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Haven’t we heard about women going into labor or delivering a baby while they were not even aware that they were pregnant? Some of them sound incredible beause the society is programmed to believe in things that are evidence-based. It is unfathomable for many to hear a woman say she wasn’t aware that she was pregnant for all the nine months!
The current age women have access to pregnancy kits and can do their near-accurate tests at home, but it was quite contrary until recent past when there were few ways to confirm whether she was pregnant. Most of the times the symptoms and signs only show a probability of pregnancy as opposed to being diagnostic. So if you thought there was a sure-shot way to recognize the signs, then you might also be curious about when certain symptoms are worth being overlooked and when one should pay attention.
Firstly, the absence of menstrual cycles becomes the first symptom in pregnancy. But considering the fact that quite a few women have irregular menstrual cycles due to horomonal irregularity or stress, poor diet, or other medical conditions; and also the fact that some women stop having periods when they take contraceptive pills, it can be quite a chaotic way to figure it out. Secondly, at least one percent women also have unexplained vaginal bleeding during pregnancy.
Apparently a good 70 percent of pregnancies are characterized by morning sickness, but then the degeree of morning sickness in duration and severity could vary from woman to woman. However the symptom of morning sickness could also be alluded to several other factors.
The other symptom of pregnancy is weight gain. You could expect to put on 12.5kg on an average if pregnant. However, this might also be determined by your genes, the ethnic and cultural differences. Most women experience weight gain around the waistline close to menopause. You cannot, however, overlook the fact that women might resort to comfort eating when they are stressed or depressed.
When it comes to the correlation between maternal and fetal nutrition, it turns out more complex with those women having an inadvertent, restricted diet. They might put on a little weight while their baby’s weight might be within the recommended limits. You cannot disregard the long-term health problems that might ensue due to poor diet during pregnancy. However, you can overlook the idea of weight gain during pregnancy in this light.
When it comes to the movement of the fetus, women start feeling them between the 18th and the 20th week of pregnancy. The early fluttering movements are mistaken for abdominal gas. However the fetal movements get intense and women should feel them even towards the onset of labor.
If a pregnant woman has failed to feel these movements, then here is where a cryptic pregnancy contraindicates the fetal movement. Let’s see how:
- There is a suspicion of psychological conditions whereby women with co-existing mental health could not observe their fetal movements. However, even in those women who have no mental health issues, any signs of pregnancy never came to their attention.
- The other psychological theory is that of mental shock where pregnancy comes with a surprise and women don’t want to accept the unexpected pregnancy. It is something they find extremely difficult to overcome.
- Those women who have no access to antenatal care might go through complications that go undiagnosed at an early stage. Moreover, a woman might still binge drink or smoke while being unawaare of the harm she might cause to her fetus. She might seek medical help only in case of severe abdominal pains. This way they end up giving birth in seclusion or with no assistance at unpredictable places. The whole scenario can put the baby’s life at risk.
The social stigma attached to cryptic births
In the past, there were legal consequences for women who gave birth with no assistance with their baby being stillborn or dead soon after birth. Such women could be charged with infanticide – despite the fact that the literature in the past has had references of cryptic births. However, in the modern times when literature on cryptic birth is widely available, women who undergo the condition must be empathized with and given the necessary social support when they come up with what may seem like ‘tales’ of unexpected births.
