Baby and PregnancyA blog from mosesbasketbedding.co.uk

2 Weeks Pregnant

§ November 8th, 2010 § Filed under Pregnancy, Pregnancy Week by Week, Uncategorized Comments Off

Maternal Pregnancy Symptoms

For the majority of women, week 2 is when your fertile phase starts. In a woman with a 28 day cycle ovulation will occur between day 14 and 18, counting the first day of the last menstrual period as day 1. The length of time you are fertile for is down to individual differences but is generally 4 or 5 days, starting several days before and including the day you ovulate.

As you approach ovulation, your cervical mucus should increase in quantity and will become more stretchy and slippery, (it is often compared to the consistency of egg whites). This type of cervical mucus will optimise the chances of the sperm reaching the egg. If ovulation has not yet happened, there is still a chance of conception occurring as sperm can survive up to 5 days. Once the egg has been released by the ovary there is a 12 to 24 hour period in which fertilization must occur otherwise the egg will become unviable. If you find monitoring your cervical mucus changes difficult, there are ovulation predictor kits which can help tell you when you are fertile and when you have ovulated.

Some people believe that abstaining from sex until the fertile period will lead to an increase of sperm – and therefore a greater chance of conception – when the man ejaculates. This is not scientifically backed. In fact, most scientists agree that abstaining for more than 10 days actually negatively affects the quality of sperm. Having regular sex is the best way to conceive a baby, although this can be every two to three days rather than every day.

It is a bit of a taboo to say that you would prefer a particular sex of child, but anonymous polls have shown that approximately 40 percent of couples would choose the gender if it were possible. There are plenty of theories about how you can increase the chances of a girl or a boy. The most popular theory is the Shettle’s method.

If you are familiar with your menstrual cycle and can pinpoint you fertile period and date of ovulation, the Shettle’s method claims that timing sexual intercourse can help produce a specific gender. To conceive a girl it is said you should have sex 4 or 5 days before ovulation, the idea being that male sperm do not survive as long and only female (X chromosome) sperm will remain when the egg is released. To conceive a boy you should have sex on the day of ovulation as male (Y chromosome) sperm are faster swimmers and will reach the egg first. Most scientists dismiss the theory and more recent studies have not duplicated Dr Shettle’s results.

Even if you do everything right, getting pregnant often isn’t easy. With perfect conditions and timing, the odds of succeeding are still only between 20% and 25%. But the majority of couples will conceive within a year. If you are under 30 and have been trying for 12 months or more, make an appointment with your doctor to check that there are no underlying medical issues that are affecting either partner’s fertility. If you over 35, you should seek medical advice after 6 months of trying unsuccessfully.

Fetal Development

The egg is likely to be released into the fallopian tube at the end of this week – or early next week – ready to be fertilized.

1 Week Pregnant

§ November 1st, 2010 § Filed under Pregnancy, Pregnancy Week by Week, Uncategorized Comments Off

Maternal Pregnancy Symptoms

If you came to this page looking for early pregnancy symptoms in the days following conception, we’ll be covering that soon in a post entitled “3 weeks pregnant”. Since it easier for many women to pinpoint the date of their last menstrual period than it is to estimate the date of conception, pregnancy weeks are counted from the first day of the last period. This means that if you have an average 28 day cycle conception usually occurs on what would be considered the end of week 2 of the pregnancy, or the start of week 3.

During week 1, you should be preparing your body for conception. It is recommended that all pregnant women should take folic acid supplements during the first trimester, as taking 400mg a day has been proven to significantly reduce the risk of the baby developing neural tube defects such as spina bifida. For greatest benefit, you should start taking the folic acid as soon as you start trying to conceive rather than waiting for a positive pregnancy test. You can also boost your folic acid naturally by eating more beans, pulses and leafy green vegetables.

A healthy lifestyle can slightly increase your chances of conception and will also get your pregnancy off to a good start, so before you and your partner start trying for a baby you may want to ensure you are eating a balanced diet and taking regular exercise.

While many people carry on drinking alcohol while trying to conceive with no problem, there is evidence that even moderate intake does decrease the odds of conception to some extent. For example, in a study of 430 couples over the course of 6 menstrual cycles, 64% of women with a moderate intake conceived while 55% of women drinking in excess of 5 units per week conceived. This trend remained even when other factors, such as body mass index, medical conditions, etc, were considered. So if you are serious about getting pregnant, it can be beneficial to look at your alcohol intake.

If you are a smoker and haven’t already started trying to quit, speak to your doctor for advice about stopping now. Not only is smoking during pregnancy linked to a higher risk of miscarriage, pre-term birth and low birth weight babies, it can decrease the odds of falling pregnant in the first place. Studies have shown that male fertility is also negatively affected by smoking so ideally both partners should try to quit or cut down.

Fetal Development

Using the medical definition of “1 week pregnant”, your baby does not yet exist. For most women, their fertile phase has not started and the egg will not yet have been released by the ovary. The exception to this is women who typically have very short menstrual cycles (from 21 days). If you have regular periods you can estimate your ovulation date and fertile period by deducting 14 days from the date your next period is due. This is because ovulation is followed by a 10 to 14 day luteal phase, which is when the corpus luteum secretes the progesterone necessary for the endometrium to prepare itself for the implantation of the newly formed embryo. Your fertile period is the 4 to 5 days prior to ovulation. By these calculations, a person with a 3 week menstrual cycle may already be fertile in the days following menstruation and can start trying to conceive. A woman with a more average 28 day cycle will need to wait till week 2 before trying for a baby.