Stages of Pregnancy

• Zainab Fareed

Conception- is the stage of when the sperm fertilises the egg. There are different stages before conception this includes ovulation, hormone rise, the egg travels to the fallopian tube, if the egg isn’t fertilised, fertilization, implantation: Moving to the uterus and finally pregnancy hormones.

Growth- This is a term used when you are growing in weight and height and size.

Development-Development is when you have changes and increasing in skills and abilities.

Pregnancy: 3 Trimester stages in pregnancy-

First trimester stage- In this stage your body begins to change and you go through different changes. These types of changes happen between (week 1- to week 12) and the hormones in your body begin to change the organs in the body and their systems. Also these changes can cause different symptoms to occur even during the first week of pregnancy. These symptom include- extreme tiredness, morning sickness, mood swings, heartburn etc.

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3 weeks of pregnancy- At 6 weeks of pregnancy at this point you are about 6-7 weeks pregnant and there is a large lump where the heart is and a bump at the end of the head of the neural tube. This bump is going to become the baby brain and head. The embryo is curve and has a tail. At this stage the heart can be seen beating on an ultrasound scan at this specific stage. Also the development of the arms and leg form and become visible.

At 7 weeks of pregnancy, the embryo is continuing to grow and at this point the embryo is about 10mm long from the head to bottom. Also the brain is continuing to grow faster and this also shows the head is growing faster than the rest of the body. The embryo has a large forehead and eyes and ears are still continuing to develop as the inner ear starts to develop however the outer ear won’t begin to grow for another couple of more weeks. Also the nerve cells continue to multiply and develop as the nervous system begins to take its shape.

At 8 weeks of pregnancy, the baby is called a foetus (offspring) and the legs of the baby are lengthening and forming cartilage as well. However the different parts of the body such as the knees, ankles, thighs and toes haven’t fully developed yet and will take some time. Also the placenta is continuing to develop and this when forming structures this is known and called as chorionic villi, this will help attach the placenta to the wall of the womb and at this stage the foetus will get its nourishment from the yolk sac.

Second trimester stage- During this stage you will feel like the pregnancy is becoming easier and more causes like nausea and fatigue slowly go away in your pregnancy however more notable changes to your body. Your abdomen will enlarge as the baby is still continuing to grow. This stage happens when you are 13 – 28 weeks pregnant and eventually you can feel the baby moving more. For body changes these include- body aches, stretch marks on abdomen, swelling on the ankles, fingers, face.

3 weeks of pregnancy trimester stages:

Week 14- In this week the baby develops different skills such as they can squint, frown, grimace and can possibly suck the thumb etc. Also when doing an ultrasound scan you can possibly check the baby carrying out these skills for example they can possibly see the baby sucking its thumb. Also the baby can grasp too and is being to produce urine. This release the amniotic fluid around the body and this is a process which would continue until birth. However when it comes to the baby’s development the baby is stretching out and approximately the size is from 3 and a half inches. Also by the end of the week the baby’s arm would be growing and also the legs still have to lengthen more. http://www.babycenter.com/6_your-pregnancy-14-weeks_1103.bc

Week 17- The baby’s skeleton is changing once again and this time it is from soft cartilage to bone and the umbilical cord. Also the support to the placenta is growing stronger and thicker. At this stage the baby would weigh almost 5 ounces and the length would be around 5 inches long from the head to bottom. The baby can also begin to develop to move the joints and the sweat glands are beginning to develop. http://www.babycenter.com/6_your-pregnancy-17-weeks_1106.bc

Week 28- At this week the baby would weigh about 2 ¼ pounds and length is 14.8 inches from head to its heels this shows that as the weeks go by the baby is continuing to develop until birth. The baby also picks up on some skills such as blinking their eyes, growth of the baby’s eye lashes, the baby can also see light from the womb and this is filtered light. Also finally the baby is developing billions on neurons in her brain and also gaining a lot of fat in their body to help for when it is born. http://www.babycenter.com/6_your-pregnancy-28-weeks_1117.bc

Third trimester stage- In this stage, it consists of going to the toilet regularly, this because the baby is getting bigger and is developing and it’s putting more pressure on your organs. The different symptoms of body changes which occur include- shortness of breath, heartburn, trouble sleeping, contractions etc. Also near to your due date the cervix becomes thinner and softer which is also called effacing. Also these changes happen when you’re in the final trimester stage between 29-40 weeks of pregnancy.

3 weeks of pregnancy trimester stages:

Week 30- At this stage the baby’s body length is about 15.7 inches and weighs almost 3 pounds. Also a pint of amniotic fluid surrounds her and the volume will shrink as she gets bigger and takes up a lot of room for the uterus therefore it will become less. The development of the eyes are still continuing to develop and it is not that good however it will develop once the baby is born and also when the baby is born it is likely that it would keep its eyes closed more in the day for some time. http://www.babycenter.com/6_your-pregnancy-30-weeks_1119.bc

Week 35- At this stage the baby doesn’t have much room to move as it the baby is length is every long and it is over 18 inches long and weighs 5 ¼ pounds. Also not much movement would be going on in the womb as it would be warm and also the number of times the baby kicks would remain the same. As for development the kidneys are fully developed now and this means the liver can take out some waste products. The physical development of the baby is complete and for the weeks coming the baby would continue putting on weight. http://www.babycenter.com/6_your-pregnancy-35-weeks_1124.bc

Week 40- At this stage the baby would be developed in many areas and would weight about 7 ½ pounds and is 20 inches long. The skull bones are not attached which allows the baby to overlap if it is warm through the birth canal during labours. This also known as moulding which is the reason why the baby’s head shape would look different after birth and this is normal and is not permanent. So these are the different stages in week 40 of pregnancy. http://www.babycenter.com/6_your-pregnancy-40-weeks_1129.bc

Labour: 3 Stages- Labour has 3 stages and these include the first years when the contractions open up the neck of your uterus and this consists of early labour and active labour and the transitional phase. The second stage of labour is when you push the baby out into the world and the final third stage is when you deliver the placenta.

1^st stage- During pregnancy, your cervix is closed and is full of mucus to keep out infection. In the first stage of labour your cervix has to move forward to what is called anterior position and should be open so that the baby can be born. By the end of this stage the cervix should be fully opened and should be open to about 10cm in diameter.

2^nd stage- During the second stage of labour you have to push down the baby from the birth canal and this is when the baby comes out and you have given birth. When giving birth you will feel the pressure of the baby’s head low down to the pelvis. It is important to follow the correct procedures as something can go wrong. When the baby's head is down in the pelvis, the mother would probably feel a hot, stinging feeling. When coming down to the final parts the doctor or midwife would tell you to take short breaths this would help resit the need to bear down two or three contractions and this helps the baby to be born gently and slowly.

3^rd stage- During the last stage of labour, the baby is born and ends when you deliver the placenta. The contractions will be clear and visible but are weaker when they begin again as the uterus contracts down. Also other options are that the hospital offer an injection which makes the placenta come out however this process has side effects like reducing blood loss and this is because of the drugs. These are the three stages of labour and there are different stages which is involved in this process.

Bibliography.

Baby centre. (2014). The stages of childbirth. Available: http://www.babycentre.co.uk/a177/the-stages-of-childbirth Last accessed 10/09/2014.

Nhs . (2013). Your baby's early development. Available: http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/pages/pregnancy-weeks-4-5-6-7-8.aspx#close. Last accessed 10/09/2014.

Web Md. (2005). Pregnancy and Conception. Available: http://www.webmd.com/baby/guide/understanding-conception. Last accessed 10/09/2014.