Symptoms of Pregnancy: Understand Early Signs and Conditions of Being Pregnant

Am I pregnant? Could I be pregnant?

These are often questions asked by women who may or may not be pregnant. While a blood test at the doctor's office is the one sure way to tell if you are pregnant, there are also signs and symptoms of early pregnancy for which you can watch. As a mother of three, my most recent family addition about to turn 1, I have experienced different signs that helped me to know that I was pregnant. If you think you may be pregnant, read about the early signs and symptoms that often indicate early pregnancy.

One sign of early pregnancy is nausea. Not all women however will have feelings of nausea when pregnant, that is the lucky ones. I only had the feelings of nausea early on with my second pregnancy which led me to take a home pregnancy test. I didn't have nausea when eating most foods, it actually came on when I tried to take a sip of beer. It appears that nausea, or "Morning Sickness", is different for most women. Some women are extremely sensitive to food while others only become nauseous with certain food types. At any rate, if you are feeling nauseous and you may possibly be pregnant I would recommend you take a home pregnancy test.

Another sign of early pregnancy to consider is food cravings. Many times we hear of women who have food cravings while pregnant. And while we may sometimes see them on TV with bulging bellies, the truth is that food cravings can strike during the early stages of pregnancy as well. With my third pregnancy I experienced strong cravings for something sweet. The funny thing is I never ate sweets that often before becoming pregnant. The craving for something sweet also hit me during the early stages of my first pregnancy.

The most telling sign of early pregnancy, for me personally, was that "gut feeling" I experienced. Call it a "mother's intuition" or whatever you want but when I was pregnant with each of my three babies I just KNEW I was pregnant. For example, my second pregnancy began with unending negative home pregnancy test results which had my husband doubting me when I told him I "knew" I was pregnant. However, a woman knows her body well and it appears that the "Mother's Intuition" starts early on. I was in indeed pregnant as my tenth, or maybe twentieth, pregnancy test told me so. If you feel like you may be pregnant but receive a negative result don't give up. Wait a few days and test again. It took me almost two weeks from the first pregnancy test to finally achieve a positive result.

I normally do not feel tired all of the time - well, at least before my baby came along. So another sign of early pregnancy that I experienced was the lack of energy and fatigue. This symptom can be a tricky one as it can be indicative of many different things such as low iron, the flu, or early pregnancy. If you do not typically have problems with low iron and are not experiencing symptoms of the flu within a few days then you may very well be experiencing an early sign of pregnancy.

When it comes to pregnancy every woman is different. There are other signs and symptoms besides the ones listed above which can indicate early pregnancy. While I never experienced these symptoms I know of other women, from a pregnancy support group, who have. Other signs and symptoms of early pregnancy include: swollen and/or tender breasts, headaches, and even moodiness. Of the symptoms above I found that experiencing swollen/tender breasts was the most common first sign of early pregnancy shared between the women in my pregnancy support group.

If you are experiencing any of the symptoms above for early pregnancy along with knowing you have a chance of being pregnant than I would recommend that you buy yourself a few home pregnancy tests, trust me you will need quite a few. If you receive a positive pregnancy test result then you will need to make an appointment to see your doctor for an official blood test.

Please note that the signs and symptoms of early pregnancy listed above are also common signs of illness, such as a cold or the flu.