This week, you are halfway through your pregnancy. Congratulations! Your baby is practicing for life outside the womb, and you, mom, are probably starting to feel even more pregnant!
This article will cover fetal development, how big your baby is, what month you are actually in, pregnancy symptoms, and what’s happening with your belly and body, mom.
Week 19 | Week 21
When you are 20 weeks pregnant, some babies kick so hard that it can even be seen from the outside. Others are a lot calmer.
You are now halfway through your pregnancy and it is time for many moms to start increasing their intake of iron to avoid anemia. Learn more about how to eat healthy during pregnancy here.
What to Expect at 20 Weeks Pregnant
In this article…
How Many Months is 20 Weeks Pregnant?
When you are 20 weeks pregnant, you are in your fifth month and a second trimester. You are pregnant for full four months and on your way through month five of your pregnancy journey.
If you would like to understand better how you can know the difference between how many weeks/months pregnant you are vs. what week/month of pregnancy you are in, read this article. In it, you will also find other useful information, such as how the due date is calculated and what the difference between fetal and gestational age is.
Your Baby at 20 Weeks
How Big is my Baby at 20 Weeks?
The fetal age of your baby is now 18 weeks. Halfway through! Congratulations!
Your baby now measures approximately 6.5 inches in length (16.5 cm) and weighs around 10 ounces (280 grams). This week, the baby is the size of bell pepper.
At 20 weeks, you might be feeling your baby’s movements regularly (called quickening), or if you don’t, you are about to feel the first kicks soon. Most women feel the first kicks between weeks 18 and 22. In second or subsequent pregnancies, it is easier for women to recognize it, so they might feel the first kicks bit earlier.
However, if this is the first time you are pregnant, it may still take a couple of weeks until you are sure that this fluttering or bubbling you feel is actually your baby kicking and moving. It is not unusual if first-time moms don’t feel the baby move until closer to 25 weeks.
What Does my Baby Look Like at 20 Weeks Pregnant?
Vernix caseosa starts covering your baby’s skin. It is a protective, waxy substance that helps protect the baby’s skin from being in the amniotic fluid all the time and will serve an important purpose during the birth process to help the baby pass through the birth canal easily.
If you could peek inside your belly, you may even see the delicate eyebrows forming or the hair growing on the scalp.
Your baby’s facial features are taking shape, and your baby looks more like a newborn every day.
Fetal development
This week, your baby is swallowing more, as well as “breathing in” the amniotic fluid. This helps prepare your little one for life outside the womb and helps the digestive system practice functioning.
Now that the ears are fully functional, your baby can hear all uterine sounds, from your own heart beating to louder sounds from outside the womb.
Your baby’s reproductive system has developed significantly by this point. If you are carrying a girl, the number of eggs in the ovaries is at its peak around this week. There are six to seven million eggs in the ovaries now. Around the time of birth, that number will drop down to one or two million, and it will continue to decrease throughout life.
If you are carrying a boy, the testicles are still in the abdomen but will begin to descend soon, as soon as the scrotum develops enough.
All of the other organs and structures are developed and ready, so now is the time for your baby to grow and gain weight.
Mom’s Body When 20 Weeks Pregnant
The Belly
You may have already gained anywhere from 8-10 pounds (3.5-4.5 kg) now and can expect to gain anywhere from 0.5 to a full pound of weight per week (0.25-0.5 kg) now as your baby continues to flourish inside.
Your belly is growing, and the bump is noticeable. Just be sure to remember that every baby bump is different, just as every woman’s body, shape, and size are unique. Avoid comparisons and enjoy watching your baby bump growing.
Pregnancy Symptoms
PinCommon pregnancy symptoms at this time include heartburn, constipation, or indigestion. These may be only slight right now and will increase as your pregnancy progresses, so be sure to get enough fluids daily to help prevent some of these annoyances.
Eating smaller meals and avoiding greasy and fried food might help in dealing with heartburn. It is also advisable not to lie down immediately after eating.
To ease constipation, you want to stick to small, frequent meals, eat foods rich in fiber, and drink plenty of water. Regular exercise might also help, so make sure you are staying as active as possible. Even just walking around the neighborhood might offer great benefits in dealing with uncomfortable pregnancy symptoms.
You can always talk to your health care provider about natural and safe medical treatments available during this time to help alleviate constipation or heartburn, as well as other problems that arise.
