11 First Signs You Are Pregnant

How can you tell you’re pregnant without taking a test? This can be difficult since many of the first symptoms of pregnancy are subtle. For example, signs like tiredness and mood swings are the same as week 11 pregnancy symptoms – yet they can also be attributed to PMS, stress, or just having a bad day at work. While you’ll need to test to be absolutely positive that you’re pregnant (or not), there are several signs of pregnancy that can act as clues. Here are 11 to watch out for:

Here are 11 to watch out for:

Experiencing Breast Changes

If your breasts feel a bit swollen and tender to the touch, then it’s possible that you could be pregnant. Your body takes a long time to prepare for the important task of nourishing a baby – all 40 weeks of pregnancy, in fact!

Hunting for a Restroom

One of the earliest symptoms of pregnancy is frequent urination. Your body is preparing to support a baby, and in order to do that, it needs to build up a bigger blood supply. Part of that process involves increased kidney activity, meaning more fluid makes its way to your bladder. If you haven’t increased your fluid intake but you find yourself running for the nearest restroom more often than usual, there’s a good chance that you are pregnant.

Suffering from Mood Swings

Moodiness is often a symptom of PMS – but it’s also one of the first signs that you’re pregnant. There are many contributing factors – hormone shifts, fatigue, and stress among them.

Pure Exhaustion

Most early pregnancy symptoms are directly connected to hormonal activity. Unexplained fatigue is among them. If you feel like napping when you’re normally active, then it’s possible that your body is reacting to an increase in progesterone – one of the hormones that spikes when you’re in the first stages of pregnancy.

Aching Lower Back

The majority of women – 50 to 70 percent – suffer from pregnancy-related back pain. If you haven’t injured yourself and you have a nagging ache in your lower back, it’s a possible pregnancy symptom.

Morning Sickness, Any Time of Day

Feeling nauseous but not sure why? Nausea and/or vomiting typically begins after the first month of pregnancy has passed, but many women experience these symptoms earlier. On the other hand, some never feel ill at all. And about that name – morning sickness is a bit of a misnomer, as it’s possible to feel sick to your stomach at any time.

Unexplainable Headaches

Unfortunately, headaches are among the most common symptoms of early pregnancy. Dehydration stress, fatigue, and hunger are sometimes to blame, and in some cases, pregnancy-related headaches are triggered by increased blood flow and elevated hormone levels.

Craving Certain Foods

Unusual food cravings can signify that you’re pregnant, and so can aversions to foods that you normally enjoy or feel neutral about.

Waiting for a Period that Never Arrives

For many women, the first sign of pregnancy is a missed period. This predictor only works if you’re normally right on time, and if you are late by a week or more. It’s not completely reliable, but if other signs of early pregnancy are present, your intuition might be correct.

Spotting

Implantation bleeding – the spotting that happens when the fertilized egg is implanted in the uterine wall – is an almost certain sign that you’re pregnant. Of course, there are other reasons for spotting, so be sure to confirm your pregnancy and see your doctor.

Increased Vaginal Discharge

An increase in vaginal discharge is another sign that you might be pregnant – it’s usually a milky or whitish color, and there might be quite a lot of it. It’s normal as long as it doesn’t have an offensive odor, and as long as there is no itching or discomfort involved.

What’s Next?

If you suspect that you might be pregnant based on any of these signs, treat yourself to a pregnancy test ASAP. If you test negative but still see signs, it’s possible that the test could be wrong, or your symptoms could be related to something else. In either case, you’ll want to schedule a doctor’s appointment and continue taking care of yourself in the best way possible.

Sources:

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/getting-pregnant/in-depth/art-20043853

https://www.webmd.com/baby/features/8-early-signs-of-pregnancy

http://americanpregnancy.org/pregnancy-health/mood-swings-during-pregnancy/

https://www.webmd.com/baby/features/pregnancy-food-cravings

https://www.medicinenet.com/pregnancy_symptoms_am_i_pregnant/article.htm

http://americanpregnancy.org/pregnancy-health/back-pain-during-pregnancy/