How To Tell If Youre Pregnant Right Away
The only way to tell if youre pregnant right away is by taking a home pregnancy test according to its instructions. Waiting can be difficult, but you can usually take a test three to four days before a missed period though youre more likely to get a false negative if you test too soon. If its negative, wait a couple more days and test again if Aunt Flo doesnt come to visit.
Be sure to test first thing in the morning, when your urine and the hormone that the test is measuring are most concentrated. If you see a line indicating a pregnancy, youre almost certainly pregnant . Pregnancy tests with false positives are rare.
Are All Home Pregnancy Testing Methods The Same
Most brands of at-home pregnancy tests are reliable. Although the exact testing method of different pregnancy tests can differ from one type to the other, they all look for hCG in your body. Some tests might do this through urine while others look for the pregnancy hormone in your blood. If youre using an at-home test, most will give you the same result. The difference with your at-home tests will be the sensitivity of the test. Some might be more sensitive than others and produce a positive result detect hCG in your urine sooner than others. For the most accurate reading, its still recommended that you wait till youve missed your period. At that point, all tests should be accurate.
Youre Regularly Becoming Nauseous
We arenât talking about that nasty feeling you get after a greasy meal but chronic bloating and/or a recurring upset stomach. Nausea during pregnancy, often referred to as âmorning sickness,â usually starts around a month after you become pregnant. You may also develop intense desires for particular kinds of foods or suddenly become averse to foods youâve historically enjoyed. This nausea may or may not involve vomiting, so itâs important to note both kinds. If youâve been sick to your stomach for several days or nights and you arenât sick, pregnancy could be the reason.
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How Pregnancy Tests Work
Think you might be pregnant?
Even with the most effective birth control methods, theres always a chance for error. After all, it takes just one sperm to fertilize the egg. Finding out whether or not thats happened is as easy as taking an over-the-counter pregnancy test.
OTC pregnancy tests typically test your urine for a hormone called human chorionic gonadotropin . HCG is only present if youre pregnant. The hormone is only released if a fertilized egg attaches outside the uterus or to your uterine lining.
There are different ways to collect your urine for the test. Depending on the test you choose, you may have to:
- collect your urine in a cup and dip a testing stick into the liquid
- collect your urine in a cup and use an eyedropper to move a small amount of fluid into a special container
- place the testing stick into the area of your expected urine stream so that it will catch your urine midstream
According to Cleveland Clinic, most tests are 99 percent effective if taken after a missed period. The best part is that you can do it in the privacy of your own home. Simply open the test, follow the instructions, and wait for the recommended amount of time to view the results.
After the recommended waiting time has passed, the tests will display your results in one of the following ways:
- a change in color
Taking A Pregnancy Test
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Can You Feel Pregnant Before You Miss Your Period
Yes, you can feel pregnant before you miss your period. Some people say theyve felt pregnancy symptoms within a week of conception .
Could I have the symptoms of early pregnancy and not be pregnant?
Many of the symptoms of early pregnancy overlap with other medical conditions, as well as your typical menstrual cycle. Premenstrual symptoms can be very similar to pregnancy symptoms. This can make it difficult to tell the difference. You can also miss a period and not be pregnant. This can happen when you lose or gain a lot of weight or are stressed. Breastfeeding can also cause your period to stop.
The best way to know youre pregnant is to take a pregnancy test. Pregnancy tests are available at your local pharmacy or grocery store without a prescription.
Avoiding Stress Reduction Techniques
If youre pregnant, you know how stressful it is to cope with all of the changes and the looming due date. Its important to find ways to reduce your stress during pregnancy to have a healthier pregnancy and baby. Here are some helpful techniques. Practice relaxation exercises once or twice a day for at least 20 minutes.
First, get more sleep! Sleep helps you replenish neurotransmitters, which become depleted during the day. Staying awake when youre tired depletes your parasympathetic nervous system, which deals with stress. Getting enough sleep will allow your body to repair its damaged nerves and restore your energy levels.
Stress reduction techniques are effective ways to relieve stress and manage sleep during pregnancy. Try to identify your personal and work-related stressors. By reducing these sources, you can help yourself and the baby cope with pregnancy insomnia. If youre pregnant, you can use these techniques as part of your daily routine.
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Other Reasons For Missing Your Period
Here are some possible reasons for missing your period but having negative pregnancy tests:
- Starting a new birth control method
- Hormone imbalance
If you suspect one of these reasons may be disrupting your normal menstrual cycle, and you have a negative pregnancy, test then you should speak to a health professional.
