You are now eight weeks pregnant
Week 8
Your baby is now the size of a prawn and is curled up in a similar way to a prawn too. This is because its head is still far bigger than the rest of the body to make room for the growing brain. Your little prawn is jumping around all over the place, busy in its task of growing, growing, growing…
Your developing baby
This week, depending on whether your baby is a boy or a girl, the gonads (the primary reproductive organs) will become either ovaries or testes. It is still too early to tell what sex your baby is on an ultrasound scan - you'll have to wait till your twenty week antenatal scan for this and even then sometimes the sonographer cannot tell especially if your baby is turned away. See our feature on Girl or Boy? for more help.
If you could see your baby now you would see what looks like a tiny human being. The little tail has disappeared completely and toe and finger buds are starting to form, although they will look webbed for some time. Joints like the elbows and knees are starting to develop and bones that grew a few weeks ago will start to ossify, or harden. The great news this week is your baby stops being called an embryo and officially becomes a foetus. Your baby will be jumping around frantically at this stage, but you won't be able to feel it yet because he is just too small (a tiny prawn size). You'll have to wait until sometime after seventeen weeks to feel that fluttering sensation of your baby in your stomach.
Your developing body
You may have noticed your waistline expanding during the last few weeks, unfortunately not because your baby is pushing your belly out yet (don’t worry, that will happen soon) but as a result of the hormones in your body slowing down your bowels and digestive system and making you feel bloated.
Some women experience light spotting or bleeding in early pregnancy and this can signify a number of things. The implantation bleed happens around seven days after conception so at this stage it won’t be that. Bleeding in early pregnancy can be absolutely nothing; some women experience it and go on to have perfectly normal pregnancies and healthy babies. For other women it can mean they are having a miscarriage. Read our feature if you are worried about bleeding in early pregnancy; if you are bleeding and experiencing tummy cramps consult a doctor right away to rule out anything serious like miscarriage.
Pregnancy can also be a worrying time as there are so many niggles and complications that you probably never thought you would be concerned about. Read our feature on pregnancy concerns and pregnancy infections to help you to stay healthy and to put your mind at rest.
If you have had a previous miscarriage or experienced bleeding you may be given an internal ultrasound at this stage to check your baby is doing well.
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