Pregnancy is a period when both you and your baby go through a lot of changes. It’s incredible that a mere egg turns into a little baby. An amazing development happens almost on a daily basis during the nine months of pregnancy.
The second trimester starts from the 13th week and goes on till the 26th week of pregnancy. This trimester has its own fair share of discomforts, but it is also a time where your energy levels are high. The baby in the womb will progress well. Your baby can now stretch, hiccup, and even sigh in the womb.
The change and growth of the fetus are remarkable in the second trimester and they get ready for the delivery. Take a look at the changes the little one in the womb goes through in the second trimester.
10 Changes In Your Baby During The Second Trimester
1. Size Of The Baby In The Womb
Your baby’s growth is on a constant pace. At the start of the second trimester, the head will be the biggest part of the body. The body will grow and balance out the head to body size ratio in the weeks after. The baby measures about 3 inches long at the beginning of the second trimester and will grow up to 9 inches or more at the end of the trimester. As the little one in the womb is usually curled up, the measurement is taken from head to the bottom and not till toes. The doctor will measure the height from crown till the rump.
2. Baby Can Distinguish Voices
It’s amazing, right? Your baby can easily distinguish voices as the baby’s hearing capacity develops from week 17. It’s important to sit together with your partner and speak to the little one in the womb. He or she can identify familiar voices. Moreover, the baby may also respond to sounds with a spontaneous jerk. Loud and sudden noises may startle the baby. Everything you speak to your baby will leave an impact on the growth and development.
3. Develops Fine Hair Protection
It is just amazing how a baby develops in the womb. There are ways and means the body tries to protect the baby in the womb. In the second trimester, the baby develops a fine hair called lanugo and white wax-like substance to protect its own skin.
The white wax-like substance known as ‘vernix caseosa’ is to protect the baby’s skin from long exposure to amniotic fluid in the womb. It will be shed before the baby is born. The skin of your baby will be very delicate and wrinkled. The hair that covered the baby’s shoulders, back and the temple will shed after birth.
4. Eyes Are Open
The fetus develops eye sockets at the end of the first trimester. The eyes move from the side of the head to the sockets where they will stay. (are you freaking out?) Your baby can open and close its eyes. Some babies can open their eyes as early as the 20th week. Till the third trimester, even if they open their eyes they will not be able to see anything clearly.
5. Sex Is Determined
If you are waiting patiently to find out the sex of your baby, now the revelation happens. Your curiosity will be answered and that will be the biggest moment. The 20th-week ultrasound will reveal the sex of the baby. This is the time when the genitals or reproductive organs of the baby are fully developed.
6. Movements
The baby in the womb will become really active. They begin to bend, flex, flip, kick, and roll. That’s a lot of activity, isn’t it? First-time moms will find it a little difficult to feel the movements until week 20 or later. The tickle-like feeling will be hard to feel. If you have had babies before, we are sure you know a lot and would have done a lot of research already!
7. Breathing
Babies don’t breathe in utero. They begin to practice the movements by week 14. The baby is breathing out amniotic fluid by week 17. The rise and fall of the tiny chest are seen clearly in the ultrasound. At 26 weeks, your baby can inhale and exhale.
8. Fingerprints And Footprints
Those little fingers will take a proper shape. It will become elongated and more distinguished. The fingerprints and footprints are developed somewhere in the midst of the second trimester. They appear first in the hand and then its foot. The nails also grow and sometimes, it’s really long when they are born.
9. Developing Bones
Your baby’s bones are developed. Your baby will be developed enough at the end of the second trimester. Even if they are born prematurely, they will be able to survive with the help from NICU. They also start to suck their thumb in this trimester.
10. Nervous System
The nervous system grows over the second trimester. The baby can feel and register the touch in their brain. Your baby begins to use their reflexes, they also swallow small amounts of amniotic fluid.
It’s both pain and pleasure during each month of pregnancy. Do not stress or worry while you are pregnant. Take each day as it comes and enjoy your pregnancy journey!
