Pregnancy is typically an exciting time for expectant moms. Unfortunately for a rare few, feeling pregnant does not always mean a baby is on the way. Some women believe they are pregnant, only to discover that their symptoms were caused by something else entirely.
The following 3 conditions are commonly mistaken for pregnancy:
Thyroid Disorders
When the thyroid gland -- which controls the body's metabolism -- is disturbed due to a thyroid disorder, symptoms that resemble pregnancy like fatigue, weight gain and abnormal menstruation may surface.
Hyperthyroidism is when the thyroid is overactive. Hypothyroidism is when the gland is slow-moving.
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Here’s how hyperthyroidism may be mistaken for pregnancy: “Patients with hyperthyroidism usually report loss of concentration, nervousness, and emotional lability,” as well as heat intolerance, excessive sweating, and muscle weakness, Medscape says.
Here’s how hypothyroidism may be mistaken for pregnancy: Johns Hopkins Medicine explains that hypothyroidism's inactive thyroid can cause "fatigue, weight gain, constipation, skin and hair changes and abnormal menstruation."
Pseudocyesis ("false pregnancy")
Women with false pregnancy experience many of the same symptoms as those who are actually expecting, including:
- Interruption of the menstrual period
- Swollen belly
- Enlarged and tender breasts, changes in the nipples, and possibly milk production
- Feeling of fetal movements
- Nausea and vomiting
- Weight gain
According to the Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine, these symptoms, which can last for up to several years, may create delusion as well as a sensation that feels like labor pains.
Ovarian Cancer
You’re bloated and have to pee all the time. While these signs are common with conception, the presence of tumors on your ovaries also have the potential to create multiple symptoms that mimic pregnancy. In 2007, sufferers spoke to Marie Claire about receiving positive pregnancy results only to discover that they really had cancer.
“A pregnancy test at the clinic turned out positive, and I started to get excited that maybe the baby could hold on. But five minutes after the gynecologist did an exam, her face dropped: My uterus was big enough for a 20-week pregnancy, she said, but I'd had a period the previous month. She sent me right to a hospital, which performed ultrasounds that showed no baby. A week of sonograms, CAT scans, MRIs, and exams brought no diagnosis,” said one sufferer.
Despite thinking it was just fibroids and then being prescribed a drug to expel what the hospital believed to be an “unviable pregnancy,” following a 10-hour train ride to Canada, doctors found a melon-size tumor on her left ovary.
While you may be asking yourself, ‘how does a CAT scan miss a moderately-sized tumor?’ the explanation is fairly simple. The ovaries are responsible for both egg production and the release of progesterone and estrogen. When located directly within the ovaries or in the surrounding area, a tumor can interfere with these functions, creating hormone imbalances (a rise in HCG which is detected in pregnancy tests) which in turn, may lead to menstrual disturbances like a missed period.
Meanwhile, some researchers have suggested that poverty, a lack of education, childhood sexual abuse, or relationship problems also play a role in triggering false pregnancy.
