“Am I pregnant?”
A question usually asked with bated breath when a woman starts noticing some signs in her body, a few weeks after she’s had unprotected sex. It is a question asked either out of expectation or with trepidation, depending on if the woman is trying to get pregnant or not.
Obviously, the most accurate way of confirming would be by taking a pregnancy test; however, there are some common early symptoms that can indicate pregnancy even before taking a test. The reason for these symptoms is due to the higher levels of hormones and the physical changes occurring in the body.
Since no two women are the same; symptoms differ from one woman to the other. Some women feel the symptoms earlier than others; while some don’t get any symptoms at all.
The thing about these early symptoms is that they are not necessarily unique to pregnancy. Most times they are easily confused with premenstrual symptoms (PMS), or with any other type of sickness.
In any case, it’s still good to know that the early signs that tell you when baby is on board include:
1. Fatigue
Fatigue is a very common early symptom of pregnancy. The reason you can’t complete those tasks you previously would at the drop of a hat, or the reason you can’t seem to keep your eyes open, is due to the increased levels of progesterone in your body. This hormone can make you feel extremely exhausted and very sleepy.
2. Tender/ swollen breasts
Sensitive boobs are one of the very common early signs of pregnancy. Again, higher levels of progesterone can make your breasts swollen, sore and achy; and may also feel very tender when touched. The area surrounding your nipples (areola) can also get considerably darker, while your nipples themselves feel quite prickly and tingly, like you are being pricked with needles.
3. Morning sickness/Nausea
This is the pregnancy symptom that Nollywood movies are made of. It is a common early sign that most women experience which typically starts about 2 weeks after a missed period. You may find yourself vomiting or constantly feel like you need to vomit (queasiness). It usually happens in the morning; but can also hit you at any time of the day or night.
Morning sickness usually subsides by the end of the first trimester.
4. Frequent urination
If you suddenly find yourself running to the bathroom more frequently than normal, you could be pregnant. This frequent need to pee can be chalked down to the pregnancy hormone-hCG, coupled with an increase in the rate of blood flow through the kidneys, which causes your bladder to fill up more quickly.
5. Food Cravings or aversions
This is one of the strangest symptoms of pregnancy brought on by hormonal changes. You may start craving foods you normally wouldn’t eat, or you might be completely put off by foods you used to love. You may also find that you have a strange metallic taste in your mouth, or that you feel hungrier than usual.
6. Increased sense of smell
A heightened sense of smell is one of the sure signs of pregnancy. You suddenly develop the super power of perceiving smells from a mile away, including the good, and sadly, the bad as well as the ugly. Sometimes these smells can trigger a bout of vomiting, especially if you were already feeling nauseous. It’s all due to the increase in levels of oestrogen in the body.
7. Bloating
You may find you clothes suddenly feeling snug around your belly. It doesn’t mean your uterus is expanding already, it’s just good old hormones at work. The pregnancy hormone -progesterone can slow down digestion, and make you bloated in the abdomen.
8. Constipation
As you already know, increased levels of progesterone can slow down the digestive system, which will invariably lead to constipation.
9. Lower back pain
Some women experience pain in the lower back normally. If you weren’t having backaches before, it could be that the pregnancy hormone-relaxin which loosens ligaments, is responsible for the aches/soreness you are feeling in your lower back.
10. Lower abdominal Cramps
This is a mild uterine cramping called implantation cramping. You may think it’s your period coming on, but it is your baby burrowing into your uterus, or your uterus stretching in preparation to accommodate your new womb hijacker.
11. Light bleeding/spotting
A bright pink or brown coloured spotting on your panties? Around the time you are expecting your period? This is most probably implantation bleeding. Implantation bleeding is a common symptom of pregnancy which happens when a fertilized egg attaches to itself in the uterus. It can happen after about 8-10 days of ovulation.
12. Headache and Dizziness
Pregnancy hormones can make your blood vessels to dilate and blood pressure to drop. This can cause you to get headaches, feel dizzy or lightheaded.
13. Increased Basal Body Temperature (BBT)
Basal body temperature is the temperature of your body at rest. The most accurate results are taken once you wake up in the morning. If you’ve been charting your BBT, a heightened BBt which lasts beyond your ovulation period, is an indication that you may be pregnant.
14. Mood swings
As your body adjusts to new hormones, you may find out that you are unusually emotional, and constantly making mountains out of molehills. Luckily, this usually evens out by the end of the first trimester
15. Missed period
For women whose monthly cycles are fairly regular, this is the surest sign of pregnancy. There’s no need to wait any longer, go get that pregnancy test.
A positive pregnancy test is the ultimate reveal. Either a blood pregnancy test, or a home pregnancy test taken after a missed period, will tell if you are pregnant or not. The human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) is what shows up in your urine or blood to confirm that you are pregnant. This hormone is produced right after a fertilized egg implants in the womb about 6 days after fertilization.
