How To Know Pregnancy Symptoms

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:

• Slight bleeding or spotting

• Urinating more than usual

• Mood swings

• 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.

Smell Sensitivity And Food Aversions During Early Pregnancy

Smell sensitivity is a symptom of early pregnancy thats mostly self-reported. Theres little scientific evidence about smell sensitivity during the first trimester. However, it might be important, since smell sensitivity may trigger nausea and vomiting. It may also cause strong distaste for certain foods.

You may experience either a heightened or lessened sense of smell during pregnancy, according to 2017 research. This is especially common during the first and third trimesters. Heightened smell is more common than lessened smell. Some smells that never bothered you before may become less pleasing or even trigger nausea.

The good news is that your sense of smell usually returns to normal after delivery, or within 6 to 12 weeks postpartum.

What Are The Signs And Symptoms When You’re 3 Weeks Pregnant

When youâre 1 week âpregnant,â you havenât conceived yet, and so thereâs not much going on. That can change by the time youâre three weeks pregnant. Your belly can be a hive of activity, though you may not be able to tell.

• If the sperm and egg find each other, theyâll join up in a fallopian tube to create a single cell called a zygote in a process called fertilization.

• The zygote carries chromosomes from the mother and father and sets the first building blocks of your future babyâs genetic makeup.

• The zygote then moves down the fallopian tube and toward the uterus as it starts dividing into a larger group of cells.

Although thereâs more activity in your third week of pregnancy, will you feel anything? Probably not. However, read on to learn a bit more about those typical early symptoms of pregnancy and when you might notice them.

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Very Early Signs Of Pregnancy

Think you might be pregnant? Check out these early symptoms of pregnancy that can show up one week before your missed period. If you’ve already experienced a few, it may be time to head to the drugstore to pick up a pregnancy test or schedule an appointment with your OB-GYN.

Your breasts may be extra tender as early as one or two weeks after conception. Youre making so much estrogen and progesterone in early pregnancy that the glands in the breasts start growing, explains Jasbir Singh, M.D., an OB-GYN at Baylor Medical Center at Waxahachie in Texas. This hormone surge causes breasts to retain more fluids and feel heavy, sore, or more sensitive than normal PMS tenderness.

Many women mistake these early signs of pregnancy for PMS symptoms, but theyre actually caused by hormonal changes and the growth of the uterus. About 30 percent of women experience cramping after conception, which is triggered by implantationwhen the fertilized egg attaches to the uterine wall. Your uterus may be stretching a little now to prep for its massive expansion over the next nine months

When a fertilized egg implants into the plush lining of the uterus about six to 12 days after conception, light vaginal spotting may occur. You might mistake this “implantation bleeding” for your period, but it’s generally lighter than menstruation and brown or pink in color.

When Pregnancy Is Unintentional

If you had unprotected sex or a contraceptive failure and fear you could get pregnant, emergency contraception is an option. Commonly called the “morning-after pill,” medications are available over-the-counter that can prevent pregnancy if taken within five days of having unprotected sex.

The sooner you take these medications, the more effective they are in preventing an unintended pregnancy. These medications do not cause an abortion, but rather prevent a pregnancy from being established.

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How To Get Pregnant With Pcos

PCOS is a hormonal issue that interferes with the reproductive system. In PCOS, the size of the ovaries becomes larger than normal where small cysts are formed. These tiny cysts have many immature eggs in them. So, the question arises: how to get pregnant with PCOS? Weight gain, menstrual issues, and hormonal problems in PCOS present a large hurdle in getting pregnant. Addressing these issues and managing disease symptoms may help PCOS patients in getting pregnant. For some women, obesity and increased weight gain can upset the hormonal balance and cause complications in conceiving. In general, living a healthier lifestyle with a better diet, no smoking, regular exercise, less stress, and management of diabetes as well as other medical conditions should improve your fertility odds. According to recent studies, losing nearly 10% of the total body weight may help your menstrual cycles to be more predictable. Also, losing weight can bring the hormonal balance back to normal, which in turn may help you get pregnant. PCOS diagnosis symptoms must be kept in check for timely preventive action. Berberine has been studied, not only for its remarkable help with PCOS and insulin resistance, but also for inflammation, cholesterol, blood sugar and pressure imbalances. Read more about Berberine Complex and see if it might be a consideration.

Is There Anything I Can Look For

Probably the most reliable physical symptom of early pregnancy is a missed period. Noticing that your breasts are getting increasingly sore, or experiencing symptoms that you dont usually get around the time of your period, are also signs that you could be pregnant. But again, a blood test will be the best way to know for sure.

