Second month of pregnancy

The second month of pregnancy includes the most important weeks for the development of the baby - the fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth. Embryogenesis is in full swing - a big evolution of a small organism, the laying of organs and systems is in progress. Therefore, the second month is considered one of the most dangerous, associated with various risks.

General information

The calculation of the gestational age in the practice of obstetricians is carried out by obstetric weeks, and in one obstetric month there are exactly 4 such weeks. But the calendar month is different - they have not 28, but 30 or 31 days, while February is short and consists of 28 or 29 days. Please note that the term is calculated not from the day after conception, but from the first day of the last menstruation. That is, the period that the doctor tells you is two weeks longer than the embryonic one.

The second month starts at 4.5 weeks from the date of the last period and ends at 8 weeks inclusive. The first trimester of pregnancy is in progress - the most responsible and important for the entire gestation period. In the second month, the most important metamorphoses take place with the baby and his expectant mother.

Baby development

When the second month of pregnancy begins, and this happens already 3 days after the start of the delay, not all expectant mothers still know that they will soon have big changes. But most are already aware of what is happening (the tests are already "striped", blood tests for hCG are positive), and some have even started early toxicosis.

While the woman is dealing with diagnostic issues, looking for ways to present the news to the future dad in an original way, the baby has already come a long way - in the first month it has turned from one zygote cell into a complex organism, whose heart is about to start beating.

He managed to overcome the fallopian tube, to gain a foothold on the wall of the uterus. He receives nutrition and oxygen from the maternal blood, the amnion has already formed, which becomes the fetal bladder, and the chorion, which will become the placenta in the future. The prototypes of the internal organs have already begun to form from the embryonic petals. The first to form were the heart and great vessels, as well as the neural tube.

At the very beginning of the second month of pregnancy, the baby's heart begins to beat. This happens at the end of the fifth week. AND already on the sixth you can safely go to the ultrasound officeto listen to how it knocks. While the heartbeat does not differ in rhythm, it can vary from 80 to 110 beats per minute, but it can already be heard if an ultrasound is made with a transvaginal sensor. The laying of the organs of the urinary system, intestines and stomach, skin is in full swing. A chord appears, the small body acquires the right and left sides, and all organs are laid down already where needed.

5 week

This week is the first week after the delay. While mom is thinking which test is better to buy and what the delay in menstruation may be related to, the embryo has achieved a lot, and at the end of this week it will have its own heartbeat. The heart still has only two chambers, but it is already contracting.

The formation of germ cells begins this week. This does not mean that the sex is laid, the sex is known from the moment of conception, it is simply that either female or male germ cells are formed according to the genome - XX or XY.

The growth of the baby this week is from 1 to 1.5 millimeters, and the baby weighs about 1 gram... The size of the child does not yet allow us to see it on an ultrasound, at best a dark point will be detected - a fertilized egg, but you should not rely on this, given the parameters of the baby. But the heartbeat may well be recorded by an ultrasonic sensor at the end of the week.

6 week

This week, most women consider it their duty to visit an ultrasound doctor - I really want to make sure that there is really a pregnancy, that the embryo has been implanted and fixed successfully. You can already see the baby, or rather, see the fertilized egg in the uterine cavity. The size of the baby is still small, but it has doubled, and this in itself is incredible: the child's height is 3.4-4 mm, and the weight is within 1.5 grams.

The immune system is formed, its most important organs are laid, in particular, the thymus gland... Where there will soon be pens, characteristic protruding tubercles have appeared, and where the eyes are supposed to be, dark dots appeared - the rudiments of the organs of vision. Small dimples appeared on the sides of the head. They will become ears in the future.

The embryo looks like an alien creature, there is still nothing of a human appearance in it. Large head, eyes-points on its sides, embryonic tail. The baby does not know how to move, but very soon he will learn this, since the formation of the neural tube, which will become the brain and spinal cord, is in full swing.

7 week

This week corresponds to the fifth embryonic one, which means that the baby has been with you for five weeks already, and he has become big - its weight is 1.5 grams, and its height reaches 6 millimeters... On ultrasound, the ovum is determined accurately. If you compare your child to something tangible, it will look like a small grain of white beans. There is an embryonic period, the baby is still called an embryo. The first nerve fibers are beginning to form in him, and at the end of this week he will begin to move, albeit unconsciously - reflexively.

Baby's eyes begin to form this week... Right now, you need to use vitamin A in accordance with the daily requirement, no more. The intestinal tube begins to divide into sections, which will then become the pharynx, esophagus, and stomach.

