text: By the second trimester, your odds of having a miscarriage go down dramatically. Morning sickness and fatigue have probably gone or are at least less frequent, and you will develop a real baby bump. Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the second trimester of pregnancy is that you can expect to start feeling your baby kick! Most expectant moms will start to feel fetal movement around 16 weeks.
  Women who are pregnant with their second baby or have already had multiple children before might feel fetal movement even earlier. If your placenta is anterior, and therefore attached to the front wall of your uterus near your abdomen, you might have to wait a while longer before you can feel your baby move.
  Braxton Hicks contractions, an occasional painless tightening of the uterus, will also be more noticeable now. You will have had them since around eight weeks, but will start becoming aware of them about half-way through your pregnancy. During Braxton Hicks contractions, your tummy will suddenly feel very hard. They can last from a few seconds to several minutes, and often show up when you engage in strenuous physical exercise or after intercourse.
  Other common second trimester symptoms include food cravings, skin changes (you might have that beautiful “pregnancy glow), and swollen ankles. Giving in to food cravings is fine, but you should also be careful to maintain a healthy and balanced diet. Staying properly hydrated will help you fight water retention, and putting your feet up while you can will also offer you some relief.
  Was morning sickness your least favorite pregnancy symptom during the first trimester? It will probably have been replaced by frequent episodes of heartburn by now. Heartburn can be controlled by cutting out spicy and greasy foods, and many women find that dissolving a teaspoon or two of baking soda into a cup of water and drinking the mixture cures acute “attacks” of heartburn.
  Your breasts have probably grown some by now, and are still tender. Some women already start leaking colostrum, your baby’s first milk, in the second trimester. It is possible you will have itchy nipples, and some will have raised bumps around their areola, the area immediately surrounding the nipple. These are called Montgomery’s Tubercules and while they may look odd, they are totally normal.
  In addition, some women deal with blood pressure changes – either hypertension or hypotension – and lower back pain. These conditions all benefit from careful monitoring, which is why your healthcare provider will stay on the look-out for any signs of complications at each prenatal appointment.
  Towards the very end of your pregnancy, you will be looking for answers about which of your many pregnancy signs could be indications that your baby will be born soon. Is shortness of breath normal during pregnancy? Do your Braxton Hicks contractions indicate that your labor will be starting for real very soon? How do you know if your bag of waters has broken?
  Expectant mothers in their third trimester might start feeling physically uncomfortable, and have sleepless nights because their big belly will not allow them to find any position that is comfortable. You might also have trouble tying shoe laces or putting on your socks! A whole-body maternity pillow could help you find the position that is most comfortable for you, or you can simply try using regular pillows.
  Shortness of breath is not unusual and is caused by a combination of hormonal changes and the fact that your uterus is pressing down on your internal organs. Frequent bathroom runs were caused by hormones at the beginning of your pregnancy, but now there is no doubt that your baby is “guilty” of causing you to head for the toilet every five minutes!
  If you have been experiencing the urge to iron everything in sight, or suddenly redecorate the nursery at two o’clock in the morning, you are not alone! The so-called nesting instinct is extremely common during the final weeks of pregnancy, and may in fact be one of the earliest signs that it won’t be long before you will deliver. Have fun scrubbing your floors five times in a row, or reorganizing your closets; just be careful that you don’t stand on a wobbly ladder with your third-trimester belly!