4 Weeks Pregnant: What To Expect?

What really happens when you’re 4 weeks pregnant?

You may have noticed that your period is late and may have decided to take an early home pregnancy test. So you already know about your pregnancy or will know about it by the end of the 4th week.

Yes! You must be excited and want the world to know about the reason. However, wait just right there as you cross the two weeks wait period. It is better to visit a doctor before sharing the news.

In the meantime, we can go through what is happening in the uterine wall 

What is ‘4 Weeks Pregnant’ In Months?

You’re one month pregnant when you complete 4 weeks of pregnancy. Another 36 weeks of pregnancy will get you your babe. Now is the time you’ll know the neat exact date of delivery.

How Big Is The Baby At 4 Weeks Pregnant?

Your baby at 4 weeks pregnant stage is of the size of an apple seed. Comparing baby to fruits has long been a fun practice – welcome to the grocery shop! Even a pelvic ultrasound at 4 weeks will not be able to show more than a tiny dot as your baby. That is the gestational sac of the baby cells.

Read on to find out what changes take place in your baby during the 4 weeks of pregnancy.

How Is My Baby Growing At 4 Weeks Pregnant?

After implantation, the embryo organizes the cells into two halves. One half of the bunch make the placenta, and another half will become your baby.

The cells destined to become your baby further segregate into 3 distinct layers. Each of the layers forms an organ system.

Development Of Placenta And Germ Layers

1) The blastocyst has two parts – a mass of cells called inner cell mass and a layer of epithelial cells called trophoblast.

2) After the blastocyst is perfectly cocooned in the uterine wall, further development causes the trophoblast cells to give rise to a placenta.

3) The inner cell mass becomes an embryo. Two layers of cells called epiblast and hypoblast begin forming.

4) The hypoblast gives rise to the yolk sac and extraembryonic mesoderm. The yolk sac is just like the amniotic sac. It provides the embryo with nourishment and plays the role of the placenta until it develops. Once the placenta grows, the yolk sac fuses with the baby’s digestive system.

5) The placenta is the organ that connects your body to the developing baby’s body. Baby’s umbilical cord is an extension of the placenta.

Embryonic Development At 4 Weeks Pregnant

1) The epiblast divides into three germ layers from which the entire body is formed – Endoderm, Ectoderm, and Mesoderm.

2) Ectoderm (the outer layer of the epiblast) gives rise to skin, nails, hair, the entire nervous system including the brain, sweat glands, mammary glands, and teeth enamel.

3) Mesoderm (the middle layer) gives rise to the urogenital system (kidneys and reproductive organs), heart, circulatory system, blood, skeleton (bones) and muscles.

4) Endoderm (the inner layer) gives rise to lungs, liver, digestive system, thyroid, and pancreas.

Aspect	Development
Size	1) The length would be approximately 1 mm. 2)The weight would be around 1 g (think of a poppy seed)
Placenta	Placenta formation has been initiated
Amniotic sac	The amniotic sac has begun to form around the embryo along with the amniotic fluid
Nervous system	The neural tube has been formed which is the building block of the spine and brain
Other	The circulatory system and heart development has been initiated

4 Weeks Pregnant With Twins

During a transvaginal ultrasound for preconception care, you may discover two dots. The attached or proximate gestational sacs show that you are pregnant with multiples.

Not to dishearten you but at this early stage, it is difficult to predict the chances whether you will have the twins. The first trimester has a high risk of miscarriage. Vanishing twin syndrome can lead to absorption of one of the twin.

Women above the age of 35 years or with a family history of having twins have a genetic predisposition for getting pregnant with multiples.

What changes occur in your body at 4 Weeks Pregnant?

Changes in mother’s body during the 4th week of pregnancy are on physiological, physical and emotional.

Chemical Changes

The blood volume in your body will start increasing to provide blood to the developing embryo. Your heart will thus spend extra energy in pumping all the extra blood. Also, your kidneys will have to work extra for processing the increased volume of blood. Therefore more visits to the loo.

