signs and symptoms of pregnancy

1. DANNY F. MARIBAO
High School – Faculty
BLWC

2.  Women should start
taking care of themselves
before becoming pregnant
 Good health habits during
childhood and adolescence
help prepare a woman for
childbearing
“Be good to your baby before
it is born”

3.  As soon as she
believes she is
pregnant seek
prenatal care
◦Always need good
medical care,
whether it is her first,
second, or a later
pregnancy.

4.  Most of the time, a woman
does not know she is
pregnant until several
weeks after conception.
 Many signs can indicate
pregnancy
◦No single sign is, by
itself, a sure sign of
pregnancy.

5. 1. Missed menstrual period
◦ Delay of 10 or more days
◦ May stop for other reasons:
•Emotional
stress
•Changes in
climate
•diet
•Exercise
•Rapid change
in body weigh
•Chronic
diseases

6. Swelling and tenderness

7.  May occur at any time
of the day
 About 1/2-1/3
experience
 Occurring at the same
time daily through 4th
month –12th week good
sign.
 Usually occurs in 1st
trimester as body adjusts.

8.  Fatigue
 Poor diet
 Empty
stomach  Get plenty of sleep
 Eat nutritious foods
 Eating several small
meals rather than 2-
3 large ones
May add to the problem
May help:
If severe enough to cause routine
vomiting, consult doctor.

9. Growing uterus puts
pressure on the bladder
Hormones may also cause
more frequent urination

10.  As body adjusts to pregnancy,
may feel very tired
 May sleep more than usual
and need to take naps
 For some – lasts throughout 1st
trimester

11.  Mother’s Age
◦ Ideal time to have a baby
is between the ages of 21
to 28
◦ Teens and women over 30
are high-risk mothers-to-be
◦ Teens tend to have
premature babies, stillborn
and malformed babies
◦ Women over age 36 tend
to have more babies with
birth defects

12.  Mothers Weight
◦ Non-pregnant weight is below 85% of her proper weight
could endanger her and her child’s health
 Mother’s body meets her dietary need before it
meets the needs of her baby.
 Underweight woman’s body will first use her food
intake to correct her own vitamin deficiencies. Thus
pass fewer nutrients to the baby
 Underweight women often have low-birth weight
infants
( under 5 ½ pounds)
◦ Women whose nonpregnant weight is above 120%
 Uses a greater proportion of her food intake for
energy
 High blood pressure, diabetes (body’s inability to
utilize sugar) and delivery problems are more likely.

13.  Body undergoes dramatic changes
during pregnancy
 Most obvious changes during
pregnancy are the increased size of
breasts and abdomen
 As skin stretches, the tissues just below
the skin surface may tear
◦ Can cause pink or red marks called stretch
marks
◦ Usually fade into faint, silvery lines
◦ Slow even weight gain within the doctor’s
recommendations is the best way to
prevent stretch marks.

14.  Internal pressure also affect the
bladder.
◦ Early in pregnancy, growing
uterus pushes against the bladder
and causes the woman to urinate
more often.
◦ In middle months, fetus moves out
of the pelvic region and into the
abdomen, which lessens pressure
on the bladder.
◦ Late in pregnancy, baby again
puts pressure on the bladder,
causing a need to urinate more
frequently

15.  Not as obvious as physical ones- just as
real.
 Important influence on emotions is how
she feels about being pregnant.
 Hormones cause many of a woman’s
emotional changes during pregnancy.
 Positive thoughts and feelings are
impossible for a woman to have a
health baby.

16.  Feelings stimulate the nervous system
and the flow of adrenaline (hormone
that prepares the body to cope with
stress; makes person feel more
energetic.)
 When happy adrenaline level is low,
heartbeat and breathing are slow, and
muscles are relaxed.
 When stressed, adrenaline crosses
placenta to baby, carrying stress
signals.

17.  Mother’s stress increases
her heartbeat and
muscle tension as well
as the baby’s.
 If stress is long lasting,
severe, or frequent, the
baby may be smaller,
fussy, or quite active

18.  May also affect a
woman’s digestive
system
◦ During 1st trimester may
experience nausea
◦ Toward end of
pregnancy, as growing
fetus exerts more pressure
on her stomach and
intestines, may feel
heartburn and indigestion.
◦ Often changing what she
eats can help

19. DANNY F. MARIBAO
High School – Faculty
BLWC