Week 26: Eyes Open!
Your baby opens their eyes for the first time! They can see light and dark, and their eyes may have color (though this may change after birth).
Medically reviewed by Samantha L. Fox, RN, BSN, MSN
Nursing Informaticist · United States Navy Nurse Corps · Last reviewed
Your baby is the size of a...
🥬 Lettuce Head!
👶 Baby Development
- ✓Baby opens eyes for the first time
- ✓Can see light and dark
- ✓Eyelashes are formed
- ✓Brain wave patterns resemble a full-term newborn's
- ✓Air sacs in lungs beginning to produce surfactant
- ✓Baby is inhaling and exhaling small amounts of amniotic fluid (practicing breathing)
💊 Common Symptoms
- •Difficulty sleeping — baby is active at night
- •Swollen fingers — rings may feel tight
- •Higher blood pressure (normal mild increase)
- •Pelvic pain and pressure
- •Leg cramps
- •Occasional headaches
🩺Clinical Context — From a Nurse's View
Twenty-six weeks brings the back end of gestational diabetes screening — if you haven't done the one-hour yet, now is the deadline window. Blood pressure surveillance becomes more important from here through delivery. Preeclampsia risk climbs sharply after 20 weeks, peaks late, and the classic signs (severe headache, visual changes like seeing spots or auras, right-upper-quadrant pain under the rib cage, sudden swelling of face and hands, sudden weight gain) plus a blood pressure ≥140/90 plus proteinuria define it. If you're at higher risk — chronic hypertension, prior preeclampsia, autoimmune disease, BMI >30, age >35 — your provider should already have you on low-dose aspirin (81 mg daily, started before 16 weeks per ACOG/USPSTF). Eyes are opening this week, and brain wave patterns are becoming organized. Baby can recognize voices.
Written by Samantha L. Fox, RN, BSN, MSN — Emergency Department nurse, US Navy Nurse Corps officer.
🚨 When to Call (or Go to the ER)
- !Severe headache that doesn't respond to acetaminophen — call
- !Visual changes — spots, blurry vision, blind spots — call
- !RUQ pain (under the right rib cage) — call
- !Sudden swelling of face and hands or sudden weight gain — call
- !Decreased fetal movement, contractions, fluid leak, or bleeding — call
✅ Normal — Even If It Feels Worrying
- ✓Swollen ankles by end of day (resolves overnight)
- ✓Trouble sleeping
- ✓Pelvic pressure
- ✓Stronger Braxton Hicks
✅ To-Do This Week
- Finalize your baby registry
- Start or continue decorating the nursery
- Wash and organize baby clothes by size
- Interview and select a pediatrician
- Prepare meals to freeze for after baby arrives
- Practice relaxation and breathing techniques
🩺 Questions for Your Doctor
- ?Is my blood pressure within the normal range?
- ?Should I be concerned about swelling?
- ?How is the baby's vision developing?
- ?Am I at risk for preeclampsia?
- ?When does the baby need to be in head-down position?
- ?What are the signs of preterm labor?
📚 References
- [1]ACOG Practice Bulletin No. 222: Gestational Hypertension and Preeclampsia. Obstet Gynecol. 2020;135(6):e237-e260.
- [2]ACOG Practice Bulletin No. 190: Gestational Diabetes Mellitus. Obstet Gynecol. 2018;131(2):e49-e64.
Editorial review: Samantha L. Fox, RN, BSN, MSN. Last reviewed: see footer.
Your baby is the size of a...