Physical Changes – 4 Weeks Pregnant Belly

Your belly is bloated, and breast size seems gone up by a number. The breasts indeed have swelling and are tender. However, there is no change in the belly, and it’s all bloating. You won’t see any noticeable difference in belly size until near the end of the first trimester. Nausea and morning sickness can cause weight loss.

Though you see a lot of vaginal discharge, the color is different. Brown tinged cervical mucus is implantation discharge. Even the everyday tasks seem unachievable due to low energy.

Emotional Changes

How do you feel when 4 weeks pregnant? You don’t feel pregnant. This is the time when the pregnancy test dilemma drives women nuts. Losing your patience can overwork you emotionally. You may feel like a dry spell for having sex even though your cervix is lubricated. Mood swings can get worse if you don’t see your desired test results.

When can I take a Pregnancy Test?

After you reach the 4 weeks of pregnancy taking a test is advisable. Though the chances of getting a false negative still exist, you can take a test.

As you’re early in pregnancy taking a test early morning will be more appropriate. You may not get the big fat positive, but a faint positive test is an equal validation.

Symptoms Of Week 4 Of Pregnancy  

The symptoms in most cases would not be visible unless the hormone levels have already increased dramatically. The typical symptoms for this week are described below. Most of them would be similar to the symptoms that you usually experience during PMS.

1) Missed Period

A normal 28-day cycle will have a due date by the end of the 4th week of pregnancy. In many cases, a missed period might be the only indication of pregnancy this week. Implantation spotting in the past week is a source of confusion for many women. The egg embedding leads to a leak of uterine blood vessels.

2) Increased Vaginal Discharge

You keep going to the bathroom fearing that your period is back. To your surprise, there is a lot of mucus coming from your vagina near the due date. Initially, the mucus plug formation begins due to an increase in vaginal discharge.

3) Frequent Urge to Pee

The other reason why you spend more time in the bathroom is that you need to pee. Sleeping at night can get difficult because of the constant urge. Don’t let yourself dehydrate and replenish the water.

4) Nasal congestion

The sense of smell seems to go numb after becoming extremely sensitive the previous week.

5) Bloating & Flatulence

You might feel that your belly appears bloated. Don’t presume it to be your 4-week pregnant belly. Bloating and gastric discomfort is the effect of the progesterone hormone. Slowing down the digestion the hormone causes bloating and constipation.

6) Cramps and Accommodation Pain

If you already know you are pregnant, a mild cramping sensation might worry you. However, remember that it’s perfectly normal. The feeling can be due to implantation happening in the uterus or any changes occurring in the uterus to accommodate the embryo.

7) Spotting or Brown Discharge

At the beginning of this week, you may see light spotting which is called implantation bleeding. This is normal. If you know you are pregnant and the bleeding is heavy and lasts for a day or two then immediately schedule a visit to a doctor.

8) Mood Swings

Your mood swings have become worse and if not yet then they will soon enough. This is the result of fluctuating hormonal levels of your body that make your emotions go haywire.

9) Dizziness, Low Blood Pressure

Most women experience some level of morning sickness (nausea and vomiting). Feeling light headed at this stage is normal. Your energy and circulation are diverting for your baby’s growth spurts. Morning sickness gets better after the first trimester.

10) Fatigue and Sleepy

For the first few weeks, till your body adjusts to the changes happening, you might feel exhausted most of the time entirely for the same reasons as above. Don’t let that convince you to start eating for two. Your body will soon adapt, and pleasent pregnancy symptoms will start.

11) Blue lines on Breasts

The breasts may become sore, tender and swollen. Again the effect of increasing levels of hormones. Make sure you wear a soft bra and support them. All this is preparing them for breastfeeding.

12) Body Heat and Perspiration

You might feel overwhelmed and anxious. Sweating a lot even while in the shade can be a weird early pregnancy sign.

How to Relieve 4 Weeks Pregnant Symptoms?

For relieving the weird symptoms of pregnancy at this stage consider the following remedies:

1) Wear lightweight clothes and most comfortable footwear. Some women can have their leg cramps as early as 4 weeks. Especially if you had leg pain during period get your compression socks and comfy wear.

