25 weeks pregnant: symptoms of girl?

Week-by-week guide to pregnancy
group of pregnant women
When you're pregnant, you have lots of questions. Our week-by-week pregnancy guide is packed with lots of useful information. From what's happening inside your body, to how your baby is developing, and tips and advice on having a healthy pregnancy – this is your one-stop pregnancy guide!

1st trimester
2nd trimester
3rd trimester

2nd trimester

Our week-by-week pregnancy guide is full of essential information. From staying fit in pregnancy to advice on your maternity rights, you'll find it all here.

Week 13
Week 14
Week 15
Week 16
Week 17
Week 18
Week 19
Week 20
Week 21
Week 22
Week 23
Week 24
Week 25
Week 26
Week 27

Week 25 – your 2nd trimester

Welcome to week 25! You'll need to tell your employers now, if you haven't already, so that you can get maternity pay and benefits. If your partner plans to take paternity leave, they will need to tell their employer too. Did you know that female partners are also entitled to paternity leave?
What's happening in my body?

You could be starting to get a bit puffy and swollen in your face, hands and feet. This is probably completely harmless and caused by water retention – but do mention it to your midwife or doctor.

They will want to check your blood pressure, just in case it's a sign of a dangerous condition called pre-eclampsia.

Pre-eclampsia can happen in the 2nd half of pregnancy or after the baby is born. If you get any other signs, such as splitting headaches, vision problems, or pain just below the ribs, then call your doctor, midwife or NHS 111.
Feeling gassy after eating

Are you burping a lot? It's very common around now. You may be feeling more full than usual.

After eating or drinking you could get:

burning in your chest
bloating
nausea

This is probably indigestion and heartburn. Digestive problems are caused by your growing baby taking over some of the space where your stomach used to be.

It can help to:

eat smaller meals, so you don't feel too full afterwards
eat healthily and avoid rich, spicy and fatty foods
cut back on drinks with caffeine (such as tea, coffee and energy drinks)
sit up straight when you eat
give up alcohol and cigarettes

If you're pregnant and single

Around 1 in 4 families are single parent families. You may be worried about money or how you'll cope. It's important that you talk to people about how you feel and ask for help if you need it.

You can also talk to your doctor or midwife about local support groups. Gingerbread is an organisation for single parent families that can advise you on everything from benefits to childcare.

Get more advice on being a single parent on the NHS website.

2nd trimester pregnancy symptoms (at 25 weeks)

This week, your signs of pregnancy could include:

tiredness and sleeping problems (week 19 has information about feeling tired)
stretch marks (read about stretch marks on week 17's page)
swollen and bleeding gums (week 13 has information about gum health during pregnancy)
pains on the side of your baby bump, caused by your expanding womb ("round ligament pains")
piles (read about piles on week 22's page)
headaches
backache
nosebleeds
indigestion and heartburn (week 25 talks about digestive problems)
bloating and constipation (read about bloating on week 16's page)
leg cramps (week 20 explains how to deal with cramp)
feeling hot -dizziness
swollen hands and feet
urine infections
vaginal infections (see week 15 for vaginal health)
darkened skin on your face or brown patches – this is known as chloasma or the "mask of pregnancy"
greasier, spotty skin
thicker and shinier hair

You may also experience symptoms from earlier weeks, such as:

mood swings (week 8's page has information on mood swings)
morning sickness (read about dealing with morning sickness on week 6's page)
weird pregnancy cravings (read about pregnancy cravings on week 5's page)
a heightened sense of smell
sore or leaky breasts (read about breast pain on week 14's page) - a white milky pregnancy discharge from your vagina and light spotting (seek medical advice for any bleeding)

Read Tommy's guide to common pregnancy symptoms.
Sign up for emails

Get more tips and advice on your pregnancy, baby and parenting sent to your inbox.
Subscribe to Start4Life pregnancy, baby and toddler emails
What does my baby look like?

Your baby, or foetus, is around 34.6cm long from head to heel, and weighs about 660g. That's approximately the size of a head of cauliflower, and the weight of 4 jacket potatoes.

This is an active time for your baby. A loud noise could make your baby jump and kick, which shouldn't hurt, but might take you by surprise. You might even feel the occasional hiccup.

Your baby is now peeing into the amniotic fluid. By now, most of the liquid around your baby is urine which provides cushioning and helps keep the temperature snug and stable.

Action stations

Start thinking a bit more about what you'd ideally like to happen when your baby's born. What kind of pain relief would you like? Who do you want to have with you? You can download an NHS birth plan template which will help you think through some of the big issues.