Pregnancy Week 7
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Inside Pregnancy Week 7
Your baby’s development is incredibly rapid. Now every organ has begun to form. The hair and nipple follicles have started to grow, and the eyelids and tongue are forming as well. Parts of the baby’s body are a bit easier to distinguish as the trunk is less curled up in appearance, and now is straightening out more. The elbow is busy bending and flexing, but you’re still blissfully unaware of the jabs and pokes. Beneath the gums, baby’s tiny pearly whites are growing. The area where the biggest growth spurt is taking place? Baby’s brain, where so much is changing and taking place right now. The baby is approximately one inch long at the end of this week.
Symptoms You May Feel During Week 7
Morning sickness is usually truly underway at this point, not the odd occasional wave of queasiness, but full on sick. Morning sickness affects up to 75% of pregnant women, and the average length of this symptom is about six weeks. Besides small frequent meals, try to avoid lying down after a meal. Some say that the aroma of lemons will perk up the queasiest mommy, and many swear by salty potato chips in curbing nausea. Vitamin B6 can help, too. If your sickness is accompanied by violent vomiting that just doesn’t let up and you just can’t get it under control, talk to your doctor. Sometimes morning sickness goes beyond typical and into a condition called hyperemesis gravidarum. It’s just really a fancy name for severe morning sickness. If this is the case, your doctor will want to see you, possibly have medicine, or if need be, put you in the hospital for IV treatment and observation. As with anything in your pregnancy, you need to trust your own feelings about when something isn’t right, or you are concerned and talk to your doctor. It’s always better to find out it’s nothing, than to ignore something than could be a problem.
The other problem most likely to be plaguing mom to be this week? Breasts. They may have gone up to a full cup size by this week! They are likely quite tender, and swollen. The nipple is probably standing out more than normal, just more pronounced. All these changes are due to the two major hormones, estrogen and progesterone. Fat tissue is building up in the breast area, and the Montgomery tubercles, sweat glands on breasts, are visible now, and provide lubrication to the areola area. They are raised bumps.
Visit With the Obstetrician
Getting to know your physician during these visits might be difficult in the beginning, but don’t be shy. Try to bring a notepad and pen so you can write down anything you find out, have questions prepared ahead of time (you won’t remember!) and ask questions without reservation. Pregnancy isn’t something you will experience too many times in your life, and while the doctor has seen in all hundreds of times, it is special and important to you. Don’t let yourself feel rushed or intimidated in your appointments. Get the information you need and don’t feel badly for doing so. A well informed patient is a good patient! Have you started thinking about your birth plan yet? Yes it’s early, but the sooner you and your doctor have ironed out some major issues the better.
Preparing for Baby
One of the fun parts of preparing for the new baby is trying out new names, and finding just the right one for your new little bundle. Consider purchasing a couple good names books early on, borrowing others and having a little notebook to scribble down combinations, name meanings and so on. Write down suggestions friends and family members give, perhaps only to humor them, or because their suggestions are so hilarious you might want to look back someday at the notebook for some laughs. It’s never too early to start searching for the perfect name. It will be a fun keepsake and a good way to keep track of the good, and less than stellar, ideas you come up with along the way and to keep your final choices organized and all in one place.
Pregnancy Lifestyle
Living with early pregnancy symptoms can take a toll on not only the pregnant mom, but those who share her life. It’s not unusual due to all the fatigue, nausea, and pressure for mom to become, well cranky at times. It’s completely understandable. Growing a baby is no small feat, and those early weeks are some of the hardest. If you have decided to wait to tell friends and family about your pregnancy, you might be feeling cut off from some support. Consider finding a discussion board to chat with other women who are going through the same issues. Don’t expect too much of yourself, give yourself some slack, and try to have some pleasant time for yourself and with those you love. It’s a priority, and later it will be an absolute luxury!