Is Breast Ultrasound Same As Mammogram
An ultrasound uses high-frequency sound waves on the breast and converts them into images. A mammography uses low-dose X-ray to produce breast images known as a mammogram. As a rule of thumb, a breast ultrasound is more accurate in women younger than 45 years. A mammography is preferred in women older than 45 years.
How Early Can You Tell If Youre Pregnant
Again, youll need to take a pregnancy test at the right time to confirm your hopes or suspicions. But when it comes to the first symptoms of pregnancy, everyone is different. Some people start to notice changes within a week after conception. Others might not notice anything until they miss their period.
The Role Of Uterine Structuring
One of the earliest ways to find out if a woman is pregnant with twins is to look at the structure of her uterus. The presence of an unevenness in the uterus which can be seen via ultrasound, or with specific imaging tests such as an internal pelvic ultrasound, can indicate that a woman is carrying more than one fetus. This occurs when there is either an asymmetry between two sides or an abnormal shape to the area in general. Looking for this kind of unevenness can often be helpful in determining if twin pregnancies might be likely.
In addition, there are additional characteristics such as excessive womb space that can confirm indications that a woman may be pregnant with twins. When conception takes place, hCG hormone levels increase significantly and this leads to both an enlargement of the uterus and subsequent changes in its structure and configuration. The amount of available room/space within the uterus is one method used by doctors to detect if a mother could be expecting multiple babies as opposed to just one fetus. Women who do have double occupancy tend to have very large uteruses compared to their physique size and stature. Depending on the placement of fetuses and their size, the uterine shape could appear either symmetrical or uneven even further increasing the chances that more than one baby is present inside her body.
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Typical Early Signs Of Pregnancy
OK, so now you know that during weeks one, two, or three, you may not even suspect youâre pregnant and you likely won’t notice any pregnancy symptoms at all, as itâs still very early . However, there are several signs of pregnancy that you could experience in the following weeks:
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A missed period is often the first clue that you may be pregnant, but it wonât happen until youâre 4 weeks pregnant, not before. At around the time you miss a period, you may start noticing more early pregnancy symptoms.
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Implantation bleeding is another early sign of pregnancy, as it occurs when the tiny ball of cells attaches to the uterine lining. Not everyone experiences it, but this light spotting is normal and can sometimes be mistaken for menstrual blood. Spotting, cramps, or light bleeding usually happens 10 to 14 days after conception, so around when youâre 3 to 4 weeks pregnant.
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Morning sickness is another common symptom of early pregnancy, but it usually crops up between weeks 4 and 9.
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Other symptoms like gas, fatigue, breast tenderness, moodiness, and frequent urination can also occur during these early weeks.
Now that you know these early signs of pregnancy, take our quiz to test your knowledge!
How To Deal With It:
Youll probably want to invest in some different kinds of bras, which could be larger, made out of cotton, and underwire-free. Wearing a bra to bed might help ease the pain as well. Though your larger twins might look enticing to your partner, make sure you let them know that they are welcome to look, but touching should be kept to a minimum.
If you’re pregnant, your body is working hard to make another human, so you’re feeling tired for many reasons!
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How Can Birth Control Or Menopause Affect The Duration Of Your Period
Birth control pills generally help with prolonged menstrual bleeding, but on occasion may cause it. IUDs, especially copper IUDs, sometimes cause prolonged bleeding, especially in the first year after insertion.
Women in perimenopause, the years leading up to menopause, frequently find their periods changing. Still, even if youre perimenopausal, you want your doctor to check things out. Long or irregular bleeding may just be from perimenopause. But it is also often our first clue of endometrial cancer or cervical cancer, she says.
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When Do Pregnancy Symptoms Start
First, it’s important to note that pregnancy symptoms can crop up at different times in different people. And while some women experience every pregnancy symptom possible, others experience very few of these signs until many weeks into their pregnancies, if at all.
So with that said, here’s average pregnancy symptoms timeline, based on a typical 28-day menstrual cycle:
- About 14 days after your last period: Conception
- 17 or more days after your last period: Sensitivity to smell, tender breasts, fatigue, raised basal body temperature may begin
- 20 to 26 days after your last period: Implantation bleeding, thicker cervical mucus may occur
- 28 to 35 days after your last period: Frequent urination and mood swings may begin missed period
- 35 or more days after your last period: Other pregnancy symptoms may begin at any point during the first trimester.
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Birth Control And Other Medications
You may already know that hormonal birth control methods use estrogen, progestin or a combination of the two to prevent ovulation. Because of this, one of the benefits of taking birth control pills or having an intrauterine device for many people is that they can help balance hormones, making menstrual cycles more regular.
