Week 15
Your baby is now about 8.7 cm (3.4 in) from crown to rump and weighs roughly 43 g (1.5 oz), about the size of an apple. Babies vary, so these are averages, not targets. The eyes and ears are settling into their final places, the arms and legs bend at every joint, and your baby moves often, even though you will not feel it for a while yet.
You may notice your skin changing as pregnancy hormones nudge your pigment cells into action. Hair and nails can change too.
This week covers amniocentesis for those who are offered it, darker patches and lines on the skin, vaccines that protect you and your baby, and the slow, uneven way that feeling connected to a pregnancy can grow.
Day 99 · 14 weeks 0 days
Your baby may already sense light
Your baby's eyelids are still fused shut and will stay that way until around 26 weeks. Underneath them, though, the eyes have moved from the sides of the head toward the front of the face. The light-sensing cells at the back of the eye are developing, and before long your baby may be able to tell when bright light falls on your belly, even through closed lids and your own body.
The ears are moving up from the neck to sit at the sides of the head. Taste buds are forming on the tongue, and the amniotic fluid your baby swallows carries hints of flavour from what you eat. There is some evidence that this early exposure shapes taste preferences later on.
Your baby's movements are getting busier and smoother. Elbows, wrists, knees and ankles all bend now, and your baby turns, stretches and kicks in the fluid. The womb still has plenty of room, which is one reason you cannot feel any of this yet. Most people notice the first flutters somewhere between 16 and 22 weeks, and later in a first pregnancy.
Try this: Eat one meal today with a flavour you love and would happily share with your child one day.
Day 100 · 14 weeks 1 day
What happens during an amniocentesis
An amniocentesis is a diagnostic test, not a screening test. It is usually offered after a higher chance screening result, a scan finding, or a family history of a genetic condition. It is normally done from 15 weeks, so if you are considering it, it may be booked for next week or later.
Using ultrasound to guide them, a specialist passes a thin needle through your belly into the sac around your baby and draws off a small amount of amniotic fluid, roughly a tablespoon. The fluid contains cells shed by your baby, which are then tested. The needle part takes only a minute or two. Most people describe it as uncomfortable rather than painful, with some pressure or a brief cramp.
The procedure carries a small added chance of miscarriage, generally quoted as under 1 in 200. If your blood type is Rh negative, you will usually be given an anti-D injection afterward. Quick results for the most common conditions often come back within a few days, with full results in about two to three weeks.
Plan to take it easy for the rest of the day. Mild cramping is common. Call your care provider if after an amniocentesis you have fluid leaking from your vagina, bleeding, a fever or chills, or cramping that gets stronger instead of settling.
For your partner: If an amniocentesis is booked, arrange to drive home afterward and take over chores and errands for the rest of the day.
Day 101 · 14 weeks 2 days
A dark line down your belly is called linea nigra
Around now, some people notice a faint brown line running down the middle of the belly, from the navel to the pubic bone, and sometimes higher. This is the linea nigra, Latin for "black line". It was always there as a pale line you could not see. Pregnancy hormones stimulate the cells that make pigment, and the line darkens.
The same thing can happen elsewhere. Nipples and the skin around them (the areolas) often get darker and larger. Freckles, moles, scars, the inner thighs, the armpits and the genital area may darken too. These changes tend to be more noticeable on darker skin, and they are harmless. Most of this pigment fades gradually in the months after birth, though it can take up to a year and some may not disappear completely. There is nothing you need to do to treat it, and creams sold to prevent it have no good evidence behind them.
Moles can grow slightly darker in pregnancy, but they should not change much in other ways.
Call your care provider if a mole changes shape, grows quickly, develops uneven edges or several colours, itches, or bleeds. These are worth having checked whether or not you are pregnant.
Try this: Take a quick look at any moles you have today so you know what is normal for you.
Day 102 · 14 weeks 3 days
Sun protection helps keep melasma in check
Melasma, sometimes called the mask of pregnancy, shows up as patches of brown or grey-brown skin on the face. It usually appears on the cheeks, forehead, upper lip, nose or chin, often in a fairly even pattern on both sides. It is common in pregnancy, especially in people with medium to darker skin tones or a family history of it.
