20 Weeks Pregnant

20 weeks pregnant is how many months? Is the middle of the 5th month or the 2nd trimester.

What to Expect at 20 Weeks Pregnant

The fetus continues to develop actively on the 2oth week of pregnancy. The fetus moves, spins, yawns, turns over and, from time to time, pulls the umbilical cord. The skin is formed out of 4 layers. The oil gland produces the grease that fills in all the creases on the skin of the fetus.

The light fluff on the body of the fetus keeps the grease and protects the fetus while it is matures. That’s why the grease is washed off the skin only after the baby is born. The cardiovascular system continues to form during this period of time.

A mother can listen to the heartbeat of the baby. This is possible with the help of the sonic tube. This can be done when a woman goes to visit her doctor. The weight of the fetus is approximately up to 300 g.

What’s Going on With the Baby

What my baby looks like at 20 weeks pregnant? Despite the fact that the eyes are still closed, the baby already reacts to light. In the end of this period the weight of the baby will get to 300 g. His/her height is 25 cm, the skin gets thicker. The grease on the skin protects the baby from various fluids. later on, this fact will help the baby come into the world easier and unharmed.

The peculiar characteristic of the 20th week is that a mother feels her baby’s movements. This is exactly the time when the baby actively lets the mother know about his/her presence. Consequently, the mother can fully feel and realize that there’s a new life inside her. The baby moves, pushes off with hands and legs, reacts to loud sounds and swims inside the uterus by pushing off its walls.

With every new day, the moves of the baby become stronger and more perceptible. If the baby moves too often or too rarely, a woman should pay attention to the character of these moves. In this case, it’s better to go to the doctor. The baby may lack oxygen.

From this moment on, a woman starts feeling unpleasant sensations, pain, cramping and cramps. Such unpleasant sensations like epigastric burning, constipation, enuresis and being out of breath occur as a result of the grown uterus that now presses on the inner organs. After the baby is born they will disappear and you’ll forget about the feeling of discomfort.

The pains in the small of the back and in the back will also disappear. They occur due to the fact that a woman has gained weight and her center of gravity has shifted. The pain in the area of the back also occurs because there’s a bigger load on the joints. In order to get rid of it the doctors recommend doing particular exercises that will get your spine to its normal condition. There’s also a need to give up wearing uncomfortable or high heeled shoes.

This will help decreasing the spine overall load. As a result, these unpleasant sensations will stop disturbing you. Having spasm that occur in legs is one more common case. It occurs because of a bigger weight that leads to a higher load on legs. In order to get rid of these unpleasant sensations it’s necessary to give time for your legs to rest more often and make footbaths and foot massages.

Belly and Uterus at 20 Weeks Pregnancy

This period is called a frontier of pregnancy since its overall period is 40 weeks. Therefore, a future mother should understand that she’s gone through one half of this path. On this stage, it is already possible to see that a woman is pregnant. The most evident things are the facts that the belly is now round and located a bit higher, the waist starts to lose its shape and curves,

The skin in the area of belly is also changed. Since the uterus has gone up and become bigger, it’s now harder to breathe. Red spots appear on the belly. Later on, they will disappear because the baby will change the location. He or she will be located in the pelvis area. This is exactly the time to use such means that will prevent the appearance of the stretches in the area of belly. Various oils, ointments, gels and creams allow a woman to keep her skin the way it was before pregnancy.

You need to buy such things either in drugstores or in special shops that sell this kind of products. You need to use them once or twice a day. You need to rub them in the skin in the areas of hips, belly and breasts. Using these means, you should keep in mind that they are only effective if they apply them regularly.

These expensive means can be replaced by equally effective vegetable oils (olive or almond oils). Before you start using any means of this kind, it’s necessary to consult your gynecologist. This way you will make sure that they won’t harm you and your baby.

20 Weeks Pregnant Belly Pictures Showing

Images: bellies at 20 weeks 5 days pregnant.

On the 20th week of pregnancy false labor pains occur. They are, in fact, recurring contractions of the uterus. A woman shouldn’t be worried, if she notices such like process going on in her organism. This is just uterus getting ready for the labor.

This is the period when the uterus grows and, consequently, the belly also becomes bigger, The belly is located on the level of the navel. The bottom of the uterus is 12 cm higher than the pubic symphysis.

Ultrasonic Investigation

Ultrasonic investigation and various tests play an important role in the way the course of pregnancy goes. Exactly these 2 things are able to give all information about what’s going on in the organism of a woman, determine the condition of the baby and how well he or she is developed. After the 20th week, a woman should consult her doctor not once, but twice a month.

On this stage, ultrasonic investigation is carried out in order to determine the condition of the fetus and how well it is developed. With thee help of ultrasonic investigation you can determine the sex of the baby, the condition of the placenta. You can also see if there are any abnormalities and pathologies in the organism of the baby. The investigation can show you the way inner organs of the baby (liver, lungs, intestines, stomach and other organs upon which the life of the baby depends) are formed. The heart is thoroughly examined on this stage. This is for the reason that exactly heart has recently become the major cause of pathologies and disorders in the process of baby’s development.

