Five weeks pregnant: 2nd ultrasound

We had a few ultrasounds during the first weeks of the pregnancy, to check if everything was all right, i.e. if the embryo was growing inside Hanneke's womb (which it was). In this ultrasound, we were able to see the first sign of our baby--well, the development of an embryo might sound more correct at this stage. But to be sure everything was all right we had to come back again the next week (which was scheduled anyway).

In the ultrasound picture, you can see a sort of ring in the bottom-left corner of the uterus, which is filled with amniotic fluid and measures about 17 mm. The size of the embryo itself is probably around 2 mm, which is normal somewhere in between the fourth and sixth week of the pregnancy. As an additional check the gynecologist was going to check Hanneke's blood at two different times to make sure her hormone level was rising as it should. Fortunately, everything would prove to be really fine in the end, which was a comforting thought.

Luckily, everything seems to be going well for us but I think this is generally a strange period for many parents to be. You are pregnant but actually have no idea what is going on. The first few weeks/months are of course also the most risky ones (e.g. for miscarriage). This is of course a scary thought. However, I read that even about 30% of the women lose blood during the first weeks, even though there is nothing wrong with the pregnancy or embryo. And while blood loss can come from many sources--some women even still have their period--people are of course easily concerned by something like this. Probably, the only thing one can do is to have some trust. Actually, the stress might be a bad thing for the baby. Also, if you eat and live well, there is really nothing you can do to influence the pregnancy. Perhaps this kind of comforting thought is not always satisfying but I suppose it is true...