At 5 weeks pregnant, you’re now in month 2 of your pregnancy. This week, you can officially take a pregnancy test — your hCG hormone levels are high enough to show a positive result, and you may have early symptoms like fatigue and nausea.

As for your baby? The embryo is starting to look more like a fetus, and your little one's heart and circulatory system are developing.

Your Baby at Week 5

At a Glance

The placenta forms
The placenta forms
The placenta is under construction and will finish forming by the end of the first trimester. It’s an organ that will soon connect your developing fetus to your uterine wall, providing baby-to-be with nutrients and oxygen.
Positive pregnancy test
Positive pregnancy test
Your hCG hormone levels are now high enough to confirm you're having a baby in a home pregnancy test.
From embryo to fetus
From embryo to fetus
That mass of cells we call an embryo is starting to look like a fetus, with a forming neural tube (pre-spinal cord and brain) running from head to rump.

5 weeks pregnant is how many months?

If you're 5 weeks pregnant, you're in month 2 of your pregnancy. Only 7 months to go! Still have questions?  Here's some more information on how weeks, months and trimesters are broken down in pregnancy.

How big is my baby at 5 weeks?

At 5 weeks pregnant, your little embryo is still super tiny, measuring about the size of an orange seed. 

Baby has a tail

So what does your baby look like now? Actually, not unlike a tadpole, with a rudimentary head and a tail. But don't worry, there's no frog in your future.

In fact, you're fewer than eight months away from holding a real prince or princess in your arms. While all this is happening, the hCG hormone levels in your body are now high enough to confirm that you're expecting using a home pregnancy test. Go to the doctor to confirm the good news and figure out your due date.

Organs are forming

It takes a lot of developing to become a baby — all the major and minor bodily systems (digestive, circulatory, nervous and so on) and organs, like the heart, lungs and stomach, have to form from scratch.

When you're 5 weeks pregnant, a tiny tube-like structure is beginning to develop into your baby's heart, though he almost certainly has his grip on yours already!

Also in the works this week are several other organs, including the neural tube — the precursor to your baby's brain and spinal cord — which hasn't yet sealed. But by next week, that open-door policy is over.

Your Body at Week 5

5 weeks pregnant woman

HCG and home pregnancy tests

By now you should have missed your period — one of the more obvious indications that you're pregnant. It's time to pee on a stick (good news since you probably need to go more often anyway), because at 5 weeks pregnant the level of hCG, the pregnancy-announcer hormone, in your urine is high enough to be detected by a home pregnancy test.

That means you'll be able to confirm what you probably already suspect: You're expecting!

This news will probably elicit a combo platter of emotions ranging from sheer joy to sheer terror as the reality that you're going to be a mom sets in. Mood swings are totally normal — kind of like PMS on overdrive — so don't worry if you're having them.

Early pregnancy signs

There'll be other early pregnancy signs, too. Like that sense of exhaustion that may have washed over you. And those tender breasts. Or that slight bout of nausea you might have felt when you smelled a dish that normally doesn't bother you.

Growing a baby — even one no larger than an orange seed — is hard work, and your body is responding in kind.

Pregnancy hormones kick in

Large quantities of hormones — chemical signals that circulate in your body and work together to cause physical changes — are being mass-produced this week.

Among them are estrogen, which keeps the levels of progesterone and hCG up where they need to be; progesterone, which maintains the function of the placenta, keeps the smooth muscles of the uterus from contracting, and stimulates breast tissue growth; and hCG, which support the corpus luteum until the placenta takes over at about 10 weeks and regulates the amount of progesterone necessary.

And don't be surprised if you feel like these hormones are taking over your life sometimes!

Telling your friends you're pregnant

Have you or your partner been bursting to spread the good news about your expectant status ever since that home pregnancy test turned positive? Not sure when the best time is to grab a megaphone (or a telephone ... or a computer keyboard) and start sharing? Only you can make the call, so to speak, on that one.

Some women (and their partners if they have them) can't wait to tell their friends they're pregnant — if they could, they'd shout it from the highest mountain or make the announcement go viral — while others prefer to keep their happy news on the DL until after the third month, when the risk of miscarriage greatly decreases.

Still others wish that they could stay mum about becoming a mom (or dad ... or second parent of any kind) but can't help blabbing the first chance they get. Talk to loved ones for advice, and remember, it's your little secret for as long as you choose.

