How To Tell If Your Pregnancy Is Healthy
As exciting as it is to start your family, it’s also uncharted territory. First-time moms often find their heads swirling with questions once they see that little positive sign. But all those questions boil down to one: You just want to know how to tell if your pregnancy is healthy.
Know what symptoms to expect.
You probably expect your body to go through some rapid and intense changes during pregnancy. But if you want to know how to tell if your pregnancy is healthy, you should know what those changes are likely to look like. Every pregnancy is unique, but certain symptoms are common during each trimester.
During the first trimester, you can expect:
- Tender breasts
- Morning sickness
- Fatigue
- Dizziness
- Constipation
- Frequent urination
If your nausea becomes so severe you can’t handle it, if you see blood in your vomit, or have dark urine, these are unusual symptoms. Contact your doctor.
During the second trimester, most women experience:
- Weight gain
- Movement in your tummy
- Contractions in your abdomen (These are called Braxton Hicks contractions, and they prepare your body for labor.)
- Shortness of breath
- White vaginal discharge
If your discharge has a strong color or unusual odor, call your doctor. The discharge is your body fighting bacterial and fungal infections (bacterial vaginosis and yeast infections), and a change in color or odor may be a warning sign that you’ve developed an infection.
If your contractions are painful and come at regular intervals, call your doctor right away. This could mean preterm labor.
And, during the third trimester, you can expect:
- Swelling in your feet and ankles
- Varicose veins
- Leg cramps
- Hemorrhoids
- Insomnia
- Fatigue
- Weight gain
Warning signs of problems during the third trimester include vaginal discharge that is clear and thin or bloody, rapid weight gain that exceeds 12 lbs, or any kind of unusual and unmanageable pain.
Monitor health indicators for a healthy pregnancy at home.
If you want to take a more active role in making sure your pregnancy is healthy, you can monitor certain health indicators at home with test kits from TestSure. We can help you keep an eye on:
- Ketones – A high level of ketones can indicate that you’re at risk of diabetes.
- Protein in urine – This could indicate diabetes and high blood pressure.
- Glucose – High blood sugar levels may indicate gestational diabetes, or diabetes during pregnancy.
- pH – Vaginal pH changes during pregnancy, which is why pregnant women are more likely to develop yeast infection and bacterial vaginosis. Plus, urine pH is a great indicator of nutritional and overall health.
