It's not your imagination: You have to go to the bathroom a lot. Another sign of early pregnancy is frequent urination. You probably feel like you have to go to the bathroom frequently, even when your bladder is practically empty.

This symptom will come and go throughout pregnancy. You're likely to have it in your first trimester, get a break in your second and have it return for your third.

It's very important to go to the bathroom when you have to. Otherwise, you risk developing a urinary tract infection, or a UTI. During pregnancy, UTIs are very common, especially between weeks six and 24. Some women who've never had a UTI develop their first one in pregnancy.

UTIs are more common in pregnancy because progesterone relaxes your urinary tract, slowing your urine's flow. This puts out a welcome mat for bacteria to enter your urethra and reach your bladder. There, they cause inflammation or infection. Because of the pressure on your bladder, it might be hard to empty it completely, which gives that bacteria plenty of time to set up camp.

To prevent UTIs, go to the bathroom when your body tells you to, and empty your bladder completely. It might help to lean forward on the toilet to push out all the urine.

One simple home remedy to help prevent UTIs is drinking cranberry juice. Researchers think that tannins in cranberries might keep the bacteria from attaching to the urinary tract and prevent an infection.

Here's what our Mommy M.D.s — doctors who are also mothers — do to cope with their own urinary issues in pregnancy.

"I was aware that I might have to urinate often during pregnancy," says Amy Derick, M.D., a mom of two sons and a dermatologist in private practice at Derick Dermatology in Barrington, Illinois. "But it surprised me that I had to awaken eight times a night to go to the bathroom. That became so tiring."

"It was frustrating that early in my pregnancies, I had to go to the bathroom all of the time," says Kristie McNealy, M.D., a mom of four and a health care consultant in Salt Lake City. "My husband and I kept long car rides to a minimum, and I really tried to avoid airplanes because they don't let you get out of your seat very often. You really can't do anything about it. I just tried to focus on the fact that it would go away after a few weeks. I continued drinking and eating well, despite having to pee all of the time."

"I noticed urinary frequency early in all of my pregnancies," says Ann Kulze, M.D., mom of two grown daughters and two grown sons, nationally recognized nutrition expert, motivational speaker, family physician and the author of the bestselling book series "Eat Right for Life" in Charleston, South Carolina. "I tend to have a hyperactive bladder anyway, and it progressed as the pregnancies went along. It was pretty horrific in the last two months. I'd feel the urge to urinate every 15 minutes if I was standing up. I sat down whenever I could, and I always knew where the closest bathroom was."

"During my first pregnancy, I had a lot of urinary tract infections," says Sonia Ng, M.D., a mom of two sons, a pediatrician and a sedation attending physician at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Pediatric Care and the University Medical Center at Princeton in Princeton, New Jersey, and the Pediatric Imaging Center in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. "I think it was because during that pregnancy, I was very constipated. That caused urinary retention, which lead to urinary tract infections. I had terrible burning when I went to the bathroom. During my second pregnancy, I only had one UTI, and I think it was because I didn't have the constipation then."

When to Call the Doctor

If you have the frequent urge to urinate; experience burning when you go; have pain in your back or lower abdomen; experience fever or chills; or have cloudy, dark or bloody urine, call your doctor or midwife right away. These could be signs of a urinary tract infection.

Jennifer Bright is a mom of four sons, founding CEO of woman- and veteran-owned custom publisher Bright Communications LLC, co-founder of the Mommy MD Guides team of 150+ mommy M.D.s, and co-author of "The Mommy MD Guide to the Toddler Years" and six other books in the Mommy MD Guides series. She lives in Hellertown, Pennsylvania. To find out more about Jennifer Bright and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

Photo credit: joe137 at Pixabay