Tender breasts

One of the earliest signs of pregnancy, and the reason that many women realise that they are pregnant, is the changes that take place in their breasts. Your breasts are likely to be tender or sore during pregnancy thanks to the increased amounts of oestrogen and progesterone in your system. These changes are similar to how your breasts might feel before your period but are generally more pronounced and are often more exaggerated than they would normally be. Not only do your breasts become tender, but they often increase in size, in a way that is a dead give away of pregnancy to many women.

The reason for the changes are that your body is getting ready for breastfeeding. You might notice your areola darkening and little bumps appearing as your breasts increase in size. In addition, you might notice that the blue veins of your breast suddenly become particularly pronounced.

None of these changes are permanent and the tenderness associated with your breasts is not likely to last past the fourth month when your hormones stabilise a bit more, although it is possible that they will feel different for the rest of the pregnancy.

Make sure you have a good support bra and if you are worried about stretch marks, use some sweet almond base oil to rub into your skin daily (See the gurgle article on Health and Beauty for more tips). If you take these steps, your breasts will be less likely to sag after pregnancy. There is not much that you can do, in the early stages, to decrease the tenderness, but have trust that your hormones will balance out and your breasts won't feel this sensitive for ever.

It is recommended that women stop wearing underwired bras in pregnancy because the wiring could affect the delicate changes taking place inside your breasts during this time. By the time you reach the sixth week of pregnancy your breasts may already have started to change shape and size so it is best to invest in some non-underwired bras at an early stage. It is also essential to wear a comfortable and supportive bra during this time so consider getting your breasts measured for a maternity bra. Of course it is impossible to predict how big your breasts will actually get before you have your baby (and indeed afterwards if you plan to breastfeed) so you may need to be measured two or three times during your pregnancy.

Towards the end of pregnancy, if you are planning to breastfeed you will need to invest in some nursing bras which make feeding your baby much easier.