Pregnancy symptoms - 10 Signs You Might be Pregnant

Some symptoms may show up about the time you've missed a period – or a week or two later. A couple of them may even tip you off before then.

If you're not keeping track of your menstrual cycle or if it varies widely from one month to the next, you may not be sure when to expect your period. But if you start to experience some of the symptoms below – not all women get them all – and you're wondering why you haven't gotten your period, you may very well be pregnant. Take a home pregnancy test to find out for sure!

1. The proof: A positive home pregnancy test
In spite of what you might read on the box, many home pregnancy tests are not sensitive enough to reliably detect pregnancy until about a week after a missed period. So if you decide to take a test earlier than that and get a negative result, try again in a few days.
Once you've gotten a positive result, make an appointment with your practitioner. Now head over to our pregnancy area.

2. Your basal body temperature stays high
If you've been charting your basal body temperature and you see that your temperature has stayed elevated for 18 days in a row, you're probably pregnant.

3. Implantation bleeding
Very early in pregnancy, even before you realize you're pregnant, you may have some spotting that lasts for only a day or two. There's no way of knowing for sure why this happens, but it may be caused by the fertilized egg burrowing into the wall of your uterus – a process that starts just six to seven days after fertilization.

4. A missed period
If you're usually pretty regular and your period doesn't arrive on time, you may decide to do a pregnancy test before you notice any of the above symptoms. But if you're not regular or you're not keeping track of your cycle, nausea and breast tenderness and extra trips to the bathroom may signal pregnancy before you realize you didn't get your period.

5. Tender, swollen breasts
One of the early signs of pregnancy is sensitive, sore breasts caused by rising levels of hormones. The soreness and swelling may feel like an exaggerated version of how your breasts feel before your period. Your discomfort should diminish significantly after the first trimester, as your body adjusts to the hormonal changes.

6. Fatigue
Feeling tired all of a sudden? No, make that exhausted. No one knows for sure what causes early pregnancy fatigue, but it's possible that rapidly increasing levels of the hormone progesterone are contributing to your sleepiness. (Of course, morning sickness and having to urinate frequently during the night can add to your sluggishness, too.)

7. Frequent urination
Shortly after you become pregnant, hormonal changes prompt a chain of events that raise the rate of blood flow through your kidneys. This causes your bladder to fill more quickly, so you need to pee more often. This symptom may start as early as six weeks into your first trimester.

Frequent urination will continue – or intensify – as your pregnancy progresses. Your blood volume rises dramatically during pregnancy, which leads to extra fluid being processed and ending up in your bladder. The problem is compounded as your growing baby exerts more pressure on your bladder.



8. Nausea or vomiting
For some women, morning sickness doesn't hit until about a month after conception, though for others it may start a week or two earlier. And not just in the morning, either – pregnancy-related nausea and vomiting can be a problem morning, noon, or night. (A lucky few escape it altogether.)
About half of women with nausea feel complete relief by the beginning of the second trimester. For most others it takes another month or so for the queasiness to ease up.

9. Heightened sensitivity to odors
If you're newly pregnant, it's not uncommon to feel repelled by the smell of a bologna sandwich or a cup of coffee, and for certain aromas to trigger your gag reflex. Though no one knows for sure, this may be a side effect of rapidly increasing amounts of estrogen in your system. You may also find that certain foods you used to enjoy are suddenly completely repulsive to you.

10. Abdominal bloating
Hormonal changes in early pregnancy may leave you feeling bloated, similar to the feeling some women have just before their period arrives. That's why your clothes may feel more snug than usual at the waistline, even early on when your uterus is still quite small.

Intimacy During Pregnancy

If you are having a normal pregnancy, then sex during pregnancy is considered safe.If you are considered high risk for complications such as pre-term labor or miscarriage, then you should discuss your concerns about sex during pregnancy with your health care provider.Having gentle, loving sex will not harm your baby in any way.

Most women will shy away from sexual relations during their first trimester when morning sickness and fatigue often get in the way of love making. During the third trimester, some women find themselves uncomfortably large and prefer not to be intimate, whereas others continue having intercourse right up until they go into labor.

