Early Pregnancy Symptoms: Top 14 Common and Uncommon Pregnancy Symptoms

Usually, the symptoms come and go, depending on the person:

1. Increased vaginal discharge
2. Breast tenderness
3. Nausea and vomiting
4. Cramping
5. Heartburn
6. Diarrhea
7. Headache
8. Flu-like symptoms
9. Hot flashes
10. Yeast infection symptoms (vaginal itching and white discharge)
11. Constipation
12. Insomnia
13. Bloating
14. Shortness of breath

Symptoms tend to be more prominent if you are pregnant with twins and less prominent if you have an ectopic pregnancy or a miscarriage. Fewer symptoms happen under low progesterone and low HCG conditions, but this isn’t universally the case.

Read also:

• Understanding the Earliest Symptoms of Pregnancy
• Early Pregnancy Symptoms before Missed Period
• Very Early Pregnancy Symptoms
• How early can you get Pregnancy Symptoms?

Odd Early Symptoms of Pregnancy

Some rare symptoms of pregnancy can include cold-like symptoms, such as a sore throat, really stuffy nose, and a strange cough. Not all early pregnancy symptoms are directly related to hormone levels. Back pain, hip pain, and groin pain can occur because the uterus is growing, pulling on the uterine ligaments, giving you pain when you stand up too fast or move in certain ways. This is called round ligament pain and is common in all pregnancies.

Some women take too much stock in early pregnancy symptoms. Early signs of pregnancy can really vary from pregnancy to pregnancy and just because you have no pregnancy symptoms doesn’t mean that the pregnancy will end in miscarriage. Lots of extremely annoying symptoms can make it difficult to go about your daily activities. When you factor symptoms into account, pregnancy can be a complicated time in which you are dealing with uncomfortable symptoms throughout the entire 9 months.

Weird Early Pregnancy Symptoms

Some women have weird cravings early on in pregnancy or other weird pregnancy symptoms. Symptoms like cold or flu-like symptoms are not common but can occur in some women because of engorgement of blood vessels that make them have a stuffy nose or a sore throat. Constipation or diarrhea can be symptoms of pregnancy, so it makes it difficult to know which symptom to go on when trying to decide if you are pregnant or not. Talk to your doctor if you feel like you are having weird early pregnancy symptoms. They may be able to reassure you as to which symptoms are related to the pregnancy and which are not.

Early Pregnancy Symptoms Quiz

Here are some pregnancy symptoms related to pregnancy. Circle true or false for each statement:

1. Nausea and vomiting are rare symptoms of pregnancy. True or false?
2. You get different symptoms of pregnancy with PCOS. True or false?
3. It 's hard to tell the difference between pregnancy symptoms and PMS symptoms. True or False?
4. Dry mouth is a common symptom of pregnancy in the early stages. True or false?
5. Itchy skin is a sign of late pregnancy. True or false?
6. Period symptoms and early pregnancy symptoms can be the same. True or false?
7. Cramping symptoms go away with breastfeeding. True or false?
8. Cold symptoms are common during pregnancy. True or false?
9. Groin pain is a result of hormonal changes in the body. True or false?
10. Back pain is more likely late in pregnancy. True or false?

Answers:

1. Nausea and vomiting are rare symptoms of pregnancy. True or false? The answer is false. These are common symptoms of pregnancy.
2. You get different symptoms of pregnancy with PCOS. True or false? This is false. Symptoms of pregnancy are the same once you get pregnant, even if you have PCOS.
3. It 's hard to tell the difference between pregnancy symptoms and PMS symptoms. True or False? This is a true answer. PMS symptoms can feel just like early symptoms of pregnancy and are due to hormonal changes in the body.
4. Dry mouth is a common symptom of pregnancy in the early stages. True or false? This answer is false. Dry mouth is an uncommon symptom of pregnancy.
5. Itchy skin is a sign of late pregnancy. True or false? This is true. Some women get itchy skin just on their abdomen while others get itchy skin all over. This is called pruritus of pregnancy.
6. Period symptoms and early pregnancy symptoms can be the same. True or false? This is true. Many women who feel like they are getting their period never start bleeding and are, in fact, pregnant.
7. Cramping symptoms go away with breastfeeding. True or false? This is false. Breastfeeding can cause a great deal of cramping, especially right after delivery.
8. Cold symptoms are common during pregnancy. True or false? This is false. Cold symptoms are a rare symptom of pregnancy.
9. Groin pain is a result of hormonal changes in the body. True or false? This is a false answer. Groin pain occurs because of the stretching of the growing uterus.
10. Back pain is more likely late in pregnancy. True or false? This is true. As the fetus grows bigger, you will have an increased amount of low back pain because of a change in your posture.

When Do Early Pregnancy Symptoms Start?

