Month2
How your baby has grown
Height: approx. 2cm/Weight: 0.4g pict: ( Eye, Arm, Elbow, Liver)
- ① You can hear your baby’s heartbeat. At about 5 weeks into pregnancy, an ultrasound exam detects your gestational sac. At 5.5 weeks to 6 weeks into pregnancy, an ultrasound exam can detect your baby’s heart beating. If no heartbeats are detected in the ultrasound exam, try again in a week.
- ② Basic human features start to form. A head takes up a half of its entire body. Your baby’s head and body can be distinguished; head, body, arms and legs start to take form. The brain growth quickens substantially. 80% of the brain and neurons are divided during this period. Your baby’s fingers and toes form and, eyes, nose, ears and mouth become bigger, yet vaguely. It is still early to confirm its sex; still, growth of the ovary and testicles is indicated. Your baby floats around in the amniotic fluid.
How your baby's body changes
Normal symptoms you would expect in the first trimester:
- ① The size of your uterus becomes the size of a duck egg and vaginal discharges increase.
- ② You feel more slow, drowsy, and gets easily tired. You may feel unstable in your emotions and occasional bouts of fit may occur.
- ③ Your breasts become larger, harder and heavier.
- ④ Progesterone curbs the movement of your bowels, causing constipation while your bladder is pressured to urinate more often.
- ⑤ You start to feel nauseous. You may even vomit a little, experience appetite loss, or change your preferences in foods. This varies greatly in each mother that some show such symptoms very early in the stage while others don’t even have such symptoms at all.
Health Checkpoint
- ① Once pregnancy is confirmed, get regular examinations. You need to check the growth of your baby and your own health condition through regular monthly checkups before delivery. Such regular monthly checkups before delivering a healthy baby and numerous tests are referred to as ‘prenatal care,’ which should start 2 months into pregnancy.
At every visit to the hospital, you have your blood pressure and weight measured and will go through a urine protein test (20 weeks into pregnancy in most cases). You will receive this test once a month until the 7th month (28 weeks), once every two weeks until the 8th to 9th month into pregnancy, and once a week in the 10th month (36 weeks) into pregnancy. - ② Due Date Calculation There is no set period for a baby to stay in your body and the exact date of fertilization is hard to track. Therefore, the delivery date may differ from the scheduled date. Mostly, however, 280 days from the first day of the last period, by calculating 4 weeks (28 days) as a month, which gives 10 months (40 weeks) as the entire pregnancy period. The following is the calculation method for the last period date so as to calculate the due date with more accuracy and ease on your own.
- Calculation Based on the Last Period Date Deduct 3 from the numerical month when your last period ended. If the numerical month is too short to deduct 3 (say your last period ended in January or February), add 9 to it instead and that number is the very month when your baby is due. And then, add 7 to the first date of your last period and the resulting number is your expected due date.
Formula 1) If the starting date of your last period was December 5th. 12 - 3 = 9 / 5 + 7 = 12 This makes your due date September 12th
Formula 1) If the starting date of your last period was January 1st. 1 + 9 = 10 / 1 + 7 = 8 This makes your due date October 8th.
What You Should Do
- ① Consume plenty of protein and calcium.
It is a rule of thumb to take a nutritionally balanced meal. In addition, this period is when your baby starts to take human form and the number of brain cells increase significantly. Thus, you should eat food rich of calcium (milk, cheese, powdered skim milk, tofu, mushroom, anchovy, beans, beef, fish, etc.) Also, you need to eat food rich in water and fiber to prevent constipation. You should also eat vegetables and fruits that are rich in vitamins as various types of minerals may get deficient due to a loss of appetite and morning sickness. - ② Manage your stress wisely.
The risk of a miscarriage increases during the first trimester. Extreme stress may cause a miscarriage or stillbirth, so you must be careful at all time. Your stress level may surge due to severe morning sickness. It is recommended that you try to change your mood and your surroundings to improve your mood. Get out of the house and enjoy watching movies or pictures and change your mood with a brisk walk. - ③ Sleep and rest are needed.
You should try to avoid overworking, long-distance trips, and excessive workouts. It is a period when you become easily tired and feel like doing nothing. Still, it is always better to move your body a little within your comfort area, rather than lie down all day, to upbeat your mood, facilitate your digestion and reduce morning sickness. Nonetheless, activities that should be avoided are going up and down stairs with heavy luggage, walking for a long time, riding a bicycle or bus where you get shaken a lot. Not only direct smoking, but also secondhand smoke is a big no-no for a pregnant woman.