Partners often react very individually when it comes to sex and pregnancy. While some men find the site of their wife's blossoming body a true turn on, others are ambivalent or even a little turned off by pregnancy.

The side by side sex position allows for more equal physical contact than spooning, but penetration can be a bit trickier. You can cross your legs over each others and this may help. As with spooning, this position can be very comfortable as no one is feeling the weight of the other partner's body.

The woman on top sex position offers the benefit of you being in control of the depth and angle of penetration. Later in the pregnancy you may find this position more tiring, and if balance is a concern you may prefer a lying down position, but others find this the ideal position.

It is perfectly normal for sex drive to increase and decrease during pregnancy. Symptoms such as nausea, fatigue, breast tenderness, and the increased need to urinate can make sex during pregnancy bothersome, especially during the first trimester. Some of these symptoms subside during the second trimester, which may result in a heightened sex drive. Increased blood flow to the pelvic area can cause engorgement of the genitals and heighten sensation.

To a great extent, hormones are responsible because they accentuate the sensitivity of the breasts and genitals. Other women, on the contrary, experience a decrease in libido, mostly because of fatigue, changes in their body and the anguish of becoming mother or the birth. This desire may vary throughout pregnancy. The decrease in libido often happens during the first trimester. An increase may be experienced in the second trimester and is followed by a further decline in the last trimester, often linked to the approach of the term or the fact of feeling too heavy.

Having sexual intercourse during pregnancy is safe under certain conditions. For one thing, a woman who is in her first trimester can have normal sex until such time that her uterus begins to grow and her body adjusts as well. Doctors or pregnancy health care experts would usually suggest alternative sex positions for couples to try once the woman enters her second to third trimesters to avoid any complications.

MRI Used to Visualize Live Birth

Doctors at a Berlin hospital have released an MRI video that shows the first real-time footage of a baby being born - from the inside.

The team led by Dr Christian Bamberg made the medical breakthrough in November 2010 but only published still images at the time.

The 30-second movie shows a baby as it descends down the birth canal of a 24-year-old mother who volunteered for the project.

The mother spent 45 minutes inside the MRI machine during the second stage of her labour, also known as the 'pushing stage'. he footage shows that each time the uterus contracts it exerts pressure on the baby sliding him further down the birth canal. When the contraction is over the uterus relaxes and the baby's head recedes slightly.

Medics had to stop recording before the baby emerged to ensure the newborn wasn't exposed to MRI noise.

The film could provide valuable insights into the birthing process as it has allowed scientists to see details previously only studied with probes. It could help explain why around 15 per cent of women have Caesarian sections because their babies don't move sufficiently into the birth canal.

While most MRI machines are tube-shaped, the team at Berlin's Charité Hospital developed a special 'open' scanner which provided the necessary room for midwives and the German mother during the birth on 20th November.

Breastfeeding VS Saggy Boobs

Women have long blamed their saggy boobs on breastfeeding.

Yet research has found that it’s the expansion and contraction of the milk glands triggered by pregnancy, rather than breastfeeding, that causes droopiness.

In one American study, an academic interviewed 132 women seeking breast lifts or enlargements. Just over half had breastfed at least one child for an average of nine months.

Researchers found no difference in the degree of sagging between women who had breastfed and those who had not.

Consultant Mr Laidlaw says: ‘Women should definitely consider breastfeeding — especially as the health benefits for the baby far outweigh any possible effects on the breasts.’

Don't fear breastfeeding, research found it didn't make a difference to sagging 

How To Lose Post Pregnancy Weight

Celebrity mums have a baby and two weeks later show up on the red carpet or in an interview looking like they never had a baby. You must remember that celeb mums drop those pounds super quick with the help of a team of professionals, supplements, diet meal plans and more. They also spend most of the days after their baby is born in the gym! Whilst setting out on your pregnancy weight loss journey you need to have realistic expectations.

