Very Early Pregnancy Symptoms
Am I pregnant or overthinking? How do I know if I’m pregnant early? Are there any super early signs of pregnancy?
Are you asking yourself these questions right now? Many other women have also, when they’re unsure if they’re overthinking it or if they’re actually PREGNANT! And sometimes your body will start to tell you you’re pregnant before a pregnancy test will show a positive result. What are those very early pregnancy symptoms? Let’s take a look!
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Early Pregnancy Signs and Symptoms
Fatigue and Exhaustion
One of the most common, and easily recognized early signs of pregnancy is starting to feel more tired than normal. Fatigue and exhaustion are some of the first signs you might be pregnant. If you normally feel pretty energized all day long and then all of a sudden you find that you’d rather take a nap than enjoy your lunch break, you might be experiencing an early pregnancy symptom.
Especially in early pregnancy, but also throughout, it’s important to be sure you’re getting enough sleep. Try for at least 7 hours of sleep if you suspect you’re pregnant. This will help you keep your energy up until your body adjusts to pregnancy.
Another suggestion is to start taking a prenatal vitamin if you haven’t already. One thing I will share is sometimes prenatal vitamins can make you nauseous, so make sure you take them as directed. If one prenatal doesn’t work for you, try a different one.
You’ve Missed Your Period
When I was early in my pregnancy, one of the first pregnancy symptoms was my missed period. I was always VERY regular, so even a day or 2 was a clear indication something was happening to my body. If you’ve missed your period, give it a few days before taking a pregnancy test. It’s easy to want to take one that day, but you’ll get a more accurate result if you wait until the first week after your missed period.
Sudden Onset of Headaches
If you’ve begun to experience headaches when you normally don’t, this could be an early sign of pregnancy. As your body begins to create the hormones needed to support your pregnancy, that sudden influx, along with increased blood flow can cause headaches.
It’s also important to make sure you’re drinking enough water to avoid pregnancy dehydration. These are my favorite water bottles I recommend them to all pregnant mommas.
New Food Aversions and Cravings
Another one of the early pregnancy symptoms I experienced was food aversions and food cravings. I clearly remember smelling my husband’s coffee one morning and instantly feeling nauseous. I knew right then that something was off. I also had some of the craziest food cravings all throughout each of my pregnancies. If you’re experiencing either of these symptoms, you might be pregnant!
The pregnancy craving I had that my husband and I still laugh about was putting pickles on my pizza. My husband thought it was gross, and I thought it was the best thing ever.
Heightened Sense of Smell
Right along with the food aversions, is a heightened sense of smell. As I mentioned, I quickly knew something was different when I was nauseated at the smell of coffee. Oftentimes, the smells you’re around the most will be the ones that bother you first. If you start to notice that smells that have never bothered you before suddenly make you nauseous or give you a headache, you may be pregnant.
Mood Swings and Crying
I feel like this one is almost a given at some point during your pregnancy. Maybe you’re watching the news or a movie you’ve seen 100 times and for no reason at all you find yourself crying, you may be pregnant. A heightened sense of emotion can be an early symptom of pregnancy for some women.
Grab the tissues and embrace this new emotional feature your body has given you. Any sign that your body is pregnant is a great thing if you want to be pregnant.
Breast Changes
Some women start noticing their breasts are very sensitive when they’re newly pregnant. Often this is noticed when you bump your breast, or can even be noticed during intimacy. If something feels off with your breasts, it may be time to take a pregnancy test. While your body adjusts to early pregnancy, you can help ease the discomfort of breast pain with a heating pad.
Another way your breasts may change is they may be growing. Growing breasts is a very common pregnancy symptom. As your hormones increase, your breasts can also increase in size. It may be time to consider sizing up to a larger bra as you move along in early pregnancy. You may also consider finding bras without an underwire. They can be super uncomfortable anyway, but add sore breasts to that, and ouch!
If you start to notice your areolas are darker, this could also be a very early pregnancy symptom. This happens sometimes due to the hormone changes your body is experiencing. If you don’t have this symptom now, you will likely experience it at some point during your pregnancy.
