You may be uncomfortable at times during pregnancy. Discomforts like mild back ache and feeling really tired are common and shouldn’t make you worry. But there are other signs and symptoms, during pregnancy and after giving birth, that may require medical attention. If you have warning signs or symptoms of health problems and you can’t reach your health care provider, go to the emergency room. Make sure you use a face covering, like a face mask before you leave your home.
What are some of the warning signs to look for during pregnancy and after giving birth?
- Severe nausea and throwing up (much more severe than morning sickness)
- Vaginal discharge that smells bad
- Heavy bleeding (more than your normal period or worse)
- Intense feelings of sadness and worry that last for more than a few days. These could be a sign of depression. Depression can happen during and after pregnancy (also called postpartum depression or PPD ).
- Fever higher than 100.4F
- Pain or burning when you go the bathroom
- Your baby’s movement slow down or stop
- You have fluid leaking out of your vagina during pregnancy
- Pain, swelling and tenderness in your legs, especially around your calves. These could be a sign of deep vein thrombophlebitis (also called DVT), a kind of blood clot.
- Extreme swelling in your hands or face
- Red streaks on your breasts or painful lumps in your breasts. These could be a sign of mastitis, a breast infection.
- Severe pain in your lower belly that doesn’t go away
- You feel extremely tired and weak
- Severe headaches that won’t go away
- Vision changes
- Discharge, pain or redness that doesn’t go away or gets worse. These could be a sign of infection in your c-section incision or if you had an episiotomy.
Call your health care provider or dial 911 right away if you have any of these signs or symptoms:
- Bleeding that can’t be controlled
- Chest pain
- Trouble breathing
- Signs of shock, such as chills, clammy skin, dizziness, fainting or a racing heart
- Seeing spots
If you are concern about any sign or symptom not mentioned in this list or you simply feel something isn’t right, contact your provider.