If you demand too much of yourself it can be quite detrimental and if you are not eating nutritiously, even dangerous. Understand that you might still carry excess baby weight for a few months after giving birth and although Hollywood shows different, this image is positively normal. Your baby grew for nine months inside your stomach, stretching your belly every day of the pregnancy period. Instantly after your baby's born, your body begins to shrink your belly back to its pre-baby condition but sometimes this is a slow process. Your uterus will contract down to its normal size in about four weeks and as your body eliminates all the extra fluids you also might lose between eight and 20 pounds during the first two weeks of your infant's life.

Your hips and pelvis shift as well during pregnancy, so be patient as they return to normal. Along with patience, eating healthily helps lose post pregnancy weight. Carefully consider food before you consume it and if it's high in fat and sugar remember your post-baby pounds will linger instead of melting away. You will fit into your pre-baby jeans much quicker if you select a balance from the five food groups.

Exercise is important if you want to be successful in your endeavors to lose post pregnancy weight. You must increase your heart rate and burn calories in order to return to your pre-pregnancy self but you should follow the slow and steady rule. Childbirth exhausted your body so only begin exercising when you feel able to exert yourself physically. Many new mums don't exercise until given the all clear from their doctor at their six week postpartum checkup. However, if you feel competent and renewed, then it's ok to begin earlier.

The "Pelvic Floor Strengthener" improves circulation in the pelvis. It also shapes the vaginal canal. With your feet on the floor, lie on your back and bend your knees. Then tighten your vagina muscles like you would if you were trying to stop going to the bathroom. Remain in this position while you count to four and then relax. To do the "Head and Shoulder Raise," put your hands behind your head as you lie on your back and bend your knees. Breathe in and as you breathe out, tighten your stomach and even out the small of your back against the floor. Then lift your head and shoulders above the ground and gradually lower. Duplicate the exercise about eight to 10 times.

Natural Infertility Treatments

You’ve received your fertility evaluation from your fertility specialist and now know the reason you’ve been having trouble getting pregnant. Happily, your condition is treatable. Your next step is to choose an infertility treatment plan. Choosing a plan depends on:

• the cause of your infertility
• your age
• your overall heath
• your lifestyle, including your ability to pay for infertility treatments

Medical Infertility Treatments:

Happily, a number of infertility treatments are available to you. The three best known medical infertility treatments are:

• fertility drug therapy
• surgery to repair damage to or remove abnormalities from reproductive organs
• assisted reproductive technologies such as artificial insemination and in vitro fertilization

Medical infertility treatments, even with their risks, have helped millions of women get pregnant and deliver healthy babies. But you might prefer a more natural infertility treatment. Happily, once again, you have options.


Natural Conception
You probably learned about natural conception and rhythm in your high school health or biology class. The latest research shows that the optimum time to get pregnant is the day of ovulation. The second best time is three or four days before menstruation, with frequent intercourse.

Along with following the natural cycles of your body, you need to maintain a healthy lifestyle as part of your natural infertility treatment.

That means exercise (of course) and taking in the things that boost fertility and avoiding the things that increase the risk of infertility such as:
• tobacco
• alcohol
• caffeine, especially coffee, but even that found in cola and chocolate (sorry)
• xenoestrogens, chemicals found in pesticides that show up on fruits and veggies (go organic)

Doctors recommend you increase your intake of:

• leafy green vegetables, legumes, chicken liver, and others sources of folic acid
• Brazil nuts, cod, tuna, and other foods that contain the trace mineral selenium
• oysters, toasted wheat germ, sesame seeds, and other foods that contain zinc
• salmon, halibut, walnuts, and other sources of omega-3, one of the essential fatty acids

You can also get these nutrients from supplements. But before taking any supplements-or any of the so-called fertility herbs such as Vitex agnus-castus-check with your doctor or pharmacist for any possible harmful drug interactions, especially if you’ve ever taken birth-control pills or fertility drugs.

Massage
Energy bodywork as an infertility treatment has a number of advantages: it’s noninvasive and drug free; it has no side effects; and it usually feels good. Who can turn down a nice massage? Besides the feel-good effect, bodywork as an infertility treatment works. Massage:

• helps to stimulate growth of reproductive hormones
• increase blood flow to reproductive organs
• decrease stress
• contribute to a healthy pregnancy by boosting the immune system and strengthening muscles for childbirth

Reiki, reflexology, and the Wurn Technique are used as fertility massage. The Wurn Technique, in particular, has proven very effective as an infertility treatment. This procedure works by breaking down adhesions (scar tissue) that interfere with the normal functioning of the reproductive organs.

