Early Pregnancy Signs and Symptoms Forum - Stress as a cause of pregnancy like symptoms

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Stress

Stress is a natural response to life. But when does stress begin to cause health problems? Basics on stress and the stress response here....

Q: Stress as a cause of pregnancy like symptoms

asked by: DoctorQuestion on September 3rd, 2008

The last time I had sex was August 10. We used a condom with spermicide and I was taking my oral contraceptive pill religiously. I was also on 850mg of antibiotics at the time. 12 days later, had my period - on time, slightly heavier flow than usual, lasting 5 days (normal). The day my period ended (16 days after last intercourse), I began having tender breasts (particularly around the nipple area) and upset stomach. With the upset stomach, I have a little bit of nausea (comes and goes) and diarrhea. Both the breast tenderness and upset stomach were consistent symptoms (did not diminish at any point during the day). I took several home pregnancy tests over last two weeks, all negative (incl. today). I also had a quantitative hcg blood test done 18 days after last intercourse - came back negative (<2). Yet, 24 days after last intercourse, I'm still experiencing these symptoms - could it be early PMS brought on by high stress levels, or could I be pregnant and not showing on tests?

Replies(2)

Dr. Nikola Gjuzelov , MD

replied on September 5th, 2008

Early Pregnancy Signs and Symptoms Answer A4642

It is hard to say what is really causing your symptoms but pregnancy is definitely not the cause because, according to all the negative pregnancy tests, you are not pregnant.

An “early PMS” does not exist but stress could be causing your symptoms.

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Comments (1)

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