Common early pregnancy symptoms include missed periods, tender/swollen breasts, nausea with or without vomiting, increased urination, and fatigue.
Some less obvious signs of pregnancy are moodiness, constipation, bloating, cramping, food aversions, light spotting, and nasal congestion. However, every woman’s experience varies.
Behind the Symptoms: What’s Happening?
Pregnancy symptoms are triggered by the body’s response to hormonal changes.
Your body knows before you do that pregnancy is in process and adjustments need to be made. It will begin dramatically increasing estrogen, progesterone, and other hormones, making you feel abnormal.
How Do I Know If I’m Actually Pregnant?
If you’re sexually active, pregnancy is always a possibility when new symptoms arise.
Even so, it can still be challenging to discern whether you’re feeling off because of something you ate, a virus, pregnancy, or another reason. Many common pregnancy symptoms are shared across a number of medical conditions.
The only way to really find out for sure is through pregnancy testing, followed up by an ultrasound.
How Does a Pregnancy Test Work?
Pregnancy tests work by measuring the body’s level of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) in either urine (the most common method) or blood. A woman’s body begins producing the hCG hormone after a fertilized egg implants in the lining of the uterus.
The concentration increases rapidly during early pregnancy, doubling every two to three days, so the timing of testing is key. If you test too early, there might not be enough hCG for detection. If you test after your first missed period, the result will be more accurate.
Schedule a Pregnancy Confirmation Appointment
If you have a suspicion that you might be pregnant, schedule a free appointment at The Pregnancy Center in Clinton, Iowa.
We will first begin by administering a urine pregnancy test (we do not provide blood pregnancy tests at our center). If your test is positive, we will utilize limited ultrasound technology to confirm you have a viable, progressing pregnancy. This will also tell you how far along you are, so you can know all the pregnancy options available to you.
Why wonder? Visit our center to find out for sure.
