The first indication that you might be pregnant is if you have missed a menstrual period. This indicator is not a sure pregnancy sign, as a missed period could be caused by stress, ill health or the onset of menopause. Another indicator is if the period is just unusual - longer, shorter, heavy, or lighter.



You might just feel like you are pregnant, or you might be experiencing nausea or vomiting not apparently caused by anything else. Commonly referred to as morning sickness it doesn't necessarily occur in the early hours of the day.

Your attitude towards and desire for sexual intercourse may change when you become pregnant. You could realize a heightened enjoyment or an abatement of desire. Either could be indications that a hormonal change is going on in your body due to a pregnancy.

Another pregnancy sign occurs in your breasts, which may become larger or sore, especially in the first trimester. You might also find what are known as Montgomery's Tubercules on the aureole of your nipples. These are raised bumps that look like goose bumps. These occur during pregnancy.

You may find yourself urinating more often as the baby pushes on your bladder, and the tale that women have strange food cravings during pregnancy is true as well. While not all pregnant women go around eating gallons of ice cream and jars of pickles, nearly 70 of moms to be do actually have cravings that range from longings for foods they dont normally eat to intense need for a particular taste immediately. Sometimes the cravings are the body's way of letting the pregnant woman know her body and her baby need the nutrients. At other times it's simply a craving for one of the few things she can enjoy and keep down during the morning sickness phase.

Your skin can give you several indicators that you may be pregnancy, including stretch marks and increased sweating, hair growth in unusual places, thinning of your nails or accelerated nail growth and something called linea negra. This latter is a light brown line appearing on your skin and extending from your navel to your pubic bone. You might also suffer from an acne outbreak or spider veins.

Found in 65 percent of Caucasian mothers to be, spider veins are generally found on the face, chest, neck, legs and arms. An increased level of estrogen is the cause. The raised star shaped blue veins usually fade after the baby is born. Estrogen increase can also make the palms of your hands turn red and mottled. If you are Caucasian you are likely to see this, while only 1/3 of African-American women experiencing this pregnancy sign.

While a positive pregnancy test is only a probable indicator that you are pregnant, the three definite pregnancy indicators are ultrasound, X-ray and fetal heart sounds.