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Early Pregnancy Symptoms

Medical Author: Melissa Conrad Stoppler, MD
Medical Editor: William C. Shiel, Jr., MD, FACP, FACR

Early Pregnancy Symptoms

Women discuss their symptoms experienced early in their pregnancy

"My fiance have been together for 8 years, we rarely argue and almost never have big fights. However one day I woke wanting nothing to do with him... he couldn't do anything right, everything he said was an insult, and I seriously considered finding my own apartment. I work in a male dominated field and am the only woman in my department, so normally i get on with men well, but I realized that I couldn't stand the thought of a man even speaking to me. Then a week or so later morning sickness kicked in... What a relief it was to find out I was pregnant!" - alrsiler

"I’m 22 years old and this is my first pregnancy. I’ve experienced "night sickness" not morning sickness, which seems weird to me but was told that it was a common thing. My mood swings have been awful. One minute I’m happy, the next I’m crying. Also, I have bloating in my abdominal area. I’m very nervous and excited at the same time." - lilmama

"Earlier this week, I threw up, started having tenderness, bloating, indigestion, sleeplessness, and all that good stuff that I usually get when my cycle is about to start. Well, I was a week late for my period and took a pregnancy test this morning, and it came back positive. I'm 40 and my husband is 46, and this will be our first. I woke his butt up and told him it was his fault, and he was very happy to be blamed."

"My pregnancy symptoms were: fuller breasts, nausea, a heightened sense of smell, and fatigue." - lilly

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Patient Discussions are not a substitute for professional medical advice, or treatment.
See the disclaimer at the bottom of the comments page.

Introduction

Most women equate a missed menstrual period with the possibility of being pregnant, but other symptoms and signs are experienced by most women in the early stages of pregnancy. It's important to remember that not all women will experience all of these symptoms or have the symptoms to the same degree. Even the same woman can have different types of symptoms in a subsequent pregnancy than she had in previous pregnancies. The following are the most common pregnancy symptoms in the first trimester.

Missed period

A missed menstrual period is most often the first sign of pregnancy. Sometimes a woman who is pregnant may still experience some bleeding or spotting around the time of the expected period, typically 6 to 12 days after conception. When it occurs, this so-called "implantation bleeding" is generally not as heavy or long as a regular menstrual period. This small amount of bleeding that occurs at the time of the expected menstrual period happens when the fertilized egg attaches to the uterine wall and is referred to as implantation bleeding.

Any bleeding during pregnancy is typically lighter than that observed during the regular menstrual period. However, if a woman does not have regular menstrual cycles, she may notice some of the other symptoms of early pregnancy before it is apparent that the menstrual period has been missed. A missed menstrual period also does not confirm that a woman is pregnant even if she has regular cycles, since both emotional and physical conditions may cause absent or delayed periods.

Breast swelling, tenderness, and pain

Feelings of breast swelling, tenderness, or pain are also commonly associated with early pregnancy. These symptoms are sometimes similar to the sensations in the breasts in the days before an expected menstrual period. Women may also describe a feeling of heaviness or fullness in the breasts. These symptoms can begin in some women as early as one to two weeks after conception.




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