Take Care Of Your Body
Its also important so you can make good choices for your body to support your pregnancy and give your baby a healthy start in life. If you discover you are pregnant, you should follow the guidelines below.
Start prenatal vitamins
Prenatal vitamins include an extra amount of folic acid, which is important for the development of your babys brain and nervous system. Ask your doctor what type of prenatal vitamins they recommend.
Avoid alcohol and certain medications
Avoid alcohol and certain medications if you are pregnant. Alcohol significantly affects fetal brain development. Some medications can also cause birth defects. Read more about medications in pregnancy.
Avoid smoking and drugs
Avoid recreational drugs, smoking, vaping, and marijuana when pregnant. These can also cause developmental issues and birth defects in babies. Smoking harms lung development and restricts blood flow to the placenta.
Eat right and exercise
When you let your provider know youre pregnant, you will get helpful information about a healthy diet and exercise during pregnancy. Youll receive a list of foods, activities, and environmental exposures to avoid. Youll receive information about avoiding work-related exposures, too . Your provider will see if you are up-to-date on vaccinations or if there are any other recommended vaccinations you should receive.
When Can You Confirm Your Pregnancy
Can you get a positive pregnancy test at 3 weeks, you may wonder? Itâs possible, but itâs always best to wait until after your missed period to take a pregnancy test, as youâll receive more credible results. Thatâs because a home pregnancy test responds to the levels of a hormone called human chorionic gonadotropin, or hCG, in your urine, which begin to increase shortly after conception. So, although your hCG levels may be high enough in week 3 to result in a positive test, youâll want to confirm with your healthcare provider that youâre pregnant.
Think you might be pregnant? Take our Am I Pregnant quiz. It wonât tell you for sure, but itâs all good fun!
To 3 Weeks Pregnant: Your Checklist
Yes, itâs early, but itâs also an exciting time! As you anticipate your new pregnancy, consider the following to-dos:
â¡ Even if youâve already taken one, you might want to complete another home pregnancy test after your missed period for the best results.
â¡ Schedule an appointment with your healthcare provider to confirm your pregnancy with a blood test.
â¡ Check out our pregnancy calendar to know what to anticipate in the next few weeks.
â¡ Though you canât find out your babyâs gender just yet, have a little fun with our Chinese Gender Predictor!
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Feeling Sick During Pregnancy
You may feel sick or be sick. This is commonly known as morning sickness, but it can happen at any time of the day or night.
Morning sickness symptoms usually start when youre around 4-6 weeks pregnant
If you’re being sick all the time and cannot keep anything down, see a GP.
You may have hyperemesis gravidarum, a serious condition in pregnancy that causes severe vomiting and needs treatment.
Pain In Your Boobs Sensitive Breasts
Breast tenderness if one of the earliest and most common signs of pregnancy. It occurs as a result of hormonal changes which start the process of getting your milk ducts ready to feed the baby, Ross says.
Your boobs may feel as sore as they sometimes feel before your period, the Cleveland Clinic notes. But other changes may accompany this soreness: Nipples may darken and enlarge. And some women start busting out of their bra because the hormones enlarge breast tissue.
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What Are The Early Signs And Symptoms Of Pregnancy
For most people, the first sign of pregnancy is a missed period. However, missing a period doesnt always mean youre pregnant.
Other early pregnancy symptoms include:
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Slight bleeding or spotting
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Urinating more than usual
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Nausea and/or vomiting
Not everyone has all of these symptoms, but its common to have at least 1. Premenstrual symptoms, side effects from hormonal birth control, and early pregnancy symptoms can look the same or similar bloating, sore or swollen breasts, feeling tired, and having mood swings. Many of these symptoms can also be signs of other conditions and dont always mean that youre pregnant. Even missing a period isnt always a clear sign, especially if youre on hormonal birth control, which can change or even get rid of your period while youre using it. Thats why the only way to know for sure if youre pregnant is to take a pregnancy test.
Can The Exact Date Of Conception Be Determined Accurately
Many women have questions about the date of possible conception, and unfortunately figuring this out is not always so easy. The assumption is that if a woman has pretty regular menstrual cycles, then she will be ovulating during a certain time of the month.
Ovulation is the time when conception can take place because that is when an egg is made available. The problem is that most women do not ovulate on an exact date each month, and many women have a different ovulation day from month to month.
If you also take into account that sperm can live in the body 3-5 days after intercourse has taken place, this can make determining conception very difficult.