What Fertility Treatments Are Available For People With Pcos
The good news is that many people with PCOS are able to get pregnant with lifestyle modifications, medications or fertility treatments.
Some people improve their odds of pregnancy by losing weight and the weight loss often doesnt need to be huge. Losing only about 5-10% of their body weight can restore normal ovulatory patterns, improving the chance of conception without any medical intervention, Mitchell said.
However, a catch with this is that its often extremely challenging for people with PCOS to lose weight. The condition can sometimes even lead to weight gain.
Metformin, a Type 2 diabetes drug that sensitizes the body to insulin, can also be effective in regulating the menstrual cycles of people with PCOS.
In addition, there are drugs that induce ovulation. The two most commonly used are Clomid and Femara . The medication is taken for five consecutive days at the beginning of your cycle, and then your doctor will do an ultrasound to see if your body is responding to treatment by preparing an egg for ovulation.
This ultrasound can also determine if the medication has worked too well. Its important to make sure you will not ovulate too many eggs if you have an overly robust response, which could increase the risk of twins, Sekhon said.
Your doctor may also prescribe an injection of HCG to trigger your ovary to release the egg. This can help you more precisely time intercourse or insemination.
Some people with PCOS use IVF medications to help get pregnant.
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Fertility Drug Side Effects
If you are working with a doctor to improve your chances of conceiving, it’s important to know that fertility drug side effects can sometimes be mistaken for early pregnancy symptoms. Progesterone supplements can cause nausea and a frequent urination. Controlled ovarian hyperstimulation treatments like oral clomiphine citrate drugs or injectable gonadotropin may lead to moodiness, sore breasts, and bloating.
Be sure to keep in close touch with your fertility specialist to understand all possible side effects of any medications you are taking. This is a good idea to not only ensure you are in good health throughout treatments, but to also help temper expectations month to month.
What Is A Multiple Pregnancy
A multiple pregnancy is a pregnancy where youre carrying more than one baby at a time. If youre carrying two babies, they are called twins. Three babies that are carried during one pregnancy are called triplets. You can also carry more than three babies at one time . There are typically more risks linked to a multiple pregnancy than a singleton pregnancy.
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Principle Of Pregnancy Test
When a woman conceives, that is, when the embryo attaches itself to the uterine wall, the placenta forms and it starts producing the hormone, human chorionic gonadotropin , which enters the bloodstream and urine. The test uses antibodies to detect hCG in the urine.
You may wonder when to take a pregnancy test? Well, during the first few weeks of the pregnancy, the concentration of the hormone increases quickly and doubles every two to three days. It generally is harder to detect when you take the test at the early stages of your pregnancy. So, it is advised to take the test one day after a missed period.
If the test says that you are not pregnant, you must keep in mind that every woman menstruates at different times in a month. In case you have an irregular menstruation cycle, then there are chances that you have miscalculated the period due date. For this reason, you may get incorrect test results.
| hCG Level |
| Likely 7 to 8 weeks pregnant |
Anything under 5 mIU/ml is considered an indicator of a negative result for pregnancyAnything between 6 mIU/ml and 24 mIU/ml is considered an unsure result for pregnancyAnything over 25 mIU/ml is generally considered a positive result for pregnancy
When Should You Take A Pregnancy Test
Its usually recommended that you take a pregnancy test after youve missed your period. This is because pregnancy tests measure the level of human chorionic gonadotrophin in your body, which is a hormone that starts to build up when you conceive. It can take around three to four weeks from the first day of your last period for there to be enough hCG in your body to show up on a test.
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Can You Feel Conception
Not usually. You may notice signs that you’ve ovulated, such as changes in your cervical mucus or basal body temperature. However, most people don’t feel fertilization. You may feel a dull ache or experience light spotting several days after conception. This could be from the fertilized egg implanting in your uterus.
When do you start feeling pregnant?
How long it takes to feel pregnant varies. Some people may start to feel pregnant shortly after conception, while others dont have any pregnancy symptoms for weeks after a positive test.
Take a home pregnancy test if you have any of the above symptoms and think theres a chance youre pregnant. Your healthcare provider can order a blood test to confirm pregnancy.
The Mums Who Didnt Know
If youre feeling a bit out of touch with your mothers intuition hearing those stories, fret not!
Loads of our mums were totally clueless about the fact they were pregnant until the test confirmed it.
