Can a person have sympathy symptoms while living with a pregnant female?
Patient: I have a question. My cousin and I are EXTREMELY close, her boyfriend, her, myself, and my boyfriend hang out a lot together. Her and I are 11 yrs apart, but we do everything together. I just moved to Virginia from South Florida about 3 months ago and we have always been close since I was young but now since I am up here and we live together now everything we do is together. She is about 6 weeks pregnant, I have been there since the day we found out she was pregnant. She has symptons such as excessive farting, cramps, is tired a lot her boobs hurt all the time and are getting bigger. She says that she is always hungy and craves vegtables, all the time. Also, she gets her fair share of morning sickness, and crazy dreams. She also trips over her words and forgets things, and her eye twiches. Now, I seem to be having some of these same symptoms, but because I am a girl, I am wondering if I am just having sympathy symptoms or is it a possiblitly that I am indeed pregnant. It is to early to take a pregnancy test, it is to early to test myself becuase I am not supposed to get my period for another week or so. But I know that her boyfriend is having a few of these sympathy syptoms, and he doesn t live with us. But in my case I am wondering if I can have these symptoms even though I am a woman. Doctor: HI,    I understand your concern.    Sympathy symptoms are called Couvade symptoms in male partner of a pregnent lady due to psychological involvement in pregnancy leading to some hormoanal changes in would be father's body.. causing few similar symptoms like pregnant woman.    How ever same hormonal changes are not expected in a near & dear female friend's body  & are . not reported . However intense desire to conceive can cause such changes in a female body longing for child birth Here also hormonal changes result due to psychological factor& is called as Pseudosyesis.   IN your case the pregnancy  can be confirmed / excludedby blood HCG test around expected day of periods /after delay in periods by 8 days ( Home pregnancy test ).    Thanks.