Your womb continues to grow from one day to the next. During this time, it will start filling in your pelvic cavity and expanding outwards, giving the impression of a soft smooth ball. You can now start your transition from your usual clothes to pregnancy garments. As your body weight increases you may be plagued by back and lower back aches and pains. You should avoid hard work. Leaning and bending too much or stretching up high could be tiring for an expectant mother and cause damage to the spinal cord leading to lower back pain. These weeks almost mark the midway through your pregnancy, and you are now feeling much closer to your baby. The hardships you experienced at the beginning of your pregnancy are almost over in this period. Due to the changes taking place in your vessels and the dilution of your blood, you might suffer from gum and nose bleeds and nasal congestion. By avoiding excessively warm and dry environments and keeping the place where you are humid, you can, to a certain extent, overcome this problem.
During these weeks, mainly the body of your baby will be developing and the result will be a more balanced look with his/her head. The baby is now as big as the mother’s palm. The bone structure in his/her legs and arms further strengthens. The majority of the time the mother becomes aware of her baby’s movements, starting from the 16th week. The movements are perceived as tiny twitches or fluttering of a butterfly’s wings. The entire body and head of the baby are covered with fine hair called lanugo. The sebaceous and sweat glands become functional in this period. The functioning of the digestive system, stomach, and gall bladder produces the first stools in the bowels. The kidneys continue functioning and the baby’s pee is mixed into the amniotic fluid.
The brain starts to administer to the heart. The heartbeats are now more regular. Swallowing and sucking reflexes improve preparing the baby for the outside world.
At the end of the 17th week, the baby is approximately 12 cm long and weighs 120 grams.
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