Pregnancy Massage

First of all, it just makes sense. Massage therapy during pregnancy is appropriate for tight muscles that are in partial spasm and are producing aching (or sometimes sharp) pain. Stiffness is often present as well.

What pregnant woman doesn't experience this at some point? The muscles are fatigued from working harder while carrying more weight in increasingly awkward positions. And if you have a history of musculoskeletal pain before becoming pregnant, you are more likely to have it during those 9 months.

Massage during pregnancy is performed mostly in the side lying position with the use of supporting pillows.

Is it worth the time and trouble to go to a massage therapist during pregnancy?

Absolutely. Massage relieves pain and stiffness. It is a natural healthcare method which relieves the effects of stress and promotes relaxation. Massage makes life easier during daily activities, but it also:

1) Prepares the pelvis for an easier pregnancy and birth with better muscle tone
2) Decreases abnormal tension of the muscles supporting the uterus which can cause problems such as abnormal fetal position at birth - especially important if you feel pulling or straining in the abdomen while stretching
3) Minimizes likelihood of medical intervention with drugs and surgery

Massage during pregnancy is helpful for most women, it is effective at making life easier while pregnant, including making delivery safer.

Post Pregnancy Skin Tightening

Post-pregnancy flab is tough to reduce, and so are stretch marks. Postpartum skin loosening is a tough thing to tackle. Celtrixa stretch mark lotion promises tight and firm skin even after pregnancy, though there are some conditions to it. You must follow a skin nourishment routine during your pregnancy to prevent the appearance of stretch marks later.

Stretch marks are tough to eliminate once they appear. If ignored for a while, they get even worse. Many women struggle for years to reduce and remove these ugly eyesores. With time, these marks make a permanent change on the dermis that is very difficult to reverse with regular stretch mark creams. Faded ones are even more difficult to erase. Even the best cosmetic products available on the market cannot get this job done. Medicated lotions still offer some hope, though it takes a lot of patience and regularity in application to notice visible results.

Attack Early
Stretch marks cream reviews often talk about how quickly and effectively they work on post pregnancy stretch marks. Credible reviews are only the ones that come from those we know. Rest all is difficult to believe. Celtrixa stretch mark lotion is one cream that lives up to its claims. Especially for women who have just come to know of their pregnancy, Celtrixa offers a safe and easy way to prevent stretch marks to a large extent.

Stretch marks are best tackled when they are yet to appear. It is advisable to start using Celtrixa stretch mark lotion in the beginning of the second trimester. Although the cream is absolutely safe to use during pregnancy, consulting a gynecologist before applying any cosmetic product is recommended. Along with the lotion, make sure you moisturize the entire body three to four times a day. Excessive stretching causes the inner layer of the skin, dermis, to tear and reveal the blood vessels. This is the reason, stretch marks are initially red in color. When left unattended, these ugly eyesores turn white, or silver.

Moisturize
You can control the tearing of skin by keeping it elastic and supple. Keep it moisturized and elastic during the phase when maximum skin stretching is expected. Apply on areas where stretch marks generally appear after pregnancy. It will help you prevent not just stretch marks, but years of juggle and struggle of looking for an effective way to handle these marks. Celtrixa stretch mark lotion is effective on stretch, no matter how late you start applying it, though nothing works better than prevention. Start early to stay away from stretch marks, and minimize your post-pregnancy skin tightening efforts.


Post-pregnancy, there is hardly any time to pay attention to body disfigurement. Moreover, you cannot apply cosmetic, or medicated products on and around your breasts, until you are breast feeding. It is better to be equipped to deal with stretch marks when they begin to form. Start using Celtrixa stretch mark lotion early, and save yourself the hassle of worrying about these marks later.

Pregnancy Symptoms 0-9 Months

Understanding pregnancy symptoms week by week will help you to know more about your body and what types of changes that you can expect to have in the 9 months following conception. Let’s first divide the weeks into three time frames. They are the first, second and third trimesters.

