6 Weeks Pregnant

Now several pregnancy symptoms may be evident... Learn what's going on with you and your baby-to-be while 6 weeks pregnant.

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• Your Baby
• You
• 2nd Month of Pregnancy Video
• Diary of a Daughter

Your Baby

Rapid growth and development are continuing on this week as your new addition has changed from a sesame seed to the size of half of a small pea. This may not seem very large to you right now, but give it some time and you will begin to see how much your little one will grow over the next few months. You will have ample opportunity to enjoy that growing bump that will house your little one for the months to come.

The baby's organs and tissues continue to grow at a furious rate while new developments such as the antigen factor that will determine your offspring's blood type will be present at the end of this week.

One other new part of your child's growth is the adrenal cortex that forms this week, although it will not start producing hormones for several more weeks.

Your baby's heart is beating furiously right now at anywhere between 100-140 beats per minute, helping to begin the circulation of blood through its body. The heartbeat can sometimes be detected at your medical practitioner's office with a Doppler device, depending on the placement of your little one, or be seen through an ultrasound if you are lucky enough to have one this early in pregnancy. It is also possible to see if there is more than one embryo growing inside of you.

There are predetermined dark spots that have emerged on your little embryo where the nostrils and eyes will soon develop as well as buds for the ears to come later.

Although the baby still looks foreign through ultrasound pictures, soon it will take on a more human-like form that we are accustomed to when you think of a new baby.

If you are curious on what your baby looks like in this early stage of pregnancy, I really recommend the book A Child Is Born by Lennart Nilsson. I read it and looked at the pictures over and over again during my pregnancies.

You

As your pregnancy progresses you may notice more symptoms than before.

Nausea, fatigue and even a thickening around your middle may be apparent. Be comforted that morning sickness will most likely ease up in your second trimester and before you know it your cravings for odd foods will return.

At 6 weeks pregnant, your uterus is approximately the size of a plum, and a midwife can determine your pregnancy by the softness of your uterus.

The color of your areolas may even darken at this early stage as well. Different changes will happen at stages in each woman's pregnancy, so do not fear if you are not experiencing one or all of these symptoms immediately.

Slight weight gain may occur for you anywhere from 2-6 pounds in total during this short time, although some women may actually lose weight due to lack of appetite and even frequent vomiting.

The best way to battle nausea with pregnancy is to cut down your meal sizes into smaller, more frequent portions to help your stomach process more often rather than trying to digest a larger amount of food less frequently. Drinking an adequate amount of water is also essential for your body since you are increasing your blood volume and will need the extra fluids.

Soon you will want to start shopping for those much-needed maternity clothes for the months to come. Be sure to shop around and make sure that the clothes you choose are comfortable fitting and easy to take care of. You will not want to iron or take your new clothes to the cleaners each week; you have enough to think about and prepare for in the days to come!

2nd Month of Pregnancy Video

Diary of a Daughter

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