Every childbirth story often begins with a mother-to-be finding out she’s expecting through pregnancy symptoms or a test (or a series of them).
This is usually followed by a bonding period between her and her unborn child as well as necessary prenatal health checks in preparation for delivery.
As much as this might seem like the norm, these series of events do not represent the reality of every woman who has ever gotten pregnant.
Some women go through most of their pregnancy or until the delivery point without knowing it.
What is a Cryptic Pregnancy?
These rare cases which usually occur in 1 in every 475 pregnancies are termed cryptic pregnancies. A cryptic pregnancy – also called “denied pregnancy” or” stealth pregnancy” – is a type of pregnancy where a woman has taken in but has no knowledge of it or refuses to acknowledge it until the pangs of labour settle in.
In essence, women with cryptic pregnancies are unaware that they are pregnant. They sometimes realise they are expecting during the last few weeks of pregnancy or at the point of birth.
So, yes, you can be pregnant and not know it.
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Symptoms
Symptoms such as nausea, missed period, abdominal swelling, and swelling of the feet or face commonly observed during pregnancy are wildly absent in cryptic pregnancy cases.
Doctors attribute foetal movement to gas or stomach upset because these pregnancies are difficult to diagnose.
Women who experience them also don’t suspect the absence of their period as strange, because they are familiar with erratic periods or due to birth control pills or shots that have made their periods irregular.
Apart from being almost unable to experience the usual symptoms associated with pregnancy, women who are obese are most likely to not notice or suspect physical changes.
Cryptic pregnancies may also happen in thinner women, especially amongst tall women because “they carry their babies differently,” according to a pregnancy and parenting brand.
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Women who are likely to have a cryptic pregnancy?
Cryptic pregnancies tend to be common in the following circumstances:
- Women who experience irregular periods might not notice anything is amiss, as they are used to the routine. This is also common amongst athletic women since their tight abdominal muscles could hide a baby bump without getting noticed.
- Lack of the general symptoms associated with pregnancy would make a woman not be aware that she is pregnant.
- Women who get pregnant shortly after birth might most likely not expect their period to return for a while and might assume that any weight gain and abdominal swelling are from a previous pregnancy.
Risks associated with cryptic pregnancy
Getting to find out about one’s pregnancy late can be quite frightening and perplexing.
One of the main risks associated with cryptic pregnancy is that the women do not get access to quality prenatal care they require to make the unborn baby healthy. Unborn babies need adequate care and a dedicated healthy lifestyle, and women who are oblivious might take up unhealthy lifestyle habits that could cause potential harm to the baby. These habits include smoking, drinking, or, in the case of actively athletic women, engaging in harmful stunts.
It has often been reported that babies borne of cryptic pregnancies tend to be underweight, and may have health complications due to lack of adequate prenatal care which is vital for the child’s development.
It is important that we create awareness about cryptic pregnancies and adequately educate women on how to take note of their body changes.
This piece was written for BizWatch Nigeria by Pearl Nwaogazi, Client Service Executive at MediaCraft Associates
