Your Pregnancy - Week 20

Woahhh we’re halfway there, woahhh living on a.... Yes, you’ve made it, the middle of your 40-week pregnancy.

It’s a big milestone and around the time you’ll have your second scan. You might feel great right now but you might also have some weird niggles like pingy pains in your tummy (round ligament pains) or leg cramps, caused by your increased blood circulation. These are both normal but if you have any concerns at all chat to your midwife or doctor.

If you haven’t got it yet ask your midwife or doctor for your MAT B1 form. You’ll need this to get your maternity pay and benefits and you can get it from 20 weeks onwards.

You might feel some movement by now it can start anywhere between 16-22 weeks.

What does my baby look like?

Your baby is about 25cm this week, imagine a big sweet potato! Those measurements were from head to bum (or crown to rump) until this week because their little legs were curled up. Now they’re all stretched out the measurements change and are from their head to the heel of their foot.

And watch out for your baby sucking their thumb when you have your scan. It’s a way they comfort themselves but also gets that sucking reflex ready for feeding.

Your 20-week anomaly scan

You’ll have your second scan between 18-20 weeks. You might feel nervous, excited or a combination of both. It’s a chance to see and hear your baby but lots of mums worry the scan will show there’s something wrong.

Everyone is offered this scan but it’s up to you if do it.
It’s done in the same way as your 12-week early scan.
The sonographer (the person doing the scan) looks closely at your baby's heart and brain plus their bones, spinal cord, face, kidneys and abdomen. They’re checking for 11 rare conditions but also to check that generally your baby looks healthy. They also check the position of your placenta.
Most scans show a healthy, happy baby. But the scan can’t check for every condition and if the sonographer thinks they have spotted something, they might call another person into the room or refer you to the doctor for more tests.
You don’t usually need a full bladder for this scan but you might need to move around for the sonographer to get a good view.
You will see your baby and hear their heartbeat and they look like an actual human!
If you want to know if you’re having a boy or a girl let the sonographer know when you get there.
The scan takes about half an hour and you can usually take someone with you (but check with your hospital).