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9 Weeks Pregnant: Your Baby the Size of a Strawberry & Peak-Hormone Nausea

Medically reviewed by
Maryum Sohail, MD Jul 24, 2026
Line illustration of a strawberry: at 9 weeks pregnant your baby is about the size of a strawberry, roughly 22mm Line drawing of a 9-week foetus with a large head, bent elbows and paddle-shaped hands, the tail almost gone Line drawing of a woman's torso at 9 weeks pregnant, showing the enlarged uterus still low in the pelvis and a flat abdomen

Your baby is the size of a

Strawberry

Not routinely measured this early
~2.2 cm / ~0.9 in

Key Takeaways

Your baby is around 22mm from head to bottom — about the size of a strawberry — with eyelids, a tiny mouth and taste buds now forming, according to NHS week-by-week guidance.
Pregnancy hormone human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) reaches its peak at 9 weeks, which is why sickness, tiredness and mood swings can feel at their most intense right now.
Arrange your first prenatal visit if you haven't yet — in Canada, family doctors, obstetricians, midwives and nurse practitioners are all qualified to provide prenatal care, according to the SOGC. It's where screening tests are first offered.

Your Baby at 9 Weeks: Development & Growth

At 9 weeks pregnant, your baby measures around 22mm from head to bottom — about the size of a strawberry, according to NHS week-by-week guidance.

That 22mm is the crown-to-rump measurement — head to bottom — which is how babies are measured this early, because the legs are still too curled to count. Small enough to sit on your fingertip. But in that strawberry-sized body, the scaffolding of a whole person is already going up.

The face is becoming recognisable this week. The NHS describes eyes now protected by eyelids, a little mouth, and a tongue with tiny taste buds already forming. The hands and feet are developing too — though there are no separate fingers or toes yet, just grooves where they'll soon divide.

Inside, the major internal organs — heart, brain, lungs, kidneys and gut — are all developing, and the bones are starting to form, according to the NHS. Your baby's genitals are also beginning to take shape, but you likely won't learn the sex until the anatomy ultrasound, which the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC) says is usually offered between 18 and 22 weeks. There's nothing you need to do to make any of this happen. It's already underway.

Your Body at 9 Weeks: Symptoms & Changes

At 9 weeks pregnant, common symptoms include extreme tiredness, nausea, sore breasts and mood swings, according to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) — and the NHS explains they can feel most intense now, when pregnancy hormones peak.

Here's the biology behind the worst of it. The NHS explains that hCG — the pregnancy hormone that's been doubling every two or three days — reaches its peak when you're 9 weeks pregnant. Higher levels of oestrogen and progesterone join it, a combination that's ramping up the blood supply to your womb. Peak hormones, peak symptoms.

Alongside the nausea and fatigue, the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) lists headaches, breast changes and bloating among common pregnancy symptoms, while the NHS adds a metallic taste in your mouth, a heightened sense of smell, and new food likes and dislikes. Your breasts may be visibly bigger and your waist thickening a little. Not everyone gets all of these, and a lighter week doesn't mean anything is wrong — the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) notes that symptoms vary from woman to woman over the 40 weeks of pregnancy.

Mood swings come with the territory, and the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) notes there are many reasons women experience them in pregnancy — and they're not usually severe. The tears that arrive from nowhere, the short fuse, the 3pm exhaustion — that's hormones, not you falling short. Get the rest. Take the help. This is the peak, and the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) notes that mild nausea and vomiting usually eases up by around the 12th week — about a month from now. If this is the hardest week yet, My Organic Formula would rather sit with you in that honestly than pretend it's a breeze.

What to Do at 9 Weeks Pregnant

NUTRITION AT 9 WEEKS PREGNANT

  • Eat small meals or snacks often so your stomach doesn’t get empty, and don’t skip meals — Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) lists both among its tips for easing nausea and vomiting. Think boiled egg with wholemeal toast, hummus with carrot sticks, or pitta with grated cheese.
  • Avoid liver and liver products, including fish liver oil — the NHS warns they’re high in vitamin A (retinol), too much of which can harm your baby’s development.
  • Try ginger for nausea. The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) says sniffing ginger can sometimes help, and suggests and oral dose of pharmaceutical-grade ginger at a maximum of 250mg four times a day — check with your health care provider or pharmacist first.