It is caused by the same hormone-driven boost in pigment that darkens the linea nigra, and sunlight makes it much worse. Even a short time outdoors, or sun through a car window, can deepen the patches.
Prevention is the best tool you have. Use a broad-spectrum sunscreen of SPF 30 or higher every day, rain or shine, and reapply if you are outside for long. Mineral sunscreens with zinc oxide or titanium dioxide are a gentle choice. A wide-brimmed hat and shade at midday help too. Melasma often fades in the months after birth, though sometimes slowly. Skip treatments for now. Retinoid creams, including tretinoin, should be avoided in pregnancy, and you should check with your care provider or pharmacist before using any skin-lightening product. If patches remain after pregnancy and breastfeeding, a doctor can talk you through options. Try this: Put a bottle of sunscreen next to your toothbrush so applying it becomes part of your morning routine.
Day 103 · 14 weeks 4 days
Vaccines in pregnancy protect two people at once
Pregnancy changes the immune system, and some infections, including flu and COVID-19, are more likely to make you seriously ill now. Vaccines help prevent that. They also do something more: the antibodies you make cross the placenta and help protect your baby in the first months of life, before they can have their own vaccines.
Health authorities recommend the flu shot for anyone who is pregnant during flu season, at any stage of pregnancy. The flu shot is an inactivated vaccine and cannot give you flu. The nasal spray version is a live vaccine and is not used in pregnancy. In many places, a COVID-19 vaccine is also recommended in pregnancy.
Later on you will be offered a whooping cough vaccine, and in some places a vaccine against RSV, a common virus that can be serious in young babies. You will read more about these nearer the time. Live vaccines, such as measles, mumps and rubella or chickenpox, are not given in pregnancy. If your booking blood tests showed you are not immune, you can have them after the birth.
Call your care provider if you develop a fever with cough, aches or a sore throat. Call promptly, as antiviral treatment for flu works best when started early. Get help right away if you have trouble breathing or chest pain.
Try this: Check when your last flu and COVID-19 vaccines were, and ask your care provider or pharmacist where you can get any that are due.
Day 104 · 14 weeks 5 days
Feeling connected can take its time
Some people feel a deep bond with their baby from the first positive test. Many do not. It is common to feel that the pregnancy is real in theory but not yet in your body, especially before you can feel movement. That is not a sign that anything is wrong, with you or with the bond you will have later.
There are lots of reasons attachment can be slow. The pregnancy may have been unplanned, or arrived at a hard time. If you have had a loss before, you may be holding back on purpose, waiting to feel safe. Long weeks of nausea can leave little room for anything but getting through the day. Connection often grows in small steps. Seeing a scan, hearing the heartbeat at an appointment, choosing a nickname or noticing your bump in a mirror can each add a little. Some people write short letters to the baby or keep a notebook of the pregnancy. Others prefer to wait, and that is fine too. Feeling detached is different from feeling low. Call your care provider if for two weeks or more you feel down, empty or hopeless most days, or have lost interest in things you usually enjoy. Get help right away if you have thoughts of harming yourself.
Try this: Write one sentence about how you feel about this pregnancy today, honest and unedited, and date it.
Day 105 · 14 weeks 6 days
Thicker hair, faster nails and a few new skin quirks
Higher hormone levels change the normal cycle of hair growth. Fewer hairs fall out each day, so many people find their hair looks thicker and shinier in pregnancy. The extra hair usually sheds a few months after birth, which can be alarming but is temporary. Some people also grow more hair on the face, belly or back. This tends to settle after the baby arrives. Nails often grow faster in pregnancy. For some they get stronger, for others softer and more likely to split. Keeping them short and wearing gloves for washing up can help.
You may notice small, soft skin tags on the neck, under the arms or under the breasts, where skin rubs. They are harmless and sometimes drop off after birth. Tiny red spots with thin lines spreading from the centre, called spider veins, can appear on the face, neck or arms, from increased blood flow. These usually fade too.
If you want to colour or treat your hair, the small amounts of dye absorbed through the scalp are not thought to be harmful. Use a well-ventilated room, follow the instructions and do a patch test, as your skin may react differently now.
Try this: Take a photo of your hair today, so you have something to look back on when it changes again after the birth.