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At first, a woman may have no signs at all
that she is pregnant. The most common early sign of pregnancy is a missed
menstrual period. Sometimes a woman has a period, but it is shorter or lighter
than usual. If she normally has irregular periods this sign may be hard to
notice.
Another sign is
having to urinate more often. This is caused by hormone changes and growing
pressure on the bladder.
Some women feel sick or nauseous. This may be slight, or may make her
throw up. It is called "morning sickness", but can happen at any time of day.
Hormone changes cause this also. Eating dry soda crackers before you get out of
bed and small, frequent meals may also help.
Breasts may become tender, sore and larger. The area
around the nipples may become larger and darker.
Many women feel tired when they are first pregnant
and there may be an increase in vaginal secretions.
Another sign is constipation. This is also from
hormone changes, and the growing uterus pressing against the bowel. High fibre
foods such as prunes, prune juice, bran, or molasses will help.
Having any of these signs does not always
mean a woman is pregnant. Stress, illness, a change in diet, doing a lot of
heavy exercise and taking the birth control pill can all cause a missed period
sometimes. But remember, a woman can get pregnant if she has unprotected vaginal
intercourse or misses even one birth control pill in a month.
If you have any of the signs of pregnancy
or any other reason to think you might be pregnant, you should have a test done
to know for sure. A pregnancy test requires a sample of urine either at a drug
store, clinic or doctor's office. Please listen to the message on How to Get a
Pregnancy Test, in the Pregnancy Menu for other details.
It is important to know whether or not you are
pregnant as soon as possible. You can get the best prenatal care if you plan to
continue the pregnancy, or you can get an early abortion if you decide not to
continue with it. You can read more about the choices in this situation in the
message on Unplanned Pregnancy: Decisions, further down in this
document.
In the meantime,
look after yourself. Eat well, avoid caffeine, don't smoke, use alcohol, or use
any drugs or medication without asking a doctor or pharmacist or clinic if it
will affect the fetus. This includes drugs which may be bought without a
prescription.
For more
information you can call a local Planned Parenthood organization or Public
Health Unit.
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