I'm sure I'm pregnant! How to recognize a false pregnancy

History knows many examples of how crowned persons who were required to give birth to an heir to the throne experienced false pregnancy syndrome. Doctors point out that this condition is by no means a simulation. It’s just that the body of a woman who, at all costs, needs to become a mother, or she madly wants it, at some point begins to produce almost the same hormones that are synthesized during pregnancy, forcing the patient to believe that she is expecting a baby. This condition requires a particularly careful attitude on the part of the doctor, including alertness for the development of uterine tumors.

Why signs of a false pregnancy may appear

False pregnancy has long been of particular interest to specialists, since the nature of the development of this syndrome remains not fully understood. False pregnancy syndrome is based on a psychological problem. Usually a patient with false pregnancy syndrome is a woman around 40 years old, whom for some reason she cannot become a mother, but she dreams about it very much. Perhaps her relatives or friends are pregnant. Perhaps the woman is suffering from repeated miscarriages or has recently lost a child. And sometimes the opposite happens - a woman is very afraid of getting pregnant and does not want it. In any case, against the background of neurosis and an unstable psyche, an infantile-hysterical psychotype and hypertrophied susceptibility, a cascade of somatic, vegetative and endocrinological disorders develops, leading to

late period,
signs of toxicosis,
breast engorgement and secretion of colostrum,
abdominal enlargement.

Against the background of increased emotional experiences, the pituitary gland begins to secrete the same hormones that appear in the body of a pregnant woman (it is surprising that this can happen even with men who strongly empathize with their pregnant wives), which causes feelings very similar to those that experienced by the expectant mother. Even a pregnancy test can show positive results, a woman will feel fetal movement and even false labor pains.

However, the abdomen increases due to the development of subcutaneous fatty tissue, and the sensation of a moving fetus is due to increased peristalsis, although the woman believes that she is expecting a baby and does not want to hear anything about a false pregnancy.

Medical Approach to False Pregnancy Syndrome

Usually, the signs of a false pregnancy persist in a woman for three to a maximum of four months, although there are cases of a patient coming to the maternity hospital with external signs of an upcoming birth. It is easy to determine a false pregnancy on a gynecological examination - there are no objective changes in the uterus and vagina, chorionic gonadotropin is not detected in the urine test. If necessary, an abdominal ultrasound or x-ray is performed to confirm a false pregnancy.

When examining a patient, it is imperative to take into account the likelihood of a frozen or ectopic pregnancy, as well as tumor processes, the presence of uterine fibroids. As for the treatment, a competent explanation of the gynecologist is usually enough to eliminate the signs of a false pregnancy. In case of disorders of the endocrine system, special treatment is prescribed.

Usually, after a woman ceases to inspire herself with thoughts of pregnancy, her periods are restored and signs of toxicosis disappear. But often the gynecologist has to work together with a neurologist and a psychotherapist if the patient stubbornly refuses to believe in a false pregnancy and is prone to depression. Usually, the false pregnancy syndrome does not recur if the patient has gone through this condition once.