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Onset Frequency And Severity Of Symptoms

The first trimester of pregnancy is when most people experience common symptoms like fatigue, morning sickness, sensitivity to smells, and breast soreness. In general, early pregnancy symptoms show up around five to six weeks after the first day of your last menstrual period.

Breast tenderness can begin within one or two weeks of conception. You also might notice changes in your weight . Most of the more intense symptoms of pregnancy typically begin to subside by the second trimester.

Can I Get Pregnant If Im On Birth Control

How well your birth control works depends on the method youre using and whether you take it correctly.

No method of birth control is 100% effective, even if used perfectly, except abstinence. So the best way to prevent pregnancy is by using both birth control and condoms. Theres another really good reason to do this: condoms are the only method of birth control that also protects you from STDs.

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The Most Common Early Signs Of Pregnancy Before A Missed Period

Extreme weariness or exhaustion is one of the most common early signs of pregnancy. Even if you have received 7-9 hours of sleep, tasks that have never affected you before may exhaust you. During pregnancy, the bodys energy requirement changes, which might cause fatigue and enhance your nutritional needs. This symptom may normally last during the first trimester. However, with adequate change in the nutrition plan, weakness can be managed well in many cases.

You may notice an increased need to urinate even before you miss a period.

During the first few weeks following conception, sudden and increased sensitivity to smells, intense flavours and food aversions develop, which may or may not remain throughout the pregnancy. You may also notice an increased craving for a particular food.

A week before the missed period, you may notice sore, painful, heavy breasts or darker areolas. Womens breasts become sore and painful as their estrogen and progesterone levels rise after pregnancy.

The temperature of your body rises before ovulation and returns to normal following your menstrual cycle. The basal body temperature, on the other hand, tends to remain elevated during pregnancy due to high levels of progesterone.

Check If Your Period Is Late

• Did your last period start more than four weeks ago?
• How far apart are your periods usually? .

Tip: Even if your cycle is inconsistent or longer than 32 days from one period to the next, if you are more than one week past your expected period, and you have been sexually active, there is a chance you could be pregnant.

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Morning Sickness Or Nausea

That telltale, queasy feeling known as morning sickness can hit you at any time of day and it typically begins when you’re about 6 weeks pregnant, though it can vary and strike even earlier. For most women, nausea starts by week 9.

Hormones, mainly increased levels of progesterone , can cause the stomach to empty more slowly, resulting in this early pregnancy symptom resembling seasickness.

Early Pregnancy Symptoms With Pcos

Polycystic ovarian syndrome is a unique health condition that affects almost 7 percent of women in their childbearing age. Menstrual irregularity or absence of menstrual cycles is a major symptom of this medical condition, so it becomes very difficult to guess early pregnancy symptoms with PCOS. Menstrual irregularity is thought to occur mostly due to hormonal imbalance. Some PCOS patients have a condition in which their periods last for up to three weeks, and some patients may not get a period for three months. Not all women, especially first-time moms, are able to tell if they are pregnant or not.

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Week 1 Pregnant Symptoms

Since conception hasnt occurred yet, you wont experience pregnancy symptoms from day 1. For many women, their first real symptom of pregnancy comes a month later when they miss their period. But you might experience menstrual symptoms during the first days of pregnancy. Some of the most common menstrual symptoms include:

• uterine cramps
• diarrhea or constipation

When Should I Call My Doctor About A New Pregnancy

If you have missed a period, taken a pregnancy test and gotten a positive result, your next step will be to call your healthcare provider for your first appointment. While scheduling, your provider may ask if you have already started taking a prenatal vitamin with at least 400mcg of folic acid. These vitamins are important in early pregnancy because they help in the development of your babys neural tube. The neural tube will become the brain and spine. Many healthcare providers recommend that any women who could become pregnant take folic acid at all times.

If you are planning a pregnancy, a preconception appointment with your healthcare provider is a good place to start. A preconception appointment is especially important if you take medication for a chronic illness or have other medical conditions like diabetes, hypertension or lupus.

During this appointment, your provider will discuss any current medical conditions, as well as your general health before pregnancy. This appointment is meant to get you into the best place for a new pregnancy.

Last reviewed by a Cleveland Clinic medical professional on 04/01/2020.

References

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How To Prevent And Treat Anemia In Pregnancy

If you are taking an iron supplement during pregnancy and you are anemic, your doctor may recommend a test to determine other possible causes. In some cases, you may need to see a doctor who specializes in treating blood disorders . If iron deficiency is diagnosed, a higher dose of iron supplementation is recommended by your doctor. If you have a history of gastrointestinal surgery or your body is unable to absorb oral iron, you may need a shot of iron supplement.

