Fetal development: Week 20

Image of 19-week fetus courtesy of Babybond Want to see a bigger pic?

By the end of this week you'll be half-way though your pregnancy!

Your baby is now 17-18 centimetres long and weighs about 280 grammes, over half a pound. Things are about to slow down a little growth-wise. Your baby’s nerve cells for taste, feeling, seeing and hearing are all growing more complex and your baby will be able to hear noises outside the womb, not just the noise from your own body. She will gradually learn to recognise your voice and that of your partner, and noises that she becomes familiar with now will often be soothing for her after birth. So make sure you play music you’re willing to listen to over and over again!

Your baby now sleeps for the same amount of time as a newborn and is developing sleeping and waking patterns. Over the coming weeks and months you’ll probably begin to recognise these patterns as your baby’s activity levels fluctuate.

What’s happening with Mum?
Unfortunately fetal sleeping patterns don’t usually mimic your own sleeping patterns and you’ll probably find that while you want to rest, your little one wants to move around, making it difficult for you to sleep at times.

Your uterus has probably by now grown level with your navel, and you might experience some discomfort as it presses against your belly button, pushing it outwards. Overall though, this is a great time in pregnancy, you’re no longer feeling sick and drained of energy and you’re not yet big and heavy, so it’s a good time to take advantage of - perhaps by taking a holiday with your partner or catching up on your social life. If you do make a trip make sure that you carry your antenatal card with you in case you need to visit a doctor and be particularly careful with food hygiene.

NB: All pregnancies are different and fetal growth rates vary, this is meant only as an approximate guide to development. If you have any concerns about your developing pregnancy then speak to your doctor.

Caring for your pregnancy

Are you getting enough iron? - As the amount of blood you're pumping around your body has significantly increased, so has your body's demand for oxygen-carrying red blood cells. If you have too low an intake of iron for the creation of these red blood cells then you may be left feeling tired, dizzy and shaky so make sure you're getting enough iron.

Exercising safely - If you're a sporty type then as your pregnancy progresses you may be wondering whether you need to moderate your sport programme to make sure it's safe for pregnancy.

Pregnancy experiences

Will you find out? - Should we find out whether our little bundle is going to be a boy or a girl? We can't decide. Now you've probably already made your decision about finding out your baby's gender, join in the debate on the forum.

You can join in the discussions and share pregnancy experiences and advice with other ThinkBaby members in the pregnancy folder.

The 20-week scan - Scan fine, it’s a boy!! It's good news from Isabelle in her online pregnancy blog.

If you want to keep track of your pregnancy's highs and lows then why not start your own blog?

Other weeks