On the 20th week the organs of the fetus are almost completely formed. During the rest of the weeks, these organs are going to improve and get to the point of their optimal functioning. The organs of respiratory, digestive and blood circulation systems work in their full value. The heartbeat becomes easier and easier to hear, even with the help of a stethoscope.

Nervous system functions as well. The baby spins and moves actively in the belly of a mother. The way the baby looks becomes more and more detailed and shaped. There are nails that appear on the hands and legs that are also shaped sharply now. Fluff starts to appear on the places where there will be eyelashes and eyebrows. First hairs appear on the head. The baby is now able to hear sounds. That’s why, from now on, a future mother should start talking with the baby, sings lullabies or baby songs for him and her and avoid loud sounds.

20 Weeks Ultrasound Scan Pictures

20 Weeks Pregnant Ultrasound Gender

20 Weeks Ultrasound Boy:

20 Weeks Ultrasound Girl:

20 Weeks Ultrasound Twins

Painful Sensations

If there’s pain occurring on this stage, this is a very dangerous symptom. Whatever the character of the pain is, it is very important to consult a doctor. This way you can avoid the situation of a uterine hypertonus that can lead to a miscarriage. If a woman feels great pain in the belly, consulting a doctor is a necessity. You should put it off since your baby’s life may be at stake.

If the pain is accompanied by bleeding or brown discharge. This may speak of a threatened abortion. Discharges without blood that are not accompanied by pain may mean that there’s a process of the placenta detachment going on or placental presentation. Bloody discharges after sex or gynecological examination mean that there’s cervical erosion. Green or yellow discharges of cheesy consistency mean that there’s an infection in the organism of a woman.

The infection is also accompanied by itching and burning of the skin in the area of vagina. Upon noticing such like symptoms, a woman should urgently consult her gynecologists in order to make tests and get the necessary treatment. Here, it is not advisable to try curing the infection on your own as there’s a great danger of harming the baby’s health. Optimal colour for the discharges is greyish with a milky shadow. They should also smell sour and be of a homogeneous consistency. Exactly this kind of discharge show that the course of pregnancy is going normally.

Weight at 20 Weeks

By the 20th week it is normal if a woman gains from 5-7 kg. If she gains more, the fetal development of the baby and the process of labor may be more complicated. A pregnant woman should pay attention to the process of gaining weight and keep in mind that, as a rule, she should gain up to 500 g. a week.

Nutrition

It’s necessary to stick to a balanced way of nutrition and eat according to a strict regime during the course of pregnancy. The principles of nurturing stay unchanged not only during this period, but also during the whole course of pregnancy. You should graze on food. Grazing will allow you to keep metabolism’s rate high. This, in turn, contributes to an effective digestion of the food and will prevent putrefactive process in the stomach.

If you stick to this rule, the toxicosis won’t disturb you. Instead, a pregnant woman will have a good appetite. It is very important that the products a woman eats during this period are as natural and useful as they can be. The food ration should include various kinds of vitamins in big amounts and natural minerals. The caloric value of breakfast and lunch should be full, but dinner should be lighter and have less calories.

The base of the menu in this period should include:

• lean meat and fish;
• vegetables;
• fruits;
• dairy products;
• porridges.

You’d better boil, bake, stew products or prepare them on steam. It’s necessary to exclude canned and fries foods. In case a woman wants to eat any unhealthy product, it is recommended to replace it with a useful alternative. For example, a desire for chocolate can be satisfied with fruits. In case of chocolate, the organism would get useless carbohydrates. By eating fruits, you’ll provide your organism with useful vitamins and cellular tissue.

By eating carrot, fish and broccoli, a pregnant woman gets vitamin A and folic acid. Porridges will provide the organism with vitamin B. Buckwheat porridge will give her iron – a very useful element. It is recommended to cut down on the amount of salt. This way water won’t stay long in the organism and legs won’t swell.

20 Weeks Pregnant: Learn About Your Baby's Development

Sex at 20 Weeks Pregnancy

On this stage a pregnant woman should refuse having sex. Having sex is quite possible if there aren’t any contradictions you were told about by your doctor.

However, you should take into account several things:

• choose the positions that exclude the belly being pressed;
• be more passive as far as your movements are concerned;
• pay attention to the way you feel.

If there’s any discomfort or painful sensations occurring, it’s necessary to stop sexual intercourse and consult a doctor as soon as possible.

Tests

It’s necessary to make blood tests in order to determine the level of sugar in blood, avert the development of anemia and detect any concealed processes in kidneys. This is accompanied by ultrasonic investigation that may be carried out together with having your blood tested for biochemicals. This test allows to determine the level of HCG in the organism and any abnormalities in the way the baby develops.

