12 Nov 2003 - 3:16pm - 25 Weeks

The baby now weighs about 1 1/2 pounds and is approximately 12 1/2 inches long. He makes breathing movements, but has no air in his lungs yet. At this point, fetal brain scans show response to touch. If you shine a light on your abdomen, your baby will turn his head, which, according to researchers, means the optic nerve is working.

Your baby's ears are fully functional now, and he or she may even blink in reaction to a loud noise. The brain is growing rapidly. If you could look inside your uterus, you'd see a well-proportioned head and body. Your baby's first meconium stool has been formed in the large intestine and will be excreted in the days following the birth.Some babies will pass some meconium in the amniotic fluid before the birth. This would require suctioning at the time of your baby's birth.

Sometime soon, you'll need to take a glucose screening test. You'll drink a glass of glucose water (it tastes like an intense orange soda) at your next doctor's visit. Then she'll take a sample of your blood for testing. If the reading is abnormal, which happens about 20 percent of the time, you'll be given a similar but lengthier exam called a glucose tolerance test at a later date to determine whether you have gestational diabetes, or excess sugar in your blood, a common ailment at this stage of pregnancy.

Your fingers, wrists and hands may be feeling achy and numb. The carpal tunnel in the wrist is swollen, as are many other tissues in your body. Nerves that run through the tunnel end up pinched, creating pressure that manifests itself as shooting or burning pain. Wearing a brace may help; so will taking vitamin B6. Talk to your midwife or doctor about other ways to cope.

Itch, itch, itch. Your abdominal skin, which is being drawn taut, may be driving you crazy. Try massaging your skin with olive oil or cocoa butter, if not allergic. If persistent itching continues, be sure to mention to your care provider. It could be "PUPP" (pruritic urticarial papules and placques of pregnancy), the most common of all pregnancy skin conditions, or rarely, associated with a serious liver condition.

Sleep may not feel that restful anymore, now that you're having vivid and scary dreams. When you sleep, your subconscious becomes a staging area for your fears and insecurities about pregnancy and impending motherhood. Dreaming that you're running away or falling from a great height, for instance, may suggest you're worried about losing your independence and freedom once the baby arrives.

Time keeps on ticking, ticking, ticking...

Another week, and here we are! I'm up to about 35 3/4" as far as waist size goes, and a certainly do feel a bit like a balloon. And still more to go. While I thankfully haven't been plagued with much itchiness yet, I certainly have felt a good deal of achiness. My back is pretty much constantly hurting, and I'm having a hard time sleeping at nights these days. I just can't get comfortable, or stay comfy for long. I'm not sleeping through the nights, either, and constantly find that I must make trips to the bathroom. As such, I am very tired most of the time, and I have no doubt that such is playing on my mood as well. At least, I'd like to think that's partly why I feel uncommonly down lately.

I get breathless far easier these days, and yesterday I felt as if the baby was sitting right on my lungs - I had a hard time for a couple of hours getting a good, deep breath. It felt like it did up in Mesa Verde National Park, when we were 8500 feet above sea level in the thin air.

On the happier side of things, the baby is moving fairly often these days - s/he's very active! I can feel the movements and acrobats throughout the day, growing stronger and stronger, and I do never tire of the sensation, even if sometimes I do wish our little one would be a little more careful of where - or what - s/he kicks! Soon, our baby will be big enough that John (or anyone else really) can easily hear the heartbeat when putting their ear against my belly. A few more weeks for that!

Hard to believe that I'm already just over five and a half months along, and that we have just fifteen weeks before the due date. It really will be here before we know it! And so much still to do...!

But it is late, and I should be off to bed. I think I shall try to find some maternity pillows this weekend to aid me in sleeping, and perhaps pick up an electric heatpad to help soothe my back's achiness. It keeps me up as much as any and everything else does these days, and a few hours of no pain would be blessed indeed.

But it's worth it.