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What Is a Cryptic Pregnancy?
Have you ever heard those stories about women giving birth and they had no clue that they were pregnant? I think there’s even a TV show about it here in the US, ‘I Didn’t Know I Was Pregnant’ or something like that. I used to think, no way, there’s no way that someone can be pregnant for nine months and not know. Well, apparently there’s a name for that: cryptic pregnancy.
As a person who’s extremely sensitive to changes in my body, I used to joke that I could feel the egg being fertilized, so someone having no idea they are pregnant is a strange phenomenon to me. Recently a story about cryptic pregnancy appeared in parentingfirstcry.com. According to them, these are the most common signs, symptoms, and causes of such pregnancy.
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What is a Cryptic Pregnancy?
A cryptic pregnancy, also known as a stealth pregnancy, is when a woman who is pregnant has such minimal or subtle symptoms that they remain unaware of the pregnancy. Sometimes a woman could have low hCG levels due to sterilization or infertility problems, which could lead to pregnancy going undetected.
What are the Causes of Cryptic Pregnancy?
Some cryptic pregnancies are caused by hormonal imbalance, while others can be caused by psychological issues.
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, also known as PCOS
Ovarian cysts may cause a hormonal imbalance in women, making hCG levels undectable.
Recent Pregnancy
Hormone levels don’t instantly fall back to normal levels after a pregnancy, so a woman who gets pregnant soon after a previous pregnancy could have a cryptic pregnancy.
Perimenopause
The time when a womans body is heading towards menopause and showing menopausal symptoms.
Athletic Amenorrhea
Some athletes or women with low body fat can have fluctuating hormones.
Birth Control Pills
Birth control pills can contain hormones that can affect natural pregnancy hormones.
Stress
Stress is a significant factor in causing fluctuating hormones.
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Some of the signs of Cryptic Pregnancy
Periods or menstrual-like bleeding can lead a woman to think she is having her menstrual cycle as usual.
Nausea and v
Along with low to zero detection of hCG levels, an ultrasound may also be unable to detect a pregnancy, especially if the fetus is nestled towards the spine.
Some cryptic pregnancies last longer than regular pregnancies.
Although we’ve all heard of a woman who gives birth to a healthy baby after unknowingly being pregnant for nine months, this is not the norm for a cryptic pregnancy. The gestation period for a cryptic pregnancy is usually much longer than that of a normal pregnancy. This is because the hCG hormone is not absorbed by the body. Cryptic pregnancies can last more than 40 weeks and have been known to last as long as two years.
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Comments
3 Responses to “What Is a Cryptic Pregnancy?”
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April 25th, 2019 @ 2:16 pm
Where are the sources on this article? I would like to post this article on a forum I visit but there are no sources (medical journals, papers, studies etc). What doctors can back this up and put their name on it? I am really hope you didn’t post this without verifying with a professional medical doctor. People could really have dangerous health issues.
April 30th, 2019 @ 10:23 am
Hi Suzanne,
The credit of where the story came from is linked in the article. 🙂
July 5th, 2019 @ 1:19 pm
Wow I love your article. Yes it is very well known, that cryptic pregnancies exist. Unfortunately ,the women who go through a cryptic pregnancy are still not supported and looked after during their difficult time. They do need prenatal care like every other pregnant woman and for this to happen,experiences from cryptically pregnant women have to rise to the public so that doctors have a chance to dig deeper and find other ways to confirm this very special pregnancy. At this moment, the only confirmation is the personal knowing,the subtle signs,the moving and the growing belly. But in some cases the belly isn’t as big as in a ” normal pregnancy”, that’s why we need every woman’s experience going viral! Thanks for your info. Super!