Week 25
Your baby is about 30 cm (11.8 in) long from crown to heel, roughly the length of a school ruler, and weighs about 600 g (1 lb 5 oz). Babies vary, so yours may be a little longer, shorter, lighter or heavier. Your baby is still filling out, and the skin is thickening and turning from see-through to pink. For you, the bump is changing your balance, and pregnancy hormones are affecting everything from your wrists to your bladder. This week covers tingling hands, what your care provider measures at each visit, staying steady on your feet, urinary infections, foggy thinking, and helping an older child or a pet get ready for the new arrival.
Day 169 · 24 weeks 0 days
Your baby's skin is turning from see-through to pink
Earlier in pregnancy, your baby's skin was so thin that the blood vessels beneath it showed through. Now it is changing. Tiny blood vessels called capillaries are forming just under the surface, giving the skin a pinker, redder look, and the skin itself is building up more layers.
The fat you read about in week 20 is part of this change. As it collects under the skin, the wrinkles start to smooth out, though your baby will look lean and a little loose-skinned for some weeks yet. Sweat glands are forming too, although they will not do much until well after birth. Skin colour at birth is not the final shade. Melanin, the pigment that gives skin its colour, keeps building after birth, so many babies, especially those with darker-skinned parents, are born with lighter skin that deepens over the first months.
Inside the uterus, the creamy vernix coating protects the skin from soaking in amniotic fluid. After birth, the skin often peels a little in the first weeks as it adjusts to the air. That is normal and needs no treatment. Try this: At your next scan or visit, ask how your baby's growth is tracking, and write the answer down to look back on later.
Day 170 · 24 weeks 1 day
Tingling hands have a simple explanation
If your fingers feel numb, tingly or clumsy, especially at night or first thing in the morning, you are not alone. Carpal tunnel syndrome is common in pregnancy, mostly in the second half. The extra fluid your body holds can swell the tissues in your wrist and press on the nerve that runs through a narrow channel there, the carpal tunnel.
It usually affects the thumb, index and middle fingers. Some people notice a dull ache in the wrist or forearm, or find they drop things more easily. Repetitive tasks, such as typing or using a phone for long stretches, can make it worse.
A wrist splint worn at night, which keeps the wrist straight, helps many people. Shaking out your hands, taking breaks from repetitive work and keeping your wrists level on the keyboard all help too. Sleeping with your hands bent under your pillow or chin often makes it worse. The good news is that it usually improves within weeks of birth.
Call your care provider if your hands are weak, you cannot grip, the numbness is constant, or your hands and face swell suddenly, especially with a headache or changes in your vision.
Try this: Each hour you spend at a desk or on your phone today, stop and gently shake out your hands for 30 seconds.
Day 171 · 24 weeks 2 days
What your care provider is checking at each visit
Second-trimester appointments can feel short, but each one covers several checks. Your blood pressure is measured every time. A rise can be one of the first signs of pre-eclampsia, often before you feel anything, so each reading is compared with your earlier ones. Your urine may be tested for protein, which can point to the same problem, or for sugar or signs of infection.
Your care provider will also listen to your baby's heartbeat and measure your bump. You read about that measurement, the fundal height, in week
- 20. What matters is how it changes from visit to visit.
Just as important are the questions. You will likely be asked how your baby is moving, how you are sleeping and eating, and how you are feeling in yourself. Answer honestly. Headaches, swelling, itching, low mood or worries at home all count, and small details can change what your care provider looks for.
Visits are often every four weeks at this stage and become more frequent in the third trimester. If you keep your own copy of your records, look at your blood pressure readings so you know your usual range.
Try this: Before your next visit, jot down your baby's usual busy times and any new symptoms, so you have answers ready.
Day 172 · 24 weeks 3 days
Your centre of gravity is shifting
As your bump grows forward, your centre of gravity moves with it. Your joints are also looser, because of pregnancy hormones, and you may not see your feet as easily as you used to. Together, these changes make trips and slips more likely.
Some simple habits help. Wear low, supportive shoes with good grip. Hold the railing on stairs, and take them slowly. Keep floors clear of cords and clutter, and use a non-slip mat in the shower. This is a good time to stop climbing ladders or standing on chairs.
In the car, wear your seat belt every time. Put the lap belt low, under your bump and across your hips, and the shoulder strap between your breasts and to the side of your bump. Never put the belt across the top of your bump.
Most minor falls do not harm the baby, who is well cushioned by fluid and muscle. Still, it is worth getting checked after any real fall or bump to the belly.
Get help right away if you fall onto your belly, are in a car crash, or have bleeding, leaking fluid, belly pain, regular tightenings, or fewer movements after a fall or blow, even if you feel fine otherwise. Try this: Walk through your home today and move one thing you could trip over.
Day 173 · 24 weeks 4 days
Urinary infections need quick treatment in pregnancy
Pregnancy makes urinary tract infections more likely. Hormones relax the tubes that carry urine from the kidneys, and the growing uterus presses on the bladder, so urine can sit longer and bacteria can multiply. The usual signs are burning or stinging when you pee, needing to go often or urgently, passing only small amounts, cloudy or strong-smelling urine, or pain low in the belly. Because you already need to pee more in pregnancy, it can be easy to miss. The key differences are the burning and the feeling that you still need to go right after you have been. Treatment matters more now than at other times. An untreated bladder infection can travel up to the kidneys, which can make you quite ill and is linked with preterm labour. Antibiotics that are safe in pregnancy work well. Many care providers also test your urine early in pregnancy, because some infections cause no symptoms at all.
To lower your risk, drink plenty of water, pee when you feel the urge, empty your bladder after sex, and wipe from front to back.
Call your care provider if you have burning, stinging or blood when you pee. Get help right away if you have a fever, chills, pain in your back or side, or vomiting.
Try this: Keep a full water bottle within reach today and refill it each time it is empty.
Day 174 · 24 weeks 5 days
Forgetful lately? You are in good company
Lost keys, a word on the tip of your tongue, walking into a room and forgetting why. Many pregnant people notice that their thinking feels a little foggier. It is common enough to have earned a nickname, "pregnancy brain".
Research suggests the changes are real but small, and they do not mean you are any less capable. Broken sleep, the physical work of growing a baby, and a mind busy with plans and worries all compete for your attention. Studies also show that the brain changes during pregnancy in ways that may help with caring for a newborn.
Practical tools make a difference. Write things down, set reminders on your phone, and keep keys and other daily items in one fixed spot. Do one task at a time where you can. If you are tired, the most useful fix is often more rest rather than more effort.
Be kind to yourself, and let people around you know you may need a reminder now and then. This is a phase, and for most people their focus returns as sleep improves after the early months with a baby.
Try this: Choose one place by your door for your keys, wallet and phone, and use it every day this week.
Day 175 · 24 weeks 6 days
Helping an older child or pet get ready
If you already have a child, they may sense changes before you explain them. How much to tell, and when, depends on their age. Toddlers have little sense of time, so it often works to wait until the bump is obvious and link the birth to something they understand, such as "after the summer". Older children may want more detail and a role to play.
Books about new siblings, looking at their own baby photos, and practising gentle touch with a doll can all help. Try to make any big changes, such as moving to a new bed or starting child care, well before the birth, so they do not feel pushed out by the baby. Expect some regression or clinginess later. It is normal, and it passes.
Pets need preparing too. In the coming months, you can play recordings of baby sounds, let a dog or cat explore the baby's things, and shift routines gradually to the times they will happen after the birth. Never leave a pet alone with a baby.
For your partner: Plan some regular one-on-one time with the older child, or take over the pet's walks or care, so the routine is settled before the baby arrives.