Most doctors use the first day of the last period and ultrasound measurements to gauge the gestational age of a baby and determine when the baby was conceived. But these are just tools used to estimate the datesit is very hard for anything to tell what the exact date of conception really is.
Most people do not realize that ultrasounds can be off up to 5-7 days in early pregnancy and up to a couple of weeks off if the first ultrasounds are done farther into the second trimester or beyond.
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What Are Ectopic Pregnancy Symptoms
Ectopic pregnancies can seem like normal pregnancies in the very beginning, with typical pregnancy symptoms like a missed period, breast tenderness, fatigue, and nausea. Symptoms of ectopic pregnancy include:
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severe lower belly pain, especially on one side
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vaginal bleeding or spotting
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feeling very weak, dizzy, or fainting
If you have severe pain or bleeding, go to the emergency room right away. If you have any other symptoms of ectopic pregnancy, contact your doctor or nurse as soon as you can. The earlier an ectopic pregnancy is found and treated, the safer youll be.
Miscarriage: What Happens Afterwards
If there’s no pregnancy tissue left in the womb, no treatment is required. If there is, your options to remove the tissue are as follows:
- Wait 7 to 14 days after a miscarriage for the tissue to pass naturally. If the pain and bleeding doesnt start within that time or are getting worse, you should get another scan and discuss your options.
- Take medication if you dont want to wait or if waiting hasnt worked. This might involve using mifepristone first, followed 48 hours later by misoprostol.
- Have tissue surgically removed. This may be advised if you have continuous heavy bleeding, infected pregnancy tissue, or if waiting and medication hasnt enabled the tissue to pass.
Discuss your options with the doctor in charge of your care and read more about available treatments on the NHS Choices website.
If your blood group is rhesus negative , you should be offered injections of a medication called anti-D immunoglobin afterwards. This prevents rhesus disease, which is a condition where antibodies in a pregnant woman’s blood destroy her baby’s blood cells .
Contact your hospital immediately if your bleeding becomes particularly heavy, you develop a high temperature, or you experience severe pain.
You should be advised to take a home pregnancy test after three weeks. If you’re still pregnant, you may need further tests to make sure you don’t have a molar pregnancy or an ectopic pregnancy .
This page was last reviewed in April 2018
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When To Use Home Pregnancy Tests
Of course, the most accurate way to know that you are pregnant is to take a home pregnancy test. This test uses urine to measure hCG and is generally accurate as early as two days before your expected period, says Hugh Taylor, MD, chair of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive Sciences at Yale School of Medicine and its medical practice, Yale Medicine.
Of course, women who have irregular periods can find it harder to know when to test. If you get a negative test, repeat it the following morning the first time you use the bathroom, when the hCG is most concentrated, Dr. Taylor says. If its still negative and you havent yet gotten your period, test again a few days later.
While waiting for pregnancy test results, many women look to their symptoms to help determine if they have conceived. Its important to note that symptoms are different for every woman. Some experience many signs, others just one or twoor even none. And many of the symptoms attributed to early pregnancy can also be caused by other situations and conditions.
Still, symptoms are the way many women know they are pregnant. Here are 10 of the most common early pregnancy signs you should look for:
How To Know If You Are Pregnant
The only way to know answer the question Am I pregnant is to take pregnancy test. Many early pregnancy symptoms such as nausea and fatigue may be signs of other conditions. Women and men from over 40 countries call or chat asking our nurses and pregnancy educators how do I know if Im pregnant?
Here are some of the most frequently asked questions pregnancy symptoms:
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Pregnancy Symptoms Vs Pms Symptoms
Pregnancy symptoms often mimic PMS symptoms. For example, fatigue, nausea, and breast tenderness can be symptoms of both pregnancy and PMS.
But if youre pregnant, there may be some telltale signs that its not PMS. For example, you may experience implantation bleeding.
This is light spotting or bleeding that occurs about 10 to 14 days after conception, usually about a week before your period would usually start. This bleeding will be lighter and stop after one to three days.
Other symptoms like breast tenderness, bloating, and cramps could be symptoms of either PMS or pregnancy. Until you can take a home pregnancy test, it will be difficult to tell what is causing these symptoms.
Can You Feel Pregnant Before You Miss Your Period
Yes, you can feel pregnant before you miss your period. Some people say theyve felt pregnancy symptoms within a week of conception .
Could I have the symptoms of early pregnancy and not be pregnant?
