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Located at 20 Old Brompton Road – Just Steps from South Kensington Tube. Easy Access, Always.
Early pregnancy symptoms vary from woman to woman, across individual pregnancy cases. You may feel certain changes in your body even before knowing that you are pregnant. Read on this blog to explore different common signs and symptoms of early pregnancy.
Every woman experiences different symptoms at different stages of pregnancy. Moreover, you should not compare your pregnancy to any other woman’s as symptoms may vary dramatically from person to person.
Here are some common symptoms of pregnancy, but it may not be that every woman will experience all of these symptoms:
The primary and most obvious sign indicating pregnancy is a missed period. Once you conceive, the body releases certain hormones which stop ovulation and the shedding of your uterine lining. This suggests a stop to your menstrual cycle, and you should not get a period until your baby is born. However, missing a period does not always mean pregnancy. Factors like excessive exercise, stress, hormonal imbalances, or dieting might lead to irregular periods.
Even before missing a period, you might notice that you need to urinate more frequently. This is probably due to an increase in blood in your body as the body’s blood supply increases during pregnancy. The kidneys compensate by removing extra waste and filtering the blood. As a result, this waste comes out of your body as urine. The more blood you have in your body, the more often you need to urinate.
Pregnancy often causes excessive tiredness in most women. This sign of pregnancy is mainly because of the high progesterone levels during this stage. Just like the other pregnancy symptoms, fatigue improves with the second trimester (from after the 13th week of pregnancy).
Your basal body temperature may rise during pregnancy. In addition, hot weather and exercise might also increase your core temperature. It is crucial to drink plenty of water and exercise carefully during pregnancy.
One of the most common signs of pregnancy is morning sickness, which may occur at any hour of the day or night. After you conceive, this symptom usually presents between 2nd and 8th week of pregnancy. This sickness leads to vomiting, nausea, dizziness, and loss of appetite. While some people vomit due to nausea, some other women do not vomit at all.
Morning sickness typically resolves by about 12th week of pregnancy, but may return around the 32nd week prior to childbirth. Vomiting and nausea due to pregnancy is quite normal, but if they lead to dehydration, extreme fatigue, or even fainting, then it is a matter of concern.
Around 8th to 10th week of pregnancy, your heart begins to pump harder and faster. Arrhythmias and palpitations are common signs of pregnancy which usually occur due to hormones. Pregnancy raises your blood flow by about 50%. This adds to the workload of your heart. This is why you experienced a faster heart rate in pregnancy. Consult your doctor about any heart condition you are facing.
Among the very first symptoms of pregnancy, you will experience swollen and tender breasts; just within 2 to 3 days from your conception. The soreness of the breasts during this time is very similar to the feeling right before menstruation, characterised by fullness and tingling sensation in the breasts. The area around your nipple, the areolas, also becomes large and dark. You will experience enlarged breasts when your normal bra would feel tighter. These symptoms usually diminish within 3 months as your body adapts to the increased hormone levels.
Weight gain is a common factor for pregnancy, especially by the end of your first trimester. It is normal to gain around 1to 5 pounds in the first few months of pregnancy. The calorie recommendations for early pregnancy do not vary much from your normal diet. In fact, they increase with the progression of your pregnancy.
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Most of the early pregnancy symptoms can usually be detected within 2 to 3 weeks from your last ovulation and sexual intercourse without any birth control. These signs can be marked right up to the fertilisation between the sperm and the ovum, developing your embryo. At this stage, your body releases high levels of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) hormones, causing significant body changes which can be detected n the urine. A pregnancy test taken during this period gives accurate results. Early signs of pregnancy include:
Although it appears as a bad sign, spotting or light bleeding indicates the implantation of your embryo in the uterine lining. This implantation occurs from 10 days after you conceive. Spotting appears as small blood drops or a brownish coloured discharge from the vagina. Beginning from the time of your regular period, implantation bleeding lasts for up to a few days or may be a few weeks. Some people often mistake spotting for a light period, and often fail to realise the pregnancy.
