Thank you for your question - I hope I can be of assistance. What I have told patients in my practice is that if you are worried about something in pregnancy, you will feel better when you get it checked out. The most worrisome cause of cramps, like you need to go to the bathroom, is if you are having a miscarriage. Miscarriage is much less likely from 12 weeks on than before 12 weeks, because things have settled down. So your baby is probably fine. But I recommend that my patients not have to worry. Your own doctor may be able to get you an answer faster than the ER, depending on if they have an ultrasound in their office. Even just listening to the baby s heart-beat with the doppler can be very reassuring - if the baby sounds fine, you can breathe a little easier, and schedule an ultrasound for further reassurance. If your doctor has an ultrasound in the office they can take a look at that little bundle of joy as quick as possible to let you know things look ok. In the ER, they can do the same things, but you may have to wait longer, and it may not be a doctor you are comfortable with. In my practice, I would advise my patients to call us directly - and we would see patients as soon as possibly we could so they could relax. Other causes of cramping in pregnancy are constipation, which is more likely because of the prenatal vitamins we tell you to take, which have iron in them. Iron is good for your blood, but can upset your bowels. You can also have abdominal pain from a urinary infection or a bowel infection. I hope that this has answered your question, and I hope that you are able to get some reassurance for your pregnancy soon. I hope that you are blessed in another 27 weeks and 2 days with a healthy baby and a very calm, boring delivery.