Some of the earliest signs of pregnancy are cramping and an increase in vaginal discharge. It may feel like you are getting your period but you instead only get a little bit of spotting or no bleeding at all. By about six weeks, the hormone levels are high enough to trigger morning sickness, which is really a misnomer because you can get nausea and vomiting all day long or just when smelling certain foods. Some weird cravings can occur, but this differs from woman to woman.

Fortunately, nausea and vomiting do not last and most women recover from this by the end of their first trimester (1st week - 13 weeks of pregnancy), although some women have it throughout the pregnancy. Symptoms that come later in pregnancy include itching, an increase in stretch marks, and back pain. The groin pain seen in the first trimester tends to lessen in the second (14 weeks - 27 weeks) and third trimester (28 weeks - 40 weeks) because the ligament that causes this round ligament pain is maximally stretched out and will not cause groin pain as much.

Late in pregnancy, back pain is prominent and itching of the abdomen is common. The back pain can represent contractions, such as when a woman is having “back labor” or it can be due to the heavy weight of the growing fetus on your posture, putting more stress on the back. Women in the advanced stages of pregnancy, tend to walk with “lumbar lordosis”, which means they are tilting their back backward to account for the excess weight in the front.

Itching can come from an increase in stretching of the skin of the abdomen and an increase in stretch marks. There is a condition called pruritus of pregnancy in which intolerable itching is felt all over the body. There are medications a woman can use to counteract the itching, but it tends to cause fatigue so many women just deal with it or attempt to deliver early so that the itching will go away.

Bowel Issues in Pregnancy

Is constipation an early pregnancy symptom? In some cases, constipation is a big problem in their pregnancy. It occurs because of an effect of progesterone on the body and can be combated by increasing fluids and fiber during the pregnancy. Some women need more assistance in having a bowel movement than others. Suppositories or natural laxatives can be used to counteract the constipating effects of pregnancy.

At the end of the pregnancy and right before you are about to deliver, many women experience a bout of diarrhea. This is the body’s way of clearing out the bowels so that there is an easier passage of the baby through the birth canal. Diarrhea can be a sign that you are getting close to delivery so it is a symptom worth paying attention to. If you don’t have diarrhea at the end of the pregnancy, do not worry. The baby will still likely fit through the birth canal but you may have some passage of a small amount of stool as the head is descending the birth canal or when the head is crowning.

Symptoms of Pregnancy to Be Concerned About

Women who have severe nausea and vomiting can develop a condition called “hyperemesis gravidarum”. This can cause dehydration and electrolyte problems and sometimes requires a hospitalization for fluids and parenteral nutrition. Hyperemesis gravidarum happens to some women and not to others and can be serious if not treated appropriately. Usually, this passes by the end of the first trimester and does not reoccur later on in pregnancy.

Spotting is a common symptom in early pregnancy, especially when the embryo implants in the uterine lining. This is called implantation bleeding and is normal for some pregnancies. Heavy spotting, bleeding, cramping and abdominal pain can be seen in pregnancies that are destined to be lost due to a spontaneous miscarriage or can be due to an ectopic pregnancy. If you are experiencing these symptoms, see your doctor for an ultrasound to see what is happening. If you catch an ectopic pregnancy early enough, a medication called methotrexate can be given that will “dissolve” the ectopic pregnancy, sparing the tube. If it is caught too late, you may need to have surgery that removes the ectopic pregnancy and a part of the fallopian tube. This can later affect your fertility.

If a miscarriage is imminent, the ultrasound may show this. Many miscarriages happen spontaneously without any intervention but a few will have retained products of conception that need to be removed by doing a dilatation and curettage (D and C). If you have prolonged bleeding, see your doctor about having some type of intervention so you don’t just keep bleeding.

What to Do About Pregnancy Symptoms?

Most early pregnancy symptoms are just annoying and do not require any type of intervention. For example, you can have crackers and water at your bedside to eat just before arising so you always have a little bit of something in your stomach. This can counteract morning sickness. Frequent small meals are a good idea during early pregnancy when nausea is a problem and you can avoid eating foods that just don’t smell good or are too spicy.

Women with excessive heartburn in pregnancy can eat frequent small meals or they can take medications such as ranitidine, which is an H2 blocker used to manage heartburn. This has been found to be relatively safe during pregnancy so you can have some on hand to take on a regular basis or when the heartburn becomes severe. TUMS and Maalox work well to relieve heartburn symptoms rather quickly.

Aches and pains can be relieved with acetaminophen. You can also go natural and use a hot water bottle or ice pack to relieve back pain — whichever feels better. Try to have the best posture as possible in the later stages of pregnancy so you don’t put too much stress on your back. Resting with your feet up can help back pain and can reduce the amount of swelling you have in later pregnancy.

Talk to your doctor about any pregnancy symptoms you may have. There are natural remedies and medications that can control many of these symptoms so you can pass the time during pregnancy without feeling too miserable.