17 Weeks Pregnant: What To Expect

EP 87:

Did you know that at 17 weeks pregnant, your baby is already learning how to breastfeed? 🤯 That’s right—your little one is practicing sucking and swallowing inside the womb! But that’s not all…

In this episode, we’re diving into:
 ✅ How your baby’s nervous system is developing at lightning speed
 ✅ Why your little one can now HEAR your voice (time to start talking to them!)
 ✅ The weird but totally normal pregnancy symptoms you might be feeling this week—like dizziness, clumsiness, and even a stuffy nose!
 ✅ Pregnancy symptoms to watch for and when to call your provider
 ✅ Easy hacks to feel your best during week 17

🎉 Plus, at the end of this episode, I’ll share a bizarre but TRUE pregnancy fact that most moms don’t find out until it happens to them!

✨ Links & Resources:
👶 Bump to Bundle Blueprint – Your Complete Birth & Breastfeeding Prep Course
  🎥 Subscribe to my YouTube Channel for weekly pregnancy updates!

Transcript

0:05

Hi, I'm Stephanie Poole, founder and CEO of Birth Prep Academy. I'm on a mission to help pregnant moms prepare for their first hospital birth. I'm sharing revealing conversations about what it really takes to successfully transition into motherhood. So join me. We're here to discover things like what to expect in childbirth, how to prepare for your birth. We'll also talk about breastfeeding and so much more. I'm so grateful to share it all with you right here on Oh, Baby, the podcast created for pregnant moms, preparing for their first hospital birth. Let's get started. Hi, I'm Stephanie Poole, founder and CEO of Birth Prep Academy. I'm on a mission to help pregnant moms prepare for their first hospital birth. I'm sharing revealing conversations about what it really takes to successfully transition into motherhood. So join me. We're here to discover things like what to expect in childbirth, how to prepare for your birth. We'll also talk about breastfeeding and so much more. I'm so grateful to share it all with you right here on Oh, Baby, the podcast created for pregnant moms, preparing for their first hospital birth. Let's get started. Wait, did you know that at 17 weeks pregnant, your baby is already learning how to breastfeed inside your tummy? That's right. I know. It is crazy. but your little one is sucking, swallowing, and even practicing for their very first latch and you won't believe what else they're doing right now. Their tiny ears. Now they're starting to pick up sounds, including your voice. Their nervous system is developing at lightning speed, making them even more active than before, and your body. Well, let's just say that there's some wild changes happening that no one really warned you about. Like no one warns you. That pregnancy may suddenly make you clumsy. I know it's a thing. We're gonna talk about it in a minute, so sit tight. They also don't tell you why some moms may feel dizzy and lightheaded during this week, and what's the real reason behind that? Stuffy noses when you're not even sick. Oh, and stick around because at the end of this episode, I'm gonna share one bizarre but true pregnancy fact that most moms don't find out about until it happens to them. So as I always say, from week to week, grab a snack, get comfy, and let's dive into everything you need to know. About 17 weeks pregnant. All right, let's talk about your baby because at 17 weeks, some big things are happening at 17 weeks. Your little one is about the size of a pomegranate, roughly five inches long from head to bottom and weighing about five ounces. That's about as heavy as a small juice box. But what's really fascinating is how quickly their nervous system is developing. Right now, your baby's brain is making connections like crazy, helping them move their arms and legs more purposefully. So if you haven't felt those little kicks yet, trust me, mama, they're coming soon. Here's a mind blowing fact. By 16 to 17 weeks, your baby is already practicing sucking and swallowing. Now get this, researchers have found that babies in the womb start developing their sucking reflex now, which is essential for breastfeeding after birth. So when you see those adorable ultrasound pictures of them sucking their thumb, that's not just cute. It's them training for their very first latch. Now, this is one of my favorite things to talk about. By 17 weeks, your baby's ears are developed enough to start hearing sounds. That means they can hear your voice, your heartbeat, and even outside noises. Some studies suggest that babies exposed to the same songs repeatedly while in your tummy might actually recognize them after birth. So go ahead, talk to your little ones. Sing to them or even read a bedtime story. It might feel silly at first, but this early bonding is super powerful and can actually comfort them once they're born. All right, so let's switch gears because while your baby is busy growing, your body is going through a lot right now too. Let's talk about some of those weird and sometimes annoying changes happening right now. First up, let's talk about the round ligament pain. If you're feeling random, sharp pains or weird pulling sensations around your belly, well that could be because your uterus is expanding, and those round ligaments that support the expansion, they're stretching pretty fast. So. Here's a pro tip. If you feel sharp pains when you stand up or roll over, try moving just a tad bit slowly and using a