If you have been trying to make a baby, you might be all too familiar with the “two-week wait” (TWW). That little slice of time in your cycle after you try to get pregnant: you haven’t yet missed your period, but it’s too early to take a pregnancy test. It’s 14 days of emotional ups and downs, wondering, “could I BE pregnant??” and the intense anticipation of finding out! You begin to wonder just exactly what the early signs of pregnancy are?
During our two-week wait, I began noticing little nuances that had me suspecting that I may be pregnant. I feel very in-tune with my body, and being that this is our third pregnancy, I felt hyper-aware of the early pregnancy symptoms I was experiencing. However, during my first and even second pregnancies, these may have been signs that I would have overlooked entirely. So today, I am sharing 6 early signs of pregnancy you may notice even before taking a test!
Early Signs of Pregnancy
1. Slight Spotting
Often, women will assume spotting means that their period is inevitably beginning, but that isn’t always the case. A bit of spotting may actually be implantation bleeding!
2. PMS-like Mood Swings
This early sign of pregnancy is tough to spot if you experience monthly mood changes with your period, but it definitely shouldn’t be ignored. When I am getting ready to start my period, I usually experience increased emotional sensitivity and tear up over the silliest things. My husband is such a good sport. We both have to laugh (I can’t count how many Disney movies have brought me to tears when Aunt Flow’s in town). But during the two-week wait, my emotions ranged from extreme irritation (for no reason) to extreme tears at the drop of a dime, which is not usual for me at all! Something was absolutely up, so don’t dismiss your feelings!
3. Breast Tenderness
Again, it could be your period. But I must say that the tenderness from pregnancy versus a period just *feels* different. You may even experience a change in the shade of your areola, along with swelling and tenderness. My breasts felt like I had just completed an intense pectoral workout, a slightly bruised muscle feeling, which was more of a deep tissue sensation than what my period brings upon.
4. Fatigue
During the second week of the two-week wait, I was dragging myself out of bed in the morning and falling asleep during my kid’s nap times right alongside them. I never can silence my thoughts and mental “to-do” list during the day and take an afternoon nap, never! So this fatigue was a huge indicator that my body must be resting up for big changes that were beginning to occur. If you find yourself exhausted without explanation, you may very well be growing a tiny embryo!
5. Frequent Potty Visits
It’s common knowledge that when baby is much larger later in the pregnancy, your bathroom visits will increase. But it’s often overlooked that frequent urination can also occur in early pregnancy too, as your uterus begins expanding. If you are going pee more times than you can count, you could be pregnant, too!
6. Cramping
Again, this sign of pregnancy is so easy to confuse with a period symptom. So while cramping alone may not be enough of a clue that you are pregnant, combined with these other symptoms, you just might be able to piece the clues together. Cramping in early pregnancy shouldn’t be extremely painful or accompanied by bleeding. You’re more likely to experience a dull discomfort from the uterus expanding if you are, indeed, expecting.
If you’re seeing these six signs of pregnancy, a baby could be in your very near future! Now is a great time to begin taking a prenatal vitamin if you haven’t yet, start hydrating as much as possible, and make the healthiest choices you can when it comes to diet and exercise. Fingers crossed that your bundle of joy is on its way!
Have you experienced any of these early signs of pregnancy? Did you know you were pregnant before taking an at-home pregnancy test? I’d love to know what you experienced!
