Bleeding in early pregnancy and early signs

The signs and symptoms of pregnancy can be divided into, “Possible Signs, Probable Signs and Positive Signs“ of pregnancy. Many of you will experience the “Possible Signs” of pregnancy in the early weeks and months as well as 1or 2 “Positive Signs”.

Possible Signs of Pregnancy are as follows

The reason these signs are said to be ‘possible’ is because there are other conditions which can cause symptoms either on their own or some of them at the same time.

Probable signs of pregnancy are as follows

By this stage most women will be in their 2^nd trimester. As your baby grows, so does your uterus and your abdomen – you start to look pregnant and people can see you as pregnant. Many of you will not feel Braxton Hicks contractions – especially if this is your fist pregnancy. Braxton Hicks are little contractions that your uterus performs hundreds of times a day without endangering you or your baby. It doesn’t mean that you will go into premature labour. As your uterus is a muscle and it is stretching and growing all the time – labour is the “ marathon” it’s preparing for. So it needs to exercise itself in preparation for the bid day.

Positive signs of pregnancy are as follows

Many of you will have confirmed your pregnancy in the first couple of weeks with a positive pregnancy test and generally a lot of you will have had a scan to confirm your pregnancy within the first trimester.

 

Because during the early days and weeks many women can feel frightened if they begin to have cramps and don’t know why. For most women feeling ‘full’ or ‘bloated’ or some women even feel slight cramps – as if they were expecting for their period to start, is normal at the very beginning of their pregnancy. These ‘feelings’ account for the fertilized egg taking up room in your womb. It’s also because from very early on your baby will release a hormone called ‘relaxin’. Relaxin relaxes everything – from muscles to ligaments so your womb can stretch and grow as your pregnancy progresses. So as your ligaments around your womb start to stretch this can cause slight cramping or an uncomfortable feeling in your pelvis. If you start to experience severe pain or pain that doesn’t go away but increases especially in the first few weeks please attend your doctor or maternity hospital straight away. You may be experiencing an Ectopic Pregnancy. This is a pregnancy that implants itself in your fallopian tube and the doctor will perform a special scan and blood tests to determine whether this is the case. Some women also suffer from Urinary Tract Infections which can cause similar pains and need treatment.

 

A lot of women suffer from constipation in the 1^st trimester. This is due to a hormone called progesterone which slows down digestion. 2L of water, a healthy balanced diet with fruit and brown bread should help. Stay away from processed food , white bread & fizzy drinks. Never take any over the counter medication for constipation.

Bleeding is another symptom that women may experience during the first trimester. This may indicate anything from an ‘implantation bleed’ to signs of a possible/definite miscarriage. The most important thing to do is visit your Maternity hospital – even if you haven’t booked in yet. A scan will tell them what is happening.