Your Pregnancy at Week 8
by Your Baby ClubDid you know that the Old Wives suggest that a faster beating heart is a sign you may be having a baby girl! Either way, your baby’s heart is beating twice as fast as yours and is currently drumming away at around 150-170 beats per minute. Later in pregnancy, this will drop to between 110-160bpm. However, at the moment growing head, arm and leg buds (which are developing at a rapid rate) take lots of energy, and their tiny heart is working hard to get everything in place.
This week will see his or her eye colour start to develop and your baby has been promoted from an embryo to a fetus. The baby is growing around 1mm per day in size. You won't see their true eye colour until 9 months after birth as many caucasian baby's eye colours change from the common blue to grey, brown and green or just stay blue. Afro-Caribbean, Hispanic and Asian babies are usually born with dark eyes that stay dark, though they may subtly change in shade. The eyes change colour because once your baby is born, the small amount of melanin in their eyes increases through exposure to real sunlight and eventually settles on a colour inherited from one of their parents. Time to get your bets in as to what colour they'll turn out.
Things should be bumbling along just the same for you as your blood volume continues to increase and your clothes may be feeling a little tighter. You may notice other areas of your body swelling, such as down below, your breasts and even your belly - baby bloat is a real thing!
You may notice an increase in discharge which can be blamed on pregnancy hormones and is nothing to worry about. Pregnancy is also a prime time for yeast infections as the hormones and pH balance of your hoohaa changes almost daily. If you feel any burning or itching or have yellowy thick discharge, consult your GP or midwife who'll be able to prescribe you some cream. Don't forget this can also be passed to your partner through intercourse, so try and avoid sex for at least a week while it's being treated, otherwise, you'll both need some cream.
Your First Scan
If you want a sneaky peek at your baby, now is an exciting time to do it. You can either get a private scan early around now or wait until your NHS scan at between 11 and 13+6 weeks. However, your first scan is not just for a preview.
Most hospitals offer two routine scans (more are arranged if needed). Often referred to as a dating scan, at your first scan the sonographer will give you an estimated date of delivery (EDD). At this appointment, you can also choose to have Nuchal Translucency screening which tests for Down’s Syndrome, Edwards’ syndrome and Patau’s syndrome as well as any other Neural Tube Defects.
