Warning signs during pregnancy

Pregnancy is a time of great change for your body as you prepare for your baby to arrive. Sometimes, you may worry about some of the changes you are experiencing. It is a good idea to be familiar with common pregnancy health issues — you should also know when you should seek help. Some signs could point to a more serious pregnancy complication.

Some symptoms may happen at different stages of your pregnancy, while others could occur at any time. Even if you are not sure and think that something just 'doesn't feel right' with you or your baby's health, it's best to get it checked by a health professional.

Any time during pregnancy, contact your doctor, midwife or hospital immediately if you have:

• severe nausea or vomiting
• bleeding from your vagina
• severe pain in your abdomen
• clear fluid leaking from your vagina
• fever or chills
• shortness of breath or a racing heartbeat
• pain or swelling in one leg

Contact your doctor, midwife or hospital immediately if you've had a hit or blow to your stomach. This can include a fall, car accident or incident involving family violence.

See your doctor or midwife as soon as possible if you have:

• problems with your emotional health that last longer than 2 weeks — such as feeling depressed or anxious, or being unable to do your usual everyday tasks
• an unusual discharge from your vagina
• weight loss
• urgency, pain or a burning feeling when urinating (weeing)
• swelling in your legs that doesn't improve overnight

Early pregnancy (before 20 weeks)

Contact your doctor, midwife or hospital immediately if you experience:

• severe pain or cramping in your lower abdomen or pain in the tip of one shoulder — especially if you also have bleeding from your vagina
• dizziness
• fainting

Later pregnancy (after 20 weeks)

Contact your doctor, midwife or hospital immediately if you have:

• changes to your vision, such as flashing lights or blurry eyesight
• sudden, severe swelling in your hands, feet or face
• a headache that doesn't get better if you take simple pain-relieving medicine
• pain under your ribs
• extreme itchiness of your skin, especially your hands and feet
• swelling in your legs that doesn't improve overnight

Go to your local hospital immediately if your baby has stopped moving or is moving less than usual.

When you see your doctor or midwife, they will ask you about your symptoms and examine you. They may recommend some tests to check your and your baby's health. These tests may include:

• measuring your blood pressure
• an ultrasound
• blood tests
• a urine test

They may give you a referral to another doctor or health professional, or they may suggest you go to hospital.

Your treatment will depend on your individual circumstances and the cause of your symptoms. Your health team may recommend more frequent health checks through your pregnancy. In some situations, your doctor or midwife will talk to you about if it's safest for your baby to be born early.

Read more on routine antenatal tests.

You can lower your chance of complications by going to all of your antenatal appointments. If a health issue is found, it can be treated early and monitored to help prevent it getting worse.

You can also reduce your chance of pregnancy complications by:

• keeping a healthy balanced diet
• exercising
• maintaining a healthy weight
• avoiding alcohol, smoking and drug use.

It's not always possible to avoid a complication in pregnancy. You may have a higher chance of developing a complication if you:

• had a health problem before you became pregnant
• had a complication during a previous pregnancy
• have a family history of pregnancy complications
• are over 35 years of age
• are pregnant with more than one baby
• are living with overweight or obesity

Read more about complications during pregnancy.

• The Royal Women's Hospital has resources about pregnancy complications and how to manage them.
• If you are feeling overwhelmed or anxious during your pregnancy, PANDA (Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Australia) offers support for you and your family. You can call the PANDA national helpline on 1300 726 306.
• The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has a resource that answers common questions you may have during your pregnancy.

Languages other than English

Safer Baby Health has a catalogue of health resources for women, available in many community languages.

Information for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples

You can find out more about Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander pregnancy health at Stronger Bubba Born or watch the How to Have a Safer Pregnancy video.

Information for sexually and gender-diverse families

PANDA (Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Australia) offers emotional and mental wellbeing support for LGBTIQA+ parents.