pregnancy pillow at night to support your belly. All right. Now, if you remember, I talked about pregnancy causing clumsiness, so I wanna hop into that. Have you noticed that you seem to be dropping everything? Or maybe you feel like you're bumping into things more often. Well, that's because pregnancy actually changes your center of gravity. Your belly is growing and shifting, and your weight is moving or shifting forward, making you feel a little off balance. On top of that, pregnancy hormones are relaxing your joints, which can make you feel a little wobbly too. So here's a pro tip for that. Be extra careful going up and down the stairs and consider switching to, I like to call'em your comfy shoes. You know the ones with good support. All right. Now let's talk about this stuffy nose situation, especially because you are not sick. You just. Can't get rid of this stuffy nose, this congestion. Well, this is called pregnancy rhinitis, and it happens to about 30% of pregnant women. Why? Well, let me explain. When you have extra blood flow plus increased estrogen, well that pretty much equals swollen nasal passages. So that's why you might be feeling congested even though you don't have a cold. Well, here is an easy fix. Try using a cool mist humidifier, and drink lots of water because those two things will help to thin out the mucus and keep your airways clear. Now I wanna shift our focus a bit to a few symptoms that I want you to look out for. Now, I don't want you to be on high alert or anything because most pregnancy symptoms are totally normal, but there are a few things that you should keep an eye out on at 17 weeks. First up, swelling in your hands and face. Some swelling is totally normal, but if you have severe or sudden swelling, then I want you to contact your provider ASAP because this could be something that they potentially want to check and monitor to make sure that everything is okay. Next up, let's talk about severe dizziness or blurred vision. Now this could mean a lot of things, so again, I want you to reach out to your provider so that they can assess and see what may be causing it. It could be something as simple as eating small meals like every few hours. That can help stabilize some of your levels in your blood. But the best thing to do before you do anything, if you notice severe dizziness or blurred vision, please reach out to your provider as soon as possible. Okay. The last symptom that I want you to look out for is intense back pain. So when I say intense back pain, I'm saying that based on the knowledge that a little back discomfort is expected with pregnancy. So I don't want you to be too alarmed, but if it's severe. Or if it's persistent, those are the two things I want you to consider. Severe, meaning that you can't, it's hard for you to function in your day to day activities of just your daily life, taking care of yourself, maybe taking care of your family. If it's so severe that it's impairing you from doing that, then you need to talk to someone. also if it's persistent, so you are not really getting any kind of relief. Because it's just constant and ongoing. Then I want you to check in with your doctor, for that and every single point made here, these are all reasons why you should reach out to your provider because you may need some extra support and treatment in those areas. So on the lookout guys. Alright now. Okay. We've gotten all of the important warning stuff out of the way, the serious stuff, as I like to say. So let's talk about how you can feel your very best this week. first up, I want you to be sure that you are eating iron rich foods. Why? Because your baby is using a lot of iron to make those red blood cells and low iron will equal fatigue and dizziness. We don't want that. So make sure you're supporting your nutrition well. Some things that are known for having high iron is, spinach, lentils, eggs, and lean meats along with some other things. So, keep that in mind. Start to sleep on your side. And left side is preferable because as your belly grows, sleeping on your left side has been found to improve circulation, and it also keeps the blood flowing to your baby. So try to get in the habit of sleeping on your side. All right. Now, I think you could probably guess what I'm gonna say here, but in case you're new, I'm gonna say it anyway, which is to drink lots of water. Staying hydrated, is super important because it helps with energy, it helps with the swelling that we talked about. It even helps with nausea. So be sure to drink often throughout the day. So what's coming up next week? by week 18, your baby's nervous system is exploding with new growth, and you might even start to feel their first little kicks. Oh, and remember that bizarre pregnancy fact that I mentioned at the beginning. Well, here it is. Your baby actually pees in the amniotic fluid and then swallows it. I know, but it's a real thing. Y'all, you wanna know what happens and how it affects their development. Well be sure to subscribe so you don't miss next week's episode because I'm gonna talk all about it there. And if you're already thinking about birth plans, hospital bags, breastfeeding, prep, all the things, now is the perfect time to start. Just click the link below to check out Bump to bundle blueprint so that you can feel a hundred percent prepared for birth. Alright mama, You're doing amazing. I'll see you next week for week 18, pregnancy updates.