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If you are 6 weeks pregnant and ovulating around the 14th day of the last menstrual cycle, the embryo should now measure 3 mm. This is less than a grain of rice, but by the end of this week, the developing embryo will be twice as large. Check what else changes in his body in the 6th week of pregnancy.
In the 6th week of pregnancy, most mothers-to-be already know that they have fertilized. You are probably wondering what your toddler looks like now and what is happening in his miniature body. If you could see the embryo now, the first association that would come to mind would probably not be a newborn baby at all, but a seahorse or some other primitive creature.
However, it is still impossible to see the baby closely at this time. It is true that on the ultrasound image you should see a pregnancy bubble over a centimeter (although pregnancy at this stage is sometimes invisible in the examination), however, the embryo inside it is only 6 mm at the beginning of the 3th week.
It is not an exact dimension, but a CRL (crown rump length) value. This coefficient is called the parietal-seat distance and, as the name suggests, it is the distance from the top of the embryo’s head to the end of its buttocks. This method of stating the size of the embryo is much more convenient for doctors because it is easier to measure this distance and use it to judge the age of pregnancy. Until approximately 10 weeks of gestation, the embryos develop at the same rate, so knowing the size of the pregnancy can be used to determine when fertilization took place.
6rd week of pregnancy – baby’s development
By the 6th week of pregnancy, your baby’s body changes a lot. From day to day, the beginnings of new tissues are formed, which will specialize in functional organs.
Do you think the newborn’s head is disproportionately large? This is nothing compared to the head of a six-week-old embryo. It now occupies a large part of the entire body. After the neural tube is closed, the brain slowly begins to form. There are already dark spots on the head that will transform into eyes. Ears are also beginning to form, which show up in the form of tiny dimples on either side of where the neck will be. There are also furrows at the bottom of the head, which will turn into the mouth and nose
Because on both sides of the “tadpole” you can also see even protrusions from which the limbs will form.
There is also a lot going on inside the tiny body. The embryo’s miniature heart now beats very quickly. The frequency of its beats ranges from 100 to even 160 per minute. The upper limit is twice the adult human heart rate. Interestingly, the heart is not four-piece like a newborn’s, but only two-piece. This will change when the circulatory system is fully developed. The heart has a lot to pump because the circulatory system is slowly activating.
The digestive system is developing intensively – your child will not eat food in the “traditional” way for more than seven months, the intestines are starting to develop. The liver also grows rapidly in the digestive system.
In the 6th week of pregnancy, tissue appears inside the embryo, from which the lungs will develop.
6st week of pregnancy – changes in your body
Many women remember the 6th week of pregnancy as the moment when all the unpleasant pregnancy symptoms hit them twice. What can you expect?
First of all, you will go to the bathroom very often. This is because chorionic gonadotropin increases blood flow through the lower abdomen, and the kidneys work twice as hard to filter the blood of toxic substances even better. Don’t hold back from drinking – you should drink plenty of fluids to keep your body hydrated.
Are you still tired? This is normal in the 6th week of pregnancy. If you feel you need to rest, just do it. But remember that a short walk can sometimes help you relax better than a full day on the couch. During the walk, you will additionally oxygenate the body, which is beneficial for the child.
Although not all women experience nausea and vomiting, it is quite common in the 6th week of pregnancy. The fact that you have an acute sense of smell also doesn’t help. Use trial and error to find out which food you respond well to – your body is now a very good barometer of what is good for your baby. However, remember not to eat raw meat, fish and seafood, blue cheese, or unpasteurized milk. Also, try to avoid highly processed foods.
On the part of the digestive system, other unpleasant symptoms may also appear, such as heartburn, gas and gas.
In the 6th week of pregnancy, breast tenderness is also normal. Do not worry about enlargement or change in the appearance of the nipples.
Especially important in the 6st week of pregnancy
In the first weeks of pregnancy, many women notice spotting and even blood drops from the genital tract. It is estimated that these symptoms appear in up to a quarter of women. Don’t panic – in many cases, spotting doesn’t mean that something disturbing is happening to the embryo. However, remember to inform your doctor about it at your next visit.
Tests in the 6st week of pregnancy
You should visit the gynecologist for the first time between the 6th and 8th week of pregnancy, so you can do it now. The doctor will conduct an extensive interview on him, during which he will determine whether there is a risk of any diseases and whether you need to perform additional tests. Then he will perform a gynecological examination, during which he will take a sample for cytology. The doctor will also examine your breasts, weigh and measure your height, and measure your blood pressure.
During this period, the doctor also orders a comprehensive urine test, blood test (including blood group determination, anti-Rh antibodies and blood count), fasting blood sugar and syphilis tests.
Your doctor can do an ultrasound as early as the 6th week of pregnancy, but you must remember that in some cases the embryo is not visible until the 8th week of pregnancy and if this is also the case for you, you should not worry about it. However, ultrasound should be performed for one more reason – to exclude an ectopic pregnancy or a condition in which the embryo develops outside the uterus.