23 weeks pregnant: Baby’s development, symptoms and top tips

Your baby is almost 29cm long from head to heel – they’re growing so fast! They weigh in at about half a kilo, equivalent to a bag of dried pasta.

Your baby is having a major growth spurt at the moment, which means you might possibly be able to see your belly move when they kick and squirm inside. Their lungs are still developing (and will be until you are full term). Though they’re not working yet, your baby is practicing breathing movements, ready for life on the outside. For now, they rely on your placenta for oxygen, which is why it’s so important you keep your iron levels up.

Your baby’s skin is still very thin, so if you were to see it now it would look red – the result of all that blood pumping around. Over the next several weeks, it will become thicker and their fat stores will increase, so that they’re ready for life outside of the womb. Remember, when they come out they will still be covered in vernix, the sticky, whiteish substance that keeps their skin soft and supple in their watery home.

In a couple of weeks, if this is your first baby, you will have another midwife appointment, where they will listen to your baby’s heartbeat. It’s such a lovely, reassuring sound. But don’t be tempted to buy a home Doppler to hear it for yourself – it takes a great deal of training to be able to operate a Doppler and properly interpret what you’re hearing.

Your body is working extremely hard this week to rise to the challenge of supporting a healthy developing baby. If you’ve continued to undertake strenuous activities and long walks throughout your pregnancy, it might be time to slow down a bit. If you’re not a very active person, it’s best not to take on any strenuous activities at this point. Instead, stick to gentle exercise, stretching, and plenty of rest.

Feeling tired and weak

If you often feel tired and weak even though you haven’t been exerting yourself too much, it may be that your body doesn’t have enough iron. Around 20% of pregnant women experience this in week 23.

If you feel faint, your skin goes pale and even a good rest doesn’t leave you feeling refreshed or reinvigorated, you might need to take a special supplement to boost your iron levels and ensure your baby continues to get the oxygen they need. Talk to your midwife and see what they recommend.

Your blood pressure may also be why you find it difficult to get going and feel weak. Many pregnant women suffer from low blood pressure in the middle weeks of pregnancy in particular, as their circulatory system tries to handle the increased blood flow and supply blood and nutrients to the placenta. Your doctor or midwife will regularly measure your blood pressure and can tell you how to increase it if it’s too low.

Increased need to pee 

Do you need to pee more often? Most pregnant women do, as their bladder is being squashed by their uterus. However, this isn’t a reason to drink less – make sure you keep your fluid intake up, as your body really needs it during pregnancy.

Achey ribs

Your bump is also expanding upwards and you might find yourself feeling breathless as your growing belly puts pressure on your lungs. Your rib cage is expanding to accommodate all this growth, which can lead to some discomfort in your ribs. You can take paracetamol for pain during pregnancy, but often what your body really needs is rest. Take yourself to bed early and enjoy lots of long weekend lie-ins while you can.

Sensitive skin

Your skin is extra sensitive to UV rays during pregnancy, which means that you need to be more vigilant about your sunscreen. You can burn even on a cloudy day. Try to apply a high-factor skin protection to your face as part of your daily skincare routine and cover up if you’re going out in the sun.

Melasma, a discolouration of the skin, can occur at any point during pregnancy. It’s thought to be made worse by sun exposure, so following the sun safe guidelines should help. These marks, which usually appear as darker patches of skin on the face, will fade following pregnancy.

Feeling pressure down below?

There are a number of reasons why you might be feeling uncomfortable down there. First, the baby, placenta and amniotic sac all add up to a considerable weight that you’re not used to carrying around. This in itself is enough to make you feel a pressure on your vagina and perineum. The increased blood flow can also lead to swelling in your more intimate areas.

Some women also suffer from pelvic girdle pain or PGP that is caused by stiffness in your pelvic joints. This painful condition is not harmful to your baby, but it can feel debilitating to you. Things that used to be relatively simple – like stepping into a pair of slippers, or getting out of the bath – can become really challenging because of the pain in your pelvis. If you think you might be suffering from PGP, talk to your doctor or midwife so you can begin treatment.

Tingling hands

Oh, it’s all good fun, this pregnancy lark. Another possible symptom is tingling or numbness in your fingers and hands, which can be a sign that you have a pinched nerve in your wrist – called Carpal Tunnel syndrome. Carpal Tunnel is another one of those relatively common pregnancy symptoms caused by hormone changes, weight gain and fluid retention.

