The First Trimester:
What you can expect

In the first trimester, you and your baby are going through a lot of changes.  Your body has just received the egg through the fallopian tubes and has nestled into the lining of the uterus, ready to grow and develop.  You might have the classic signs of pregnancy – nausea, vomiting, fatigue, and breast tenderness.  But all of these signs are a good thing, showing you that your body is indeed changing hormonally to support that new life in you.

But what is your baby going through?  In these first 12 weeks, the baby is growing rapidly, developing the amniotic sac that it will rest in to the placenta, even growing fingers and toes.  Within a couple of weeks, the new little egg is known as an embryo and it’s growing rapidly.  During this time, it is crucial that you’re taking care of your body, feeding it right, and making sure to eliminate as much stress as you can.

By the eighth week, the embryo is considered a fetus and it’s beginning to look like a baby human.  The fetus is becoming very active in the womb, though it’s only three and a half inches long, so the mother may not feel anything from the baby.  Even the sex organs of the child have now developed and you can find out the gender of your child during a doctor’s visit.  The placenta is in place to nourish the baby and the umbilical cord is working to create a link between mom and baby.

While many mothers find that this is the most tiring time for the pregnancy, it’s only because the child is developing so quickly that it needs more resources from its mom to maintain its growth.  By the second trimester, things are beginning to slow a little and you’ll begin to feel a bit more energetic.

The Early signs of Pregnancy website was created to supply women with Facts, News, and Information regarding one of the most important times of life: Pregnancy. A women's resource site from Jacqueline Flynn