This is just the beginning! At two weeks pregnant, technically, you wouldn't even know if you were pregnant. The medical community counts pregnancy weeks starting at the first day of your last period, most women are only just ovulating around the two weeks “pregnant” mark.
This means that 2 weeks pregnant takes place somewhere around the time of conception in most pregnancies. Keep reading to find out how early may be too early to detect a pregnancy and what symptoms to keep an eye out for in the first weeks of pregnancy.
Can You Detect Pregnancy At 2 Weeks?
If you’re TTC (trying to conceive), you may begin testing for pregnancy super early in your cycle, hoping to see that BFP (big fat positive.) If you’re testing as early as two weeks after your last period began, you are probably wasting your pregnancy tests.
Ovulation occurs somewhere around day 14 of a menstrual cycle for most women. This means that an egg is being released somewhere around what could be 2 weeks pregnant. Either the egg is fertilized and the pregnancy weeks keep ticking by, or the egg is not fertilized and the ticker restarts with your next cycle. In the event that an egg is fertilized after ovulation, you still would not be able to detect a pregnancy at 2 weeks, even with a blood test.
This doesn’t mean that nothing is happening, though! In fact, your body is hard at work preparing to potentially support a fetus. An increase in progesterone and estrogen prompts the lining of your uterus to thicken enough to host a fertilized egg. Once an egg is fertilized, genetic material begins to combine and your baby’s genetic makeup is determined.
Everything, including the sex of your baby, will be predetermined by the combination of DNA from mom and dad in those early weeks. Somewhere around 72 hours after the sperm meets the egg, the blastocyst (cluster of cells) arrives in your uterus where it will nestle into that extra-thick uterine lining during the following week. (1)
How Do You Feel At 2 Weeks Pregnant?
That sounds like a lot is happening during the second week of pregnancy! Many very-newly expecting moms may not feel any different at all during week 2 of pregnancy. Others, however, may notice some physical signs of ovulation or early implantation at this time.
- Increased cervical mucus: CV (cervical mucus) may increase in volume during ovulation and you may even notice a change in its texture. CV tends to get “slippery” around 2 weeks pregnant. This is your body’s way of welcoming any potential sperm, and making it easy for “them” to slide their way towards a releasing egg. Many women compare week 2 CV to raw egg whites.
- Mild cramps: Some women experience ovulation cramping, while others may feel a slight twinge - or nothing at all.
- Sore breasts: Thanks to an increase in hormones surrounding ovulation, tender breasts may start as early as week 2 of pregnancy.
- Increase in BBT (Basal Body Temperature): This may sound like gibberish to you if you aren’t trying to conceive. For those that are, basal body temperature can be taken daily in an effort to pinpoint ovulation and the most fertile window. About a day after an egg is released, most women experience a slight increase in BBT. In other words, the green light is on for baby making. (1)
What Are The Pregnancy Symptoms At Week 2?
Since you aren’t technically pregnant at 2 weeks pregnant, there aren’t any notable “pregnancy symptoms”, but you may experience the symptoms listed above as a result of ovulation or impending implantation.
If you are actively trying to conceive however, now is a great time to start taking care of yourself as if you were pregnant - since you could be! Eating healthy, avoiding alcohol and cigarettes, and exercising can all help your body prepare to handle the pregnancy symptoms that will be coming (very soon!)
How Soon Do Pregnancy Symptoms Start?
“How soon?”, you might ask. Well, this varies from mom to mom, but many expecting mothers can expect to begin noticing pregnancy symptoms around week 4, or about 2 weeks after conception! (2) For many women, the first signs of pregnancy will include:
- Nausea: It’s called morning sickness, but let’s be real - it happens all day for many of us. A surge in new pregnancy hormones can be blamed for this morning, noon, and night sickness.
- Fatigue: Tired doesn’t even begin to describe what many newly-expecting moms feel. Downright exhausted is more accurate. Progesterone can be to blame for this one. Don’t worry though, this usually subsides by the second trimester.
- Cramping: This one freaks a lot of women out, but it can be normal. Implantation can be the cause of this early pregnancy symptom. Many women also experience very light bleeding associated with implantation around this time as well.
It is important to remember that pregnancy symptoms are subjective, and everybody will experience them differently. Some (lucky ones) may not experience any pregnancy symptoms at all.
The severity of symptoms, or lack thereof, are not directly correlated to a healthy or unhealthy pregnancy.
You might drive yourself crazy waiting for pregnancy symptoms to rear their ugly head as you wait to find out if you are in fact with child. The only sure-fire way to determine whether or not you are pregnant is to take a pregnancy test. Most at-home tests are considered accurate by the time a period has been missed. (2)
What Are The Uncommon Symptoms Of Pregnancy?
Symptoms of pregnancy that are less talked about than the above-mentioned include: bloating and gas. I mean, we get why nobody wants to talk about it. Gas and bloating, however unpleasant they may be, are signs that your pregnancy hormones are doing their thing. Try to, um, welcome it.
How Does Your Tummy Feel In Early Pregnancy?
Like we said, bloated. Many women may wonder “am I showing already!?” in the earliest weeks thanks to bloating due to a slowed digestive system. Rest assured, you won’t “show” in very early pregnancy, but you may still want to bust out the stretchy pants.
Conclusion
The joys of motherhood begin as early as 2 weeks pregnant. It may even be this early that many expecting moms begin to think about what must-have baby gear to add to their registries.
Don’t sleep on Dreamland Baby (sleep with Dreamland Baby).
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Sources:
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https://www.babycenter.com/pregnancy/week-by-week/2-weeks-pregnant
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https://www.babycenter.com/getting-pregnant/how-to-get-pregnant/pregnancy-symptoms_1146468
