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Pregnancy Symptoms

Know the signs…

Women’s bodies are all different therefore you can certainly expect to experience differences when it comes to your pregnancy symptoms. Typically, most women don’t experience any symptoms until a week or two after a missed period, maybe not even then, and in some rare cases, you may be one of those few whose pregnancy symptoms start early on.

If you have irregular menstrual cycles and aren’t quite sure from one month to the next when you will start your period; you may experience symptoms that mock early pregnancy symptoms before you start your period, to some this can be very disconcerting, expecting to be pregnant only to begin your cycle a few days later. If you are one of those unlucky women who experience irregularities with your menstrual cycles and you aren’t sure when you ovulate each month, charting your basal body temperature is a good idea if you are trying to get pregnant, should your temperature stay consistently elevated for 18 days this probably means you are pregnant. To be sure though, if you think you are pregnant, take a home pregnancy test.

Knowing the signs of pregnancy early on can help you to understand what is going on with your body and the sooner you know, the sooner you can start prenatal care to ensure a healthy pregnancy for you and your baby.

Implantation Bleeding

This is when the egg burrows into the blood enriched lining of the uterus causing you to spot and is a good indication that you are pregnant. Spotting occurs, usually, 8 to 12 days post conception.

Fatigue

Feeling tired or just plain exhausted all of a sudden? This is a good sign you are pregnant. In the first trimester your body produces an elevated level of progesterone, not to mention your body gearing up to cope with pregnancy, can cause you to feel more tired even after a normal work day of normal activities. This is very normal and expected through the first trimester and while it tapers off in the second be ready for it to come back around in your third trimester.

Nausea and Vomiting

The nauseous feeling you have is pretty normal and usually hits in the first week of pregnancy for most women. You may be one of those lucky ones who never experiences morning sickness and then again, you could be one of those unlucky women who experience sickness morning, noon, and night. There is no explanation or solution for why this happens during pregnancy, but we do know, there is nothing harmless unless the mother becomes dehydrated from excessive vomiting. If you are experiencing excessive vomiting see your health care professional. Usually about fifty percent of pregnant women see some type of reprieve in the second trimester, but the rest of you could experience nausea or vomiting throughout your entire pregnancy. Try eating multiple, smaller meals throughout the day to help with the feeling of nausea or vomiting, saltine crackers seem to aid in cutting down on it and try eating foods enriched in protein and carbohydrates before going to bed at night to help combat morning sickness.

Breast Sensitivity

Due to the increased levels of hormones, HCG, during the first trimester of your pregnancy, your breast tend to be more sensitive or tender, veins in your breast become more visible, your areolas (darker area around your nipple) get larger and darker and your nipples are more erect. Sensitivity felt during the earlier stages of your pregnancy will diminish as you progress into your second trimester.

Frequent Urination

During pregnancy, especially the first trimester, your uterus is swelling to compensate for the growing fetus. In addition, your body is increasing it’s fluids to also accommodate for the pregnancy and your kidney’s work harder. The swollen uterus, increased fluids, and hard working kidneys will certainly make for those frequent trips to the restroom. Frequent urination may be alleviated some when the uterus rises higher as it gets bigger during the second trimester, but in the third trimester as the baby drops and prepares for birth; the baby will increase the pressure and cause the frequent urination to return.

Feeling Faint or Dizzy

Your growing uterus places pressure on the arteries that run through your legs and to the heart; this added pressure restricts this blood flow causing your blood pressure to drop ultimately causing you to feel faint or have dizzy spells when standing up. To help keep your blood sugar regulated and to minimize these feelings make sure to eat regularly and not go too long without food. Blood sugar is your baby’s main food supply during your pregnancy so eating routinely is essential for you and your growing baby.

Moodiness

Even you, the pregnant woman, will notice your increased moodiness or irritability during your first trimester of pregnancy. Your raging and ever increasing hormones during your pregnancy are the cause of this and let’s not forget; if you are experiencing all or some of the other “fun” pregnancy symptoms; they certainly are not helping with your mood. Try to get plenty of rest, moderately exercise (increases the endorphins in the brain which helps with a positive mood), and eat a balanced, healthy diet. Most women see this tapering off as they enter the second trimester.

