Your body
Yay! You’ve reached the end of your first trimester! From now on, there is much less worry about the possibility of miscarrying your baby. And although there are no guarantees, you can be more confident about carrying your baby to full term.
Goodbye morning sickness!
Most women who have been suffering from morning (or all day) sickness will find it starts to taper off now. The huge surge of hormones that occurred at the beginning of your pregnancy is now levelling off. For a few unlucky women, morning sickness may continue for the next few weeks. But don’t be disheartened, it will end eventually.
Energy boost
You will find that you are gradually feeling less tired and as you enter your second trimester your metabolism will be working more efficiently and you will have more energy and hopefully enjoy that ‘pregnancy bloom’. But try not to overdo it – you still need to have plenty of rest.
Is this an all too familiar sight? If you’ve been experiencing pregnancy sickness it will hopefully begin to taper off now.
(Credit: Getty Images)Your baby
Your baby now weighs about 14g and is about 6cm long.
Heartbeat
Your baby’s heart now beats at between 110 and 160 times a minute and her chest will now noticeably rise and fall as she practises her future breathing technique.
It’s playtime
Your baby will have a favourite playtime and will spend a couple of minutes rolling around or flipping over. She may hold onto the umbilical cord and also explore her surroundings, although she’ll tend to return to the lower part of the amniotic sac when she comes to rest. These movements, as well as possibly keeping her amused, are fine-tuning her coordination in preparation for life outside the uterus (womb).
Fascinating…
Your body produces endorphins – hormones that give you a natural ‘high’ when you exercise – and these cross the placenta and make your baby feel good, too!