If you do suffer with Carpal Tunnel, talk to your midwife or GP for support. There are exercises you can do to ease the symptoms and they might recommend a wrist support to help you manage the discomfort.

Relax

It’s hard to relax when you have a small bowling ball in your abdomen, you’re being kicked from the inside, and you’ve got a long list of things to do before you go on maternity leave. But if you don’t make time for relaxing, all those things will feel infinitely harder.

Book time in with your favourite people. Go out for dinner, or to the cinema, or even out dancing if you have the energy. Take time to relax with your partner, and not just lolling on the sofa together. A gentle walk. A pub lunch. Special time that’s meaningful to you both.

Take long, but not-too-hot baths with a good book. Or cosy up with a hot chocolate and a blanket. Have a pregnancy massage, or get your partner to learn some basic massage techniques so they can help ease your tired muscles.

If you find it really hard to switch your brain off, try listening to a meditation track, or even get started on some hypnobirthing podcasts.

Whatever you do, dedicate some time to you every day. Even if it’s just 10 minutes. You won’t regret it.

Talk to your employer about your maternity leave

The latest point at which you can inform your employer that you’re pregnant in the UK is 15 weeks before your due date. But it’s a good idea to do it earlier than that, so that your employer can carry out a risk assessment and make sure you’re safe at work, and so that you’re protected under law from any pregnancy discrimination. Once they know, they’ll also be able to accommodate your antenatal appointments, for which you are entitled to paid time off.

In that first conversation, you may not have thought much about what you want for your maternity leave. By law, your job must be held open for you for a year, and for 9 months you will be entitled to statutory maternity pay.

However, some employers offer more generous packages, so it’s worth finding out exactly what you’re entitled to before you make any decisions. There’s also the question of whether or not you plan to share your maternity leave with your partner (i.e. through the shared parental leave scheme). This obviously has an impact on your potential return date, so give it some thought as a family before you take your proposal to your employer.

Go organic

As the world’s largest organic farmer, we’re obviously in favour of organic food. But it’s quite possible that until you started thinking about maintaining a healthy balanced diet through this pregnancy, you hadn’t previously considered the benefits of organic food for yourself.

As a consumer, the main benefit of organic food is that you won’t be exposed to the chemicals used in crop and animal farming. Pesticides, herbicides, hormones and routine antibiotics – none of these are allowed in organic farming.

As a parent, organic food is like a gift to your child, not only in terms of food quality, but in protecting the sustainability of farming for future generations. Better soil health, more resilient crops, greater biodiversity – all better for us and for the planet.

Yes, organic food does tend to be more expensive. If that’s a problem, try making just a few key switches for now. Every little helps.

Antenatal classes

Most antenatal classes start in the third trimester, but if you haven’t booked on to one already, now is the time. It’s best to choose a class that’s close to home because if you get on with the other parents, you’ll want to spend time with them – both before the babies are born and possibly for many years afterwards. Save your future self some travel time and stay local.

Exercise and stretching

You can attend pregnancy yoga as early or as late into your pregnancy as you like. It’s also a great way to meet other mums-to-be, as well as teaching you ways to stretch out your aching muscles and keep those joints limber. If you prefer, you can find plenty of online options to follow along with at home.

Is 23 weeks pregnant 6 months?

Not quite. You’re about five and a half months pregnant at the moment.

Where is the position of baby at 23 weeks in the womb?

Your baby hasn’t settled into their final position yet, and will still be whizzing around in there. However, you might notice that they have a preferred position when they’re sleeping. Have a feel when it’s quiet and see if you can work out where they are.

What should I be feeling at 23 weeks pregnant?

You should hopefully feel some movements by now, even if that’s only little flutters and ripples. If you don’t feel anything within the next week, tell your midwife. They’ll be able to check the baby’s heartbeat and make sure all is well.

Why does my baby kick so low at 23 weeks?

Your baby is quite low in your abdomen still, and because they’re still quite small – though growing fast – they can kick you all over the place. You might feel kicks down towards your vagina – ouch – as well as out towards your belly and up in the direction of your ribs. This is all normal.

Should my belly be hard at 23 weeks pregnant?

It’s normal for your belly to feel hard, depending on how much fat you’re carrying on top of your bump. Sometimes your uterus may feel harder than others, as the muscles practice those contractions (Braxton Hicks). Your baby’s body also feels quite hard when you press against it.

Got questions? At the HiPPBabyClub, we bring you real-world advice and support from HiPP parents, midwives, nutritionists and more. Join our Baby Club to find out more.