What to expect at 15 weeks pregnant

Dr Christine Catling

Dr Christine Catling, a midwife for over 25 years, is the Director of Midwifery Studies at UTS. She believes research, innovation and good quality midwifery are pivotal to the well-being of mothers and young families. Christine has extensive experience in antenatal education, policy development and research, and has published on workforce issues, homebirth, vaginal birth after caesarean section, maternal mortality, vaginal breech birth, maternal and child health in Papua New Guinea, simulation-based learning and vitamin D levels in mothers and neonates. In 2015 she was the inaugural research fellow for the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre at UTS. Her PhD explored the influences on women who chose a publicly-funded home birth in Australia.

See more articles by Dr Christine Catling

Follow +

Updated on Jan 03, 2025 · 3 mins read

Follow +

Read later

Up next

Pregnancy

What making an informed decision really looks like in pregnancy

Health & Wellness

Expecting? Here’s why doctors recommend the RSV vaccine

In this article

49952Yourbaby1

Your baby

Your little one is becoming its own unique being now with features including eyebrows and eyelashes forming as well as hair on the head. Your baby’s eyelids are still fused shut but can now sense light, and if a light is shone on the belly they will likely move away from the light.

Your baby also have taste buds now too – although there’s not much tasting to be done just yet.

49952Howyourefeeling2

How you’re feeling

If this isn’t your first pregnancy you may start to feel slight flutters of movement any time from now, but if it is your first then this might still be a few weeks off.

You may also start to feel some cramps or strange sensations that are actually your uterus growing and stretching to accommodate your new little resident. These can be unsettling and as long as the pain is not extreme and tends to subside – and there is no bleeding – then it is fairly normal.

If you are concerned at any time, always speak with your doctor or midwife.

16Weeks baby

15Weeks baby

20Weeks baby

49952Weeklytip3

Weekly tip

Finding out the sex: to wait or not to wait – that is the question?

These days with the technology available, statistics show that most people are opting to find out the sex. This definitely makes planning and preparing for your baby’s arrival much easier – and some people just can’t wait to know.

However, there is also something to be said for waiting and the anticipation of finding out your baby’s gender in that moment when they are placed in your arms. It is really a matter of personal preference.

These days you can find out the sex as early as 10 weeks through the Harmony Non-Invasive Prenatal Test (NIPT). This is a non-invasive test that will identify if you have an increased likelihood of having a baby with a chromosomal aneuploidy that can cause birth defects. Using a blood sample, the test screens for the risk of Down syndrome (trisomy 21) and two other genetic conditions, trisomy 18 (Edwards syndrome) and trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome) – and can also tell you the sex of the baby if you choose.

You will need a referral from your doctor for the test and results usually take around 7-10 days and there is usually an out-of-pocket fee.

However, you can also opt to find out the baby’s gender at any of your routine ultrasounds too.

Make sure that if you are choosing NOT to find out the sex of your baby that you let your doctor know. Also be sure to tell any nurses, midwives, sonographers that you don’t know so they don’t accidentally let slip or can tell you to look away when any telling body parts are visible during your ultrasounds!