Welcome to Week 15 of Your Pregnancy!
Your Baby in Week 15 of Pregnancy
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Your baby is growing rapidly by week 15 of pregnancy as it will throughout the fourth month. By the end of the week, your baby will probably weigh between 4 and 6 ounces. This milestone puts the baby at nearly the same or slightly larger size than the placenta is itself. The placenta is providing the nourishment, hormones and blood to your baby, so make sure you are eating well and drinking lots of fluids. Before you know it, your baby will weigh several pounds!
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The baby’s body is also looking more proportional to its head size in week 15 of pregnancy! Your baby’s legs are now slightly longer than the arms are. The legs are still very skinny and see thru if a light were shined behind them, but the muscles are growing stronger every day and with each practice movement. This week, your baby’s legs are moving often, with both voluntary and reflexive movements. They will kick, twist, flex, bend and even look like they are running in place at times. Most likely you will not feel the movements yet, but the time is getting closer to when you will!
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Your baby’s ears are almost to their final destination on the head. During week 15 of pregnancy, the three bones inside of the inner ear are formed and begin hardening. The bones are very small, and the whole ear itself is smaller than the eraser on top of a pencil. The bones will continue to harden and the ears will be in the permanent location in the next week or two. The ears will then grow larger and work on gaining auditory functions.
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Yippee! At the end of this week, all of the major organs will have formed. It is during week 15 of pregnancy that the heart and the kidneys will have the most development to undergo. The kidneys have already been circulating amniotic fluid and practicing with the urinary tract system, but they continue to work more efficiently and grow stronger and larger every day. The heart will branch off in to the different chambers, and begin pumping blood through the circulatory system. The heart can be seen with an ultrasound and shows the blood moving in and out of the chambers of the heart.
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Things that will make your baby unique are beginning to form in week 15 of pregnancy. The eyebrows are starting to grow in over the eyes, even though they may be very fine, light, and hard to see. The hair on the scalp is also beginning to grow, but will remain hard to distinguish for many more weeks. Hair follicles will begin creating pigment if your baby is to have dark or red hair, but it won’t be visible yet. The hairs will not really have any color until later in the third trimester. The color and the texture will be apparent at birth, but may very well change again soon after the birth.
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The bones and marrow are making great strides during week 15 of pregnancy. The cartilage is turning into bone in more and more places in your baby. Before you know it, all of those bones will be formed and your baby will be ready for delivery!
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One fun thing is happening around week 15 of pregnancy within your belly. The baby will begin to respond to loud noises and to bright lights. Since there isn’t a lot of music or lights inside your uterus, the stimuli must happen outside of you. For instance, if you were to begin playing music close to your abdomen, the baby would be able to distinguish the vibrations of the melody. They wouldn’t be able to comprehend the words yet, but they could distinguish this tune from another.
- Playing a song over and over again while laying headphones over your belly may get your baby used to it and they will often learn to relax if it is a soothing sound. Once they are born, they may recognize the song and be comforted as soon as it is heard.
Your Body in Week 15 of Pregnancy
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One important thing to start thinking about in week 15 of pregnancy is whether or not you want to have an amniocentesis test. This test is done between weeks 15 and 19 and it is meant to look for specific conditions your baby may have. The amniocentesis can check for hundreds of birth defects, including Downs Syndrome, Cystic Fibrosis, Sickle Cell disease, Tay-Sachs and Spina Bifida. Amniocentesis tests are recommended for women who are older than 35 or those who have a history of birth defects in other deliveries.
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A nurse or a doctor who specializes in the testing, usually located in a hospital, performs an amniocentesis. First, an ultrasound is used to determine the exact location of the baby and where the highest concentration of amniotic fluid is. A long needle is then stuck where the amniotic fluid is and pulls it up. A lab looking for certain genetic indicators of a condition then checks the amnio fluid. Your doctor can help you decide if you should have one as there are certain risks associated with it.
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At your doctor visit around week 15 of pregnancy, the doctor will measure fundal height. Fundal height is measured with a little tape measure and starts where the top of your pubic bone lies and goes to where the top of your uterus is. The doctor can tell where the top of your uterus is by feeling around your stomach and abdomen. The larger the number on the tape measure, the farther along you are in your pregnancy.
- Using fundal height is like a backup method of telling when your due date is, in case you were unsure of when you became pregnant. By recording the fundal height, you may also be able to tell when the baby drops and when your body is preparing itself for delivery.
- Staying fit during your pregnancy may seem impossible, especially if you are having severe morning sickness. As soon as you can, it is important to start or continue with an exercise program. Exercising will keep you fit and ready for the delivery process.
- Exercise and proper nutrition will help ensure that your body systems maintain proper function, and will also help prevent constipation, muscle aches, weight gain and other troublesome problems. Swimming and walking are two great ways to get in shape, and keep weight gain down while not being too hard on your body.
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