Do you feel pregnant but your period isn’t due for another week? Is it possible to experience pregnancy symptoms before a missed period? Definitely. I just knew I was pregnant before I missed my period. 

Can you tell if you are pregnancy before a missed period? Is it possible to experience pregnancy symptoms before a missed period?

Definitely. I just knew I was pregnant before I missed my period.

Are you one of the women who knew they were pregnant before a missed period was late and before any pregnancy test could prove it? 

10 Standard early symptoms of pregnancy:

Very early pregnancy symptoms are quite different to the standard pregnancy symptoms that everyone seems to know and read about. 

• Missed period or delayed period
• Sore and / or tender breasts
• Darkening areolas
• Feeling tired
• Morning sickness,
• Nausea and vomiting (morning sickness is not just limited to mornings)
• Headaches
• Mood swings
• Heightened sense of smell
• A metallic taste in the mouth

Yet these standard pregnancy symptoms mostly occur after a missed period, by which time a pregnancy test will show positive. 

Check out the infographic at What to Expect for an easy overview of early pregnancy symptoms when your period is late.

How Early are the first signs of pregnancy? How can you tell if you are pregnancy before a missed period?

Very Early Pregnancy Symptoms before a Missed Period:

A fluttering feeling in their stomach, a bit like you feel when you are nervous.

A rushing feeling of energy, coming in waves, from the abdomen up to the chest. Comparable to a feeling of euphoria or waves of adrenaline.

Feeling dizzy or light headed.

A tightening of the uterus, which feels like a pulling (imagine like an elastic band being stretched).

Cramping feelings, almost like menstrual cramps but more spread out to each side and higher up than usual. These feelings can last longer than the normal menstrual cramps

Feeling implantation – when the fertilized egg attaches itself to the lining of the womb.

Implantation bleeding or implantation spotting – implantation bleeding can happen when fertilized egg attaches to the lining of the womb, causing it to bleed slightly, noticeable by light spotting of blood or light bleeding

Heavy breasts – I mean really heavy breasts, more than the standard breast tenderness experienced during pms

Feeling warm – during pregnancy the basal body temperatures increase slightly, making you feel warm. Changes to your body temperature can start to happen shortly after the egg is fertilized.

Frequent urination – yes, the urge to urinate frequently can start very early on in pregnancy.

Food aversions or drink aversions. Especially alcohol – just unexplainedly not wanting to eat or drink something

Instinctively knowing that you are feeling different. Your body just feels different and you are already starting to feel like a mama.

Position of the cervix – high and soft

Sure Early Signs of Pregnancy

Several other mama friends of mine have said that they experienced similar symptoms and just knew that they were pregnant before a positive test could prove it.

Personally, I experienced many of these feelings, however the first most overwhelming feeling for me was always the tightening of my uterus. I put it down to the tightening of my uterus anyway. It always started off like a pulling feeling where I imagine my fallopian tubes to be. Then changing to a tightening feeling across my lower back.

When comparing pms symptoms vs pregnancy symptoms, there is certainly a slight difference. Menstrual cramps are more like a dull ache which gradually travel downwards. The tightening feeling on the other hand would spread across my lower back and around the front of my womb.

The second most undeniable feeling was the implantation of the egg into my womb lining. Definitely no mistaking it, on one side of my womb and it felt like a dull, sharp pain which did not go away. Again a very different feeling to pms symptoms. In fact, during early pregnancy, I could always feel where my baby was within my womb. This was also a reason why I always knew when I was miscarrying because I couldn’t feel my baby in this way any more.

These sensations put together with an instinctive knowing were always my sure early signs of pregnancy, starting at least one week before my period was even due. As I experienced five miscarriages, I was convinced that these feelings were an early sign of pregnancy because only when I was pregnant did I experience these feelings and sensations.

Position of the Cervix as a Physical Sign of Early Pregnancy before a Missed Period

After two miscarriages I became familiar with the standard checks that my gynaecologist would first make to check I was pregnant. Apart from blood tests and urine tests, there is also an internal examination that can be done to check the position of your cervix.

As Medical News Today explains, the position of the cervix changes during the menstrual cycle. The normal position of the cervix when a woman is not pregnant is, after ovulation and before the menstrual cycle begins, lower down in the vagina. The cervix has a firm texture when you are not pregnant. If you are pregnant, the cervix will remain in a higher position in the vagina and feel soft.

It is possible to check the position of your cervix yourself. Just make sure you have thoroughly cleaned your hands before carrying out an internal examination. By inserting two fingers into your vagina, you will be able to feel the position and texture of your cervix. If you carry out a check when you are ovulating and shortly before your period is due, you should be able to feel the difference in the position of your cervix.

It is a useful physical sign of early pregnancy to know about. Those days of wondering if you really are pregnant, before you can take a test to prove it, can be spent with just that one subject on your mind.

When Will a Home Pregnancy Test Show that I am Pregnant?

Clearblue have developed a pregnancy test, which can give a positive pregnancy reading up to 6 days before a missed period, depending on the date of conception. First Response are also very reliable for an early pregnancy test result. However, it is generally advised to wait to take a test once you have missed your period, around 12-14 days after ovulation.

According to studies, a fertilized egg will implant starting from six days after ovulation (although I always felt this much early but I do have a relatively short cycle of 24 days). After the egg has implanted, your body will start to produce pregnancy hormones (hcg). A home pregnancy test measures the hcg levels (human chorionic gonadotroin) in your urine.

Pregnancy Birth Baby state that the level of the pregnancy hormone hCG must be present enough in your body for a positive pregnancy test to show up, which could be around 8 to 11 days after conception.

Have you experienced any of the early pregnancy symptoms described in my blog? I would love to hear about your experiences. Please share in the comments below.

Also, check out my Youtube video where I explain exactly how the tightening of my uterus felt and where I could feel it.