Normal and Abnormal Pain During the Pregnancy Period

As soon as a woman enters into the nine months cycle of pregnancy she has to suffer from numerous different signs and symptoms of this period. Some of the symptoms are normal and avoidable whereas some of them need medical attention to prevent any complication in delivery. In this context pain during pregnancy is not normal every time which should be discussed with the doctor.

Since the implantation of the fetus into uterus wall to final delivery time, some or other sorts of pain keeps on developing. Some of them get automatically relieved with time whereas some of them get severe with time and doesn’t occur normally in organs.

However, a proper education regarding these symptoms of pregnancy can enhance the knowledge of all future expecting women to analyze themselves whether the pain they are suffering from is ok and normal or requires doctor’s visit for detail clarification.

Also in this context, you must understand one fact that all pregnancy symptoms are not similar for every pregnant woman. Each pregnancy cycle symptoms of a woman differ from one another. Yes, most of them are similar as well but there is no fixed rule that it has to occur with another woman as well.

So instead of judging by yourself, it’s better that you meet with your regular gynecologist doctor to understand the real cause behind any such pain that seems abnormal to you. So to guide you better here we have enlisted some common pain concerns of the pregnancy period, some of them are normal whereas some of them are abnormal.

Normal Pain during Pregnancy

Some pains during the pregnancy period develop due to the growth and structural changes of a baby inside the womb. Such pains come and go on its own, and there is nothing to worry about them. Some common normal pains during the pregnancy period are mentioned below.

Vaginal Pain

Vaginal pain during pregnancy is considered as normal pain under the condition it is not accompanied by bleeding. This sharp and stabbing pain occurs because of the growing weight of your baby with the progression of time.

The weight of baby presses certain nerves of the lower part of your body that is vaginal resulting in severe and sharp pain occurs for a few seconds to a minute.

In order to get relieved of this pain instantly, you can do body stretching by putting your feet up for a few minutes and then get back to your normal position.

Apart from this, you can wear a brace for providing support to your extended belly or abdomen area. This support will reduce the pressure of vagina and decreases the chances of getting vaginal pain.

Pain Caused by Growing Uterus

During the nine months period of pregnancy along with the progression of fetus size, the uterus size keeps on growing along with it to allow the space to a baby. This uterus growth displaces bowel causing nausea and distention in the abdomen area.

This leads to pain in uterus and abdomen areas of the body. However, with frequent eating habit, frequent urination (for clearing bladder) and with light body exercises one can get relieved of this pain.

Round ligament pain

The growing uterus with time creates a stretch in round ligaments which are bands of tissue which helps in holding uterus on its place. This causes pain the inside or lower abdomen area that radiates up to hip or groin.

This pain is very sharp and causes discomfort. It can last for few seconds to few minutes. It usually happens whenever a pregnant lady does any sudden movement like laughing, turning, sneezing, coughing etc.

This starts during the second trimester of pregnancy and usually resolve on its own with time. However with slow body movements and resting this pain can be prevented and avoided.

Braxton Hicks Contractions Pain

This contraction causes pain in the body which most probably starts around the 20^th weeks of the pregnancy. In the form of Braxton hicks contractions, your body prepares for the actual labor.

However, this should not be misunderstood as the real labor pain. It usually happens due to dehydration or lack of water in the body. So make sure that you drink enough amount of water in order to keep your body hydrated all the time.

Also for the quick relief from this sharp pain that lasts for a few seconds to a few minutes you should change your current body posture. That means if you are standing then you should sit or lie down. Again if you are sitting or lying then stand up for a while to get relief from this infrequent pain.

Constipation and Gas Pain

Constipation and gas issue started to develop as soon as you get pregnant and lasts till the delivery date which often causes lots of trouble to you, pain is one of those issues.

A hormone known as progesterone develops in the body during the pregnancy period which affects the normal gastrointestinal tract function of the body by slowing the movement of foods and bowels.

This leads to forming minor to a severe form of gas and constipation in the body. In order to reduce its impact, you should drink plenty amount of water and eat fiber-rich foods which are easy to digest.

Also, you should create a spinal twist body posture which will relieve the abdominal pain caused by gas and constipation. For this, you need to sit on the floor with cross-legged and then keep your right hand towards the left thigh.

Now slowly move the torso to a twist. Take deep breathe for few seconds and release. Repeat the same posture from another side of the body. Don’t sit in this posture for too long otherwise, it can affect your baby comfort zone.

Moreover, you can ask for stool softener medications and fiber supplements to your doctor in order to get relieved from the pain caused by constipation and gas.

Breast Tenderness and Pain

In the early stages of pregnancy due to the growth of progesterone hormone in the body the breast of the pregnant woman get tender and often develops light pain as well. This is also known as the early sign of the pregnancy.

This causes to increase the size of the breast which can cause discomfort in the lack of supporting wearing. In order to get relieved out of this discomfort, make sure that you prefer only supportive clothes and undergarments.

Headache

Due to initial changes in body and physical appearance with the progression of a baby the upper parts of the body get stressed with muscle tension causing a headache.