Like PinkToothbrush who says: 1st time round I had no idea. I didnt really feel pregnant until the bump started to appear
And gazsgirl reveals: Nope, I had no clue at all, was suffering all the usual signs and felt just as I do before arrives.
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Efficacy Home Pregnancy Test
Most of the natural home pregnancy tests do not have any scientifically tested efficacy. In many instances, some of the common home pregnancy tests may give accurate results simply by coincidence. However, some of the natural home pregnancy test methods given below have been proven to be more effective than others. While it is always recommended to get a clinically approved pregnancy test kit that you can use easily at home, you can always try these natural methods to get quick results without having to rush to the pharmacy.
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I Have To Go To The Toilet More Often Is That A Sign
Oh yes, dashing to the loo more than often can be early sign that youre pregnant. During pregnancy your body increases the amount of blood it pumps around the body. That means the kidneys process more fluid than usual which leads to more fluid in your bladder . For more information on early pregnancy signs and symptoms.
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Can I Get Pregnant Again After An Ectopic Pregnancy
Most women who have had an ectopic pregnancy can go on to have future successful pregnancies. There is a higher risk of having future ectopic pregnancies after you have had one. Its important to talk to your healthcare provider about the causes of your ectopic pregnancy and what risk factors you may have that could cause a future ectopic pregnancy.
Light Bleeding Or Spotting
Implantation bleeding is the light vaginal bleeding that typically occurs about 10 to 14 days after conception. It shouldnt cause anything more than mild spotting, which you may notice in your underwear. Implantation bleeding can also be accompanied by mild cramps that resemble the cramps of menstruation.
If the bleeding is heavy or if the cramping is severe, contact a health care provider for advice.
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Early Signs Of Pregnancy Before A Missed Period
While pregnancy tests and your practitioner can offer definitive answers, these early pregnancy symptoms may be clues that you’re expecting.
Keep in mind, just because youve experienced some of these symptoms doesnt mean youre pregnant. You could also have none of them at all and still go on to have a perfectly healthy pregnancy.
Although every woman is different, these early symptoms can first appear before you even miss your period.
What Not To Say To Someone Who’s Pregnant & Disabled
It goes without saying that pregnancy can come with all sorts of unexpected changes and challenges, but for people with disabilities and/or chronic health concerns, those experiences can be understandably heightened.
No two pregnancies are alike, but there’s an added layer of stigma, misconception, and misunderstanding when it comes to pregnant people who are also chronically ill and/or disabled whether from healthcare providers who don’t offer adequate support or from those around them who ask invasive or inappropriate questions about their bodies or health.
It’s an experience that Mallory Weggemann knows all too well. Weggemann, a Paralympian gold medal swimmer, speaker, , and business owner, is currently expecting her first child as she prepares to compete at the Para Swimming National Championships in December.
After detailing her experience with in vitro fertilization , the 33-year-old tells Scary Mommy that her journey to parenthood with her husband Jay has been “filled with blessings and heartache,” sharing that their experiences with infertility and disability have offered them a different perspective than many couples embarking on parenthood.
The Misconceptions Around Pregnancy and Disability
She attributes frequent comments like “Oh, I am so sorry you won’t be able to have children” to people making “assumptions solely based on the fact that I am a wheelchair user.”
What Not To Say To Someone Who’s Pregnant and Disabled
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How Long Should I Wait Before Becoming Pregnant Again After An Ectopic Pregnancy
You should talk to your healthcare provider about future pregnancies after being treated for an ectopic pregnancy. Although pregnancy may happen quickly after treatment, its often best to wait about three months. This allows your fallopian tube time to heal and decreases the risk of another ectopic pregnancy.
How Do I Know If Im At Risk Of An Ectopic Pregnancy
There are several risk factors that could increase your chance of developing an ectopic pregnancy. A risk factor is a trait or behavior that increases your chance for developing a disease or condition. You may be at a higher risk of developing an ectopic pregnancy if youve had:
- A previous ectopic pregnancy.
- A history of pelvic inflammatory disease , an infection that can cause scar tissue to form in your fallopian tubes, uterus, ovaries and cervix.
- Surgery on your fallopian tubes or on the other organs of your pelvic area.
- A history of infertility.
- An intrauterine device , a form of birth control, in place at the time of conception.
- A history of smoking.
Your risk can also increase as you get older. Women over age 35 are more at risk than younger women.
Many women who experience an ectopic pregnancy dont have any of the above risk factors.
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