Whenever someone asks me how far along am I, and I answer them in weeks, they usually look at me with this blank stare on their face not knowing what on earth I am taking about (especially guys). Then I literally have to explain the whole concept of weeks, months and trimesters to them, and the more people I have to explain to, the more I realise how many people actually have no idea what goes on during those '9 Months' of pregnancy.
Now, I am not here to explain to you about the birds and the bees! If you dont know that already, then you are too young and need to go speak to your parents LOL
I am a very simple girl, big words and explanations even get me confused and lost at the first sentence, so I want to try make this as simple as possible.
First things first, as you can tell by the image above, a pregnancy can be calculated in three different ways, Trimesters, Months and Weeks.
I am a very simple girl, big words and explanations even get me confused and lost at the first sentence, so I want to try make this as simple as possible.
First things first, as you can tell by the image above, a pregnancy can be calculated in three different ways, Trimesters, Months and Weeks.
Trimesters
A pregnancy is only 3 Trimesters long, a trimester comes from the word three, so basically your 9 month pregnancy is split into 3 sections, First, Second and Third Trimester.
Months
As mentioned above, a pregnancy is 9 months long, however a pregnancy month does not stick to the typical calender 4 weeks per month ratio that we all know, if that were the case, a woman would pretty much be pregnant for an entire year!! *Geepers*
If you look carefully at the image above, it clearly shows that not all months are 4 weeks long.
Where months one, two, four, five and seven are 4 weeks each; months three, six, eight and nine are actually a total of 5 weeks each.
If you look carefully at the image above, it clearly shows that not all months are 4 weeks long.
Where months one, two, four, five and seven are 4 weeks each; months three, six, eight and nine are actually a total of 5 weeks each.
Weeks
A pregnancy usually carries until 40 weeks, this is sometimes drawn out to 42. However, if you choose to have an elective cesarean section, your OBY/GYN would generally schedule this for 38 weeks.
Understanding Pregnancy
A woman will usually only figure out she is pregnant around 4 - 6 weeks, when she realises she hasn't had her monthly menstruation. At this point your OBY/GYN will send you for a blood test to confirm your pregnancy.
When it comes to calculating how far along you are, is where it becomes a little confusing. Your doctor will work according to your blood test, which will tell them when you had your last menstruation. Although this is not when you fell pregnant, it is usually around 2 weeks from that point that you would have conceived and because the doctor can't pinpoint when the exact date was, this is the ideal method to work on.
This method always makes me laugh because, lets say you conceive on honeymoon, but according to the doctor it was +-2 weeks before, that would technically mean your child was conceived out of wedlock, right!? LOL something to think about, anyways...
Your first 12 - 13 weeks (1st trimester) are your most crucial, this is when baby goes through its inital growth phase of developing things like bones and internal organs. Many woman choose to wait until they are safely out of this trimester until they share the good news of their growing baby. This is also the trimester with the highest risk of miscarriage. During this time, you will probably see your doctor every 6 weeks from your first appointment and you might even hear a heartbeat!
Months 4 through 6 (2nd trimester) your baby will be developing all other organs and features. Your OBY/GYN will be checking your babies growth by measuring vital bones as well as head (brain) and abdomen size. Your doctor will also send you for various blood tests to check if baby has any issues not seen on the scan. During this time you are sure to feel baby kick!
As you move into your 3rd trimester, you'll more than likely have a proper baby bump and are feeling baby on a regular basis. Between month 6 and 7, you will be able to do your 4D scan (up until 32 weeks ) and really get a good look at your little angel, however it all depends on if baby is camera shy or not, because if he decides to turn his head away, you will not be able to get the 'perfect picture' of your baby. Doctors checkups will move from 4 weeks to 3 to 2 and finally weekly as you move closer to your due date.
And that is when all the exciting stuff happens. Whether you decide to go natural or not, it is your decision and frankly I don't quite understand why so many people have such opinions about what method of birthing you decide on. In my opinion, I just want my baby to be happy and healthy and whatever is best for baby is good for me too.
For those of you who don't know, I have decided to go natural, so we will all just have to wait and see until when my bundle of joy decides to make his big debut.
Until then!
When it comes to calculating how far along you are, is where it becomes a little confusing. Your doctor will work according to your blood test, which will tell them when you had your last menstruation. Although this is not when you fell pregnant, it is usually around 2 weeks from that point that you would have conceived and because the doctor can't pinpoint when the exact date was, this is the ideal method to work on.
This method always makes me laugh because, lets say you conceive on honeymoon, but according to the doctor it was +-2 weeks before, that would technically mean your child was conceived out of wedlock, right!? LOL something to think about, anyways...
Your first 12 - 13 weeks (1st trimester) are your most crucial, this is when baby goes through its inital growth phase of developing things like bones and internal organs. Many woman choose to wait until they are safely out of this trimester until they share the good news of their growing baby. This is also the trimester with the highest risk of miscarriage. During this time, you will probably see your doctor every 6 weeks from your first appointment and you might even hear a heartbeat!
Months 4 through 6 (2nd trimester) your baby will be developing all other organs and features. Your OBY/GYN will be checking your babies growth by measuring vital bones as well as head (brain) and abdomen size. Your doctor will also send you for various blood tests to check if baby has any issues not seen on the scan. During this time you are sure to feel baby kick!
As you move into your 3rd trimester, you'll more than likely have a proper baby bump and are feeling baby on a regular basis. Between month 6 and 7, you will be able to do your 4D scan (up until 32 weeks ) and really get a good look at your little angel, however it all depends on if baby is camera shy or not, because if he decides to turn his head away, you will not be able to get the 'perfect picture' of your baby. Doctors checkups will move from 4 weeks to 3 to 2 and finally weekly as you move closer to your due date.
And that is when all the exciting stuff happens. Whether you decide to go natural or not, it is your decision and frankly I don't quite understand why so many people have such opinions about what method of birthing you decide on. In my opinion, I just want my baby to be happy and healthy and whatever is best for baby is good for me too.
For those of you who don't know, I have decided to go natural, so we will all just have to wait and see until when my bundle of joy decides to make his big debut.
Until then!