Learn more about spreading the news.

Pregnancy Symptoms Week 5

Food cravings and aversions
Food cravings and aversions
Fatigue
Fatigue
Nausea
Nausea
Excessive saliva
Excessive saliva

Tips for You This Week

Avoid the litter box

Score! You're off litter-box duty for the duration of your pregnancy. That's because cat feces can harbor a parasite that causes toxoplasmosis, an infection that isn’t good for unborn babies.

You also shouldn't eat raw or undercooked meat or feed it to your cat, and you shouldn't play in or clean out a child's sandbox, which could be used as a litter box by local outdoor kitties. Ask your partner, a friend or a relative to help out.

Schedule a teeth cleaning

Teeth cleanings are a good thing — especially because about 40 percent of the pregnant set have periodontal disease, which ups their chance of preeclampsia (a pregnancy complication that's characterized by high blood pressure).

Dental X-rays should be saved until after baby arrives, though, unless the risk of not having one done outweighs the relatively small risk of radiation to the fetus.

If you do have an X-ray, wear a lead apron or abdominal shield over your lower belly.

Know your off-limits foods

It’s time to take some foods off the menu, including unpasteurized dairy and juices, undercooked meat and eggs, raw sprouts, and mercury-laden or raw fish (they can cause foodborne illnesses that can be bad for baby).

Other foods to avoid include hot dogs and deli meats, which can harbor nitrates and nitrites. You should also cut back on caffeine and stop drinking alcohol (if you haven't already).

Soothe an upset stomach

Need to quell a queasy stomach? Try noshing on a snack that's rich in protein and complex carbs, like whole wheat crackers and cheese or some granola and yogurt. Or skip the solids and sip on soup or a smoothie.

Make sure you get eight to 10 glasses of fluids from all sources a day, especially if vomiting is leaving you dehydrated. Ginger can also be good for what ails you. Use it in cooking — like in ginger-carrot soup or ginger muffins — infuse your tea with it, nibble on some ginger biscuits, nosh on some crystallized ginger or suck on some ginger candy.

And if your symptoms are particularly rough, ask your practitioner about taking a vitamin B6 supplement or switching your prenatal vitamin from one loaded with iron to one higher in B6.

Learn how to manage bloat

Gas: It's like a cosmic joke — some of the healthiest foods can leave you feeling gassy…and not at all in the mood to eat your veggies. And gas and bloating are par for the course when you’re pregnant, thanks to pregnancy hormones.

Opt for healthy substitutions that won't bring on the bloat — for example, mangoes instead of broccoli or strawberries instead of cabbage.

Pop bagel chips instead of potato chips and eat poached chicken breast instead of those once-beloved chicken fingers.

Another simple way to deflate pregnancy tummy bubbles: Instead of sparkling water, sip plain water instead.

Exercise for morning sickness?

Should you or shouldn't you work out in the first trimester, especially when you're grappling with morning sickness? That all depends on how a workout makes you feel.

If the queasies have you down at 5 weeks pregnant, try stepping outside for a brisk walk. Chances are, you'll feel better after about 15 minutes — both from the fresh air and the exercise.

Other workouts are fine, too, if they sit well with your stomach. Just make sure you have a tummy-approved snack (nothing that's likely to come back up during warm-ups) before and after you workout, and don't forget to stay hydrated.

Pick your proteins

You know you need your protein, but you've had a falling out with meat (and chicken, and fish…) and now you can't be in the same room together, never mind share a plate.

You'll eventually be able to stomach these meaty foods again, but until then, pick up protein from cottage cheese, yogurt, beans or soy products, especially tofu or edamame. Or consider quinoa, a nutty grain that packs a super-punch of protein in a comforting package.

If it's leafy greens that turn you a not-so-delicate shade of chartreuse, brighten up your diet with yellow vegetables (which are often easier to take), like carrots or yams. Or go for the beta-carotene in cantaloupe, mangoes, peaches and apricots.

From the What to Expect editorial team and Heidi Murkoff, author of What to Expect When You're Expecting. What to Expect follows strict reporting guidelines and uses only credible sources, such as peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions and highly respected health organizations. Learn how we keep our content accurate and up-to-date by reading our medical review and editorial policy.

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