The baby's heart becomes similar to ours - it already has 4 chambers, blood begins to circulate smoothly throughout the baby's body. A genital tubercle appears in the place where the genitals will then be. In girls and boys at this time, the tubercles look exactly the same.

This week the chorion forms a primary placenta about a centimeter thick, the type of blood flow changes, and the baby's metabolic products begin to enter the woman's body. That is why toxicosis most often starts or intensifies at this time.

8 week

The nervous system is the most active this week. It forms the fastest. The brain of the crumbs has already separated from the spinal cord, the cerebellum is being born. The formation of nerve fibers in the small organism continues. Baby's height - 2.5 centimeters... It resembles a grape. The design of the face begins and the formation of the external genital organs from the genital tubercle begins according to the type that is provided by the genome - for female or male. It is still impossible to determine the gender.

The embryo still retains this status. In the third month of pregnancy, it will begin to be called more respectfully - "fetus", but this will not happen earlier than 9-10 weeks, when the embryonic period of the child's development ends.

What does a woman feel?

The main sign and symptom of pregnancy at the beginning of this month is the absence of menstruation. It is this fact that can lead a woman to think that she is now not alone. Your period does not start because this process is hampered by high progesterone levels. This hormone begins to be produced immediately after ovulation. It prepares the endometrium for implantation, making it thicker and friable, it partially suppresses the woman's immunity so that aggressive immune cells do not regard the embryo as a foreign object to be destroyed. Low progesterone levels can lead to early miscarriage.

All changes that occur in the body of the expectant mother in the second month of pregnancy are in one way or another associated with the action of progesterone. This hormone has a lot of side effects, which are manifested as certain symptoms.

The most common sensation at this time is mild nausea, especially in the morning. In some women, severe toxicosis begins by 5-6 weeks.... The mechanism of its development is not well understood, but there is an assumption that it is closely related to the response of a woman's immune system in response to the suppressive effect of progesterone. The stronger the female immunity (the healthier it is), the more severe the signs of toxicosis can be.

It's not just food or odors that can cause nausea. It can be almost unreasonable. If episodes of vomiting are repeated more than 7-8 times a day, you should see a doctor to prevent dehydration.

The second most common symptoms are heartburn and constipation. Both are also side effects of progesterone. Since the hormone reduces muscle tone (this is important for the uterus to be as relaxed as possible), the tone of the rest of the muscles of the internal organs also decreases, which leads to constipation and heartburn.

Usually in the second month there is a change in taste preferences.... If a woman previously did not like strawberries, right now she may uncontrollably want to eat them, some want pickled cucumbers, some want meat. In general, this is quite individual. We must say right away that food addictions do not affect the sex of the child and cannot talk about him - women who ate pickles and gave birth to a girl are no less common than women who ate sweets and eventually gave birth to a boy.

The mammary glands are enlarged. A woman can pay attention to this immediately after the delay. The nipples become more sensitive (the mammary gland is hormone-dependent, it quickly reacts to changes in hormonal levels). The blood supply to the breast improves, small bluish blood vessels may appear, the so-called Montgomery tubercles may appear on the areola by 6-7 weeks.

Due to the fact that the blood supply to the pelvic organs becomes more active, the frequency of urination increases. It is important to ensure that it is not associated with any painful sensations or changes in the color and clarity of urine. This can be a sign of cystitis, pyelonephritis.

Cystitis worsens in the second month quite often, since immunity is reduced, and bacteria from the intestines may well enter the urinary tract and bladder, causing inflammation. Pleasant changes can occur in the appearance of the expectant mother - the skin under the influence of progesterone becomes more elastic, beautiful, the woman seems to glow from the inside, her hair becomes more shiny, and a beautiful blush often plays on her cheeks due to the increased blood volume in the body.

The size of the abdomen does not differ from the state of the non-pregnant one - it is not yet possible to determine the "interesting position" by it. But the woman herself may already begin to feel quite pregnant - a slight heaviness, a feeling of fullness in the lower abdomen - normal sensations, because the uterus has already begun to grow, its blood circulation has changed.

The discharge is normal in the second month, remains transparent or milky, without clots or other inclusions. Yellowish discharge is also considered a variant of the norm - progesterone stains them in this color, which started large-scale processes of restructuring the female body to meet the needs of the growing fetus in it.