Apart from this, a complete withdrawal of caffeine intake is also responsible for headache issue in women during pregnancy. Also discomforts in the body due to an inability to create normal body posture, a load of middle body part and dehydration all together keeps developing headache trouble in this particular period.

In order to relieve from this one should take the help of the upper body including neck and shoulder stretching workouts which will bring comfort by releasing stress and tension. Also, you can have a healthy quantity of caffeine by consulting with your doctor.

Back Pain

Back pain is quite common and usual during the pregnancy period which is normal and you don’t have to worry about it. This backache develops due to your growing belly size which causes shifts of your body gravity towards the back side of body or backbone causing stiffness, tightness, and sore.

In order to get relieved of this pain, you can twist your body gently or can do back stretching. However, if you deal with a backache consistently along with contractions before the 37^th week of pregnancy then it should not be ignored and must be consulted with your doctor as it might be a sign of preterm labor.

Abnormal Pain during Pregnancy

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Pregnancy comes along with many difficult signs and symptoms of the body that persists and develops till the whole period of pregnancy. However, some of the pain during pregnancy is not normal if it is accompanied by bleeding, fever and any visual criticality.

Under such condition immediate visit to your regular ob-gyn is must otherwise it can cause complications in your delivery leading to miscarriage as well. Below are some cases of abnormal pain during pregnancy that needs immediate attention.

Preterm Labor Pain

If you notice a consistent backache along with consistent contractions before the 37^th week of pregnancy then chances exist to a great extent that it is a sign of preterm delivery.

Under this condition, a delay can cause complications so immediate medical attention is needed for this situation. In this particular case, you may or may not notice a loss of fluid or bleeding or reduction of fetus movement.

Contraction is not usual at any phase of pregnancy and must be discussed with the doctor to clear out whether it is Braxton Hicks or a sign of preterm labor.

It might be normal as well but for ensuring safety instead of taking any risk by making self-decision for your current health issue it’s always recommended to do consult with the doctor.

Preeclampsia

Preeclampsia is another medical emergency situation which develops in a rare condition after the 20^th week of the pregnancy. It symptoms develop in the form of high blood pressure and high concentration of protein in the urine.

In order to detect preeclampsia doctors often check your blood pressure level at each visit in order to prevent its risk. In the severe cases of preeclampsia, the patient can feel severe pain in an upper right portion of abdomen, nausea, vomiting, headache and temporary visual impairment.

This needs immediate medical attention otherwise it increases the risk of placental abruption in which placenta detaches itself from the uterus before delivery.

Placental Abruption

A placenta is a part of a woman’s body where a baby grows and get nutrients and oxygen for the growth. In normal conditions of pregnancy, the placenta implants itself in the uterine walls till the delivery of a baby.

However in the rarest cases when placenta fails to implant itself to the uterine walls or detach itself before the baby’s birth then it leads to cause a major complication.

This rare complicated issue mostly develops in the third trimester of pregnancy. As a result of placental abruption, a sharp and severe pain started to develop which remains continuously and progresses with time in the lower abdominal area of the body.

Under this condition, the abdomen area gets too hard to touch and you may notice red thick blood without any clot. This is a medical emergency situation in which doctors deliver the baby through the immediate cesarean procedure.

Or if doctors find that your condition is mild then they can process normal labor delivery of a baby. However, this condition is quite complicated for women who have a past history of placental abruption or have high blood pressure or abdominal trauma.

Ectopic Pregnancy Pain

Normally a fetus implants itself in the uterus of a woman where it grows and develops till the whole period of pregnancy which is known as a normal pregnancy.

However, in some rare cases, the egg or fetus fails to implant itself to the uterus lining and implant it somewhere else in the woman’s body. Usually in the fallopian tube which is known as ectopic pregnancy.

Under the condition of ectopic pregnancy, the woman started to suffer from chronic pain and bleeding especially in the 6^th and 10^th weeks of the pregnancy period due to the distended tube.

Women who have the past history of ectopic pregnancy remains at greater risk to develop this issue in their future as well. Apart from this, the complication lies in the women with the previous fallopian, pelvic and abdominal surgery.

In the cases of abnormal uterus shape, pelvic infection, and usage of IUD during conception can also carry ectopic pregnancy risk. This is an immediate medical condition because this kind of pregnancy cannot be continued successfully and needs an immediate visit to the nearest hospital.

Miscarriage

Miscarriage is an unfortunate condition of pregnancy which ends the pregnancy at its very initial period. The risk of miscarriage especially remains high from the first to the third month of pregnancy period.

Its symptoms may develop in the form of mild to severe abdominal cramp resembling period pain accompanied with bleeding. If you suffer from any pain in the initial three months of pregnancy along with bleeding then you should immediately consult with your doctor as it can be a miscarriage too.

Pregnancy is a blessing for all the women from the side of nature and God which every woman have a dream for. However, it is very crucial that any unfortunate incident would not occur with you and you can deliver your baby successfully. In this context, the knowledge of pain during pregnancy is not normal every time, is very important for you to stay alert beforehand.