In this article, we discussed the meaning of phantom pregnancy, the symptoms, the causes, the different between real and phantom pregnant.
Definition
Phantom Pregnancy is Known officially as pseudocyesis or false pregnancy, is when a person believes they are pregnant when they are not. It’s also called a phantom pregnancy. With pseudocyesis, a person has pregnancy symptoms and feels pregnant. A phantom pregnancy may feel like a real pregnancy and have the same symptoms, but it’s not actually a true pregnancy.
Symptoms of a phantom pregnancy
Women experiencing a phantom pregnancy may have many or even all of the physical signs one would normally associate with pregnancy, including:
Missed periods: Also known as amenorrhea
Breast tenderness and enlargement: Breasts may also produce milk
Abdominal swelling: The abdomen may become uniformly swollen and the navel may remain inverted
Nausea and vomiting: Also known as morning sickness
Weight gain: Weight gain may occur
Food cravings or aversions: Cravings or aversions for certain foods may occur
False labor contractions: The body may experience contractions that feel like labor
Sensations of fetal movement: The body may experience sensations of fetal movement
Frequent urination: The body may experience frequent urination.
Causes of a phantom pregnancy
What might be the cause of a phantom pregnancy? There are a few possibilities as to why this phenomenon occurs.
A mind-body feedback loop
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. That strong emotion could be anxiety about fertility challenges, for instance, or intense grief following a pregnancy loss. In these cases, when there’s a strong yearning for pregnancy, the mind has a surprisingly powerful influence on the body, generating pregnancy symptoms when there’s no baby in utero. In essence, the belief that there is a pregnancy serves as a defense against confrontation with a difficult reality, offering hope and reducing feelings of loss, anger, grief, jealousy and depression that may have resulted from years of infertility or pregnancy losses.
A physical condition
In some cases, a physical condition — an ovarian or pituitary tumor, for instance — can be the cause of elevated hormone levels, abdominal enlargement and missed periods.
A mental health condition
Depression on its own is also thought to be a risk factor in phantom pregnancies, often over infertility struggles or pregnancy losses.
The main difference between a phantom pregnancy and a real pregnancy is that a phantom pregnancy doesn’t involve a fetus.
Phantom pregnancy
Also known as pseudocyesis, this is a rare condition where a person believes they are pregnant but isn’t.
Symptoms include a swollen belly, breast tenderness, nausea, vomiting, and weight gain.
A pregnancy test, blood test, or ultrasound will show that there is no pregnancy.
Real pregnancy
Occurs when an egg is fertilized by a sperm cell.
The hormones that control your menstrual cycle thicken the lining of your uterus, preparing your body for pregnancy.
Conclusion
It’s rare to experience a false pregnancy. Symptoms of pregnancy and pseudocyesis may be confusingly similar, but there is one significant distinction. In a false pregnancy, there is simply no baby. That’s because no conception ever took place, despite symptoms that seem to suggest otherwise. See your doctor if you have questions or think you might be pregnant.