4 Weeks Pregnant: Signs, Symptoms, and Embryo

Well now you are finally pregnant – 4 weeks pregnant according to the obstetrics. Being pregnant is certainly the most reverent, gentle, and exciting event in every woman’s life. Having known wonderful news, every expectant mother tends to learn more about the development of her little man, and what changes occur in the body at each stage.

It is obvious that future moms want to know how to recognize pregnancy at the 4th week and to count when the baby will be born.

Your baby is as big – As a poppy seed

LENGTH- 0.03 inch – WEIGHT- 0.002 oz

4 Weeks Pregnant: Signs and Symptoms

In the 4^th week, there are a lot of symptoms that help you identify your pregnancy. The first – is delayed periods. Depending on a woman’s cycle. If there is a delay, at least one day of the missing periods, then you can take a pregnancy test: it will show the result with 98 percent accuracy.

In the 4th week, a gynecologist can observe changes in the color and structure of the uterus. Although, he still can’t give an unambiguous conclusion.

Feelings

As a rule, it is too early for a woman to experience dramatic changes in her body. Only highly – sensitive women can feel something. Very often a woman can confuse the symptoms of pregnancy with premenstrual syndrome.

The 4^th week of pregnancy can be accompanied by a nagging pain in the lower abdomen, breast tenderness, mood swings, toxemia is also possible at this stage. However, as a rule, moms do not even notice any changes. Such a short gestational age is rarely accompanied by any obvious changes in a woman’s body. Sometimes you may notice brown discharge, which slightly resembles the beginning of menstruation.

What is Happening Inside of You?

At the 4th week of an obstetric pregnancy, an embryo is just beginning the path to “its” house.” It will go through many difficult paths until it reaches its place, and the bubble in which it will live for eight and a half months is formed.

The danger of this period is that there is a risk of an ectopic pregnancy. If an embryo does not reach the final point and starts growing in the birth canal, doctors define an ectopic pregnancy. In most cases, there are certain prerequisites for that. Fortunately, this rarely happens. Therefore, in general, do not worry. It is advisable to relax as much as possible and happily take every moment of your pregnancy, if, of course, it has been already determined.

4 Weeks Pregnancy Ultrasound

It is still early to have an ultrasound at this stage, as a fetus has not yet reached its goal. An ultrasound can show the result closer to the eighth week.

At this stage, an ultrasound can be performed just to exclude an ectopic pregnancy.

Fetus on the Fourth Week of Pregnancy

A fetus is a multi-layer flat disk up to the 4th week of pregnancy. And from that moment it is undergoing some changes, gradually “turning” into an embryo. At the 4^th week the size of a fetus in width – is no more than 1 mm, in length – is about 0.36 mm. At this stage, the placenta and the amniotic fluid begin to emerge.

Surprisingly, in the 4th week of pregnancy, the head of your future baby begins to take shape. At the same time, there are three main layers – the ectoderm, endoderm, and mesoderm. They have a direct impact on the formation of the brain, thyroid, pancreas, blood, and skeletal muscle.

4 Weeks Pregnant Belly Pictures

Check out what the bellies look like at the fourth week of pregnancy.

Vitamins

The most common medicine in the early weeks of pregnancy is folic acid. It is strongly recommended to start taking it when you are still planning and preparing for pregnancy and do not give up until the twelfth week. Folic acid has a positive effect on the development of the child, in particular, it helps the development of the nervous system and the majority of organs and tissues.

You can take vitamin supplements, designed specifically for pregnant women. They will be useful for both – the baby, and the pregnant woman, they help to reinforce your skeletal system and control the level of hemoglobin.

You should refrain from any kind of anesthesia. If it is possible, postpone even the dental procedures for the second trimester of your pregnancy. Other drugs can be taken only on prescription. No self-medication!

When Will My Baby Be Born?

Doctors use an obstetric term to determine a preliminary date of birth. In general 40 weeks is the time of childbirth. Although, generally a baby is considered to be full-term and can be developed independently outside a woman from the 38th week. As a rule, children are born between the 38th – 42nd week. It all depends on the emotional and physical characteristics of a woman’s body.