3
Medically reviewed by Clare Herbert, Senior midwife and team leader
Written by
Chess Thomas
- Baby Development
- What you need to know Week 2
- Pregnancy Symptoms Week 2
- Pregnancy To-Do List
Highlights this week
You may be about to ovulate – time to get it on!
Ovulation tests can help pinpoint your fertile window.
Why you need to start taking folic acid before you get pregnant.
Baby development at 2 weeks
Your pregnancy journey begins when an egg is released from one of your ovaries (ovulation) and moves into the fallopian tube. This will happen sometime at the beginning of this week, around day 14 of a regular 28-day menstrual cycle. Your egg will then patiently wait for the next 12 hours to 24 hours to be fertilised by a sperm.
Your partner will ejacul*te up to 600 million sperm, although only about 200 or so will reach your egg. You conceive when one of these sperm penetrates the outer membrane of your egg and fertilises it.
Your fertilised egg, or zygote as it's now called, is swept down your fallopian tube and burrows into the lush lining of your womb (uterus). Sadly, early miscarriage is common and not all zygotes will become babies. But if your pregnancy progresses well over the next nine months, this minuscule zygote will grow and develop from a tiny ball of cells into your baby.
Read more about conception and your baby's earliest days of development.
Your baby at 2 weeks
Tap the plus for more details
Advertisem*nt | page continues below
Fertilisation
Pregnancy symptoms at two weeks
Even though you're in the very early stages of pregnancy, you may already have certain symptoms this week. For example, pregnancy increases the blood supply to your breasts, so you may experience a prickling or tingling sensation in them. Your nipples may be particularly sensitive.
Another early sign that you're expecting is needing to wee more often. This is also caused by increased blood flow.
You may also notice that the amount of vagin*l discharge that you have increases. This discharge is usually harmless, and won't look that different from the discharge you had before pregnancy.
Some light bleeding or spotting is common at 2 weeks pregnant. If you've noticed any pink or brown-coloured stains in your knickers, or light cramping when you go to the toilet, it could be an implantation bleed. This is thought to happen as your fertilised egg buries into the lining of your womb.
Your body at 2 weeks
Tap the plus for more details
What you need to know at 2 weeks of pregnancy
At 2 weeks pregnant, it's unlikely that your pregnancy test will be showing you that eagerly anticipated positive line just yet. It’s only natural that you’ll want to find out if you are pregnant, especially if you think you've spotted the first signs of pregnancy.
The most reliable sign of pregnancy is a missed period. Monitoring your menstrual cycle can therefore be a good way of noticing any changes.
Some tests are designed to be very sensitive, and can detect pregnancy hormones as early as six days after you've conceived. This could be as early as the end of this week.
However, in general, a pregnancy test will be more accurate if you wait to take one after your period was due. So, it may be best if you wait a little longer before you take your first test.
I did a test a few days after we had sex but it was negative, even though I was pregnant. I didn't realise it takes a while to get a positive reading!
Renee
Your pregnancy to-do list at 2 weeks
- Discover more signs of pregnancy at 2 weeks.
- It's never too early to start taking pregnancy supplements. Find out why folic acid is important for your growing baby.
- Join our symptom spotters community groupOpens a new window and compare notes with other mums-to-be in the earliest stages of pregnancy.
- Find out which chemicals you need to be careful of during pregnancy, including household cleaners.
Check out the BabyCentre podcast!
The Parent Pod is BabyCentre’s brilliantly entertaining and informative podcast series. Join hosts Claire and Lucy as they walk your exciting journey with you each week from early pregnancy until your baby is 12 weeks old. Subscribe now on the usual channels. Learn more
Sources
BabyCentre's editorial team is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. When creating and updating content, we rely on credible sources: respected health organisations, professional groups of doctors and other experts, and published studies in peer-reviewed journals. We believe you should always know the source of the information you're seeing. Learn more about our editorial and medical review policies.
Hill MA. 2016b. Carnegie stage table. University of New South Wales Embryology. Embryology.med.unsw.edu.auOpens a new window. [Accessed November 2016]
NHS. 2015a. You and your baby at 0-8 weeks pregnant. NHS Choices. Health A-Z, baby and pregnancy. www.nhs.ukOpens a new window. [Accessed November 2016]
NHS. 2015b. What causes bleeding during pregnancy?. NHS Choices. Health A-Z, baby and pregnancy. www.nhs.ukOpens a new window. [Accessed November 2016]
NICE. 2011. Antenatal care - uncomplicated pregnancy. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, Clinical Knowledge Summaries. cks.nice.org.ukOpens a new window [Accessed November 2016]
Chess Thomas
Chess Thomas is a freelance health writer and former research editor at BabyCentre.
Opens a new windowOpens a new windowOpens a new window
Advertisem*nt | page continues below
3 weeks
Track your pregnancy on our free #1 pregnancy & baby app
