Symptoms can play tricks on any woman’s mind, especially if she wants to get pregnant. But some aspects may go unnoticed in the first few days of pregnancy or even in more advanced pregnancies. Many end up feeling things and wonder if some sensations are because of the presence of a baby. Is heartburn a symptom of pregnancy? Are cramps normal? And what about dizziness, is that a symptom too?
These small details can make all the difference when trying to detect pregnancy through signs other than the most well-known symptoms like breast pain, nausea, and other 1. That’s why paying close attention to your own body enables pregnancy to be detected as soon as a delay occurs, but it can also really confuse those trying, perhaps even with PMS symptoms.
Of course, the test should not be done before a missed period, because the HCG hormone can take some time to increase in the body. In fact, symptoms like heartburn, cramps, and gas, as well as other symptoms, are caused by the hormone progesterone. It is responsible for maintaining pregnancy and also for producing so many symptoms like dizziness, for example.
Cramps during pregnancy are caused by the increase in uterine volume, which grows as the pregnancy progresses and the baby develops. That’s why we can say that recurring cramps are symptoms of pregnancy. But if you already have a missed period along with these symptoms, take a pregnancy test to confirm.
Is Gas a Symptom of Pregnancy?
Although it is known that gas appears quite often during pregnancy 2, it can also be the result of other issues such as heartburn. Temporary problems with the gastrointestinal tract, stomach, esophagus, and intestines can leave a woman feeling bloated and full of gas. Depending on the diet and what a woman eats throughout the day, she might feel as if she ate more than she should have at night, and also experience reflux (burping) and flatulence (passing gas) due to the buildup of gases that need to be expelled. The bloating is caused by progesterone but the gas itself isn’t, though they are still considered pregnancy symptoms.
The biggest problem is knowing how to distinguish real pregnancy symptoms from the symptoms progesterone causes just due to its natural rise after ovulation 3. We can say that heartburn is a pregnancy symptom when it happens after pregnancy is confirmed. Otherwise, it may just be a passing discomfort caused by hormones.
So, we can conclude that symptoms like heartburn are indeed pregnancy symptoms, as long as they are accompanied by some others, but they should not be relied upon 100%. If they only appear once in a while, you might be suffering from reflux and mistake it for being pregnant. Stay alert and keep your feet on the ground to avoid being misled by symptoms that could be due to other everyday issues.
See also: Pregnancy Symptoms Before a Missed Period: Could It Be?
