Pregnancy Blog

Although you’ll always hear that a missed period is one of the early signs of pregnancy, most women want to look for signs long before this point.  Let’s explore some other early signs of pregnancy and how accurate they are.

Implantation bleeding is one of the earliest signs because it occurs before you start to have any symptoms.  Approximately 6-10 days after ovulation (or around the 20th-24th day of your cycle if you have normal cycles) you may have some spotting.  Also watch for cramping or pinching feelings in your lower abdomen.

A change in your breasts can also be a sign of early pregnancy.  Watch for swollen, sore breasts which may start showing blue veins.  The nipples may become sore to the touch as well.  This will also occur in a normal menstrual cycle, so be careful not to put too much hope in this sign.

Watch for excessive tiredness or fatigue as well.  The production of hormones and the load put on your body may leave you feeling drained.  There are many many causes of fatigue though, so look at what’s going on in your life before you use this sign.

You may start to feel some nausea or start to have food aversions.  Some women are quite sensitive to the hormone changes that cause morning sickness and for them, this will be an early pregnancy sign.  Again, there are other causes for this symptom including illness or food poisoning.

If you find yourself having to urinate more than usual, this can also be a sign of pregnancy.  The uterus starts to swell with blood from the beginning and will put pressure on your bladder.  Watch for this, but pay attention to your fluid intake to see if that’s the cause instead.

Lastly, if you find yourself with sudden headaches, this can be an early sign of pregnancy.  The headaches are usually caused by the sudden increase in hormones, but some women get headaches as a part of a normal menstrual cycle.

So try not to look at any one symptom by itself, because each one can have other causes.  Instead, look at the picture as a whole and see if you have several of the early signs of pregnancy that can’t be explained by other factors in your life.  And if you can’t wait any longer, get an early pregnancy test and find out for sure!