Pregnancy Calendar: Week 19 Pregnancy Symptoms
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Potential for pelvic pain and skin discoloration for you, a more high-functioning brain for your baby: it's a big week!
What the Doctor Will Tell You
Your baby's brain is starting to develop more areas and abilities; his senses are getting turned on, and he's starting to gain more control over his own movements. It's possible that your baby can hear your voice now.
The vernix caseosa, a waxy skin covering, helps keep your baby's skin from pruning in the amniotic fluid. That's the white stuff the nurses will wash off your baby right after he's born.
Your skin might be itchy and dry now. Go ahead and use moisturizer or oil to make your skin feel better, but lotioning up won't prevent stretch marks. Stretch marks occur in the dermis, the middle layer of skin, where lotion can't reach.
What Your Girlfriends Will Tell You
Size matters. No, not that kind of size. You and your baby are both getting bigger, which is going to cause you some achiness as the ligaments that support your uterus stretch. You might even feel sharp, stabbing pain, which can be alarming. They call this round ligament pain. It's not fun, but it's nothing to worry about. (Of course, call your doctor if you're afraid something is wrong.)
Since the baby can probably hear voices at this stage, I told my husband to speak into my bellybutton microphone when he wanted to discuss things with the baby.
Be forewarned, you might get all pigment-y. Sun exposure can exacerbate skin discoloration, and darkened areas can include:
- upper lip
- cheeks
- forehead
- nipples
- freckles
- scars
- underarms
- inner thighs
- vulva
- linea nigra (the line running from your belly button to your pubic bone.)
I remember reading that these darkened spots will probably fade shortly after delivery. PROBABLY?!?! DUH HELL? I didn't get many darkened areas, they were hardly noticeable, and they did fade quickly. So, don't worry.
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