimester turns out to be the most significant pregnancy period when your child starts developing. That’s why you should try avoiding taking any medications that could interfere with the baby’s development. Heavy consumption of alcohol should be prevented too. While the mother changes, first trimester for her fetus is a period of rapid growth and development. By the fifth-week baby’s heart starts to beat. This is followed by the formation of the gut, the buds f arms and legs and the beginnings of eyes and ears. By sixth weeks child’s length is approximately 20mm. By 12 weeks the baby is approximately 100mm long, most of his organs have already formed.

Second trimester (13-28 weeks)

Good mood and energetic feeling return to the woman as her nausea lessens. As the abdomen and breasts grow, stretch marks may appear. It is quite common to develop a vertical, pigmented line on the skin of the abdomen below the belly button, which fades later. Most women feel heart burn. As the baby increases in size and strength, the mother may feel its movements. The first sensation of child’s movements shows up by 20 weeks. In the second trimester mother can find out who she is waiting for as the baby’s kidneys start working, he passes small amounts of urine that is added to the amniotic fluid which is continually cleaned and replaces. About 20 weeks the baby can hear sounds, so it is time for parents to contact with their child more closely.

Third trimester (29-40 weeks)

The third trimester is the time the mother feels most physically tired because of increasing size of the baby and uterus. It is sometimes challenging to fall asleep as it’s hard to find a comfortable position. From around 36 weeks, the baby’s head starts to the top down into the pelvis.

Dropping down of the baby may lead to pressure on the bladder that increases the feeling to pass urine. The baby is still growing during the third trimester. Hair, fingernails, and teeth are growing, the eyes open and close. The baby’s lungs mature throughout the third trimester. Your child makes breathing movements. Fat stores are laid down in preparation for birth.