Food routine during early pregnancy can be complicated. Most women get cravings of certain foods during pregnancy or constantly feel hungry. Food aversions are normal throughout pregnancy.
Many women report a metallic taste in their mouth during their early pregnancies. It tastes like a pile of coins in the mouth.
Headaches along with a light-headedness and dizzy feeling are common in pregnancy. This is due to the increasing blood volume and hormonal changes in the body.
You might also get mild cramps like that of period which come and go for a few days. It is essential to consult a healthcare expert promptly if you get cramps on a single side or if it is severe cramping. This might indicate an ectopic pregnancy or some other complication.
Some women experience a stuffy and congested nose during early pregnancy because of their increased blood volume and hormone levels. At times, the mucous membranes of nose become so dry that they start bleeding.
While a noticeable baby bump takes several weeks or months, the hormonal surge might make your stomach bloated and pass more gas than usual.
One of the primary signs of pregnancy which results from hormonal changes is an acute sense of smell. Just like the changing tastes in food, a pregnant is equally sensitive in quickly sensing changing smells. At times they may get extremely sensitive to certain odours and even familiar scents. In fact, pregnant women often experience nausea, dizziness, or vomiting to certain smells of perfumes, foods, or other household items.
Back pain is again a common symptom in pregnant women, occurring due to the relaxation of the tendons, pelvis, synovium, expansion of central muscle, and the adjustments of body posture as well. These support the increasing weight of the growing foetus during pregnancy. In fact, this raised body weight can lead to loss of balance in pregnant women. This results in changes in sitting, walking, standing, and even in lying down postures, leading to backache.
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BOOK ONLINE NOW 02071832153Vaginal discharge is another sign of pregnancy resulting from an increase in the oestrogen level. This leads increased moisture, excessive vaginal secretions, accumulation of bacteria in the birth canal, or vaginal yeast infection which cause abnormal discharge from the vagina. Vaginal discharge during pregnancy is odourless, transparent, and a cloudy white mucous which is not itchy. Women experiencing vaginal discharge combined with itching and a foul smell must see the doctor to rule out any complications.
Constipation is also a sign of pregnancy, occurring from the same cause of bloating. These causes include high progesterone levels in the body, slowing down the motility of the digestive system. Moreover, the intestinal peristalsis gets affected by the expansion of the uterus in response to baby’s growth. This delays the movement of fluids and food through the digestive tract, leading to bloating or constipation. Drinking plenty of water, performing light exercise like swimming, walking, or yoga, or consuming high fibre foods can all alleviate constipation during pregnancy.
With dramatic hormonal changes during pregnancy, women often experience drastic mood swings. It is normal to get mood swings throughout pregnancy. However, you must see your doctor if you feel depressed and anxious or get thoughts of harming yourself.
Breathing shortness occurs due to the hormone progesterone. This causes your lungs to expand to allow greater oxygen intake for the growing foetus. Moreover, such a condition hastens the elimination of carbon dioxide from the body of the pregnant woman, ultimately leading to shortness of breath. In addition, the growing foetus exerts pressure on the diaphragm of the mother’s body with the progression of pregnancy.
Pregnant women again experience skin changes due to increase in blood volume and hormone levels. This varies from woman to woman. While some get a clearer skin with pregnancy glow, some others suffer from blemishes.
Secretion of progesterone during pregnancy often leads to heartburn, which is caused by the slowing down of your digestive process. The lower oesophageal sphincter, the connecting muscle between the stomach and the oesophagus, relaxes more frequently during pregnancy. This leads to a reflux of the acidic gastric juice back upwards to the oesophagus, causing heartburn. Moreover, these stomach acids are propelled upwards due to the pressure of the growing uterus on the stomach, resulting in acid regurgitation, heartburn, vomiting, nausea, and a sore throat and irritation of the throat.
Every 1 in 100 pregnant women are known to suffer from hyperemesis gravidarum. Severe vomiting, nausea, and dehydration during pregnancy is termed as hyperemesis gravidarum. Although it is rare, you must visit your doctor before it gets out of control.
