First Signs of Pregnancy

What are the first signs of pregnancy? You may have your suspicions about whether or not you may be pregnant but it's too early to know if you've missed your period or not. You feel a bit more bloated and have been going to the bathroom more often. Are these really the early signs of pregnancy or you just being paranoid?

Signs You May Be Pregnant

Exhaustion or Fatigue

One of the first signs of pregnancy is extreme and unexplainable fatigue. It is the most common of the symptoms associated with pregnancy. If you're body is overly tired and you feel you are not exerting yourself at work or at home, then rest. Listen to your body. Adding more caffeine to your diet will not solve the problem, especially if you are pregnant.

Food Cravings and Aversions

For some strange reason you can no longer stand the though of you favorite foods. Thinking about them makes you sick. You may also find that you crave strange combinations of foods. Rising levels of the hormone beta-hCG help to trigger these food cravings and aversions. The only way to solve this problem is to avoid triggers. Learn more about pregnancy hormones.

Nausea and Vomiting

You may all of a sudden come down with bouts of nausea and/or vomiting (often referred to as morning sickness). Again, this is a sign of rising hormones in your body and it is best to fight this by eating. Going through the day with an empty stomach is not a good thing.

You may also noticed that certain smells now make you feel sick to your stomach. This could even be smells you love. Until your morning sickness gets under control (~12 weeks), you should try and stay away from strong smells especially if you are feeling nauseous a lot.

Swollen and/or Tender Breasts

Swollen and tender breasts are another one of the first signs of pregnancy. Unfortunately, if your periods are anything like mine, you may experience breast swelling and tenderness just before getting your period. So this is not a conclusive way to determine whether or not you are pregnant. Darkening of the areolas is a sign that you may be pregnant.

Frequent Urination

If you are taking more trips to the bathroom than you are used to, then chances are, you could be pregnant. Due to the growing placenta, the bladder is restricted in the amount of fluid it can hold. This makes you have to urinate more throughout the day. Frequent urination could also be a sign of a urinary tract infection, so definitely talk to your doctor if you are experiencing frequent urination.

If you suspect that you may be pregnant, the best thing is to talk to your doctor. The are physicial changes that occur in the vagina that your doctor should be able to detect early on.

Most people do not realize they are pregnant until they are about 2 months into their pregnancy. Many of these first signs of pregnancy unfortunately overlap with symptoms of PMS and women are likely to dismiss them as such.

If you do not want to see your doctor, take a home pregnancy test>. Most of these are fairly accurate at determining whether or not your are pregnant.

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