Pregnancy Symptoms

Pregnancy symptoms vary from woman to woman and even pregnancy to pregnancy. There are some symptoms that are considered presumptive, but none are considered diagnostic without taking a pregnancy test.

Here is a comprehensive list of the symptoms experienced during pregnancy. Some of these symptoms are experienced early on, some are experienced throughout your pregnancy, others may fluctuate during your pregnancy, and some may just be for a certain time period.

The more pregnancy symptoms that you are experiencing early on, the greater probability that you are pregnant. Please review the following symptoms to help you determine if you might be pregnant:

BREAST CHANGES

  • __Tender or Sore Breasts
  • __Darkening of Areolas
  • __Swollen or Enlarged
  • __Tingling
  • __Colostrum Discharge (second half of pregnancy)

EMOTIONAL & MENTAL CHANGES

  • __Absent Mindedness
  • __Emotional Changes
  • __Mood Swings

VAGINAL CHANGES

  • __Discharge
  • __Implantation Bleeding
  • __Missed Period
  • __Periodic Bleeding

SKIN CHANGES

  • __Darkening of the Areolas
  • __Darkening of the skin (bridge of nose, arm pits, breasts)
  • __Stretch Marks
  • __Spider Veins
  • __Itchiness (second half of pregnancy)

DIGESTIVE CHANGES

  • __Nausea or Morning Sickness
  • __Vomiting
  • __Heartburn
  • __Change in Appetite
  • __Food Cravings

PHYSICAL CHANGES

  • __Lower Backache
  • __Headaches
  • __Fatigue
  • __Frequent Urination
  • __Hair Changes (usually fuller and more noticeable in second trimester
  • __Hemorrhoids
  • __Hiccups
  • __Teeth Sensitivity
  • __Incontinence
  • __Gas
  • __Swollen Gums (with or without bleeding)

Sources:

Cunningham, F., MD; Leveno, K., MD; Bloom, S., MD; Hauth, J., MD; Gilstrap, L., MD; and Wenstrom, K., MD, Williams Obstetrics 22nd ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, 2005. 

Duff, P., MD, Edwards, R., MD, Davis, J., MD, Rhoton-Vlasak, A., MD, Obstetrics and Gynecology: Just the Facts, McGraw-Hill, New York, 2004.

Scott, J., MD; Gibbs, R., MD; Karlan, B., MD; and Haney, A., MD, Danforth’s Obstetrics and Gynecology, 9th ed., Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia, 2003. 

Crombleholme, W., MD, “Obstetrics,” Current Medical Diagnosis & Treatment 2003, 42nd ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, 2003.

DeCherney, A., MD, and Nathan, L., MD, Current Obstetric & Gynecologic Diagnosis & Treatment, 9th; McGraw-Hill, New York, 2003. 

Harms, R., MD, Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy, HarperResource, New York, 2004.

Bankowski, B. MD., Hearne, A. MD, Lambrou, N. MD, Fox, H. MD, and Wallach, E. MD, The Johns Hopkins Manual of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 2nd ed., Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Philadelphia, 2002.

 American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Planning Your Pregnancy and Birth, 3rd ed., ACOG, Washington DC, 2000.

 Beck, W., MD, Obstetrics and Gynecology, B.I. Waverly Pvt., Ltd., New Delhi, 1997.

 Johnson, R., MD, Mayo Clinic Book of Pregnancy & Baby’s First Year, William Morrow and Company, Inc., New York, 1994.