Am I Pregnant? Early Signs of Pregnancy

Although every pregnancy can produce different symptoms and women may have dissimilar experiences from one pregnancy to another, there are some telltale signs that you may be pregnant.

Following is a list of common signs of pregnancy. Some of the signs of early pregnancy are subtle and you may not notice them right away. However, if suspect you may be pregnant, it's best to know sooner rather than later. You'll want to receive appropriate pre-natal healthcare and discontinue any unhealthy habits you may have. If you are experiencing any these early signs, take a pregnancy test right away.

There are links following each early pregnancy symptom to help you find more detailed information and explore the variety of styles of pregnancy advice and resources available.

There are many reasons for missing a period, including stress, illness, extreme weight gain, anorexia, and discontinuing use of hormone contraceptives (birth control pills, patches, etc.). However, missing your period is also one of the surest signs that you may be pregnant. Tracking your menstrual cycle is a good way to know when to expect your period. If you haven't done this, but still have the feeling that you are later, you probably are. Home pregnancy tests are fairly reliable when you follow the instructions. If you want to make sure of the results, buy a couple of different tests and if they agree, you can be pretty sure of the results.

Menstrual Cycle Disturbances - Not all missed periods mean you're pregnant. You may be under stress, ill, or taking a birth control pill with too little estrogen. This article goes into detail on various reasons for changes in the menstrual cycles in an easy-to-read chart format.

Sensitivity of the breasts is noticed by some women as soon as a day or two after conception. It's often the first sign of pregnancy, although it's not always recognized as such. Many women will recall in hindsight that they indeed had sore breasts shortly after conception. Changes in size or shape, heaviness, tingling, or soreness are all typical sensations. Breast tenderness may subside in the later months of pregnancy or it may increase.

PregnancyInfo.net - This link takes you to an article on breast tenderness, but there's a lot more to this site. The really neat feature is that with a click of a button in the top left corner, you get all the information in Spanish.

Nausea can occur with or without vomiting and is often worse on an empty stomach. Because this is often the case in the morning, this nausea has been termed morning sickness. But it can happen at any time of day. If you find yourself sick for no apparent reason, you may be pregnant. This is often the sign movies and television shows use to indicate that a character is pregnant. It's cliché for reason: it's common!

March of Dimes - This site has a lot of information, including this wonderful article on morning sickness. Common cures are listed, as well as education about when nausea may be more serious.

Many women feel very tired during pregnancy, especially the first few months. This is your body's normal response to it's new state of transition. Although energy levels typically rise during the second trimester, it's common at the start of pregnancy to feel extremely worn out. Fatigue can of course be a symptom of many other things, some very serious, but especially if you feel tired combined with any of the other signs listed here, you should take a pregnancy test.

eHow - For people who like step-by-step instructions, check out eHow for solutions to all your pregnancy discomforts! The article linked gives detailed advice on how to avoid fatigue during pregnancy.

Long before you start to show, or even know that you are pregnant, the uterus is getting larger. Fluids begin to increase in your body as the womb gets ready to make a comfortable home for the baby. This added burden puts physical pressure on the bladder, plus the extra fluids in the body all have to be processed through the kidneys and bladder. This combination makes you need to use the bathroom a lot!

BabyCenter - This is a great site that can carry you all through pregnancy and then into caring for baby and child. The article here answers common questions about frequent urination, including when it might indicate a urinary tract infection.

Things that used to smell or taste good to you may make you feel nauseous. Some women even experience a metallic taste in the mouth. The way you relate to smells and tastes can vary from being slightly altered, to being completely changed. If you find for example that your favorite hair gel suddenly makes you want to vomit, you may be pregnant. But foods are the most common triggers for a lot of women. If the corner hot dog you used to love now turns your stomach, take a trip to the drugstore.

WhatToExpect.com - From the people who brought you the famous What to Expect When You're Expecting books, here is a great resource for pregnancy information. Like many of the sites listed, in addition to articles like this one on smell sensitivity, WhatToExpect.com offers a free newsletter and customized pregnancy calendar.

Many women find their pants feel snug early into pregnancy because the waistline can expand quickly with bloating. It's common to feel uncomfortable with anything tight around the waist. Of course there are a lot of reasons you may feel bloated. This is one of those symptoms that you are likely to notice in conjunction with another sign. However, this waist sensitivity seems to have a very particular feeling during pregnancy that is difficult to describe, but recognizable once you have experience it. It is almost as if you want to be sick if anything touches near your waistline.

Pregnancy Week-by-Week - This article deals with bloating which is titled Week 5, goes into some detail about why and how your body's changes cause bloating. It's important to remember that in pregnancy counting, week 5 is only 2-3 weeks after conception.

All throughout pregnancy, but especially at the start, hormone levels will be fluctuating. Pregnancy is a huge job your body is beginning to undertake and it's going nuts trying to prepare for the new task. If you find yourself laughing, crying, and shout all in the same breath, you may not be crazy. You may just be pregnant.

Caremark - This health site is not devoted exclusively to pregnancy, but covers a lot of women's health issues. This article on mood swings during pregnancy has an excellent list of things women can do to accept and manage their emotions.

While many women have a lower backache right before their period starts, this can also indicate pregnancy. A dull ache that won't go away, and is not accompanied by your period can be a sign of pregnancy.

Mayo Clinic - Here's a wonderful list of preventative and comfort measures women can take to alleviate backache during pregnancy. They recommend massage, among other things, as a way to relieve back pain. Now that's good advice!

Many women suffer minor to sever headaches as a result of the rapid hormone changes. Especially if a headache does not respond to the relief methods you normally use (ie. Aspirn or Ibuprofen) it may be pregnancy related.

American Pregnancy Association - They don't say so, but this site appears to be targeting women who are over 30. This article on headaches is just one of many resources, including information on infertility, adoption, and prenatal testing.

An elevated temperature that stays that way for two to three weeks can indicate you are pregnant. Women who are tracking their body temperature are most likely trying to get pregnant and may have noticed other signs as well.

ABC's of Basal Body Temperature Charting - Many women track basal body temperature as a way to predict when their most fertile time of month occurs. This article has detailed instructions about how to get started charting. It also includes all the background on why this method is helpful for people trying to conceive.

Very cool video one woman took over the course of her pregnancy. There are a lot of these on YouTube, but this one seems to have the most pictures run together. She wears different clothes, but the effect is still pretty neat to see.

In this video, people are asked to describe pregnancy myths and wives tales they know. It's a fun watch, and you never know, some of those old wives may be smarter than you thought!

This video is pretty long at over ten minutes, and perhaps a bit on the whiny side, but it's a good peek into what one woman is feeling. It's worth watching if you're feeling like you're the only one who's ever felt this way. The music at the beginning lasts about a minute.

The most important thing you can do if you feel you may be pregnant is take a pregnancy test. These are inexpensive and widely available. You can even find them sometimes at the dollar stores! There are also community resources available such as Planned Parenthood where you can get a test for free if you cannot afford to pay. If you are too shy to buy one yourself, ask a friend to pick one up for you. For your health and your baby's health, it's best to know as soon as you can if you are indeed pregnant.