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What changes occur to the cervix during early pregnancy?
Many changes happen to the cervix during pregnancy. Early on, the cells on the outside of the cervix become hypertrophied or more prominent. During the first exam, very early in pregnancy, sometimes you can actually see a blue cervix, due to increased blood vessel changes.
Sometimes a little bit of bleeding can occur after normal activity or sex. Usually this is not dangerous, but it’s very alarming to a newly pregnant woman. Another change that can happen due to hormonal changes is that the cervical opening can become a little more relaxed. As labor approaches, the pelvic opening actually widens a little bit. The pelvic bones separate ever so slightly, which can cause a lot of discomfort. In late pregnancy, there can be much pressure and pulling and tugging in the pelvic region, which we call round ligament pain, and that’s usually in the groin area.