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Ten Signs of Pregnancy

If you think you might be pregnant, waiting for your period can be an anxious time. While it's not possible to tell if you're pregnant before your missed period, if you listen closely to your body, it might be giving you signs that you are pregnant--even before a pregnancy test can tell you so.

  1. Menstrual symptoms

    • When in egg is fertilized after intercourse, it travels down the fallopian tube and into the uterus, where it embeds itself into the uterine lining and establishes a blood supply so that it may begin to grow. This embedding, which is called implantation, signifies the actual beginning of a pregnancy.

      This implantation can often lead to mild uterine cramping and a period-like bleeding. However, this bleeding is usually light, and it doesn't always occur. If it does, it'll most likely be lighter than a regular menstrual period.

    Tiredness

    • One of the biggest signs of early pregnancy is extreme fatigue. The hormone progesterone is the cause of the fatigue. In early pregnancy, the body produces more progesterone, which can act as a mild sedative in large quantities. In addition to hormone fluctuations, lower-than-normal blood sugar levels can also leave you feeling tired or lethargic.

    Nausea or vomiting

    • While not all women experience morning sickness, the hormone fluctuations cause some degree of nausea in many women. Not all women will vomit at any point in pregnancy, but even a mild feeling of nausea might be testimony to a possible pregnancy.

    Tender breasts

    • Hormonal changes can also lead to breasts that are sore, achy, tender, heavy or swollen. Many women complain of breast pain in early pregnancy, and some throughout the duration of the pregnancy. From the earliest days of gestation, breast changes begin to take place as the breasts prepare to make milk to feed a newborn.

    Headaches or dizziness

    • Hormone changes brought on by pregnancy can alter blood circulation and cause frequent headaches that are usually mild in nature. These usually decrease as the pregnancy progresses.

      Dizziness and feeling faint can also occur due to lowered blood pressure or low blood sugar levels that are caused by pregnancy.

    Mood changes

    • The telltale mood swings of pregnancy can begin even very early on. The hormone fluctuations, which are the basis of almost every pregnancy-related symptom, are the cause. Fluctuating pregnancy hormones can leave a female feeling happy, sad or even angry with no particular reason.

    Cravings or aversions to certain foods

    • While not solely a reliable symptom of pregnancy, unusual cravings for foods or aversions to certain foods, could be a sign of early pregnancy. Once again, hormones are usually to blame.

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