Week 17

Fetal development in pregnancy week 17: fetus in fourth month

Don't be too shocked but... your baby is EVEN bigger than it was last week, not to mention getting cuter, and smarter every day! As you’ve come to expect, there’s no shortage of growth and development this week: your fantastic little bean stalk has added yet another half inch to their overall height-- making them nearly half a foot long! Their little limbs have reached (or are within one week of) their relative proportions, and will continue to grow evenly with the rest of the body after this week. Reactive listening has begun for your baby, even though their ears are not yet structurally complete or fully functional. Meanwhile, different parts of their astonishingly complex brain are developing to process your little one’s hearing and other senses, (you know, sight, smell, taste and touch). Mind boggling factoid of the week: if you’re having going to have a little girl, her ovaries have already produced millions of primordial egg cells, which, within a few weeks, will develop into actual eggs! Phew… just wait till she’s a teenager eh?

And how's mom doing? Even though the second trimester is often characterized as the most enjoyable of the three, you can count on a few ailments (see week 14 for additional tri-2 symptoms). This week, or in the coming weeks, you may be privy to the uncommon joys of “round ligament pain.” These not-so-lovely symptoms can include bellyaches, pain in the lower abdomen and sharp shooting and/or stabbing pains, most often expressed at the end of the day. Your suffering is due to stretched ligaments and muscles that support your ever-growing uterus. This is to be expected and is perfectly normal (especially since your uterus is only getting bigger!). Some doctors advise sleeping on your left side as lying on your back can compress your pelvic veins, decreasing blood return to the lower half of your body. Lying on your left side relieves this pressure thereby allowing normal blood flow. If this doesn’t do the trick, go ahead and consult your health care practitioner, but try not to punch them when they serenely tell you it’s normal to feel stabbing pain during this time. As we all know, violence never solves anything.