12 WEEKS PREGNANT SYMPTOMS

Here’s the good news about 12 weeks pregnant symptoms: morning sickness and fatigue may start to fade a bit soon, as your hormones start to calm down. The bad? Headaches and dizziness may replace them. We’ll take that trade-off. Here’s more info about what’s happening to your body at 12 weeks pregnant:

• Increased discharge. This clear discharge might seem weird, but it’s normal and has an important purpose: to protect your vagina from infection. But if you have yellow, greenish, pink, or brown discharge during pregnancy week 12, call your doctor right away. Those colors could be a sign of infection or preterm labor.
• Spotting. Spotting or bleeding during pregnancy at 12 weeks could be worrisome—or it could be nothing at all. For example, your cervix is more sensitive during pregnancy, so simply having sex could cause light bleeding that’s harmless. If you’re spotting or bleeding, definitely tell your doctor. If the bleeding is accompanied by cramping or the flow is heavy, it’s an urgent call.
• Headaches. These may start to intensify around week 12 of pregnancy. Headaches may be caused by hormonal shifts, drops in blood sugar, dehydration, lack of sleep, or stress. To deal, pay attention to what might be triggering your headaches and try to avoid those culprits. If you notice a drastic increase in headaches or a type of headache you’ve never experienced before (such as a migraine), or if your headaches are accompanied by other weird symptoms, let your OB know.
• Dizziness. Whoa! Hormone shifts and blood pressure changes could cause dizzy spells around pregnancy week 12. You can help prevent dizziness by snacking regularly and drinking plenty of water. Sit or lie down if you’re feeling dizzy or lightheaded and let your doc know about any severe bouts.

If you’re 12 weeks pregnant with twins, you may still be experiencing morning sickness, while your singleton mom-to-be counterparts are likely starting to see the light at the end of the nausea tunnel. Know that things will likely improve soon.

12 WEEKS PREGNANT BELLY

A 12 weeks, your pregnant belly is an official bump! In other words, it’s probably getting noticeable now. This is one reason many moms-to-be start to tell others they’re expecting around 12 weeks. (Of course, if you’re 12 weeks pregnant with twins, you may have been showing for weeks now, obviously because you’ve got double the baby in there!)

If you haven’t already, start taking photos of your pregnant belly at 12 weeks. Trust us, after pregnancy you’ll want a memento of how much your body changed throughout the nine months.

Your fetus at 12 weeks is almost done developing his or her body’s important systems and parts, which means it’s all about getting bigger and more mature from here on out. Yep, baby’s about to enter the growth and maturation stage, in which organs and tissues will grow and develop rapidly.

Baby at 12 weeks is opening and closing his or her fingers and curling toes. And baby’s brain is developing fast!

Baby’s now developing reflexes—if you poke your 12-week pregnant belly while looking at baby on an ultrasound, you’ll likely see movement. If you’re 12 weeks pregnant with twins, your twosome is developing at a similar rate as singleton babies at 12 weeks. Later on, they’ll have a slightly slower rate of growth.

You may have one more prenatal checkup before the end of your first trimester. Whether or not you have a 12-week ultrasound may depend on your doctor’s preference and maybe also on what your insurance covers. If you do get an ultrasound at this time, you’ll notice that you can see your 12-week pregnant fetus more clearly this time around, which may make you want to start spreading the news that you’re expecting.

Itching to find out if it’s a boy or a girl? We hate to be the bearers of bad news, but on a 12 weeks pregnant ultrasound, gender isn’t usually revealed. Between 12 and 13 weeks is the very earliest a boy or girl could possibly be seen on an ultrasound, and the anatomy is still difficult to make out with any certainty. Your OB or technician is much more likely to be able to see baby’s gender at the mid-pregnancy anatomy scan, which will happen around week 20. However, if you received DNA blood testing for chromosomal disorders, you may find out baby’s gender when you get those results—if you want to know, that is!

Around week 12, you might want to know more about baby’s health, so you may have genetic testing done to determine the risk of birth defects or other problems. This can be a little scary—and confusing—so be sure to ask your OB plenty of questions, and know that it’s much more likely baby’s A-OK than anything else.