First trimester: 1st-12th weeks
Second trimester: 13th-27th weeks 
Third trimester: 28th-40th weeks

First Trimester - 
During the first month or so after conception, not many obvious changes occur in a pregnant woman, although your body may be showing certain early signs of pregnancy. Remember these signs differ from person to person. Missed periods are common during the first month after conception, though in some cases "spotting" may occur. Unfortunately, for the rest of the first trimester nausea and vomiting are more common. This is thought to be due to high estrogen hormone levels. Mood swings and craving for food are also noticed during this time. You may see a slight increase in weight, bloating, giddiness (due to low blood pressure: as more blood is pumped to uterus), fatigue, frequent urination, sleeplessness, increased basal body temperature.

Second Trimester - 
A pregnant woman has to have enough resolve to face new challenges during this period as, apart from the symptoms that occur during the first trimester, even more changes occur to the body. An increase in weight is common in this trimester. This is the period where your belly expands to accommodate the baby. Stretch marks might also become more prominent. At about the 16th week, you may start to feel your baby’s movements. Mood swings become more prominent. And during the last four weeks of the second trimester (23-27), the movement of your baby becomes more pronounced. This is the stage where even slight kicks from your baby can be experienced. Bleeding gums, vaginal discharge, skin rashes, breathlessness (due to expansion of uterus against the lungs), abdominal aches (due to stretching of uterus against abdominal wall), leg cramps, back pain are all symptoms that can occur at this point.

Third Trimester - 
Weight gain is most prominent in this trimester. Usually a gain in weight of 1 pound every 7 days is seen. You may experience hip pain as your baby gains more weight and presses against the pelvis. As the baby moves a lot in the pelvic region, more pressure is put on the bladder which leads to even more frequent urination. Walking can become difficult due to pelvic pain, imbalance or extra weight. Breasts and nipples become fuller. Shortness of breath is usually gone in this juncture, as the baby has settled lower in the pelvis. Labor usually occurs between the 37th-40th weeks. So it is wise to be prepared for it at any time. Learn to differentiate between the false labor and the real one. Braxton Hicks contractions (false labor pain) are usually rare at the start of this trimester and may become more common during the final weeks. False labor: Pain usually occurs only in the abdomen.

Real labor: Pain is radiating from back to front and is seen to increase with time. Rupture of membrane, dilation is also seen. "Blood show" (vaginal discharge with blood) is also a vital sign showing you are going into labor.

Pregnancy symptoms week by week is a guideline of the signs that show the mother that, yes, there is a new life within her. One to nurture and love.

Understanding the process, and learning about the different changes that are to occur in your body will help you gracefully experience your pregnancy.   

Healthy Pregnancy Diet Plan

Diet plans for pregnant women are important in order for them to ensure the health of their Unborn babies. And a healthy pregnancy diet plan means pregnant women have to follow a highly nutritious diet.

A pregnant woman needs to have at least four servings of dairy products in order to provide the baby with vitamin D and calcium to promote bone growth.

Pregnant women also need to eat lean meat, chicken and fish as proteins, DHA and EFA from these food items will support muscle and brain development. And in order for both mommy and baby to develop strong immune systems, a pregnant woman needs to top off her diet plan with loads of fresh fruits and vegetables in order to get the vitamins and nutrients they both need.

But apart from considering the healthy food a pregnant woman needs to eat, she also needs to know what things she should avoid in order to maintain this healthy diet plan.

To begin with, you have to learn quickly a pregnant woman's diet plan is not the same diet plan a woman who is looking at how to lose stomach fat fast follows. While you should never deprive yourself of food or skip meals, you should try not to eat too much either. This is because it is going to be very difficult for you to give birth if you gain too much weight.

This is why it is very important for you to always check with your doctor to make sure you are keeping at your ideal pregnancy weight. It is also important to avoid not getting enough sleep or rest while you are pregnant. These few considerations will make a difference in your information as they relate to the pregnancy diet plan. Of course we strongly suggest you learn more about them.

