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During the middle months of pregnancy, the expectant mother will probably feel better that she did earlier or that she will later. Nausea and fatigue usually lessen or disappear. As the baby’s growth continues, the expectant mother’s uterus expands into the abdominal cavity. By the end of the fifth month of pregnancy, the top of the uterus, called the fundus, reaches the navel. During monthly visits, the physician or caregiver measures the height of the fundus to ensure that the fetus is growing adequately and to estimate the length of the pregnancy. The expectant mother’s breasts do not increase much in size during the second trimester, but colostrum, a yellowish fluid produced before breast milk, is usually present in the milk glands by the middle of pregnancy. This is the time for expectant mothers to begin preparing their breasts for breast-feeding if they have decided to breast-feed the baby.
Accompanying physical changes in the second trimester are psychological changes in response to advancing pregnancy and the changing body. Some expectant mothers enjoy how they look; others consider themselves unattractive, inconvenienced, and restricted. If the expectant mother has not yet read books about child care in the first few years of life, this is a good time to purchase one or more of them. This is also a good time to begin to prepare a nursery for the baby’s arrival.
During the second trimester, pregnancy becomes more of a reality for the expectant mother’s partner. He can feel the baby move when he puts his hand on her abdomen or when she is in close contact with him. This contact with the baby increases his feelings of closeness and his interest in the pregnancy and the baby. He may or nay not like the changing appearance of the expectant mother. In a normal pregnancy, the expectant couple can continue to have sexual intercourse without harming the fetus, which is believed to be adequately protected from penetrations and the strong contractions that sometimes accompany orgasm.
In the beginning of the second trimester, at around sixteen weeks, the baby is only about five and a half inches long and weighs about four ounces. Its heartbeat is strong and its skin is thin and transparent. The body is covered in downy hair, called lanugo. Also, the fingernails and toenails are forming. The fetus has coordinated movements and is able to roll over in amniotic fluid.
Around the middle of the second trimester, about twenty weeks, the fetus is ten to twelve inches long and weighs a half to one pound. The heartbeat is also audible with an ordinary stethoscope. The fetus sucks its thumb and hiccups. Hair, eyelashes, and eyebrows are present.
By the end of the second trimester, around twenty-four weeks, the fetus has grown to about eleven to fourteen inches long and weighs one to one and a half pounds. The skin is wrinkled and covered with protective coating, called vernix caseoa. The eyes are open and the fetus has a strong grip.
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