Signs of false pregnancy include amenorrhea (missed periods), galactorrhea (flow of milk from breast), breast enlargement, weight gain, abdominal growth, sensations of fetal movement and contractions, nausea and vomiting, changes in the uterus and cervix, and frequent urination.
Experts suspect that most phantom pregnancies happen due to a mind-body feedback loop, in which a strong emotion causes an elevation of hormones, in turn resulting in physical symptoms that mimic those of a true pregnancy.
A phantom pregnancy in a dog can last anywhere from a week to a month. Poor Flora was found wandering the streets as a stray. She was unspayed and covered in mammary tumours, which neutering could have helped prevent. Flora then went onto suffer from a phantom pregnancy, which left her lethargic and depressed.
If a woman has a phantom pregnancy, her pregnancy test will be negative. Her body won't produce human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), the pregnancy hormone. An ultrasound will also reveal that there's no baby.
Is it possible to be pregnant and get a negative pregnancy test result? Yes, it is possible. Getting a negative result doesn't mean you're not pregnant, it may just mean your hCG levels are not high enough for the test to detect the hormone in your urine.
The symptoms of a phantom pregnancy most commonly occur 6-8 weeks after your dog finishes her season, and should resolve within 2-3 weeks. Once your dog has had a false pregnancy after a season, it is very likely to recur at each subsequent season.
Risk factors
Women who are at higher risk for a phantom pregnancy are those who have suffered intense distress or loss regarding pregnancy experiences. For example: Women who have been trying to conceive for a long time without success and are coming to the end of their reproductive life.
High levels of stress or anxiety can cause irregular menstrual periods, which can sometimes be mistaken as a symptom of pregnancy. Nausea and vomiting, heightened sensitivity to smells, breast soreness, fatigue, frequent urination, constipation—these may be signs that you are “pregnant”.
In some cases, these symptoms are more pronounced without an actual presence of a fetus. Symptoms like missed periods, growing abdomen, and even fetal movement, tricks the body to believe that it's pregnant when it's not. This phenomenon is known as False Pregnancy or Pseudocyesis.
“False positive pregnancy tests are rare and occur less than 1 percent of the time,” confirms DuMontier. Generally speaking, there will be a contributing factor if you're seeing a false positive pregnancy test. If not, you can assume the test you've used is faulty in some way.
Sometimes pregnancy cannot be seen on the scan although the urine pregnancy test is positive. This is described as a pregnancy of unknown location (PUL). In most cases this is because miscarriage had happened before women attend for the scan.
Cryptic pregnancies are uncommon. Studies suggest about 1 in 475 pregnancies go unnoticed until about 20 weeks gestation. About 1 in 2,500 pregnancies go unnoticed until delivery.
Couvade syndrome or couvade is a term used to describe sympathetic pregnancy in men; the word couvade comes from the Breton word couver, which means to brood, hatch, or incubate. In this situation, some men experience symptoms that mimic those experienced by their partners during their pregnancies.
Cabergoline is a hormone that stops pregnancy hormones being produced and reduces the symptoms of pseudopregnancy – especially milk production. It's usually given as a liquid by mouth for 1-2 weeks.
Phantom kicks after giving birth or experiencing pregnancy loss are flutters that mimic fetal movements during pregnancy. They can be physically felt—or even seen across the abdomen—just like fetal kicks during pregnancy.
Pseudocyesis, or false pregnancy, is when a person thinks they are pregnant when they are not. People with pseudocyesis have pregnancy symptoms, but tests will confirm there's no pregnancy. Healthcare providers believe psychological and hormonal factors may cause it.
It is possible that although an egg may be fertilized, your body has not started secreting enough hCG to register as positive on a test. Your body needs time for the hormone to rise to a high enough level to be detected. Most brands instruct you to wait until the first day of your missed period to test.
The cause of bleeding early in pregnancy is often unknown. But many factors early on in pregnancy may lead to light bleeding (called spotting) or heavier bleeding.
Spotting or bleeding may occur shortly after conception, this is known as an implantation bleed. It is caused by the fertilised egg embedding itself in the lining of the womb. This bleeding is often mistaken for a period, and it may occur around the time your period is due.