WHAT SUPPLEMENTS TO TAKE AT 9 WEEKS PREGNANT

  • Take a daily supplement with 400mcg (0.4mg) of folic acid, and keep taking it throughout your pregnancy. The Public Health Agency of Canada recommends this to help reduce the risk of neural tube defects such as spina bifida — defects of the neural tube, the part of your developing baby that becomes the brain and spinal cord.
  • Consider a daily 10mcg vitamin D supplement. The NHS recommends this between October and March, when most people can’t make enough vitamin D from sunlight — and some people are advised to take it year-round.

LIFESTYLE TIPS AT 9 WEEKS PREGNANT

  • Aim toward 150 minutes of moderate activity a week, which the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC) recommends throughout pregnancy — but start small. Walking is one of its suggested options, and the guidance is to keep the intensity where you can still hold a conversation and never exercise to exhaustion.
  • Prioritise rest over pushing through. With hormones at their peak this week, tiredness is at its most intense — and the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) notes that nausea is worse when you are tired, so getting enough rest can help.
  • Arrange your first prenatal visit if you haven’t already. In Canada, you can receive prenatal care from a family doctor, obstetrician, midwife or nurse practitioner — all qualified to provide it, according to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC).
  • If you’re feeling anxious or low, tell your doctor, midwife or health care provider. The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) is clear that while mood swings are usually mild, depression or disruptive mood swings are not normal and it’s important to seek help — you don’t have to keep worry to yourself.

When to Contact Your Doctor or Midwife

Contact your doctor, midwife or health care provider if you experience:

  • Vaginal bleeding — The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) says to contact your health care provider as soon as you notice any bleeding. About one-third of pregnancies have some bleeding before the 20th week and about half continue without further issues, but any bleeding should be taken seriously and checked.
  • Vomiting combined with very dark urine, or not passing urine for more than 8 hours — the NHS flags this as a sign of dehydration.
  • Being unable to keep food or fluids down for 24 hours, which the NHS lists as a reason to contact your doctor, midwife or health care provider.
  • Feeling very weak, dizzy or faint when you stand up.
  • Severe tummy (abdominal) pain, a high temperature, or vomiting blood — NHS warning signs alongside vomiting. And if sickness is so severe that you're missing meals, having trouble getting through normal activities, or losing weight, the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) says that isn't normal — see your health care provider.
  • Any concern that's worrying you — your care provider is there for exactly this.

Frequently Asked Questions

How big is my baby at 9 weeks pregnant?

At 9 weeks pregnant, your baby is around 22mm long from head to bottom — about the size of a strawberry — according to NHS week-by-week guidance. This is the crown-to-rump measurement, used because the legs are still too curled to measure. The face is becoming recognisable, with eyelids, a mouth and tiny taste buds now forming.

What symptoms are normal at 9 weeks pregnant?

Extreme tiredness, nausea, breast changes, mood swings, headaches and bloating are all normal early-pregnancy symptoms, according to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC); the NHS adds a metallic taste and a heightened sense of smell. The NHS explains these can feel most intense now, when hCG hormone levels are at their highest. Bleeding, severe tummy pain, or being unable to keep fluids down for 24 hours are not routine — contact your doctor, midwife or health care provider if they occur.

When will morning sickness get better?

Mild nausea and vomiting usually starts around the sixth week and eases up by the 12th week, and is not harmful to you or your baby, according to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) — though for some women it lasts longer. At 9 weeks it can feel at its worst because hCG peaks now. A 2024 study in Nature by Fejzo and colleagues identified GDF15 — a hormone produced mostly by the placenta — as a key driver of how severe that sickness feels.

What happens at your first prenatal visit?

Your first prenatal visit is your first full check-up with your prenatal care provider. In Canada, obstetricians, family doctors, midwives and nurse practitioners are all qualified to provide prenatal care, according to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC). You’ll review your health and be offered routine tests, including prenatal genetic screening. The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (SOGC) says all women should be offered prenatal genetic screening, and whether to have it is your choice.

What prenatal screening tests are offered around now?

All women should be offered prenatal genetic screening, according to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC). This uses blood tests — including newer tests that measure the baby’s cell-free DNA in your blood — to estimate the chance of conditions like Down syndrome, Trisomy 18 and neural tube defects. SOGC stresses these are screening tests that estimate likelihood, not diagnoses; whether to have them is your choice.

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