In addition to the above, this month, most women note the following sensations:

increased sleepiness, which does not recede even after a sufficient night's sleep;
instability of mood (a woman is either sentimental and crying, or irritable and aggressive);
increased salivation (especially at night and during sleep);
headaches (more often in the afternoon and evening);
sleep disturbance, insomnia, anxiety and restlessness.

What examinations and analyzes are needed?

Usually in the second month, women register with the antenatal clinic. The best period for this is considered to be 6-8 weeks. But the expectant mother can be registered at any other time, it is only important that the doctor at the reception can confirm the fact of pregnancy. Do not delay a visit to the doctor - early dates are the best period to identify possible risks and pathologies, besides, for early registration (up to 12 weeks), a woman will receive a bonus from the state - a small one-time benefit.

When registering, they pass:

general and biochemical blood tests;
coagulogram - analysis for blood clotting factors and determination of hemostasis processes;
analysis for blood group and Rh factor (if a woman has a negative Rh, her spouse or the biological father of the child needs to pass the same test in order to assess the likelihood of a Rh conflict);
blood for HIV status, syphilis, hepatitis B and C;
blood for infectious diseases (TORCH);
general urine analysis;
a smear from the vagina.

Additionally, a certificate from a therapist or any other specialized medical specialist may be required if a woman has chronic diseases (for heart pathologies - from a cardiologist, for stomach problems - from a gastroenterologist, etc.). An ultrasound is also done to make sure that the pregnancy is uterine, that the child is developing, he is viable. The number of fetuses in the uterus is counted, the condition of the cervix and ovaries is assessed.

In the second month of pregnancy, X-rays cannot be taken, methods of invasive and non-invasive prenatal diagnostics are not used.

Potential problems and complications

It is difficult to answer unequivocally what complications may be in the current period.

The most common pathologies are:

risk of miscarriage (pulls the lower abdomen, there are bloody or brown discharge, there are signs of deformation of the ovum by ultrasound, the concentration of progesterone hormones or hCG is reduced);
retrochorial hematoma, formed at the site of a small detachment of the chorion from the uterine wall (smearing discharge from the genitals appears, there may be weak aching pains in the lower back or lower abdomen);
anembryony (absence of a fetus in the ovum) is determined by the results of ultrasound;
ectopic pregnancy - fixation of the ovum outside the uterine cavity, for example, in the tube or cervix;
frozen pregnancy - stopping the fetus in development and its death due to genetic abnormalities or the negative influence of teratogenic factors.

Considering that a woman has reduced immunity, it is important to protect yourself from infectious and viral diseases, because right now they can be the most dangerous for a baby growing in the womb. Also it is not recommended to take medications (especially antibiotics and psychotropic drugs) without a doctor's permission. Most drugs have a teratogenic effect on the fetus and can lead to the formation of its body with errors - to malformations.

Recommendations

This month will pass in the most favorable way if the woman adheres to the following tips.

Walk more in the fresh air, walk - now it will be beneficial, especially if there is toxicosis.
Carefully monitor your condition and any changes... If you experience abnormal discharge, pain, frequent nausea, it is important to see a doctor as soon as possible. Up to 90% of all pregnant women with a threat of miscarriage, with timely treatment, maintain their pregnancy and give birth to perfectly healthy babies on time.
Take care of your own meals... The second month is the best time to compose your diet and start following it. Saturate it with fresh vegetables and fruits, dairy products, protein foods. If you're a vegetarian, make an exception and start eating small amounts of fish, eggs, and milk.The child is now in dire need of protein, it is a building material for his organs.
Eat fractionally - 4-5 times a day in small portions. This is especially important if you suffer from toxicosis. You cannot starve and overeat.
Sex in the second month of pregnancy may be prohibited only for those who have identified pathologies of pregnancy - the threat of miscarriage, retrochorial hematoma, progesterone deficiency. In each case, medication and sexual rest will be prescribed.
Flying by plane, going on a trip during this period is not prohibited... But you should focus on your own feelings. If nothing bothers you, feel free to go on a business trip or vacation. The main thing is not to overheat in the open sun on the beach and not freeze in the glaciers of Greenland. Everything else is fine.
Don't downplay the effects of stress on your body... At this time, when embryogenesis is taking place, it is important for a woman to remain calm at all costs. If someone or something throws you off balance, remember that stress hormones need to be released (nervous, fear, anger, irritation - walk, wash the dishes, with muscle action adrenaline is gradually "utilized"). The accumulation of stress during this period can cause miscarriage, frozen pregnancy, fetal malformations.