Another week has gone by, and probably your baby has gained more weight and length. Approximately 6 inches in length from crown to rump, and weighs about 6.5 ounces, about the size of a grapefruit. You will notice more movements as your baby stretches his legs and arms more. His thin skin still allows his veins to be visible. If your having a baby boy his genitals might be noticeable now, if its a girl her fallopian tubes and uterus are now formed and in place, note that during ultrasound, he/she might not cooperate and hide them during the test. Who said pregnancy signs are only for women? Did you know that there are studies showing that about 60 percent of expectant fathers show some pretty weird symptoms of pregnancy? Sudden mood swings, nausea, weight gain, and odd cravings might be experienced...strange isn't it?
You will constantly feel your baby move and wiggle inside you. Your baby’s first movements will probably aid you in forgetting your pregnancy dilemmas. As your baby bump continues to grow you will probably notice those stretchmarks beginning to show, you might also notice your skin itch once in a while. Your back will ache as your body adjust to its no posture. Good thing that you can now kiss your nausea bye bye.
If your planning to go to your doctor for your third prenatal visit. This visit will probably consist a couple of different procedures. During weeks sixteenth and twentieth your health care provider will offer you to take a series of test to know if your baby is at risk for any genetic problems. Please note that you are not forced to take these tests, before you undergo to any test, it is important to know each possibilities and what will the results might tell you about your developing baby. Mostly, you may be offered to take regular sonogram or a level II sonogram. Just like an ultrasound, level II sonogram allows you to look at a specified part of your baby’s progress. Often, this is used to allow your health care provider to visualize more details of the baby’s development like the chambers of his heart.
Most likely you will also undergo a test called Maternal Serum Alpha-Fetoprotein Screening (MSAFP) or Alpha-Fetoprotein Test (AFP). MSAFP examines the level of alpha-fetoprotein on your blood during pregnancy. This is often part of the triple test screening that will assess whether or not further diagnostic testing may be needed.
Some tips to lessen your pregnancy stress. Take a nap whenever you can. If you have other children take advantage during there nap times. If you have a private office, close the door for some time,,, not too long, about 14 minutes of privacy would do. Always bring with you a travel alarm clock you you can still keep track of time, you don’t want to sleep the entire afternoon would you? Getting a piece of sleep will help you remove stress, so you can relax more.
