Week 6

Hard to believe I'm 6 weeks pregnant as of today! That's about halfway through the first trimester! Sometimes the whole thing seems very unreal. I guess that's normal since I can't really feel the baby inside me yet. I do feel some of the side effects, but they're really not that bad, and if I didn't know I was pregnant, I would probably attribute them to something else. The side effects also seem to have improved, which somehow doesn't seem quite right. Aren't I supposed to be feeling worse as things progress? The bit of nausea I had last week, which I thought was the beginning of the horrible morning sickness my mother had warned me about, seems to have abated. My mother says it was off and on in the beginning for her too so maybe it will hit me with full force soon. I don't know, I feel like I'm getting away with something by not feeling sick all the time.

So my symptoms are:

• swollen, sore breasts (although this started after the retrieval when I was put on estrogen and progesterone, before Ziggy was even inside me),
• frequent urination I guess (although it's hard to tell because I tend to drink a lot of water and pee a lot anyway)
• some fatigue (although it's improved a lot, and I love the fact that I can actually fall asleep and stay asleep--yay for progesterone!)
• increased appetite in the beginning (now I don't feel particularly hungry and kind of have to force myself to eat)
• occasional dizziness/light-headedness
  
• increased forgetfulness and stupidity (is this the "mommy brain" I've heard people talk about?)
• headaches (they were pretty bad at first, but have practically gone now--this was probably the worst side effect for me)
• mild nausea (will it get worse?)
• irritability, mood swings, and increased sensitivity and weepiness (kind of like PMS, but they've improved a lot as well)
• bloating and lower abdominal distention (this is the one side effect that is increasing!)
• bad taste in mouth and increased salivation (I probably wouldn't have really noticed this if I hadn't read about it in a pregnancy book)
• increased sense of smell (since normally I have such a bad sense of smell, this has been pretty cool except of course when there are nasty smells like in NYC :)
• very mild occasional heart burn
• twinges/tugging sensation in my lower belly (these have pretty much gone away by now)
• increased heart rate and respiration which makes me feel kind of breathless when I exert myself
  

So, overall I feel pretty good right now. As for the baby, Ziggy is about 2-5 mm in length (about the size of a baby pea!) and starting to form tongue and nasal pits, as well as "flippers" which will later develop into arms. Ziggy's eyes and ears are also beginning to form, as well as the surface layer of skin. A groove (known as the laryngotracheal groove) is forming and will later become the larynx or voice box while the beginnings of the mouth, digestive system, and respiratory systems are evident as well. Ziggy's head, brain, and nervous system are undergoing rapid development too, which is why I started taking some prenatal DHA and EPA today. Most amazingly, Ziggy's little heart is starting to beat and should be visible on the ultrasound on Tuesday! According to what I've read online, these next few weeks of embryonic development are especially important, so I'm going to try to avoid all possible hazards. I want little Ziggy to have the best possible start in life.