Prenatal vitamins usually contain iron. Consuming iron-containing vitamins during pregnancy can prevent and cure pregnancy anemia. In some patients, your doctor or midwife may prescribe a separate dose of iron supplement. You need a daily dose of 27 mg of iron during pregnancy.

Good nutrition, packed with iron-rich foods, can also help you prevent anemia during pregnancy. Some dietary sources of iron are lean red meat, fish, and poultry. Iron-rich breakfast cereals, plum juice, dried peas and beans are also other sources of iron.

Iron present in animal products like meat is easily absorbed. To better absorb iron produced from plant foods and supplements, combine them with foods or drinks that contain vitamin C, such as tomato juice, orange juice, or strawberry juice. Eating foods in such combinations can compensate the iron needed in your body.

When To See The Doctor For Pregnancy With Irregular Periods

You might see the doctor for irregular periods in any of the following cases:

• Your period suddenly becomes irregular after being regular
• You havent had a period for 90 days or more
• You have a period more often than every 21 days or less often than every 35 days
• Your period lasts for more than seven days
• Your period is unusually heavy
• Your period is incredibly painful
• You bleed in between your periods

Your doctor will help determine the cause of your irregular period and suggest a course of action.

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Is There A Way To Tell The Difference Between Pregnancy And Pms

The only definitive way to tell if youre pregnant and not just experiencing PMS symptoms is by taking a pregnancy test. Fortunately, you dont usually have to wait too long to find out – home pregnancy tests today are accurate enough to detect 90% of pregnancies the day of the expected period. While some pregnancy test manufacturers claim that their products can give you results as early as four or five days before your expected period, most of them are only accurate about 60% of the time, which means if your result turns out to be negative, you should wait and retest for confirmation).

Home pregnancy tests work by detecting levels of hCG in your urine. Although there may be some hCG in urine as early as a week after you conceive, its usually not enough for a home pregnancy test to detect. Any positive pregnancy test should be followed up with a blood test by your health practitioner to confirm it.

We Know You’re Wondering: Is It Possible To Be Pregnant And Still Have A Period

Nope, experts say. Some people may experience bleeding or spotting, but those are different bleeding patterns from the cyclical menses your body experiences in absence of a pregnancy.

Dr. Michele Hakakha, an OB-GYN and author of Expecting 411: Clear Answers and Smart Advice for Your Pregnancy, told Parents that people definitely can experience vaginal bleeding during pregnancy, but that “when they bleed, they are not having a ‘period.'” That’s because your body needs to reserve the uterine lining as nourishment for the growing pregnancy.

Although bleeding during pregnancy doesn’t always mean cause for concern, it can indicate something more serious like a miscarriage or ectopic pregnancy, according to the Mayo Clinic.

In the earliest stage of pregnancy, however, some very light bleeding is totally normal and leads us to our first pregnancy clue: implantation bleeding.

Implantation bleeding usually doesn’t last more than a couple of days, and it’s much lighter than most people’s periods .

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Losing Weight With Pcos

One of the effects of PCOS is that it creates an imbalance in the hunger hormones and causes the blood sugar levels to rise and fall throughout the day. Thus patients may develop an eating disorder, such as binge dieting or yo-yo dieting. Losing weight with PCOS becomes difficult because of these habits. Research suggests that dietary errors are the main cause of weight gain and metabolic disorders related to the improper function of the ovaries. Losing weight with PCOS becomes a major problem for PCOS patients. Studies suggest that dietary changes and a healthy lifestyle may help PCOS patients in reducing weight and improving the quality of their lives. Daily exercise and carb-restricted foods may help in rapid weight loss. Studies suggest that PCOS patients should consume cruciferous vegetables, low-glycemic, and high fiber food and fruits with anti-inflammatory content. Other research proposes mindful eating with foods that take longer to digest may help PCOS patients in losing weight, because after consuming these foods the stomach remains full even after the meal.

Food Aversions And Sensitivity To Smell

Sensitivity to certain smells is a common symptom for pregnant women. You may also find that your tastes have changed for certain types of food.

Any of the above signs can mean youre pregnant, but there are women who conceive and experience none of them. Likewise, you can experience all ten and not be pregnant. The best way to confirm pregnancy is to schedule an appointment with a provider, preferably your gynecologist.

If you notice a few of the early pregnancy symptoms above and think you may be pregnant, wait one or two days after your missed period and take a pregnancy test. If the test is negative, wait a few more days and take another, just in case the first was a false negative. If the test is positive, schedule an appointment with your OB/GYN.

At Baptist Health, were committed to helping women through every stage of their health journeys. If youre trying to conceive or thinking about getting pregnant, read through our preconception to-do list, or if you have an upcoming OB/GYN appointment, learn how you can get the most out of your visit.

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