7 Signs and Symptoms of Pregnancy
Seven out of ten women exhibit early symptoms of pregnancy by the time they’re 6 weeks along. In fact, some early symptoms of pregnancy may show up around the time you’ve missed a period – or a week or two later. So what are some of the early signs of pregnancy? Here are a few you can look out for:
- A missed period
If you’re not regular or you’re not keeping track of your cycle, you’ll have to look for other symptoms such as nausea and breast tenderness and frequent bathroom visits but if you’re normally pretty regular and your period doesn’t arrive on time, take a home pregnancy test to find out for sure!
If you don’t have a pregnancy kit at home, learn how to confirm pregnancy without a kit here.
- Nausea & Food aversions
Aside from the foods you normally avoid, if you’re feeling nauseous or strongly repelled by the sight of something you like eating, it could mean that you’re newly pregnant. It is common to feel repelled by the smell of a bologna sandwich or a cup of coffee, and for certain aromas to trigger your gag reflex. While it hasn’t been figured out how exactly this happens, it is most likely a side effect of rapidly increasing amounts of estrogen in your system.
- Mood swings
Mood swings during pregnancy are extremely common. Hormonal changes caused by pregnancy affect neurotransmitters or chemical messengers in the brain and everyone responds differently to these changes. Experiencing heightened emotions, both good and bad or feeling more depressed or anxious that your usual self is known to happen.
- Frequent urination
Hormonal changes during pregnancy can also bring about a chain of events that raise the rate of blood flow through your kidneys. As your pregnancy progresses, your blood volume rises dramatically to extra fluid being processed and ending up in your bladder. This causes your bladder to fill more quickly, so you need to visit the loo more often. You may experience this as early as six weeks into your first trimester. It gets worse as your growing baby exerts more pressure on your bladder.
- Bloating
Again, hormonal changes during early pregnancy can leave you feeling bloated, similar to the feeling you experience right before your period. Your clothes may suddenly feel more snug than usual at the waistline, even early on when your uterus is still quite small.
- Sore breasts
Another common pregnancy symptom is your breasts feeling very sensitive & swollen due to rising levels of hormones. The discomfort should diminish significantly after the first trimester, as your body adjusts to the hormonal changes.
- Fatigue
If you’re feeling very tired suddenly it could be early pregnancy fatigue, &rapidly increasing levels of the hormone progesterone are contributing to your exhaustion. Morning sickness and having to urinate frequently during the night also make you feel sluggish.
This post is contributed by Reward Me and you can head here for more women’s health tips.