Constipation

The increase of hormones during your pregnancy slows down the intestinal movements, relaxing the outside wall of the bowel making it harder to pass food and bodily waste through, hence, causing constipation. Considering this can be very uncomfortable, pregnant women should eat foods high in fiber and drink plenty of liquids to help regulate bowel movements to help stave off constipation and promote healthy intestinal movement.

Food Cravings and Aversions

While food cravings seem to be most commonly associated with pregnancy; food aversions are even more common. It is not unusual and bad to crave certain foods that may not be adequately nutritional for you or your growing fetus as long as your cravings don’t lead to over eating and substituting these non nutritional foods for those that are more nutritional. Food aversions, on the other hand, will cause you turn your nose up at foods you once found delicious and some experts believe these aversions can limit a pregnant mother’s choices and cause nutritional deficiencies in her body and in the fetus. You should always try to look for substitutions in foods that you now dislike. For example, you now hate tomatoes; you get a gag reflex when you see one, substitute oranges, strawberries, or any other foods high in Vitamin C. Vitamin C is a vitamin very much needed during your pregnancy to help build your fetus’ immune system properly.

Amenorrhea

Amenorrhea means missed period; lack of menses. If you are like clock work when it comes to your menstrual cycle then it will be pretty obvious to you when you have missed your period and you will most likely be taking a home pregnancy test. If you are not regular, knowing what to look for in some of the above symptoms; nausea, frequent urination, and breast tenderness can clue you in pretty quick that you could very well be pregnant and taking a home pregnancy test is in order.

Helpful Steps to Take Next:

• Are you experiencing any of the above symptoms? Order a pregnancy test today
• Unplanned pregnancy, exploring your options? Call toll free 1-866-OPTMAGS and speak confidentially with a pregnancy counselor today

Dealing with Depression during and After Pregnancy

What is depression?
How common is depression during and after pregnancy?
What causes depression?
What are symptoms of depression?
What is the difference between “baby blues,” postpartum depression, and postpartum psychosis?
What steps can I take if I have symptoms of depression during pregnancy or after childbirth?
How is depression treated?
What effects can untreated depression have?

What is depression?

Depression can be described as feeling sad, blue, unhappy, miserable, or down in the dumps. Most of us feel this way at one time or another for short periods. But true clinical depression is a mood disorder in which feelings of sadness, loss, anger, or frustration interfere with everyday life for an extended time. Depression can be mild, moderate, or severe. The degree of depression, which your doctor can determine, influences how you are treated.

How common is depression during and after pregnancy?

Depression that occurs during pregnancy or within a year after delivery is called perinatal depression. The exact number of women with depression during this time is unknown. But researchers believe that depression is one of the most common complications during and after pregnancy. Often, the depression is not recognized or treated, because some normal pregnancy changes cause similar symptoms and are happening at the same time. Tiredness, problems sleeping, stronger emotional reactions, and changes in body weight may occur during pregnancy and after pregnancy. But these symptoms may also be signs of depression.

What causes depression?

There may be a number of reasons why a woman gets depressed. Hormone changes or a stressful life event, such as a death in the family, can cause chemical changes in the brain that lead to depression. Depression is also an illness that runs in some families. Other times, it’s not clear what causes depression.

During Pregnancy
During pregnancy, these factors may increase a woman’s chance of depression:

• History of depression or substance abuse
• Family history of mental illness
• Little support from family and friends
• Anxiety about the fetus
• Problems with previous pregnancy or birth
• Marital or financial problems
• Young age (of mother)

After Pregnancy

Depression after pregnancy is called postpartum depression or peripartum depression. After pregnancy, hormonal changes in a woman's body may trigger symptoms of depression. During pregnancy, the amount of two female hormones, estrogen and progesterone, in a woman's body increases greatly. In the first 24 hours after childbirth, the amount of these hormones rapidly drops back down to their normal non-pregnant levels. Researchers think the fast change in hormone levels may lead to depression, just as smaller changes in hormones can affect a woman's moods before she gets her menstrual period.

