Your Body Temperature Tells a Story Before You Even Suspect
Your basal body temperature stays elevated when you’re pregnant due to the continued release of progesterone to help the fetus develop, meaning your temperature will remain elevated. Most people have a slightly higher body temperature during pregnancy. The day after you ovulate, your temperature will increase by at least 0.5°C (36.7°C to 37.1°C for example) and stay at this temperature until menstruation. But here’s what makes this sign so sneaky: many women don’t track their temperature regularly, so they miss this crucial early indicator.
The body temperature will remain roughly half a degree higher until right before menstruation, when it will return to normal. However, when pregnancy occurs, that temperature never drops back down. If this temperature, known as basal body temperature, stays elevated for more than two weeks, it may be an early indicator of pregnancy. Think of it like your body’s internal thermostat getting stuck on a slightly warmer setting – it’s working overtime to create the perfect environment for your growing baby.
Light Spotting That Masquerades as an Early Period
Light bleeding (spotting) can be a sign that an embryo has implanted in the lining of your uterus. Implantation takes place about 10 days after conception. In most cases, however, implantation bleeding is quite subtle, ranging from a dark red to a slightly pink and thin discharge. This bleeding is so different from a regular period that it often catches women completely off guard.
You might mistake this implantation bleeding for the start of your period, but it’s generally much lighter than the flow of menstruation and brown or pink (instead of red) in color. It can start around the time of your regular period and can last for a few days to a few weeks. What makes this particularly confusing is that implantation bleeding can last up to three days, cause mild abdominal cramps, and occur close to the expected menstruation time, some women interpret it as a light period and do not suspect it is their first pregnancy sign.
Digestive Changes That Feel Like a Stomach Bug
Progesterone causes a lot of things to slow down. That includes your digestive processes, sometimes resulting in constipation or indigestion. Pregnancy’s hormonal changes can lead to constipation. The same pregnancy hormones responsible for bloating are also behind irregularity. Because your digestive tract is slowing down now, food may not pass through as quickly, says Dr. Goist.
An increase in progesterone and estrogen is the culprit behind this symptom and may cause abdominal pain, bloating, belching and passing gas. Many women brush off these symptoms as stress-related digestive issues or something they ate. As your uterus grows during pregnancy, your intestines typically shift, which can also affect your regularity. The combination of hormonal changes and physical shifts creates a perfect storm for digestive discomfort that most women don’t immediately connect to pregnancy.
Heightened Smell Sensitivity That Changes Your World
Another symptom of early pregnancy is a heightened sense of smell. Intolerance to strong odors. This isn’t just about becoming picky – it’s about your entire sensory world shifting dramatically. Suddenly, your morning coffee smells overwhelming, your partner’s cologne makes you queasy, and even your favorite restaurant becomes unbearable.
During early pregnancy, you might suddenly find yourself craving unusual foods or beverages. Conversely, foods that you normally love might seem off-putting. Foods that they once loved may suddenly taste repulsive, and they may now crave foods that they never liked previously. This happens because pregnancy hormones dramatically alter your taste and smell receptors, creating aversions and cravings that seem to come out of nowhere. Many women don’t connect these sudden changes to pregnancy, instead attributing them to stress, being under the weather, or just “weird phases.”
Subtle Breast Changes Beyond Basic Tenderness
Breast changes usually occur between four and six weeks of pregnancy, but can begin after only two weeks. Hormonal changes that happen around that time may make breasts sore, sensitive or swollen. During pregnancy, the skin around the nipple becomes darker and the veins in the breast become more obvious. However, there are more subtle changes that many women miss entirely.
They can start to appear darker and larger as early as one or two weeks after conception, making this one of the more noticeable early signs of pregnancy. You may also begin to see more visible veins and little bumps popping up along the edge of the areolas. They’re called Montgomery tubercles and will help lubricate your nipples to get them ready for your baby to nurse when they’re here. These small bumps around your nipples are preparing your body for breastfeeding, but most women have never heard of them and don’t recognize them as pregnancy signs.
Mood Swings That Feel Different from PMS
As levels of hCG hormones increase, you’re feeling massive amounts of fatigue, which makes you more prone to moodiness. Hormonal changes in early pregnancy can make you feel moodier or more emotional than usual, with sudden shifts from happiness to sadness or anger. Fatigue from early pregnancy often worsens these mood swings. These aren’t your typical PMS emotions – they’re more intense and unpredictable.
While mood changes are common with PMS, pregnancy-related mood swings are usually more intense and less predictable. It is thought that the pregnancy hormones influence chemicals in the brain, causing mood changes. You might find yourself crying at commercials, getting irrationally angry over minor inconveniences, or feeling overwhelmed by emotions you can’t quite explain. The key difference is that these mood swings don’t follow your usual PMS pattern and often seem to come out of nowhere, lasting longer than your typical pre-menstrual emotional changes.
Frequent Urination That Starts Before Your Missed Period
Before you even miss a period, you may notice that you have to pee more often. This happens because you have more blood than before. Frequent urination can start as early as two to three weeks after conception. Hormones cause an increased blood flow to your kidneys causing this symptom. This is one of the earliest signs that most women dismiss as drinking too much water or stress.
During pregnancy, the amount of blood in the body increases, which can cause several side effects. The most common is increased urination, because the kidneys are working overtime to process extra fluids in the body, which leads to more fluid in the bladder. Having to urinate more frequently is definitely a common pregnancy symptom and will remain throughout your pregnancy. Many women attribute this to everything from UTIs to stress, never considering that their body is already beginning the remarkable process of supporting a growing life.