Pregnancy Guide

22 Weeks Pregnant

Your baby is the size of a Papaya (Small). Discover exactly what is happening to your body and your baby this week.

New pregnancy guide: Learn how weeks are counted, what each trimester means, and how to interpret your calculator results for better preparation and planning. Read the full guide

Week 22 in detail

Your voice is familiar — practice contractions may start

Baby this week

Eyebrows and lashes are in. Hearing is good enough that your voice is a known sound. The baby is filling out but skin can still look thin on medical images. Weight is climbing faster than length.

  • Recognising a voice is bonding science, not a party trick to test with speakers on the bump all night
  • The eyes still lack mature colour; iris pigment comes later
  • Lungs are branching; they are not ready for air

Your body this week

Braxton Hicks are irregular, usually painless tightenings — the uterus rehearsing. They should not get longer, stronger, and closer together. Ankle puffiness after a day on your feet is common; sudden puffiness of face and hands is not “just heat.”

  • If a tightening is regular and you are not yet 37 weeks, call rather than Google
  • Feet up and extra water help ordinary swelling
  • Pain-relief options for labour are worth reading now while you can concentrate

Get ready

Elevate your feet when you can. Read labour analgesia (epidural, gas, TENS, water) as information, not a contract. The checklist above is swelling and reading. Save the contraction timer for closer to term unless tightenings become a pattern.

A general guide, not medical advice. Scan timing and symptoms vary — ask your clinician.

Baby Growth Curve

This chart visualizes the average length of the baby from week 1 to 40. Values are based on standard clinical averages.

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