However, its also possible for hormonal birth controls to cause some cycle irregularity. This is most common right after starting or stopping birth control. It may take several months after stopping birth control for your periods to become regular again.
Additionally, some other medications can cause irregular periods, such as anti-epilepsy and anti-anxiety medications.
Stay On Top Of Your Nutrition
A solid pregnancy diet can be a great way to keep your energy up. In particular, focus on getting enough iron, which supports red blood cell production and prevents any additional tiredness from anemia . Foods that are high in protein are also good choices, as protein is a longer-lasting source of energy compared to carbohydrates.
You may benefit from eating smaller meals throughout the day. This can help keep your blood sugar and energy levels consistent. Its also important to drink plenty of water, as water helps your body function properly.
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Ultrasounds And Their Role
An ultrasound is one of the most common and reliable ways to determine if you are pregnant with twins or other multiples. During an ultrasound, a technician will use high-frequency sound waves to produce images of your baby in the womb using a transducer. Ultrasounds can examine the babys size and development, detect heartbeats, assess organs, measure amniotic fluid levels, and even assign genders! However, usually in the first trimester between 8 and 14 weeks gestation it is possible to clearly see two yolksacs in the same gestational sac during an ultrasound when pregnant with twins. Later on in pregnancy like 28 weeks or later ultrasounds can accurately differentiate between twins and other multiples as there will be two separate gestational sacs for each baby along with distinct placentas.
Other tangible signs that indicate you may be pregnant with twins include extra morning sickness, increasingly severe side pains indicating multiple embryos implanting themselves in your uterus wall, increased weariness due to heightened hormone production affecting blood pressure leading to reduced energy levels, relief from symptoms after the twelfth week such as morning sickness due to a shared placenta circulating hormones more evenly among them. If any signs coincide with each other this would raise suspicion of being pregnant with twins should be verified by an ultrasound for confirmation.
Early Signs And Symptoms
When you are trying to determine if you are pregnant, there are a few early signs and symptoms that you should be looking out for. The first sign of pregnancy is usually a missed period and can be confirmed by taking a pregnancy test. Other common early red flags for pregnancy include nausea or morning sickness, changes in your breasts such as tenderness or swelling, fatigue, food cravings or aversions, frequent urination due to hormones released by the body when a woman becomes pregnant, and sensitivity to certain smells. Mood swings can also occur as your body adjusts to the hormonal changes that come with being pregnant. If all these signs are noticeable and not explained by another cause, its likely an indicator of pregnancy.
It is important to keep in mind that all women experience different symptoms during pregnancy and may not necessarily experience any of these at all. If you suspect that youre pregnant but none of these symptoms correspond with your current state, they may still appear as time goes on however, its always best to take a test to confirm if you are actually pregnant or not.
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When Should You See A Doctor About A New Pregnancy
If youve taken a pregnancy test and its positive, go ahead and make your first prenatal visit right away. This is also a great time to start looking into educational resources like the myHealthyPregnancy app.
At the first prenatal visit, youll get a physical exam and other tests to make sure everything is looking healthy, and youll learn about the rest of your prenatal appointment schedule. Youll also get to talk through any expectations and questions you have, such as which foods to eat and avoid while pregnant.
Questions or concerns about your symptoms? Our 24/7 nurse line is free for our members and patients.
Positive pregnancy test? Schedule a visit.
Final Thoughts: Things To Keep In Mind
The bottom line is that without a blood test, its nearly impossible to know for sure whether youre pregnant or experiencing a late period. Even home pregnancy tests can sometimes give a false negative, if taken too early, so its really smart to wait to take a test until or after your expected period.
If youre paying attention to your symptoms, just know that it can get a little stressful for some women. So if you find yourself symptom spotting, try to be aware of how often you do it, and how you feel does it distract you or stress you out? If it starts to get emotionally taxing for you, look for ways to stop paying attention to your symptoms.
Finally, make sure youve scheduled a pregnancy blood test, and keep taking your prenatal vitamins! Whether its sooner or later, when you get that BFP, youll be glad you did!
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How Do I Work Out My Due Date
Most babies are born about 38 weeks after conception. Since many women ovulate and conceive about 2 weeks after their last period, this is often about 40 weeks since the beginning of their last period. Thats why people often talk about pregnancy lasting for 40 weeks.