Occasionally, levels of thyroid hormones may also drop after giving birth. The thyroid is a small gland in the neck that helps to regulate your metabolism (how your body uses and stores energy from food). Low thyroid levels can cause symptoms of depression including depressed mood, decreased interest in things, irritability, fatigue, difficulty concentrating, sleep problems, and weight gain. A simple blood test can tell if this condition is causing a woman's depression. If so, thyroid medicine can be prescribed by a doctor.

other factors that may contribute to postpartum depression include:

• Feeling tired after delivery, broken sleep patterns, and not enough rest often keeps a new mother from regaining her full strength for weeks.
• Feeling overwhelmed with a new, or another, baby to take care of and doubting your ability to be a good mother.
• Feeling stress from changes in work and home routines. Sometimes, women think they have to be "super mom" or perfect, which is not realistic and can add stress.
• Having feelings of loss — loss of identity of who you are, or were, before having the baby, loss of control, loss of your pre-pregnancy figure, and feeling less attractive.
• Having less free time and less control over time. Having to stay home indoors for longer periods of time and having less time to spend with your partner and loved ones.

What are symptoms of depression?

Any of these symptoms during and after pregnancy that last longer than two weeks are signs of depression:

• Feeling restless or irritable
• Feeling sad, hopeless, and overwhelmed
• Crying a lot
• Having no energy or motivation
• Eating too little or too much
• Sleeping too little or too much
• Trouble focusing, remembering, or making decisions
• Feeling worthless and guilty
• Loss of interest or pleasure in activities
• Withdrawal from friends and family
• Having headaches, chest pains, heart palpitations (the heart beating fast and feeling like it is skipping beats), or hyperventilation (fast and shallow breathing)

After pregnancy, signs of depression may also include being afraid of hurting the baby or oneself and not having any interest in the baby.

What is the difference between experiencing a case of the “baby blues,” postpartum depression, and postpartum psychosis?

The “baby blues” can happen in the day’s right after childbirth and normally go away within a few days to a week. A new mother can have sudden mood swings, sadness, crying spells, loss of appetite, sleeping problems, and feel irritable, restless, anxious, and lonely. Symptoms are not severe and treatment isn’t needed. But there are things you can do to feel better. Nap when the baby does. Ask for help from your spouse, family members, and friends. Join a support group of new moms or talk with other moms.

Postpartum depression can happen anytime within the first year after childbirth. A woman may have a number of symptoms such as sadness, lack of energy, trouble concentrating, anxiety, and feelings of guilt and worthlessness. The difference between postpartum depression and the baby blues is that postpartum depression often affects a woman’s well-being and keeps her from functioning well for a longer period of time. Postpartum depression needs to be treated by a doctor. Counseling, support groups, and medicines are things that can help.

Postpartum psychosis is rare. It occurs in 1 or 2 out of every 1000 births and usually begins in the first 6 weeks postpartum. Women who have bipolar disorder or another psychiatric problem called schizoaffective disorder have a higher risk for developing postpartum psychosis. Symptoms may include delusions, hallucinations, sleep disturbances, and obsessive thoughts about the baby. A woman may have rapid mood swings, from depression to irritability to euphoria.

What steps can I take if I have symptoms of depression during pregnancy or after childbirth?

Some women don’t tell anyone about their symptoms because they feel embarrassed, ashamed, or guilty about feeling depressed when they are supposed to be happy. They worry that they will be viewed as unfit parents. Perinatal depression can happen to any woman. It does not mean you are a bad or “not together” mom. You and your baby don’t have to suffer. There is help.

There are different types of individual and group “talk therapies” that can help a woman with perinatal depression feel better and do better as a mom and as a person. Limited research suggests that many women with perinatal depression improve when treated with anti-depressant medicine. Your doctor can help you learn more about these options and decide which approach is best for you and your baby. The next section contains more detailed information about available treatments.

