This may be the week during which a positive pregnancy test has confirmed the good news. Some women know they are pregnant even before a pregnancy test confirms it. They sense there is something going on inside; they feel different. If the test is positive, it’s a good time to start thinking of making a prenatal appointment. Although you may not be seen until you are 7 or 8 weeks pregnant, the first appointment requires a longer time than subsequent ones and you doctor will need to take that into account when scheduling. So, don’t wait and make the appointment as soon as you can.  

Your baby's development

 
Drinking, cigarettes and drugs

You may be concerned because you may have engaged in certain activities before you knew you were pregnant, that you may think could have affected your baby. For example: drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes and even taking drugs. In general, in these first weeks, when the fertilized egg has just been implanted, these activities don’t usually cause problems, as long as they are isolated events.  

If you smoke, drink or habitually take drugs, this could have serious adverse effects on your baby’s development. There are a series of substances you should avoid during pregnancy. During the first three months, when all the baby’s basic internal structures are developing, is when the baby is more sensitive to any external potentially hazardous substances. 

Medication and X rays

In the event that you may be under treatment with meds, you should immediately ask your doctor what to do concerning that medication. Do not stop taking meds on your own, because the effects of stopping them could sometimes prove to be more hazardous than the medication itself. Talk to the doctor who prescribed it, and request a prenatal visit as soon as you can.  

For the moment, it isn’t advisable for you to take any type of medication, unless the doctor recommends or prescribes it. Even a simple aspirin is not recommended during pregnancy, although there are some meds that you will be able to take to curtail certain discomforts.

Concerning X-rays you may have undergone them before you knew you were pregnant. You should not be too concerned, because the dose of radiation you receive during an X- ray is minimal, compared to the doses that are considered dangerous. In any case, talk to your doctor about this during your prenatal visit.

Fatigue

Although you may not be experiencing morning sickness yet, one of the symptoms you may be feeling is fatigue or tiredness. This fatigue is due to the extra effort your body is making right now to build the placenta and also to the tremendous hormonal changes your body is undergoing.

This exhaustion is the type that makes you fall asleep just anywhere: it could happen during a conference at work or a business meeting. This is normal, but you have to try to rest as much as you can, whenever you can.  

Abdominal pain

Some times, the fertilized egg is not implanted inside the uterus. It may remain inside the fallopian tubes or somewhere that is not the uterus. That is considered an ectopic or extra uterine pregnancy and requires urgent attention.

If you feel acute pain in the lower abdomen or a persistent shoulder pain that is accompanied by bleeding, you should go to the hospital as soon as possible.