When Do Pregnancy Symptoms Start?

For a lot of women, the first sign of pregnancy is a missed period. But some women experience pregnancy symptoms before that (even if they don’t realize that’s what they are!). The truth is, every woman is going to experience pregnancy in her own way, right from the very beginning. So when do pregnancy symptoms start?

Most women don’t experience any symptoms until their 4th or 5th week of pregnancy.

Once an egg is fertilized, it travels down your fallopian tube and into your uterus, where it implants in the lining. This happens around week 3, before your first missed period. Some women may experience some light implantation cramping or bleeding, but this is often mistaken for menstrual symptoms. However, some women do begin to feel some pregnancy symptoms, even at this early stage. They might have tender breasts, fatigue, and nausea. Some may even experience odd or unusual symptoms, like a change in their vaginal discharge or feeling lightheaded.

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Week 4 is the big one: the missed period? When do pregnancy symptoms start? For a lot of women, it’s right around this time.

This is what’s usually considered the start of your first trimester. While it can be easy to miss the symptoms very early, it’s a but harder to ignore that missed period! Plenty of women still feel fine during weeks 4 – 5, but for a lot of women, this is when some of the pregnancy symptoms start to ramp up. Nausea, fatigue, breast soreness and tenderness, and frequent urination are common.

In a survey conducted by American Pregnancy, 29% of women reported that a missed period was their first sign of pregnancy. But 25% reported that they knew before that because of the nausea. So it really will depend on the woman!

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If you’re trying to conceive and tracking your cycle, try not to focus too much on the physical symptoms you are or are not feeling. It can be such a difficult waiting game, and it’s very easy to get upset over not feeling nauseous or fatigued when you’re hoping to be pregnant. Every woman will experience early pregnancy in her own way, and a missed period is still the best and most reliable sign that you’re pregnant.