Why is it important to know about Trimesters?

  
 

My baby's development :   Feelings: week by week

One of the most amazing parts of being pregnant is the feeling of your baby growing inside you.

 

We will go through a week-by-week account of your baby's progress in your uterus, and what these changes will mean for your body, both inside and out!

 

 Both the physical and emotional aspects of being pregnant are very important and extremely variable. We'll also look at some suggestions on how to make your pregnancy truly 'memorable".

What are TRIMESTERS?

 

Trimester is a word you will see and hear regularly during your pregnancy.It is believed that trimester' evolved from the Latin word and it  means in English, too - three months.

 

So, your first trimester is weeks 1-13, your second trimester weeks 14-27 and your third trimester weeks 28-40. However, as you'll soon discover, it's weeks rather than trimesters which are regularly used to monitor the progress of your pregnancy.

 

Why it is Weeks and not Months?

In normal layman terms, pregnancy is of nine months duration, but once you are pregnant you will find that everyone will refer to your pregnancy in weeks. The reason for this is that, from a medical perspective, so much happens from week to week that it's important to pinpoint exactly where you are in the process. This is why everyone

doctors will refer to your pregnancy in weeks and days , calculated from the first day of your last menstrual cycle.
 

THE FIRST TRIMESTER

The first trimester is probably the most amazing in terms of your growing baby particularly as you can't see or feel much at this stage.
In six weeks there is  a fuzzy little life you can marvel at on ultrasound, and by your 12-week scan there's a tiny form that's easily recognizable as your baby. The rate at which the cells multiply and change into a growing baby and support system is miraculous, and it's fascinating to know what's happening.

Week 1

 

The date of the first day of your last menstrual period (even though you are not even pregnant yet, this counts as your first week of pregnancy).

 Week 2/3

 

Conception takes place, and after about three or four days of travelling down into your uterus the fertilised egg (or zygote) implants deep into the lining to be nourished and begin to grow.
If the sperm carries a Y chromosome, your baby will be a boy. If it's an X chromosome, you'll be having a girl. After implantation, the little bundle of cells will become the embryo. It sits within a fluid-filled cavity that will become the amniotic sac, and the outer cell mass will develop into the placenta.
 

Week 4 (the week your period doesn't start)

 

The embryo is now nestling nicely in the uterus lining; the outer cells are branching out like roots to link into the mother's blood supply to nourish the embryo. Your little embryo is now about the size of a poppy seed. The inner cells now divide into three layers that will form the baby's body.

 

One layer will form your baby's brain, nervous system, skin, ears and eyes. Another layer forms the lungs, stomach and intestine, and the third will form the heart, bones, muscle and blood. A sensitive urine pregnancy test is usually positive at around this time(done atleast 2-3 days after your expected date).

 

You may begin to detect some physical signs that you're pregnant. Earliest signs include breast tenderness or tingling, or pain in nipples, as there is greater blood supply being sent to the breasts.

 

You may notice a strange metallic taste in your mouth: this is to do with the greater levels of estrogen in your body. You might also be feeling very tired and lethargic, which is completely normal and a result of the additional hormones flowing . Mood changes and food habits also change.

 

All this means that your body is working hard to create a new life!
It is also quite common at this stage to experience some implantation spotting, or light bleeding, around the time you would normally have your period. While this is normal, but any kind of bleeding should be reported and checked out by your doctor.

 

As soon as your periods are missed, a urine pregnancy test should be done by self at home and even if it is light positive , you should report to your doctor. Doctor may advise for a blood test of the pregnancy hormone and start folic acid medicine for the development of the baby . According to the value of blood test, a confirmatory ultrasound may be done.

 

So, we have discussed the weeks 1-4 in detail and shared with  you the necessary precautions that should be taken while selecting the doctor and the lab test , and the medicine for your baby's initial development.