Pregnancy Stages and Symptoms

Pregnancy Symptoms

For many people, a missed period is the first sign of pregnancy. Most pregnancy tests will be positive if you have missed a period. Other early pregnancy symptoms include mood swings, bloated, tiredness, nausea, peeing more than usual, and swollen breasts. It is not necessary that everyone has all the symptoms but at least 1 of these symptoms.

Pregnancy Stages

Pregnancy lasts for about 40 weeks, and pregnancy weeks are divided into three trimesters. The first month of pregnancy marks the first trimesters’ beginning. Let’s learn about the changes in you and your baby in these three trimesters and possible health effects of supplements such as vitamin b12 during pregnancy. 

First Trimester

The first trimester starts from week 1 to week 12, and many changes occur in your body during the first trimester. Hormonal changes affect almost every organ system in your body. These changes can also cause symptoms in the first weeks of pregnancy. Stopping your period is a clear sign of pregnancy. Other pregnancy symptoms include swollen or tender breasts, extreme fatigue, distaste or craving of food, upset stomach, morning sickness, mood swings, peeing more than usual, weight gain or loss, feeling of heartburn, constipation, and headache. As changes occur in your body, you may need to change your daily routine, like eating small meals or going to bed earlier. As your pregnancy progresses, most of these problems will go away.

Second Trimester

The second trimester of pregnancy starts from week 13 to week 28, and you may find the second trimester easier than the first one. But you must be aware of your pregnancy during these months. You may feel that the symptoms such as fatigue and nausea are reduced, and other more significant changes are taking place in your body now. As the baby grows, your abdomen continues to expand. And at the end of this trimester, you may notice your baby moving. 

As your body changes to make room for the growing baby, you may have skin darkening around your nipples and scars on your thighs, breasts, abdomen, or hips. Have aches in your body like groin, abdomen, back, or thigh pain, a line on the skin running from the belly button to pubic hairline—dark skin patches, usually on the nose, forehead, cheeks, or upper lip. Patches are often found on both sides of the face and are known as pregnancy masks. You may have itching on the palms, abdomen, and soles of the feet and tingling or numbness known as carpal tunnel syndrome. Also, you may have swelling of the face, fingers, and ankles. 

Third Trimester

The third trimester of pregnancy starts from week 29 to week 40, and you will continue having some discomforts of the second trimester in the third one. In addition, many women find it difficult to breathe and feel that they have to go to the bathroom more often. As the baby is growing and putting more pressure on your organs, these problems will go away after you give birth. In the third trimester, you may notice heartburn, shortness of breath, hemorrhoids, swelling of the face, fingers, and ankles. Your belly button may stick out; contractions can be a sign of real or false labor. You may have trouble sleeping, tender breasts, the baby moving lower in the abdomen. 

As you approach your due date, your cervix becomes softer and thinner, which helps to open the birth canal (vagina) during the birth process. Near your due date, your doctor will examine your progress with a vaginal exam. 

Conclusion

Early pregnancy symptoms include mood swings, bloated, tiredness, nausea, peeing more than usual, and swollen breasts. Pregnancy lasts for about 40 weeks, and pregnancy weeks are divided into three trimesters.