Do people really not know they are pregnant?

[talie]

I can understand people sailing through pregnancy without any sickness, tiredness etc. but surely when baby starts moving around and does the 'alien' thing - arms etc. out of the belly, then surely you begin to realise something is happening to you?

I have been speaking to someone who has only just found out?! They said they had no symptoms and went for their first scan to be told they were half way through pregnancy?! Is this true or are they just hiding/denying the truth for whatever reason. Everything is apparently normal i.e. size of belly for no. of weeks etc. - did they think they'd just eaten too much?

I apologise if I'm being really dumb here but it is very hard to get my head around.

[fisil]

I've heard of people who went to full term and "didn't know" they were pg at all. I also thought they must have been hiding/denying the truth. There certainly were times during my pg when it would have been nice to pretend it wasn't there! So ... has this happened to anyone?

[Ghosty]

Didn't it happen to Sonia in Eastenders ... it must be true that it happens then

I have a friend who claims that HER friend at uni (one she lived with) knew nothing until she went into A&E with severe stomach pains and a few hours later gave birth to a full term 7lb baby ...

Hmmmmm? Personally I don't believe that it is possible although I do know someone who had no idea she was pregnant until 16 weeks but that was because her first child was really young and she was still breastfeeding so the obvious first sign on no period was missed ... it wasn't until she felt really tired and unwell that she went to the docs and they did a test ...

[boyandgirl]

My grandmother didn't know she was pregnant, she just thought she was putting on weight. It wasn't until a neighbour asked her what arrangements she had made with the local midwife, that she learnt the truth. Even then she didn't know how the baby would 'get out', and when she eventually went into labour she thought that she had a tummy upset. Considering her ignorance and the fact that my dad was over 10lb, it's not surprising that she never had another child!

[aloha]

I never saw any limbs with my ds (aka world's laziest toddler!) though there was some rippling. I find it hard to believe you couldn't know..but some women do have bleeding and have normally light periods, and just aren't very aware of their bodies in general. If they are under a lot of stress or depressed it might make them less observant etc.

[Linnet]

I have a friend who discovered that she was pregnant and when she went along to the hospital for her scan they told her she was 30 weeks along! She hadn't had any sickness, or noticed anything to unusual but she did feel faint a few times and have dizzy spells. and she was a little on the plumpish side, not trying to be rude here, but she didn't notice any real amount of weight gain either.

when I was pregnant with my dd I never noticed any limbs poking out while she was moving around inside me and to be honest the thought of that is horrible, to me personally of course, I know other women love it when that happens. Also Tallie I never suffered morning sickness with my dd or this pregnancy and I never really suffered any extreme tiredness until the last week with my dd and so far I've not really suffered any extra tiredness with this pregnancy.

I also know a woman who had no idea that she was pregnant and went to the bathroom with what she thought was an upset stomach, 5 minutes later her dh found her on the bathroom floor with a baby girl in her arms.

My cousin was 6 months along with both of her pregnancies before she found out as she was thin as a rake and still having periods.

So it does happen, just not to all of us.

[M2T]

One of my very good friends had a suspicion she was pg so did 2 tests which came out negative. Next month and still no period she went to her GP and got a positive test. She was already 18 weeks gone, but had only 'missed' 2 periods. Not as extreme as some of your stories!

I was at college with a couple that had had a shock! She got taken to hospital in agony. She thought it was appendicitis. Halfway through labour she was told she was about to give birth. The baby was 9 wks prem. But fine. They had both just given up work to go to college and had NO savings! NIGHTMARE!! All worked out in the end though.

[motherinferior]

I have two friends who didn't realise they were pregnant again after their first ones - they were both b/feeding, one was on the mini-pill as well - till they felt the new baby move.

[JanZ]

An ex boy friend's father was a GP and he would tell the story of how he'd had to deliver the baby of a 15 year old who hadn't realised she was pregnant. He wouldn't have minded so much if the year before he hadn't had to do the same thing for her sister!

[Bozza]

Some of these must have really easy pregnancies though. If I felt like this and didn't know I was pregnant I would have been to the doctor's weeks ago. Not so much for the sickness in my case, but for the exhaustion, lower back pain and mood swings.

[lazyeye]

I think if its the last thing on your mind and you don't suffer from sickness etc it would be possible to get to 16 weeks or so, not sure about full term mind. I know my Gran wasn't expecting a pg at all (13 yrs between my Mum and her brother) and only finally cottoned on when she tried to diet & just couldn't loose the pot - think she was about 17 weeks along. Kinda nice to get half way without knowing it........

[JulieF]

I know someone who was on the pill but having problems with it and putting on weight, she had been seeing the nurse regurlarly before her pregnancy was discovered at something like 27 weeks. Apparently some other medication she was on at the time made the baby less active.

[runragged]

I know someone who went full term without knowing, she had bad cramps and went to doctor who said it was food poisoning and then in the middle of the night she had a baby girl! With her second one (11 months apart) she suspected something and went to the doctor and she was 6 months along. I find it really dificult to believe but I suppose it must be true.

[tallulah]

I still find this hard to believe, since each time I've been pg I've "known" before I missed a period. Perhaps these people are lucky not to feel "odd" ?

[Slink]

talie,

I had been trying for 1 year got the ovulation test the works then just gave up went to accupuncture to calm and relax. Then one day thought got not used any tampax for ages. Did a £4.99 test and there you go i was 8 eight weeks pregnant and doing 150 sit ups aday eveything.

But i can't see how people can go through the whole pg without knowing.....as ghost saidy but Eastenders Sonia did.

[Freddiecat]

I didn't find out until 9 or 10 weeks last time. We'd not used any protection on 2 occasions - once in the middle of my period (I know i know...) and once 2 weeks later and I took the morning after pill 12 hours later (tho I put it down to the extra"free" shag we had before I took it).

I had a very light bleed and normal pain when my pd was due. But I was moving house that weekend so was a bit stressed about it. Over the next few weeks I was exhausted and feeling mildly nauseaous sometimes. By 9 weeks and with 2nd period "late" I decided to go to the doctor but knew they first thing she'd ask so I did a test!

This time - I knew before my period was due as my boobs started bursting through my shirts and I got all vague and forgetful.

[fio2]

I didnt know until I was 10 weeks with my second, even then I wasnt sure if I had missed a period - I just couldnt stand the smell of the washing up liquid! Our neighbour didnt know(!) and had her baby down the toilet at her friends 15th birthday party