Many of the symptoms of early pregnancy overlap with other medical conditions, as well as your typical menstrual cycle. Premenstrual symptoms can be very similar to pregnancy symptoms. This can make it difficult to tell the difference. You can also miss a period and not be pregnant. This can happen when you lose or gain a lot of weight or are stressed. Breastfeeding can also cause your period to stop.
The best way to know youre pregnant is to take a pregnancy test. Pregnancy tests are available at your local pharmacy or grocery store without a prescription.
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What Is A Pregnancy Test
Pregnancy is confirmed with a pregnancy test. A pregnancy test can be done on either urine or blood. Pregnancy tests find the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin hormone . This is a hormone made by the placenta about 10 days after fertilization. Levels of the hCG hormone approximately double every two days during the first 60 days of pregnancy. Pregnancy tests that use the woman’s blood are done by a healthcare provider usually to get a very early diagnosis of pregnancy or to confirm an at-home pregnancy test. Blood tests are very accurate and can find pregnancy by the second week after conception.
Women can conduct an at-home pregnancy test by testing a sample of urine about two weeks after conception, or about the time a period is due. Home pregnancy tests have become more accurate in the last decade. If the test is used correctly, most home pregnancy tests are 97% to 99% accurate.
Always talk with your healthcare provider to confirm a positive at-home pregnancy test with a more reliable pregnancy test and physical exam. If your at-home pregnancy test results are negative, and you think you are pregnant, you should also talk with your healthcare provider.
Factors Considered When Checking Fertility
Most women dream to carry and deliver a healthy baby someday. Unfortunately, not every woman is able to get pregnant. There are many ways you can find out if you have the ability to do so.
Several factors could determine if you are able to get pregnant. Your medical consultants may ask you the following before they perform an infertility test:
- Your menstrual history, whether regular or irregular
- The timing and frequency you engage in sex
- If you previously used contraceptives
- If you’ve been pregnant before and the outcome
- If you’ve had pelvic infections
- The type of medication you use
- What your job exposes you to
- If you have a history of substance abuse
- What your alcohol intake level is
- If you use tobacco
- If you’ve had surgery on your reproductive organs
- Your body mass index to check if you’re over or underweight
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How To Tell If Youre Pregnant Without A Test By The State Of Your Body
The conception is usually accompanied by a physiological and hormonal adjustment of the female organism which becomes evident to a woman due to the changes in her state of health and figure. Some of these symptoms are specific signs of pregnancy and can be indications that the conception has happened.
1. Dizziness and fainting. The early pregnancy stages may be accompanied by dizziness or clouded consciousness. These sensations are a sign of changing hormonal background and an increase in certain hormones. Such a state not only can tell you about your pregnancy, but it also can be a consequence of stressful events or overtiring.
2. Raised body temperature . The increase in body temperature is one of the pregnancy symptoms, especially if its level has been constant for a long period of time. It happens because the developing embryo situated in the fallopian tubes before the implantation into the uterine wall is interpreted as a foreign object by the organism of the mother and that triggers the immune system. Thats why your body temperature is raised. During the first trimester of pregnancy, doctors consider 98.6°F a normal body temperature. This sign can be of help when you suspect youve conceived if any infections or inflammations are eliminated.
When Might I Experience Pregnancy Symptoms
Whilst perhaps the most noticeable sign of pregnancy is missing a period, there are many other symptoms that may be evident during the early weeks. “Most women will experience some form of pregnancy symptoms and for many these will show up at about 6 weeks of pregnancy . However, some women report recognising symptoms as early as week 3 of pregnancy ,” according to midwife Liz Halliday from Private Midwives.
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Cramping In The Abdomen Or Pelvis Due To Implantation
Mild cramping in the pelvis, lower back, or abdomen commonly occurs early in pregnancy, as the embryo attaches itself to the uterus.
These cramps should feel more like discomfort than pain, the Cleveland Clinic cautions. Severe cramping or pain mostly on one side of the body could indicate an ectopic pregnancy or other complication. Contact your healthcare provider immediately if you experience cramps like this.
Myths And Wives Tales
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When Does Ovulation Happen
If your menstrual cycle lasts 28 days and your period arrives like clockwork, it’s likely that you’ll ovulate on day 14. That’s halfway through your cycle. Your fertile window begins on day 10. You’re more likely to get pregnant if you have sex at least every other day between days 10 and 14 of a 28-day cycle.
