Weeks 18-22
18 Weeks Pregnant
Your baby can now move its arms and legs.
Your baby now is about 14cm long and weighs almost 140 grams. It can now move its arms and legs and such movements will get more and more noticeable in the weeks ahead. Tiny blood vessels are visible through its delicate skin, and its ears are still standing out from the head a bit. Myelinisation of the nerves has started and this process will continue till a few years after birth.
19 Weeks Pregnant
Your baby is looking more and more human.
Your baby now weighs just 225 grams and is only 15 cm long. Arms and legs are more proportionate to the body now and hair has started growing on the scalp.
The baby stays in the amniotic fluid for the entire period of pregnancy and to protect the skin from damage during this time a protective waxy coating called the vernix caseosa is formed all over the body. Skeletal muscles become active – you may now start to feel your babies movements for the first time, a fluttering feeling also known as a sense of quickening.
20 Weeks Pregnant
You and your baby get used to each other.
Your baby weighs about 280 grams now and is around 16 centimetres long from head to bottom. Getting more active, you may feel kicks and nudges instead of the gentle flutters you felt earlier. You may also notice patterns to this behaviour as you attune to your baby.
21 Weeks Pregnant
Your baby’s digestive system is now put to test.
Your baby now weighs 310 grams and is 17.5 centimetres long. The baby swallows more and more amniotic fluid during these days and that is good for its digestive system. After digestion, the amniotic fluid produces meconium, a black, sticky by-product. This accumulates in the bowels and is excreted during or soon after birth.
22 Weeks Pregnant
Watch out! Your baby can now hear all that you say!
At this stage, your baby’s lips, eyelids and eyebrows become more distinct. At 20 centimetres and 450 grams, it’s starting to look like a tiny newborn baby. Lips, eyelids and eyebrows become more distinct The organs, like the pancreas, are also developing steadily. Your baby can now hear loud sounds, starting to prepare it for entering the world outside your uterus. It can also feel your movements and it’s brain is developing centres of smell, taste, hearing, vision and touch.
Click here to view a film of your pregnancy and for more updates on the development of your little bundle of joy!