Speak to your doctor or midwife if you are having symptoms of depression while you are pregnant or after you deliver your baby. Your doctor or midwife can give you a questionnaire to test for depression and can also refer you to a mental health professional that specializes in treating depression.

Here are some other helpful tips:

• Try to get as much rest as you can. Try to nap when the baby naps.
• Stop putting pressure on yourself to do everything. Do as much as you can and leave the rest!
• Ask for help with household chores and nighttime feedings. Ask your husband or partner to bring the baby to you so you can breastfeed. If you can, have a friend, family member, or professional support person help you in the home for part of the day.
• Talk to your husband, partner, family, and friends about how you are feeling.
• Do not spend a lot of time alone. Get dressed and leave the house. Run an errand or take a short walk.
• Spend time alone with your husband or partner.
• Talk with other mothers, so you can learn from their experiences.
• Join a support group for women with depression. Call a local hotline or look in your telephone book for information and services.
• Don’t make any major life changes during pregnancy. Major changes can cause unneeded stress. Sometimes big changes cannot be avoided. When that happens, try to arrange support and help in your new situation ahead of time.

How is depression treated?

There are two common types of treatment for depression.

• Talk therapy. This involves talking to a therapist, psychologist, or social worker to learn to change how depression makes you think, feel, and act.
• Medicine. Your doctor can give you an antidepressant medicine to help you. These medicines can help relieve the symptoms of depression.

  Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding should talk with their doctors about the advantages and risks of taking antidepressant medicines. Some women are concerned that taking these medicines may harm the baby. A mother’s depression can affect her baby’s development, so getting treatment is important for both mother and baby. The risks of taking medicine have to be weighed against the risks of depression. It is a decision that women need to discuss carefully with their doctors. Women who decide to take antidepressant medicines should talk to their doctors about which antidepressant medicines are safer to take while pregnant or breastfeeding.

  What effects can untreated depression have?

  Depression not only hurts the mother, but also affects her family. Some researchers have found that depression during pregnancy can raise the risk of delivering an underweight baby or a premature infant. Some women with depression have difficulty caring for themselves during pregnancy. They may have trouble eating and won’t gain enough weight during the pregnancy; have trouble sleeping; may miss prenatal visits; may not follow medical instructions; have a poor diet; or may use harmful substances, like tobacco, alcohol, or illegal drugs.

  Postpartum depression can affect a mother’s ability to parent. She may lack energy, have trouble concentrating, be irritable, and not be able to meet her child’s needs for love and affection. As a result, she may feel guilty and lose confidence in herself as a mother, which can worsen the depression. Researchers believe that postpartum depression can affect the infant by causing delays in language development, problems with emotional bonding to others, behavioral problems, lower activity levels, sleep problems, and distress. It helps if the father or another caregiver can assist in meeting the needs of the baby and other children in the family while mom is depressed.

  All children deserve the chance to have a healthy mom. All moms deserve the chance to enjoy their life and their children. Don’t suffer alone. If you are experiencing symptoms of depression during pregnancy or after having a baby, please tell a loved one and call you doctor or midwife right away.

  For More Information . . .

  You can find out more about depression during and after pregnancy by contacting the National Women's Health Information Center (NWHIC) at 1-800-994-9662 or the following organizations.

  National Institute of Mental Health, NIH, HHS
  Phone: (301) 496-9576
  Internet Address: http://www.nimh.nih.gov
  

  National Mental Health Information Center, SAMHSA, HHS
  Phone: (800) 789-2647
  Internet Address: http://www.mentalhealth.org
  

  American Psychological Association
  Phone: (800) 374-2721
  Internet Address: http://www.apa.org
  

  National Mental Health Association
  Phone: (800) 969-NMHA
  Internet Address: http://www.nmha.org
  

  Postpartum Education for Parents
  Phone: (805) 564-3888
  Internet Address: http://www.sbpep.org
  

  Postpartum Support International
  Phone: (805) 967-7636
  Internet Address: http://www.postpartum.net