A false pregnancy is a phenomenon in which a woman experiences many of the symptoms of being pregnant but is, in fact, not pregnant. This phenomenon, which is also known as hysterical pregnancy, is not especially common in humans, but it does occur in other mammals. When a human female experiences a false pregnancy, the phenomenon is known as pseudocyesis. When other species experience false pregnancies, it is called a pseudopregnancy. When a woman experiences a false pregnancy, she generally strongly believes that she is pregnant and also has a number of physiological symptoms to support the belief.
One of the hallmarks of pregnancy, the development of the "baby bump" in the abdominal region, is often present in women experiencing false pregnancies. Abdominal distention is one of the reasons that she and, in some cases, the people around her believe that she is pregnant. An examination by a doctor, especially with the use of ultrasound technology, can determine that there is no fetus in the woman's uterus. Some women also experience nausea, sore breasts, as well as a missed period, which are also symptoms of pregnancy. Some women who have experienced false pregnancies have also reported the sensation of fetal movement.
It is widely believed that, in humans, a false pregnancy is psychologically driven. There are some theories that a false pregnancy may be the result of a deep desire to have a child. However, currently there is no theory that is accepted by all and there are also some cases that open holes in certain existing theories. There are some women, for example, who experience false pregnancies but say they do not want a child.
Just as there is no definitive cause of false pregnancy, there is also no definitive cure. In many cases, a woman experiencing a false pregnancy will be referred to a mental health professional. Treatments provided by mental health professionals can vary quite a bit and there is no widely used mental health treatment known to cure false pregnancy. There are some statistics that point to specific age groups that are at higher risk of false pregnancy. But there are also reports that there are outliers, showing that there is no single age group that experiences this phenomenon.