One of the rarest complications occurring in pregnant women is piles or haemorrhoids which may occur due to pressure of the baby’s head or from constipation. However, there’s nothing to worry as the symptoms automatically improve after the baby is born. If you experience discomfort, haemorrhoids, pain, or itching, you, must intake plenty of water, fibre rich foods and apply haemorrhoid cream.
Another rare condition during pregnancy is widespread itching over the body. It is very distressing and interferes with sleep, daily activities, and quality of life throughout pregnancy. Eczema and dry skin are the probable causes of this itching. It causes itchiness in the soles of feet and palms of hands, indicating a serious liver disease.
Carpal tunnel syndrome produces numbness and tingling in your hands, affecting up to 60% of pregnant women. This mainly occurs when the median nerve gets compressed due to the increasing tissue fluids during pregnancy. It is mild and painful condition (severe at times), leading to loss of sensation or partial paralysis of the thumb. However, after child birth these symptoms improve on their own.
From pressure of the pregnant uterus on the larger veins to increased blood volume, all these factors can lead to varicose veins of the legs. As a result, it leads to swelling of the legs (oedema), cramps particularly at night, a feeling of heaviness, or pain. Wearing support stockings, practising gentle exercises regularly, massaging the legs, lying down with elevated feet, avoiding prolonged standing, or consulting your doctor can help.
Pregnancy symptoms vary from women to women. While some women feel pregnant within a few days of conception, other women do not feel anything at all even several weeks after the pregnancy test.
Here’s a timeline of detecting pregnancy symptoms at different stages:
Are you pregnant? – If your period is yet to come, and you also experience a few pregnancy symptoms such as fatigue, vomiting, nausea, mood swings, food cravings, or tender breasts, it might be a question. However, it might be a false assumption at times and instead is a case of PMS. This is because early pregnancy and PMS share some overlapping symptoms, including:
However, if you suspect yourself to be pregnant, do not wait for your expected period and visit the doctor at once for a pregnancy test.
Yes, it is possible to feel pregnant before a missed period. Many women have reported to experience pregnancy symptoms from within a week after conceiving, which is almost one week before your expected period.
Yes, it is possible to get pregnancy like symptoms. But this does not necessarily mean you are pregnant. This is because many symptoms of early pregnancy overlap with the signs of several other medical conditions. For example, premenstrual symptoms often resemble signs of pregnancy. Such situations make it difficult to spot the difference. Missing a period, being stressed or gaining weight can all misguide people about pregnancy. It is always best to take a pregnancy test to confirm if you are pregnant.
Implantation of embryo in early pregnancy might lead to symptoms like some light cramping in the stomach. Hormonal changes during early pregnancy often make you feel a little constipated or bloated at times. However, you cannot feel any movement of the foetus at such an early stage.
Pregnancy tests confirm pregnancy by checking for the presence of a certain level of the human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) hormone in your urine. You are fit to undergo a pregnancy test as soon as you miss a period. However, waiting for at least a week after your missed period is better to get the most accurate test results. This reduces the chances of false negatives.
Once you get a positive pregnancy test after missing your period, the next step is to contact your healthcare provider for the first appointment. At this point, your provider might enquire if you taking a prenatal vitamin containing folic acid. These prenatal vitamins are crucial in for the neural tube development of the foetus during early pregnancy. This is because this neural tube makes up your baby’s brain and spine.
If you are planning to get pregnant, you should begin the journey with a preconception appointment with a healthcare expert. This is more important particularly if you are having routine medications of hypertension, diabetes, or lupus. At this appointment, the medical expert would guide you general health guidelines for a healthy pregnancy.
Pregnancy offers different experiences for different women. Most common early pregnancy symptoms include sore and tender breasts, a missed period, nausea, morning sickness, or persistent tiredness. In fact, some women often experience pregnancy symptoms even before they miss their expected period. You might use an at-home kit for a primary assessment of pregnancy. If you are tested positive, contact your healthcare provider at once. Remember that effective prenatal care is integral to the health and safety of both the mother and the growing foetus.
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