Pregnancy is divided into 3 parts or trimesters, first, second and third trimester. Are you pregnant? If yes then you’re on the first trimester.
Congratulations! First trimester is the first 3 months or the first 12 weeks of your pregnancy, in which you will get all the signs of pregnancy and find out about your pregnancy by doing the pregnancy test and finally the worst thing for most women the pregnancy symptoms.
Let’s see what goes on through your first trimester.
Week 1 – week one begins with the first day of your period. This means in week one you’re going on with your period and you haven’t conceived yet. Conception occurs about two weeks after your first day of the period. Still this week is counted as pregnancy. So this is the time to start preparing for your pregnancy. Eat a healthy diet and start taking vitamin supplements specially folic acid if you haven’t started yet.
Week 2 – as you were having your menstrual period on first week, now it’s the end of your period and on the week 2 your uterus is getting prepared for the pregnancy.
Week 3 – an egg is released from your ovary and conception can take place between 12 – 24 hours after the egg is released. So if the conception occurred on that time, the pregnancy hormones start to produce. And the fertile egg starts to travel to the uterus, which will take about 7 days.
Week 4 – the embryo is growing rapidly. Now there are three layers of cells in it –endoderm, ectoderm, and mesoderm, which are developing the embryo rapidly. Amniotic sac is formed and making up of placenta has started.
Week 5 – at week 5 circulatory system starts functioning and all the other systems and organs too starts to form. Your baby is about 1/17 inch long and at this time you can get your pregnancy test done as you didn’t get your period last week. Due to rise in HCG hormone, you may start the symptoms like vomiting and nausea.
Week 6 – now your baby is 1/12 inch long and has started to grow eyes, ears, and mouth. Your baby’s heart is beating and can be detected by an ultra sound scan. It’s now time to start your prenatal care. Show to a doctor, have the important tests done, and go through his guide lines.
Week 7 – at week 7 your baby is only 1/3 inch long. The arm bud which developed last week has grown. The eyes, ears, and mouth on baby’s face are more visible and developing rapidly.
Week 8 – your baby has now taken a shape like that of a human but the head is larger. Now the arms and the legs are more visible with elbows allowing the arm to bend. The eyes, ears and mouth are developing from inside as well. Eye lids are forming and the tip of the nose is visible.
Week 9 – by the end of week 8 your baby’s major body systems develop and start functioning and nose the embryo is referred as fetus. Your baby is about 1 inch long and more likely as a human and starts to move.
Week 10 – at week 10 all the organs are formed and bones of the baby’s skeleton also starts to develop. Tooth buds and eye lids are also formed at this point.
Week 11 – your fetus double in size and it has started growing finger nails and toe nails. Still you may be going through your morning sickness and other symptoms, but it want take too much time now to end.
Week 12 – at week 12 your baby is about 3 – 4 inches long and finger nails and toe nails, which started forming last week is now appearing. By the end of 12 week all the organs and the body systems are fully formed.
As your baby’s organs and body systems form through the first trimester and can get damaged easily making birth defects and miscarriage, you should take great care of your baby and yourself by taking vitamin supplements and avoiding everything that can harm your baby.
Originally posted 2008-01-01 08:23:14.
