When Does Pregnancy Start Counting – How Long Is it?

When does pregnancy start counting? In general, most pregnancies usually last for about 40 weeks. Since there are several months, these months are grouped into 3 major trimesters which each trimester consists of 3 months. But for third trimester, it may last more than 3 months – read also how to count your pregnancy due date based on your last period or the day of your conception!

Each trimester is important to the progress of your baby growth. Your body undergoes a lot of changes during first trimester – this is usually caused by the significantly increased pregnancy hormones (read also the earliest signs of pregnancy in first trimester).

In the second trimester, your pregnancy begins to become established – for instance, the flutters (small movement of baby during pregnancy) begin to become established. And for third trimester, this is the stage of pregnancy when you are closer to delivery and your body is preparing for labor.

It’s undeniable that pregnancy is one of the most special moments in a woman’s life. As mentioned before, it can generate a lot of changes to your body either during or even after pregnancy.

The following are facts about pregnancy to understand:

1. The early symptoms vary from women to women. But most pregnant women usually will experience absence of menstrual bleeding during pregnancy, morning sickness (characterized by nausea & vomiting), breast changes, tiredness, mood swings, dull cramps, etc.
2. The elevated pregnancy hormones (particularly Hhcg -hormone human chorionic gonadotropin) are one of the most important factors to detect a pregnancy as early as possible. Most home pregnancy test kits work based on the level of this Hhcg hormone.
3. The first 16 – 25 weeks of pregnancy are usually a period of when many pregnant women notice some tiny movements (flutters) of their baby. Veteran moms are more likely to notice & feel this earlier than women who are pregnant for the first time.
4. Some pregnant women may also experience a syndrome called ‘baby brain’, which is a kind of temporary forgetfulness syndrome. It can strike during and after pregnancy (shortly afterwards).
5. At 37th week of pregnancy, your baby is almost perfect – in other words she /he now has very almost completely organs that can work on their own. This also can be a sign that you are now very close to your due date.

The calculation of your due date can be estimated from the first day of your last period or from the day of your conception. But since most women don’t know the exact day of their conception, the calculation based on the last period is more common – though it is less accurate than the estimation of due date based on the day of conception.

As you close to the day of your estimated due date, the position of baby in your uterus will turn into a head-down position.

Typically, the length of baby at birth is about 19-21 inches, and about 6 – 9 pounds in weight. But some babies may have higher or lower than these average estimations.

Pregnancy takes about 40 weeks (10 months) on average – from the first day of your last menstrual cycle to the day of birth.

If you don’t remember (not sure) to the first day of your last period, the calculation of your due date may be slightly difficult. But as you get further along in pregnancy, your doctor will find more signs to help estimate your due date. For more accurate calculation of due date, (if necessary) an ultrasound test may be suggested.