The first week of pregnancy: what are the symptoms?

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In general, it is considered that the first week of pregnancy begins with the decrease of menstruation in women.

The implantation of the embryo in the uterus and the actual gestation have not yet occurred. However, since it is difficult to know the exact moment in which these events take place, the beginning of the menstrual cycle is taken as a reference to calculate the weeks of pregnancy.

Below you have an index with all the points that we will discuss in this article.

Index

The first week of pregnancy: what are the symptoms?

What happens the first week of pregnancy?

Actually, in this first week that is taken as a reference, nothing related to pregnancy happens. The woman starts a new menstrual cycle with menstruation. Therefore, there is a bleeding that can last between 3-7 days depending on how the period of each one is.

From here, the pituitary hormones FSH and LH will begin to be secreted again and, as a consequence, the ovary will begin to develop new follicles and secrete sex hormones.

Thanks to the release of estrogen by the ovary, the endometrium proliferates again and will begin to thicken once the menstruation is over.

The endometrium is the inner layer of the uterus that grows in each menstrual cycle to later shed with menstruation. To learn more about this topic, we recommend you continue reading the following post: The endometrium.

Women with a very short menstrual cycle or with irregular periods can ovulate during this first week and, therefore, become pregnant if they maintain unprotected relationships, although it is not normal.



First symptoms in women

The symptoms that the woman notes during this first week are those related to menstruation. We discuss them below:

  • Bleeding
  • Abdominal pain
  • Kidneys pain
  • Ovarian pain
  • Breasts pain
  • Colic
  • Headache and dizziness
  • Gastrointestinal disorders: nausea, vomiting, cramps, gas, diarrhea or constipation
  • Fluid retention and swelling
  • Acne and appearance of pimples
  • Changes in mood

In short, the symptoms that are noticed in the first week are those related to bleeding and menstrual pain. It should be noted that it is also normal to feel these symptoms before the period. These are the so-called premenstrual symptoms.

Symptoms of menstruation

Care in the first week

If the woman has had the surprise of becoming pregnant and was not looking for him, she may not have changed her habits during these first weeks before the pregnancy test.

However, women who want pregnancy or those who undergo some assisted reproduction treatment should start taking care of themselves and preparing their body for future pregnancy. Here are some recommendations:

Feeding

There is no specific diet in these cases. In general, it is advisable to follow good habits, eat everything and not skip any food.

You have to start paying attention to high-protein foods such as meat, fish and eggs. It is also good to consume fruit, vegetables and cereals daily.

During pregnancy, a greater intake of calcium and folic acid is necessary. Therefore, it is recommended to start taking dairy products in greater quantity when looking for pregnancy, as well as vitamin complexes of folic acid.

In this preconceptional stage, women should also try to reduce the consumption of coffee or tea. Caffeine causes blockage in the absorption of iron, which is an essential nutrient to prevent anemia in pregnancy.

Finally, it is important to take preventive measures against toxoplasmosis and listeriosis, serious diseases in pregnant women. For this, it is necessary to wash fruit and vegetables well, and not eat raw meats, fish or seafood such as ham or sushi.

Care in your diet

Alcohol and tobacco

The woman should stop these habits already at the moment when the pregnancy arises. In addition to being harmful to health, they can affect the development of the fetus and increase the likelihood of miscarriage or premature delivery.

Nicotine prevents the arrival of oxygen to the fetus through the placenta and can cause bronchial diseases in the newborn.

On the other hand, alcohol can cause physical and mental problems in the baby. In addition, women drinkers are at risk of developing fetal alcohol syndrome, which causes severe malformations in the fetus.

Learn more

If you're looking for a pregnancy, it's good to start documenting about it. You can look for reliable sources of information on the Internet or buy the typical magazines where you will find many tips for pregnant women.

It is also possible to register to support groups or classes on pregnancy to be able to ask all questions about nutrition, exercise, baby development, etc.

Questions from users

How can I know if I have a week of pregnancy?

As we have said, the first week of pregnancy does not correspond with the first week of embryonic development, but with the rule and the beginning of the menstrual cycle. The embryo has not yet formed, does not exist and, therefore, it is not possible to detect pregnancy with a pregnancy test or blood test.

What happens if I have a urine infection in the first week of pregnancy?

Urinary tract infection is a situation that frequently occurs in pregnant women. It is important to receive antibiotic treatment as soon as possible so that it does not affect the pregnancy or the fetus.

If you are looking for a pregnancy in the first week of your menstrual cycle, ideally you should take into account some recommendations to avoid suffering a urinary infection in early pregnancy:

  • Drink lots of water and urinate frequently
  • Take care of the hygiene of the intimate area with more caution, from the vagina to the anus
  • Emptying the bladder after sexual intercourse
  • Do not use soaps that can be irritating

It is also important to maintain these customs during pregnancy in order to prevent urine infections.

How can I have an abortion if I have a week of pregnancy?

During this first week, it is not possible to perform an abortion properly speaking since the implantation of the embryo has not yet taken place. Therefore, it is not advisable to take drugs such as Cytotec composed of misoprostol until the pregnancy is confirmed with a positive test.

On the other hand, it is possible to take the morning-after pill if it is suspected that there is a risk of unwanted pregnancy. The postday contains levonorgestrel, a substance that inhibits ovulation and alters the endometrium so that pregnancy does not occur.

Recommended reading

If you are really looking for the signs and symptoms that are felt in the first week after the fertilization of the embryo when conception has already occurred, we recommend you visit the following post: Third week of pregnancy.

The menstruation that we have discussed in the first week of pregnancy will be the last if gestation finally takes place after delivery. In the following article you will find information about bleeding that may occur during pregnancy: Can menstruation be pregnant?


cervical cytology in Madrid(Spain)

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