Women with a regular 28-day cycle can calculate an estimated due date for their baby by counting 40 weeks from the first day of their last period. This may not be so simple or accurate in other situations, such as if you have long or irregular cycles, dont remember when you had your last period, or if you became pregnant while taking contraception that affected your cycle.
Use the due date calculator to calculate your estimated due date.
If youre not sure when you conceived, your doctor or midwife may refer you for a dating scan that uses ultrasound to estimate your due date based on your babys size.
Remember: Take A Test
The most important thing you can do if you feel you may be pregnant is take a pregnancy test. These are inexpensive and widely available. You can even find them sometimes at the dollar stores! There are also community resources available such as Planned Parenthood, where you can get a test for free if you cannot afford to pay.
If you are too shy to buy one yourself, ask a friend to pick one up for you. You can even buy them on Amazon. For your health and your baby’s health, it’s best to know as soon as you can if you are indeed pregnant. Buck up and get one!
When taken properly, home pregnancy tests are 99% accurate. Though some say you can take them up for five days before your missed period, the earlier you test, the more likely you are to get a false negative. If the test is negative and your period still doesnt come, try again.
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Raised Basal Body Temperature
If you’ve been using a special basal body thermometer to track your first morning temperature, you might notice that it rises around 1 degree when you conceive and stays elevated throughout your pregnancy.
Though not a foolproof early pregnancy symptom , it could give you advance notice of the big news.
Tracking Your Temperature To Determine Phase
To determine if youve ovulated and are in the luteal phase, you can try tracking your basal body temperature . This is your temperature right when you wake up, before you even get up to use the bathroom or brush your teeth.
During the first part of your cycle, your BBT will likely hover between 97.0 and 97.5°F. When you ovulate, your BBT will go up because progesterone stimulates heat production in your body.
Once youre in the luteal phase of your cycle, your basal body temperature should be about 1°F higher than it was during the follicular phase. Look for this temperature bump to tell you that youve ovulated and entered the luteal phase.
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If You Dont Have A 28
But not everyone has a 28-day menstrual cycle, which is quite normal. Even if they do, they may not ovulate on the 14th day.
Scientist Allen Wilcox did a study with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences on 696 menstrual cycles. He found that among the 69 women with 28-day cycle, only about 7 women ovulated 14 days before their next period. Some ovulated 19 days before their period, and some just 7 days prior .
The Wilcox study also found that more than 70% women are in their fertile window before day 10 or after day 17.1
This can be owing to the length of your period. For instance, if it ends by day 3, it is possible that hormonal changes in your body that trigger ovulation to occur on day 10. There can be other physiological causes, like lack of sex hormones or their delayed release. There can be psychological causes like stress too.
Pregnancy Glow And Acne During Early Pregnancy
Many people may begin saying you have the pregnancy glow. The combination of increased blood volume and higher hormone levels pushes more blood through your vessels. This causes the bodys oil glands to work overtime.
The increased activity of your bodys oil glands gives your skin a flushed, glossy appearance. On the other hand, you may also develop acne.
in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services says that taking a home pregnancy test at this point will give a more accurate result.
Home pregnancy tests are inexpensive and widely available without a prescription in pharmacies and other stores.
You can take a test earlier than this if you want, but you run the risk of getting a false negative result. This means the test may say youre not pregnant, but in fact you are.
If you take a home pregnancy test too early, there may not be enough hCG in your urine yet for the test to detect it. Home pregnancy tests work by testing the amount of hCG in your urine. This is a hormone thats only present in the blood and urine of pregnant people.
Also, every persons body chemistry is a bit different. One person may get a positive result as early as a day after their period, while another persons positive results may not show up for another week. So, early test results may not be the most accurate.
Unlike at-home urine tests, blood tests are usually done in a clinical setting. Contact your doctor if you want this type of test.
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A Lot Is Said About A Pregnancy Diet But The Basics Are To Avoid Eating A Low
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Eating right is always recommended, but during pregnancy, diet becomes even more important. You cant eat junk foods one after the other if you want to have a healthy baby. Going for leafy greens is great. But while picking vegetables and fruits, ensure to make your meals rich in fibre. Another important thing to remember is salt intake. Yes, it might seem like a minor thing, but the fact is that too much salt during pregnancy can do more harm than good. So, adding extra salt to your dish or having foods with a lot of salt in them, is a big no.
Be it eggs or beans, there are many nutritious foods that you can eat during your pregnancy. Health Shots contacted Deepti Lokeshappa, senior consultant, nutritionist and dietitian, Motherhood Hospital, Indiranagar, Bengaluru, to find out how eating too much salt and less fiber affects a womans health during pregnancy.