Missed Abortion

Missed abortion is one of the dangers that may occur during this period. The symptoms of it are the baby that stops moving and the belly that stops growing. If a woman notices such like symptoms, she should consult her doctor and undergo an examination. Examination will definitely say if this is the case of a missed abortion. If it confirms, the woman is, then, hospitalized so that the doctors can take the fetus out of her organism. From the very moment a missed abortion is confirmed, the fetus becomes dangerous for the health of a woman.

The reason of why a missed abortion is so dangerous is because a woman determine it not right away. Of course, later on it will be confirmed but all this time the fetus will be a source of a woman’s organism intoxication. Once the fetus is completely removed from a woman’s body, she should undergo an examination once again and make sure that it was removed completely. Getting ready for the next pregnancy, the woman should find out about the causes of the missed abortion and do everything she can in order to keep herself and the life of her next baby safe.

The causes of a missed abortions may be different. There can be anything starting from hormonal disorders and stresses to drinking alcohol and taking drugs. This is no time for being in despair and losing all hope. It is very important to find out what the cause was and restore health during the following year. According to the doctors’ opinion, after a year, a woman may start planning getting pregnant again. Once the health is restored, this second pregnancy may go smoothly.

So that to prevent a missed abortion occurring for the second time it is necessary to stick to all the rules and pieces of advice that your doctor gives you. It’s also important to avoid stressful situations and get rid of pernicious habits. If a pregnant woman notices that there’s a long uterine hypertonus and pains in the lower part of the belly, this means that she needs to take measures in order to keep her pregnancy. If a baby is born prematurely on this stage, he or she may not survive.

Considering the possibility of this danger during the course of pregnancy, each woman should be very responsible about it. When a woman is consulting her doctor, she should ask all the questions she has. It’s better to find out the opinion of a professional than using the information from unchecked resourced.

Miscarriage at 20 Weeks

Week 20 is the deadline, on which a miscarriage could happen, later this is called premature birth, and the born fetus is called premature or stillborn child.

Causes of Miscarriage at Week 20

Causes of miscarriage at the 20th week can be:

• any chromosomal abnormalities, congenital malformations of the fetus, incompatible with life;
• intrauterine infections;
• rhesus conflict of mother and child;
• severe disease of the mother (e.g., diabetes, blood diseases);
• cervical incompetence;
• injuries, intoxication, shock of any etiology in the mother.

Symptoms and Signs of Miscarriage at the 20th Week of Pregnancy

The first symptoms that on the 20th week has appeared a threat of miscarriage is a pain in the abdomen, acute or aching, which indicates that the uterus is contracting. Over time, the pain becomes cramp-like, may appear brown or bloody spotting (especially with contractions in place of attachment of the placenta and its full or partial abruption).

The fetus may die due to circulatory disorders and a woman ceases to feel its movements, if they have already been. A gynecologist can not determine the heartbeat of the fetus, causes of miscarriage at 20 week, when a full miscarriage at 20 weeks happens, then an alive or dead fetus is born and its membrane. In case of incomplete miscarriage in the uterine cavity part of membranes remains, and it cannot contract. This leads to bleeding, which stops only after curettage of the uterine cavity.

Diagnose the threat of miscarriage, fetal death, complete or incomplete miscarriage, can be done after ultrasound examinations of a woman. After a miscarriage a woman is recommended to abstain for half a year from subsequent pregnancies. She definitely needs to undergo an examination by a gynecologist to determine the reasons of miscarriage and eliminate the threat for future pregnancies.

Recommendations for Women

It is very useful to do special sets of exercises for pregnant women, walk more, stick to the principles of having a healthy life, quit all the pernicious habits and try to avoid stressful situations.

From the very first days of pregnancy, it is important to get ready for the future role of mother morally. You may visit courses for future mothers. It’s necessary that you talk with your baby and love him or her even before he or she comes into the world.

Video Guide: 20 weeks pregnancy

Twin Pregnancy at 20 Weeks

One half of the pregnancy course has passed. However, for a woman that has multiple pregnancy this time is more than one half. The thing is that the cases when women with multiple pregnancies happen to make it till the 40th week are extremely rare. In the majority of cases, the process of labor starts on the 37th week.

Both the fetuses have significantly grown up and a woman can feel them actively moving very often. However, the twins spend the majority of time sleeping. When they wake up, they start moving actively since there’s yet enough space to do so. They swallow the labor waters.

The intestines already work. They digest the skin cells that are died off. These cells swim in the labor waters. All products of life that are not digested go into the large intestine. There meconium, the so-called first-born fecal matter is formed. The fetus will get rid of it during the first 24 hours after having been born.

The twins urinate into the labor waters. This is part of their renewal cycle since during 24 hours the waters’ composition changes several times. It is important to say that in case of a multiple pregnancy there’s often a situation when one of the babies has a surplus of waters. This is how it happens:

If the placentas are connected with each other by a kind of a vessel or a shunt, a bigger amount of blood nay get to one of the babies. That’s why this baby will urinate more and gain more weight. That’s why there’s usually a difference in the weight of just born twins. There’s no medical method that can rectify this situation. However, it’s not dangerous for the babies. Usually, the baby that weighs less will surely gain it after he or she is born.