Pregnancy: Week 2

Finally, the first obstetric week of pregnancy is over. What changes occur in a woman’s body after this? What is the secret of “ovulation”? How can the likelihood of conception be increased?

The 2nd week of pregnancy is the week before conception. It is exactly at the end of the 12th–14th day of the cycle that ovulation occurs in most women. Thus, from the point of view of obstetrician-gynecologists, a two-week period is not yet pregnancy. In the 2nd week of pregnancy, the fetus does not yet exist. In reality, the fertilized egg implants into the uterine lining in the 3rd–4th week of pregnancy, and that is when it can be seen on ultrasound. More precisely, this falls on the second week of the menstrual cycle, when the egg must be fertilized. The expectant mother’s body is just beginning to prepare for the upcoming changes.

Woman
After menstruation ends, the woman’s body begins active preparation for conception. The matured egg is ready for the fertilization process. In the second obstetric week of pregnancy or closer to its end, the ovulation period begins – a moment eagerly awaited by many women who want to get pregnant in the coming days. This is the most favorable time for conception. Those who want to expand their family should actively “work together” on these very days.

But there is a subtle point: it is very difficult to determine the exact time of ovulation. That is why doctors adhere to this type of calculation when determining the gestational age.

Symptoms in the 2nd week of pregnancy
In the 2nd week of pregnancy, a woman does not feel any symptoms, because at this time the fetus has not actually come into existence yet. This is the period of actual ovulation, and only favorable conditions can lead to “real” conception. Therefore, signs of pregnancy are not recorded in practice in the 2nd week.

Is it possible to increase the likelihood of conception?
It is known that during sexual intercourse, spermatozoa enter an environment that is completely unusual for them in terms of chemical composition. So that at least one of them hits the target exactly in “the place we need”, gynecologists recommend the following positions that increase the likelihood of conception:

“missionary” position
knee-elbow position (man behind the woman).
In turn, after ejaculation, the woman should take a “lying down” position for 20–30 minutes without getting out of bed. In this case, a small pillow or cushion can be placed under her sacrum.

What happens in the 2nd week of pregnancy
The egg’s “journey”

In the second week of pregnancy, many changes occur in a woman’s body, the main one being the maturation of the egg. Imagine: the egg is only half of the genetic material that will be inherited by your baby. In other words, this is the share directed directly by you for the appearance, character traits, as well as the mental abilities of the child.

During the entire 2-week period of pregnancy, the expectant mother’s egg is in a small vesicle – in the ovary in a cloudy fluid. This vesicle, which seems not very important, is called a follicle. Later, its role in the development and formation of the fetus is invaluable.

Fluid continues to accumulate in the follicle, it constantly grows in volume and over time increases on the ovary as an ugly bump, an uneven bulge. As the outer shell of the follicle thins as much as possible, the walls of the vesicle cannot withstand the tension and burst. The fluid, along with the matured egg, enters directly into the abdominal cavity.

This very moment is called ovulation.

Sensations in the 2nd week of pregnancy
Any woman dreaming of a baby eagerly awaits the appearance of some sensations. With this thought, she spends nights and days, becomes a prisoner of any feeling that gives signs of pregnancy. But the second obstetric week is not yet pregnancy. This is just one of the steps towards pregnancy. Consequently, in the 2nd week of pregnancy, there are no clear sensations in the life of the expectant mother.

The secret of ovulation

This condition most often occurs at the end of the second obstetric week of pregnancy, but if a woman’s menstrual cycle exceeds 30–31 days, ovulation may occur a little later, at the beginning of the third week of the obstetric term.

There are cases when not one, but several, two or more eggs mature at once. In this case, the expectant mother has the opportunity to soon find out that she is pregnant with multiple fetuses. Some will be over the moon with happiness from such luck, but for some, a multiple pregnancy can become a very big test. Especially if the woman’s body is weakened, exhausted or there are health problems – this process should be taken under serious medical control.

As soon as the follicle bursts in the expectant mother’s body and ovulation begins, the egg begins to move towards the uterus. In the abdominal cavity there is one of the ends of the fallopian tube, covered with villi resembling a flower decorated with slightly thin beautiful petals. It is they who help the egg not to “stray” from the right path. After that, the cell enters the fallopian tube, covered with billions of small cilia, which help the fluid flow in the right direction. It is in the fallopian tube that fertilization of the egg most often occurs. If this has happened, then from this moment we can talk about the fact that pregnancy has begun “for real”.