Baby’s Development
This is a monumental week for your growing child. At week five, you can officially refer to your little one as an embryo. He or she has already passed through two different, important stages of development, all within one short month! This week, even more miracles happen inside of you as your embryo becomes more and more recognizable as a human being.
The neural tube that will soon grow into your baby’s brain and spinal cord is almost fully developed this week and as a result, the nervous system is starting to form. Bones, however tiny, start to take the place of cartilage and the muscular system begins to develop. At 21 or 22 days gestation, your little one’s heart actually starts to beat although a Doppler machine can’t yet detect it. An ultrasound however, can show your baby’s immature circulatory system pumping blood through its tiny body with every beat of its heart.
By the fifth week, your embryo weighs a whopping one third of an ounce and one third of its body is comprised of its head. Although it still barely resembles a human being, this week its facial features will start to develop. Ears appear as dents on the side of its head and black spots develop where its eyes and nostrils will soon be. You’ll no doubt get great pleasure and amazement playing with their little fingers and toes when you meet in nine months; this week the buds of these future appendages make their appearance!
Your body and emotions
The gauntlet of emotions that you will undergo now that your pregnancy is confirmed may shock you! You may be elated one minute and then feeling crushed by responsibility the next. This is not just the pregnancy hormones getting to work! You have made a commitment to change your life forever and that’s no small thing. Literally, there is no going back now so allow yourself to feel a few moments of panic. Acknowledging your fears and communicating with your partner is the best way to deal with these emotions as they arise.
It’s very important for you to avoid toxins in your environment at this stage in your baby’s development. So many things that we take for granted as safe can be hazardous to your fetus’ heath, especially at five weeks when the nervous system in starting to develop. Doctors recommend that women cease all unnecessary medications for at least the first eight weeks. This means stopping the obvious like sleep aids, painkillers and (sadly) anti-nausea meds but you also need to look for hidden medications. For example, salicylic acid can have a negative effect on your developing baby, as can all forms of vitamin A. Both these ingredients are very common in skin care products and cosmetics. You’ll have to bring your anti-aging skin care routine to a halt for just a little bit…
Some women complain of a metallic taste in their mouths during this stage of pregnancy. It’s a strange side effect that doctors have been trying to understand for years. Some theories are that the prenatal vitamins that women take have a high concentration of minerals and result in this metallic ‘tang’. Others believe that it’s a result of the heightened senses women experience due to the hormonal changes in their body. Ask a naturopath however, and they’ll tell you that your body releases toxins to protect your developing fetus in the first few months of pregnancy. These toxins, stored in your lymph glands, explain the unpleasant taste many women experience. If you are one of them, try brushing your teeth a little more often or popping a few (sweetener-free) mints.
Dad’s Tips
You may be so excited about becoming a dad that you feel like emailing and phoning absolutely everyone you know and sharing your good news! You may even feel like running out and buying some cigars right now…but you need to wait. It’s best to keep a cool head about your developing baby at this stage. Your partner’s pregnancy is very delicate now. Miscarriage is probably a big concern for your partner these days and she may be panicking at every pinch and twinge. Try to give her as much support as you can by listening to her worries and sharing some of your own. In a few weeks you’ll both be able to relax and send out the emails your fingers have been twitching to type…
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