There are very early signs and symptoms that will give you a hint you might be pregnant. The first of these very early signs of pregnancy is a missed menstrual period, but all women are not the same, which means the signs are not the same. They can be different in the intensity and the duration and the same woman can have different signs with each pregnancy. You may attribute your general feeling of not being well to pre-menstrual symptoms and not even realize that you are pregnant until you have missed your menstrual cycle. There is a variety of both physical and emotional symptoms associated with being pregnant that could also be symptomatic of other events in your life.



The most obvious of the early signs of pregnancy is the missed period. However, in women who do not have a regular menstrual period, this may not be a sign for them and it is only when they miss several periods and feel unwell that they realize they may be pregnant. It is quite possible to have a very light period and then you do not even think you could be pregnant at all.

If you have been trying to get pregnant you will look for every possible sign. Many women have an intuitive feeling about this and know when they are pregnant because they know the feelings of their bodies. Some of the very early signs include heartburn after eating certain foods or after eating late at night, feeling unusually tired, having a headache or experiencing a dull ache or stiffness in your lower back.

Generally your breasts start to feel tender and you may notice that they are slightly enlarged. This is usually more noticeable at night when you go to bed and try to get comfortable. The nipples may also become darker in color and be exceptionally sore or sensitive ?so much so that you have to wear different clothing that does rub across them.

Fatigue and exhaustion is one of the very early signs that you may be pregnant. You may find it harder and harder to get up for work each morning or be more tired than usual when you return home from work or shopping. You will probably start to feel sleepy in the afternoons and want to take a nap. If this is really unusual for you, then you start thinking that there may be something wrong. Combined with the need for rest, you will also have to make frequent trips to the bathroom. This is because the uterus is getting larger and is placing pressure on the bladder. Although this is an early sign of pregnancy, it does last for the duration of the pregnancy and even get worse.

By the second month of your pregnancy, you will likely start to feel nauseous when you wake in the morning. The smell of certain foods cooking may make you feel sick and you may not want to eat some of your favourite foods any longer. This is called morning sickness, although it can occur at any time during the day. For many women, it lasts only a short time, but others do have it up until the third trimester and even until the baby is born.