If you are newly pregnant, you may be wondering when you will start to show. Most are eager to have visible evidence of the baby growing inside. Some worry that they will start to show before they are ready to share the news with others.
Most pregnancy books and experts will say that women begin to show in the fourth month of pregnancy. This is the month that women seem to start wearing maternity clothes. In reality, while many women find this time table to be accurate, that isn’t always the case. When a woman will start to show can vary according to several factors.
Size and body type will influence how fast a woman will show. Weight is one factor in how soon a woman will start to show. Very thin women tend to show a bit sooner in some cases. Height is another factor. Shorter women tend to show more and sooner than tall women.
The number of babies a woman has had will affect how soon she starts to show. Women often report that they show faster in subsequent pregnancies. This has been true for me as well. It seems that my clothes don’t fit earlier with each pregnancy. There is a good reason for this phenomenon. The muscles that support the uterus are stretched and weakened.
The amount of weight gain contributes to how fast a woman will start to show. A healthy weight gain for the first trimester is five pounds, total. If a woman stays within that range, she most likely won’t show. However, if a woman is gaining too much, say ten pounds or so, her pregnancy may be evident a lot sooner.
The type of clothing you wear may affect how soon you will need maternity clothing. Women who wear tailored or tight fitting clothing will outgrow their wardrobe sooner than women with looser fitting clothes. They aren’t really showing later, but are able to keep it quiet a bit longer. This can be helpful for women who want to wait until the end of the first trimester to share the news.
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