Eating a balanced diet and iron-rich foods can help you avoid anemia that can lead to low birth weight in your baby or premature delivery. Also, anemia makes you extremely tired. It can be a challenge even to walk up the stairs. If you do feel weak and tired, make sure you test your iron blood levels at your next check-up. Some degree of anemia is very common at this stage, and in the weeks to come, iron supplements may be needed.
At 20 weeks pregnant, as the lungs become more crowded because internal organs are shifting to make more room for the growing baby, some women might start experiencing shortness of breath. This issue usually lasts until the baby drops into the pelvis as the pregnancy nears an end, which relieves the pressure on your organs considerably. The baby usually drops around week 36 or later, so the time for you to take deep breaths again is not that near. But you’ll get used to it, I promise.
As your body adjusts to accommodate your baby, your muscles work hard to support your growing belly, and the hormone relaxin starts to loosen your joints and relax your ligaments; backache usually appears. Unfortunately, many pregnant women deal with back pain, and it often lasts the entire pregnancy.
Although it is still unknown what causes them, leg cramps are common in pregnancy. Many women experience these shooting pains during the second and third trimesters. They might appear during the day, but you’ll feel them more at night. You might try to relieve the discomfort by stretching before going to sleep or flexing your foot upward and back, and massaging the calves when they occur.
You may notice swelling of your feet and ankles. This is known as edema and is, in part, caused by water retention. Try to avoid standing for long periods and sit with your legs elevated whenever you get a chance. That might reduce the swelling.
At the beginning of the pregnancy, it doesn’t really matter what position you are sleeping in. However, as the pregnancy advances, it is advisable to stop sleeping on your back and sleep on your side. The left side, in particular, allows for more nutrients and blood to reach the placenta and the baby.
With the weight increasing and the belly growing, stretch marks are a common occurrence in pregnancy, and they can appear at any time. Although some women say that certain creams or oils helped prevent it, you might get stretch marks despite using different products, and unfortunately, there is no miracle cure for it.
If you are experiencing dryness or itchiness of the skin, try Bella B Tummy Honey Butter. It helps!
Things to Do and Buy This Week
If you are having an ultrasound this week, your doctor might reveal your baby’s gender, assuming you don’t know yet but want to know. How exciting!
Some waiting parents will want to hear their little one’s heartbeat every day, and this can easily be done now with a regular stethoscope. This is a great way to get Dad involved so that he can feel and hear the baby as well.
Iron-rich foods are extremely important during your pregnancy since your baby needs the extra iron to make red blood cells and it is also vital for other development. Eating a balanced diet and including iron-rich foods can help you avoid anemia. For tips on how to eat healthy during pregnancy, read this article.
Lean red meat, poultry, fish, spinach, and lentils, as well as iron-fortified cereals, are a great source of iron that you can add to your already healthy diet. This article specifies iron-rich foods for kids but is helpful for pregnant moms too!
This is a good time to start pregnancy yoga if you haven’t.
Continue creating your baby registry if you have already started. If not, consider starting. I personally love Amazon for baby registry.
Get immediate expert help with your pregnancy questions through JustAnswer Pregnancy:
Week 20 Pregnancy Video
Diary of a Daughter
What’s it really like being 20 weeks pregnant…? Here’s a true diary from a 20 weeks pregnant mom (Me..!)
My baby made some kind of somersault this week. It felt really weird and now he/she is kicking in the opposite direction.
This is a wild baby and the kicks can actually be seen from outside now. Fun for her dad!
Are you 20 weeks pregnant? This special time never comes back! Please share your own experiences in the comments below, lots of moms would love to read it!
More about your Pregnancy
- Weight gain during pregnancy, what is normal and not
- Healthy eating during pregnancy
- Vote in our pregnancy polls to learn about pregnant life for other moms
Week 19 | Week 21
References:
- Mayo Clinic, Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy
- Joanne Stone MD and Keith Eddleman MD, The Pregnancy Bible: Your Complete Guide to Pregnancy and Early Parenthood
- Nilsson, L; Hamberger, L. A Child Is Born
- Soderberg, L., Mammapraktika. B Wahlstroms.
- The Second Trimester
Paula Dennholt founded Easy Baby Life in 2006 and has been a passionate parenting and pregnancy writer since then. Her parenting approach and writing are based on studies in cognitive-behavioral models and therapy for children and her experience as a mother and stepmother. Life as a parent has convinced her of how crucial it is to put relationships before rules. She strongly believes in positive parenting and a science-based approach.
Paula cooperates with a team of pediatricians who assist in reviewing and writing articles.
