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Prenatal Development and Birth
Prenatal development and birth is divided into three main parts: Germinal, Embryonic, and Fetal. Germinal consists of the first 2 weeks after conception. Rapid cell division and beginning of cell differentiation occurs. The outer cells form the placenta, and the inner cells form the nucleus that will become the embryo. Embryo is the name of a developing human organism. At 4 weeks the embryo is 3 mm long. At 5 weeks the heart is visible. At 8 weeks it is recognizable as a human fetus. In the Fet -
First Two Years
At 24 months the average toddler will weigh around 28 pounds. Sensation and perception are very strong. Gross and fine motor skills develop. Brain increases dramatically from 25% to 75% within the first 2 years. My mother recalls that I was always normal in weight at this age but I was taller than the average two-year old. In regards to cognitive development, Piaget termed the way infants think as Sensorimotor Intelligence. Babies develop dynamic perceptions and people preference. Infants have t -
Early Childhood
Bodies and brain start to mature in size and function. By age 6 the average child weighs between 40 and 50 pounds. I was always in the same group of average children for weight. Gross motor skills improve dramatically during this time period. By age six I was able to tie my shoes, ride a bike, color and draw, and write some words. Early childhood is a time of rapidly mastering vocabulary, grammar and pronunciation. Some children talk to themselves, this is called private speech. I often used pri -
Middle Childhood
A school age child’s growth is slow and steady. Muscles become stronger, and heart and lungs increase in strength and capacity. At this age I was a great runner. I was able to run fast and for long periods of time. The benefits of physical activity such as running for a school age child can last a lifetime. Selective attention improves noticeably by age 7. I do remember that the ability to concentrate on some stimuli and ignore others was always a problem for me. I believe back then I would have -
Adolescence
When I think of adolescence, I think of puberty. Puberty refers to the years of rapid physical growth and maturation that end childhood. Puberty is a tremendous amount of hormones that provide external growth and internal changes. I believe when I was at this stage, I was late maturing. I still wanted to be a kid and was never excited about my body changes as my friends were. I also didn’t want to do girly things like do my hair and make-up, I still wanted to hang out with my brother and ride bi -
Emerging Adulthood
During emerging adulthood, every body system is functioning optimally. Serious disease is not apparent and childhood diseases are out grown. Immune systems are strong fighting everything from a little cough to cancer. Appearance is also better. The oily hair and pimpled face of adolescence is gone and wrinkled skin and hair loss of adulthood has not appeared. I very much regret my decision to start smoking around this age. Although my health was supposed to be at my prime during this age, my big -
Adulthood
I am 32 years old, so the stage of adulthood is easy for me to describe. First of all, I have noticed major physical changes. I am only 32 and have noticed loss of vision, aging, wrinkling skin and grey hairs. I also can’t eat like when I was younger. Before 25, it was as if I could eat anything I wanted and not gain a pound. Now, if I look at a piece of pizza I gain 5 pounds. This is something difficult for me to accept. No longer being able to eat the foods I enjoy and no longer having quite t -
Late Adulthood
One of the problems faced in late adulthood is ageism. This is the idea that age determines who you are. Ageism can target people of any age, however is not as harmful as racism or sexism. Many older people themselves are ageist. They believe that they are doing better than other people their age. They will often refer to a senior moment, and ignore the insult if it comes from someone else. It can also be harmful in the sense that it can prevent depressed elderly people from getting help. R -
Death and Dying
According to the quiz I took online, I will die when I am 91. I am not sure how I feel about this, I suppose it says something good about my health, but I am not entirely sure I want to live until I’m 91. When the possibility of my death comes closer and closer for me, I believe I will do what many others do; write a will, designate health care providers, reconcile with family members, and in tie up loose ends in general. I hope that I will not be afraid to die, as in my grandma’s case, she was
