Some women consider this the easiest trimester of their pregnancy. The morning sickness and fatigue has subsided, but you haven't started experiencing some of the uncomfortable symptoms of the third trimester. By this time, you're finally starting to look pregnant, and you may need to begin wearing maternity clothes. You'll begin to feel your baby move during your second trimester. At first it may only seem like a fluttering movement, but as the trimester progresses there will be no question that you are feeling the little one move around. Other changes include an increase in blood volume to support the baby. This can give you occasional nosebleeds and bleeding gums and can make the veins just below your skin become more apparent. Increasing the humidity in your home will help to prevent nosebleeds. Your uterus is shifting, which will cut down on your need to go to the bathroom so much.

As the baby gets bigger, you may experience some common aches and pains, pelvic achiness, dizziness, heartburn, constipation, hemorrhoids, leg cramps, swelling in your feet and ankles, stretch marks, and backaches. Chapter 11 offers tips on dealing with some of these mild discomforts. During this trimester, your risk for bladder infections increases because the muscles of the urinary tract relax.