Nausea and Morning Sickness
If I had to pick one sign of early pregnancy I would’ve gladly skipped, it was this one! Nausea and morning sickness are some of the most common early pregnancy signs many women experience and can happen as early as 4 weeks pregnant. Some women, only experience nausea in the morning, while others experience all-day pregnancy nausea. It is miserable and awful, but there are things you can do to help ease the nausea.
Drinking water and eating something first thing in the morning can help get your GI system moving and awake. This can help you not feel nauseated and help you not vomit.
You may also want to try Preggie Pop Drops or Ginger Tea for Pregnancy. Each item can help support your body and ease the early pregnancy nausea you’re experiencing. If this is your first pregnancy, Earth Mama is one of my favorite brands for personal care products for pregnant and postpartum women.
Frequent Urination
Running to the bathroom a lot recently? Increased fluids can lead to increased urination in early pregnancy. As your uterus begins to grow, it can push on your bladder more. Usually, that doesn’t happen until your baby grows, but it can be an early sign of pregnancy.
Spotting and Light Bleeding
Implantation bleeding happens 10-14 days after the embryo is implanted in your uterus. Keep in mind, this bleeding should happen a few days before you’re due to start your period. Some spotting and light bleeding can happen at the very beginning of pregnancy and is not a reason to panic. If you’re experiencing a lot of bleeding, you’ll want to seek medical help. But, if it’s very light, you may be in the very early stage of pregnancy.
Along with implantation bleeding, you may experience some minor cramping. This can be very common and your body plants the embryo. If you have these symptoms together, it’s likely you’ll have a positive pregnancy test very soon.
If you’re experiencing any kind of bleeding, and you think you may be pregnant, make sure you only use sanitary pads and avoid using tampons or menstrual cups. There’s no need to shove anything up there that isn’t needed.
Increased Vaginal Discharge
Depending on all the changes happening in your body, you may experience an increase in vaginal discharge, also known as cervical mucus. It can be clear or a bit white, and can sometimes be very thin or even thick. As your body changes to begin supporting this new little life, you may have more discharge than you’re used to seeing.
Constipation and Gas
Have you started having constipation for no apparent reason? Maybe you’ve started passing gas more than you usually do. Both of these can be symptoms of pregnancy. Pregnancy constipation simply means you’ve started struggling to poop, which can become super uncomfortable.
The best thing you can do is increase your water intake and make sure you’re moving so your bowels can help move. This will also help with any gas you’re experiencing. Prunes can help as well, so maybe make some healthy granola bars and chop up some prunes to add. It’s also not a bad idea to eliminate any drinks that have carbonation, because those bubbles aren’t helping you.
Lower Back Pain
Although back pain can be caused by numerous things, early pregnancy can also cause lower back pain. As your body begins to change, and your hormones are crazy, you may experience pain in your lower back. It’s normal and nothing to be concerned about, but it could be a sign of pregnancy. A heating pad or a warm bath are great remedies for back pain in pregnancy.
Pregnancy Acne
Haven’t had acne in years, but then, BAM, you wake up one morning with a full-on acne outbreak? Acne can be an early symptom of pregnancy as your hormones are on the move. No need to panic, it may subside as your hormones level out. A random acne outbreak can be a great sign of pregnancy.
As you begin your pregnancy journey and all the newness you’ll experience when pregnant, you’ll be glad you read and know my favorite pregnancy hacks. I want to help make your pregnancy enjoyable and joyful! If this is your very first pregnancy, be sure to read my pregnancy guide for first-time moms!
As the shock of being pregnant settles in, you may start thinking about how to share your pregnancy news with everyone you love. As exciting as it can be, you may want to wait until you’re ready, for many pregnant women, this is at the end of your first trimester. If you start showing and you need these clothes to hide your pregnancy.
What were some of your earliest pregnancy symptoms? Have you started experiencing some of the very early pregnancy symptoms I shared? It can be an exciting time for sure. Make sure you take a pregnancy test to confirm your early pregnancy. Congratulations, Mama!
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