2) For bloating, cut down fiber loaded food items. Also, reduce caffeine intake. Make sure you stay physically active.

3) Spotting and bleeding can increase due to sexual Intercourse. Avoid sex before asking your OB. Sex during pregnancy is safe in most cases.

4) Take rest and indulge in hobbies that keep you distracted from stress and waiting for anxiety.

What are the chances of miscarriage at 4 Weeks?

Don’t feel discouraged but most miscarriages occur at this stage. About 20% of miscarriages occur in the first few weeks of pregnancy.

Smoking, alcohol consumption, age, and other prescriptions are risk factors. Women who are looking for medical termination of pregnancy can consult their doctor now.

4 Weeks Pregnant Ultrasound 

1) If you are visiting a gynecologist this week, it is highly probable that there will be no ultrasound this week unless there is a chance that you have a high-risk pregnancy.

2) The doctor will schedule a prenatal visit for you a few weeks from now.

3) If ultrasound is done, the embryo appears like a minuscule dot/circle called gestational sac. Even twins appear like two dots close-by.

Weight Gain at 4 Week Pregnancy

Your baby is hardly anything to increase your weight at this stage. In case you got on the scale and saw a rise or fall it is the pregnancy developments. Water weight is the additional fluid weight that is building up in you.

The other possibility could be that the prenatal diet with healthy eating habits has increased muscle mass. Ideally, you only gain a 2 – 4 lb in the first 4 weeks pregnancy.

4 weeks pregnant weight loss is attributed to the nausea and vomiting. Paradoxically most women lose weight in the first month of pregnancy.

4 Weeks Pregnant: What to Eat?

1) If you are in the habit of smoking, then you must quit. Also, it is advisable to not hang much around people who smoke. The exposure to smoke increases the risk of miscarriage, low birth weight, and other complications.

2) The crucial period of baby’s development has begun so it would be for the best if you start including prenatal vitamins in your diet.

3) For now, your vitamin dosage should have 400 µg of folic acid and 10 µg of vitamin D.

4) Folic acid is present in leafy vegetables, beans, fruits, and berries. However, you will most likely have to take supplements.

4 Weeks Pregnancy Tips: What To Do?

1) The first and foremost thing to do would be to get yourself acquainted/registered with a gynecologist if not done already.

2) Keep in mind that the doctor will be with you throughout the pregnancy so they should be someone that you can trust and confide in.

3) You may ask for suggestions from friends and family and also do a little research of your own.

4) If you took a pregnancy test this week, it most likely would have come positive as the hCG level would be high enough to be detectable. However, there can be false negatives so check more than once.

5) If you get a negative result and you still have not got your period then you may wait for 2-3 days to check again or visit a doctor.

6) If you feel bloated, then you may be uncomfortable in those tight fitting jeans or pants. There is nothing wrong in having a change in clothing style which you will have anyway have to do sooner or later.

7) Go for something like baggy jeans or stretchy pants, leggings, etc. These clothes can be comfortable as well as stylish. Baby budget and other planning need to be addressed at this stage.

8) You should talk to your doctor about any medical conditions that you may have, any mental diseases, diabetes, heart problems, or any medication that you are on, etc. so that the doctor can give the best suggestions regarding everything.

9) If you already have an exercise routine then do not stop on account of being pregnant; instead, it is good to continue with the exercise. If you do not have one, then you may very begin now. Regular exercise will help you in maintaining your health during pregnancy.

10) It would be better if you get yourself and your partner checked for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) like Chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and genital herpes. Having an STI may affect the baby’s health.

Tips For Partner

1) You should talk to your partner about what you feel about her being pregnant.

2) You can also discuss with her about how you would both like to share the news with family and friends.

3) You can assure her about how you will support her during the pregnancy and afterward with the baby.

You will most definitely find out about your pregnancy by the end of this week or by the beginning of the next week. Be prepared to deal with all the symptoms of the first trimester and with all the changes that will occur in your body to accommodate the developing embryo. Do not hesitate in asking any question that you may have for your doctor. In the end, try to relax and enjoy the feeling of being pregnant.