Signs and Symptoms of Early Pregnancy

It may seem that the most common and obvious sign of early pregnancy is a missed period. There are, however, lots of other early tell-tale signs that you may be expecting.

1. Cramps and / or spotting

These symptoms can be tricky as they are often linked to the start of a period too. Many women are surprised to learn that cramping or spotting can actually be one of the early signs of pregnancy. It is believed to occur due to the fertilised egg attaching itself to the wall of the uterus and is often referred to as “implantation bleeding”.

2. Fatigue

Even though baby is the size of a sesame seed, your body is going through immense changes. It is understandable that you’d feel exhasuted or emotionally drained during these early days and weeks. You are growing a human after all!

3. Feeling or being sick

This nausea is due to all those hormones that are swarming your body in preparation to grow and nurture your baby. This sickness can be on a scale from feeling nauseous to full blown vomiting. Despite the fact it’s called “morning sickness”, sadly it is not actually exclusive to the morning for most. If you are struggling with sickness, especially if you are finding it hard to keep down food or water – speak to your midwife.

4. Breast tenderness

For many people, breast tenderness is one of the most early signs of pregnancy. Breast tenderness occurs because pregnancy affects the levels of estrogen and progesterone in the body and these hormonal changes are the cause of your breasts feeling tender or swollen.

5. Sensitivity to Smell

Another tell-tale sign of early pregnancy can be sensitivity to smell, with lots of women report a heightened smell sensitivity, sometimes linking in with nausea too.

6. Nipping to the loo more often

The rise in progesterone from conception means the smooth muscles around your urethra are more relaxed (did I mention I am a total Birth Nerd?). This means that you need to pee a whole lot more than usual, even though baby is still only teeny tiny.

We asked our Facebook community what their early signs of pregnancy were…

Coming in at number one (well, number two after missed period actually!), was breast tenderness with 22% of the group saying this was their first early sign of pregnancy. In second place was fatigue with 10% of the votes, followed by nausea with 8%. Some more unusual responses from the group included heartburn, gas and enlarged nipples! Oh the body does wonderful things when you are expecting…

What was your first sign or symptom of early pregnancy when you were expecting?

Have you just got those first two blue lines? Massive congratulations! What a bloomin’ exciting time. If you’re also feeling a little apprehensive about what’s ahead, we see you mama. Beth has written a wonderful blog on some of her most commonly asked questions from expectant mothers. Think of her as your very own friendly midwife just on the other side of the phone, and head over to read Ask A Midwife if you’re needing any reassurance. We got you mama.