Second Trimester | 3D Animated Pregnancy Guide
Congratulations! Now that you’re in the second
trimester, there is a lot to look forward to! Highlights might include finding out your baby's
sex and feeling your baby move for the first time. I hope this series of videos will be a
helpful companion throughout your pregnancy. During the second trimester, your
baby will grow from being around 7.5cm and weighing 30g in week 13
to around 23cm and 820g in week 26. Or, to provide a comparison, your baby
will grow from the size of a lime to a banana and eventually to a whole cauliflower. Starting from week 13, your baby’s face
will look more human-like every day. Their ears are now in place, and their
eyes have the color you’ll see at birth. Up until now, their head has been outspacing
their body, but now their body will grow faster. Their arms lengthen to be
proportionate with their body, and they'll be able to stick
their thumb in their mouth. Also, by now, all of your baby's
essential organs and systems have formed. Even so, their bones remain somewhat flexible
for an easier trip through the birth canal. The umbilical cord is fully mature
and is protected by Wharton's jelly, a thick substance that makes the cord slippery
so it can move freely around your baby. By the way, if you're having a girl, hundreds of
thousands of eggs are forming in her ovaries — your future grandchildren! Females are born with their
entire lifetime supply of eggs.
Their digestive system allows your baby to taste
the foods you eat through the amniotic fluid. Their waste systems are working hard, with
urination taking place about every 40 minutes. Since babies pee in the womb
and drink their amniotic fluid, this means they also swallow their urine. Although it may sound gross, urine is sterile, so your baby is not in any
harm by drinking their own pee. Ultrafine hairs called lanugo now cover
your baby’s body, helping to retain body heat until fat reserves are built; this
hair typically falls off prior to birth.
Your baby will be able to move freely in your
uterus. By about week 19, you may feel this movement. It may feel like bubbles popping
or a soft rolling or swirling sensation. If your placenta is attached to the front
of your uterus, it may take longer to feel kicks because an anterior placenta
is like an extra layer of cushioning. By week 20, your baby can hear
sounds – your stomach rumbling, your heartbeat, they can
even recognize your voice. Additionally, an ultrasound will
be performed by week 20 to ensure that your baby’s organs are developing
properly.
Their sex can also be identified. During week 23, billions of brain cells that
direct functions like breathing and movement develop. By week 24, the brain connections
enabling the sensation of pain are wired, and babies might start to respond to your
voice and to stroking motions on your bump! Around this time, some major changes
are happening with your baby's lungs. Surfactant is being produced, a substance that enables the air sacs to
inflate and the lungs to expand fully. Right now, they're still breathing amniotic
fluid, but when they're born, they'll be ready for air thanks to this surfactant.
This is why – starting from around week 24 – your baby has a chance of
survival if they are born premature.
However, the survival rate for
24-week-old infants is only 43 percent, and about half of them will suffer
long-term health complications. If you're at risk of giving birth
before week 34 of pregnancy, your doctor may give you a steroid
injection before your baby is delivered. The steroids stimulate
the maturation of the baby's lungs. It’s not only your baby’s body that undergoes
major changes during the second trimester. Although your baby weighs less than a
kilo, your blood volume increases to meet the demands of all the growth happening
inside you, which means you will gain some additional weight. Women typically
gain about 6kg in their second trimester. Your body expands faster than the skin covering
it, which can result in your skin tearing. The resulting scar is what we know as a stretch
mark. The stretch marks won’t go away, but they should gradually fade from a pink or purplish
colour to white and become much less noticeable. Hormones released by the placenta cause
pigment-bearing cells to increase during pregnancy.
As a result, you might
notice a dark line down your abdomen. Thank you for watching this video. If you’d
like more information about what happens in the third trimester, please watch my next video..