Another thing is just because you are pregnant this already means you can eat whatever you want. In fact, among the first things you need to find out as soon as you learn you are pregnant is what to eat when pregnant.

Although there is no problem in indulging in a bowl of chili or a plateful of tacos, for example you need to make sure you will only do this occasionally; you need to remember everything you are eating is also being ingested by the fetus inside you. A part of a pregnant woman's healthy diet plan is to always do regular exercises. These exercises actually need not be very extensive. You'll be surprised at how much regular short walks can help when the time comes to deliver baby.

Tips to get Pregnant

You want to pregnant? Here are some tips that may help you to become pregnant.

Many questions from married couples who want to get pregnant. How can I become pregnant? What should
I do to get pregnant? And there is also asking for more specific form, namely, when the best time to have sex (when fertile women), the number of times necessary, the position and the best methods used during sex to increase your chances of pregnancy.

1. Best Time To Perform Sexual Relationship: -
It is important for couples who want to know about parenthood is the right time to have sex at the time of female fertility (the production of eggs @ ovulation). When and how to find your fertile time? You can get ovulation kit in any pharmacy. Ovulation kits can help you determine when your fertile time is. You should know that the mature eggs only live 24 hours while the sperm are live 48 to 72 hours in a woman's body. Therefore, if you have sex before ovulation time was better than after ovulation.

2. Frequency of Sexual Relations Conduct: -
This depends on each couple's own. There is no accurate figure @ the fact that the number of times to ensure that a person should approach to become pregnant. Some women who are pregnant with one-time only but also takes longer. But most important is "how often" you to have the "fertile time". Because, if you make contact several times already, but not at the time of your (wife) fertile, the potential to become pregnant will be so thin or none at all.

3. Enjoy Your Sexual Relationship Processes: -
Experts from research shows that when a woman achieve orgasm - climax during intercourse - would form the alkaline environment of the vagina where the sperm like this, compared to the normal vagina. If you reach orgasm at the same time or shortly after your partner ejaculated sperm the opportunity to safely reach the cervix, uterus is high.

4. Sexual Relations Position: -
Position sex suggested these may increase the likelihood of pregnancy occurring. Husband's position at the top is the best for your pregnancy. Place a small pillow is divided your hips so your hips to relax to accommodate the number of sperm for 15 minutes or more after you both reach climax together.

This condition makes the sperm swim into the womb. Do not use pillows, large and too high, because it will cause the sperm accumulated behind the uterus only and the sperm will hard to swim and join with egg cells, which ultimately makes your business just useless.

While sexual positions to be avoided if you want to be pregnant women in the position, sitting or standing, which will result in part from the sperm out, and only a few remaining sperm that try to swim towards the egg cell. Law of gravity.

5. Do Many Mobile after having sex: -
There is no evidence to suggest that if you do not move propelled the relationship will increase the potential to become pregnant. Because sperm are actually already in the cervix - uterus - an hour after ejaculation. However, you are encouraged to give time for the sperm to swim to the cervix as described previously. You are also cautioned not to clean your vaginal secretions vaginal cleaning after sex because the vagina is cleaning fluid is toxic to sperm.

6. The husband: -
The husband should avoid wearing too tight or hot water bath, as it will reduce the possibility of pregnancy because of the emphasis on one or the other of the testes (sperm formation). This is related to the habit or custom.

7. Relax: -
Every married couple should always be calm and resilient in the face of any stress or pressure. This is due to stress or pressure on a problem could reduce the ability to become pregnant.

8. Take care of your health: -
Basic health care is most important. Make sure your body enough nutrition. It should be noted that women with healthy pregnancy are easier than those with excess weight or less.
Tips for hopefully help you to increase your chances of conception. You need to know, only 30% of the total sperm meets egg in the uterus will work to make pregnancy, while 70% are failing even though you have done so correctly. So you have to wait and try another.

If you have to try it until a year without any results, it is important to you and your partner referred to a specialist to get treatment and consultation for the best.

Mate, and children are living conditions, and the gift of God, however you should try our best to achieve.

Plan your sexual relationship, with the sincere intention and follow the orders and advice of Dr. …..God willing, you succeed.