{"id":30267,"date":"2019-05-07T13:51:00","date_gmt":"2019-05-07T20:51:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.avawomen.com\/?p=30267"},"modified":"2019-07-19T09:52:47","modified_gmt":"2019-07-19T16:52:47","slug":"18-weeks-pregnant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.avawomen.com\/avaworld\/18-weeks-pregnant\/","title":{"rendered":"18 Weeks Pregnant: Lighter Sleep and Vivid Dreams"},"content":{"rendered":"

By now your baby is developing more established sleep-wake cycles. Your sleep, on the other hand, is likely interrupted by additional pregnancy symptoms, your baby\u2019s movements, and vivid dreams.<\/p>\n

Your baby<\/h2>\n

Believe it or not, your placenta<\/a> hasn\u2019t been fully formed until now. Until birth, the placenta will provide nutrients and oxygen to your baby and remove waste products from her blood. If your baby is a she, her uterus, fallopian tubes, and ovaries are fully developed by now.<\/p>\n

Her retinas are becoming more sensitive to light, which is allowing sleep-wake periods to become more established. Her skin is developing vernix caseosa, typically called vernix, which is a thick, white substance (some call it cheese-like) that helps to protect and moisturize her skin.<\/p>\n

Her rate of growth has slowed compared to the last several weeks, but her reflexes are becoming more active. Between week 18 and week 26, most women feel those reflexes in the form of kicks and jabs which are very light at first but grow stronger over time. All babies have different patterns but many women are more able to feel their baby move at night or after they\u2019ve eaten.<\/p>\n

Your body<\/h2>\n

You might begin to notice edema: the swelling of your feet, ankles, and hands. This swelling is caused by the additional blood and fluids created during pregnancy.<\/p>\n

You may also experience drier eyes, especially if you wear contacts. Again, hormones are to blame; particularly a drop in male hormones can cause red, dry eyes that get worse as the day progresses. You can use lubricating drops to help with the dryness.<\/p>\n

Vivid and strange dreams may also start to occur in the second trimester because you spend less time in REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. This part of the sleep cycle is when most dreams occur and you\u2019re probably interrupting your dream-cycles with the frequent wake-ups (to use the bathroom, because of heartburn, due to discomfort, etc.). When you wake up during the REM part of your sleep cycle, you\u2019re more likely to remember your dreams.<\/p>\n

Your mind<\/h2>\n

Your mind might be swimming with everything you need to do before your baby arrives. This is a great time to get organized with to-do lists and shopping lists; this can help provide a sense of control at a time when your body is changing faster than you can keep track of. You\u2019re likely feeling a sense of anticipation as you get closer to your anatomy scan which happens around week 20.<\/p>\n

What to do this week<\/h2>\n