When your belly 'pops', does it actually pop?

[Lolli]

Gradual the first time round until about 30 weeks- I woke up one morning and suddenly I looked pregnant, not like had a bit of a spare tire.

This time I have been fluctuating- some days people go "You're huge" (thanks, SIL) and some days I don't look pregnant at all.

[Cassius2]

mine was more of a 'pop'. i got up one day and realised i couldn't do up my pants so had a look in the mirror and sure enough, it was (finally LOL!) a pg belly...

i also didnt show up pg, until about week 23...

[~Hestia~]

For me it was a gradual thing. I never got that pop, although people said to me "Oh you've suddenly popped!!" but I think they just hadn't noticed it yet.
However I did have & still do have days where I think "Hmmm...wasn't that big a few days ago..."
Your midwife is right. I certainly got thicker around the waist before anything else happened. But don't worry about it if your midwife is happy with your progress. Everyone is different & I'm sure you'll be showing off that belly before you know it

[Just Me]

I felt like I popped with this baby one night last week - I woke up in the morning and my singlet I was wearing just felt tighter. I don't know if visually I looked remarkably different though. It has been more of a gradual thing to actually have the look of feeling pg.

Another contributing factor to you not having much of a bump maybe if you have good ab muscles. One of the reasons you pop out later in your first pg is because all your ab muscles can be holding it all in. Once bub stretches everything, you will get a belly, it might just take a bit more time.

Your 17 weeks now, I would say that in the next month you will probably start to look pg. I think most people start to look pg by the 20 - 22 week mark.

[Beautitude]

I got a gradual belly although i thought it was massive but no one else could see it. By 20 weeks i had a good sized belly and you could tell i was pregnant and didn't eat too much cake at morning tea! By the time i gave birth at 38 weeks though i had a massive belly and everyone thought i was having twins. Enjoy having a little belly for now as when its big it is big!!!

[Just Me]

I got a gradual belly although i thought it was massive but no one else could see it. By 20 weeks i had a good sized belly and you could tell i was pregnant and didn't eat too much cake at morning tea! By the time i gave birth at 38 weeks though i had a massive belly and everyone thought i was having twins. Enjoy having a little belly for now as when its big it is big!!!

It is frustrating how everyone has an opinion on the size of your belly when your pg. Everyone either says too big or too small. No-one seems to say just perfect. In one night last week I got told I don't look pg at all by about 3 different people and another couple asked me if I was having twins because I was apparently really huge for 19 weeks. I just had to laugh it was so ridiculous.

[jenc77]

Hi Shari

I've been worried too - I lost 6kgs right at the beginning because I had OHSS as a result of my IVF treatment (20 eggs at pickup!!!!) - and until about a week ago had not put on a single gram. And I'm having twins!!

I'm also not a very large person and have been hovering around 56kgs. I kind of thought that because I was slight with no extra weight that I'd show immediately - especially with two. In fact, I was preparing myself to have to tell people who see me regularly well before I would otherwise have chosen to.

But everyone is different. So please don't stress. I have a long torso, and apparently my beans are low down. At the scans they've been exactly the right size, my uterus is the right size, and my ob said weight is a really terrible indicator of whether a preg is progressing well.

Having said all that, I have popped now - and not exactly overnight - but certainly within a few days. When I stand side-on, I definitely have a swelling underneath my belly button and it is rock hard. I can't suck it in no matter how hard I try (I was just experimenting - I'm actually very pleased to finally have it!)

I think I also felt 'thicker' before I got a little bump - not that I could tell in my clothes until literally the last couple of days. I was sitting on an aeroplane on Sunday night and had to undo the top button and zipper of my favourite skinny jeans!!!

Jenx