37. Early Signs and Symptoms of Pregnancy and When to Take a Pregnancy Test

Have you found yourself staring at a pregnancy test, wondering about the right time to take it and what those results really mean? You’re definitely not alone! 

What to Expect in This Episode:

• Learn about the most accurate time to take a pregnancy test and why you don’t have to wait to miss your period…
• Discover budget-friendly and reliable pregnancy test options – ditch the pricey digital tests…
• Understand what to do when you see that positive line, yay! – and decrease your chances of a false positive…
• Explore the subtle signals your body might send in the early days of pregnancy…
• … and gain insights into the often misunderstood but normal occurrence of implantation bleeding.

I hope this episode provides you with some helpful information and a sense of comfort during what can be a stressful, confusing time of conception.

This is the very beginning of my own third pregnancy journey that I will be sharing related information about each week, and I’d love for you to join me!

Products mentioned: Pregmate pregnancy tests

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Instagram: @bethconnors_cnm

Website: www.bethconnors.com

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Email: hello@bethconnors.com

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Transcript

Hello and welcome back! Today we are talking about pregnancy tests, the earliest you can take one, the most accurate time you can take one, what time of day is best, what kind of pregnancy test I recommend using and then we’ll talk about the first signs of pregnancy including information about implantation bleeding and what that means. And the reason why I am talking about pregnancy tests, is because this is the very start of what is going to be the journey through pregnancy literally from the moment you find out you’re pregnant to labor, birth, and beyond. I found out a few weeks ago, actually on Halloween, that I am pregnant with my third baby. My first daughter is almost 4 and my second daughter is 18 months. Baby number 3 is due in July, so I am excited to be on this third pregnancy journey and share everything with you. So if you are new here, thank you so much for joining me. Maybe you’re even newly expecting too and can tag along! I would love to have you, so don’t forget to follow the show to get new episodes every Tuesday and check out my Instagram page @bethconnors_cnm for daily tips and updates! Okay, let’s get started with a few of the most asked questions about pregnancy tests.

So the first question is when should you take a pregnancy test?

And this can be a straightforward question to begin and we’ll get into more details, but waiting until the day of your next expected period would be the most accurate time to test across the board. But some women are actively trying to get pregnant on a particular month and eagerly awaiting to know if they are pregnant so want to test as soon as it’s possible to get that ever so slight positive line. I’ve been there I get it, it’s hard to wait! So for the most accurate results, waiting until the first day of your next anticipated period is what’s recommended, but doesn’t mean you won’t get a positive pregnancy test before then.

If you’ve been tracking your ovulation, like we talked about in the last episode, testing as early as 8 days past ovulation is an option. For the truly committed, daily tests, or even every 12 hours, might be something you’re interested in doing to catch that positive line as soon as possible. But this isn’t the best method for everyone either, because I can understand the heartache of negative tests from past cycles of trying and wanting to limit the negative test results and only taking a test when the result will be accurate. Because yes, testing too early can be a reason for a false negative, there just might not be enough HCG hormone that the test can pick up on to give you a dark enough line to see. 

I also want to mention that timing of the test, like morning or night, can make a difference if the test is accurate or not, especially in those earlier days past ovulation. The morning is the best time to test because urine is more concentrated at that time, increasing the chance of an accurate result. So a negative test at night doesn’t necessarily mean you’re not pregnant, I would just try again in the morning the next day. Eventually though as the HCG hormone that the pregnancy tests are testing for, like around the time you miss your period, the test should be accurate morning or night in most cases because there is enough hormone by then.

If you’re wondering too, what brand of test to buy, I can assure you that you don’t need those expensive digital tests that say “pregnant” on the screen, unless of course you want to. The dollar store tests or the brand I like to use is called Pregmate you can get I think 25 tests for around $10. I’ll link them in the show notes as well. They have ovulation tests and pregnancy tests and a pack where you get some of both, so really easy and affordable.

Okay, so the next thing I want to talk about is something that I see a lot of on pregnancy facebook groups, is women posting their pregnancy test results and asking if it’s positive or if they should test again, or really just hesitant about the results for whatever reason. So here’s what you can do when you do get a positive prengancy test. 

You can either take more tests for reassurance, that’s something I would do! And I’d be curious to know if you’re a one-and-done tester, a cautious two-to-three tester, or someone who is excited or still in shock and tests for several days after? It really only takes one positive test to know of course, but if I have the tests in front of me I’m going to be extra sure they all have the same result, I don’t know about you… but no judgement here! 

And then of course if you get a slightly positive line and are asking other people if they see it too, there is a very slight change that you would get a false positive result, like less than 1%,  and this is where the test is showing two lines but you’re not actually pregnant. The most common reason for this is that you’re actually seeing an evaporation line after the recommended amount of time has passed where you’re supposed to read the test and throw it away. So it’s a simple error and can lead to misleading results. Usually the time frame is about 3-5 minutes, so be sure to read the test based on the instructions and then if it’s negative throw it away. Don’t let it sit there for a half hour and go back to check on it because you could get a false reading and drive yourself crazy with confusing results.

Okay, the next topic is about early signs of pregnancy to look out for. The most common ones are mild cramping, fatigue, nausea, sore breasts, bloating, frequent need to pee, mood swings, like extra irritable or emotional, and then spotting as well which I want to explain more about here too. I often get questions from worried moms about spotting when trying to conceive so I want to explain what is commonly happening in about 25% of pregnant moms, and that is something called implantation bleeding. So I’ll explain what are the signs of implantation? What is implantation bleeding? What does it feel like? How long will it last? And how is it different than a period or how do you tell the difference really?

So implantation usually happens around 6-12 days after fertilization or ovulation, occurring around the same time, when the fertilized egg attaches itself to the lining of the uterus. Some women can feel when this happens to them others have no idea because they don’t feel a thing or notice anything different with their bodies. Signs of implantation happening can include light bleeding, cramping, nausea, bloating, sore breasts, headaches, and mood swings. Again, this is very, very early in pregnancy so these symptoms don’t happen to every woman.

For me, this time around I had pretty significant, I don’t want to say severe but kind of startling lower abdominal cramps for about 3 or 4 days that I hadn’t experienced before. And that was right around the time I would have expected implantation to happen so I was hopeful that it was going to stick, but of course you don’t know. I also was having some lower back problems for a week or two before that, so was like maybe the lower back pain is radiating into my groin and lower belly, so I wasn’t totally convinced but I was suspicious. And then the mood swings came and for me that was just being really really emotional around a video or a thought that popped in my head, or I teach nursing students at a local hospital for their clinical hours on Tuesday nights and my husband does bedtime that night and that hit me hard out of nowhere like just super mom guilt. So again I was suspicious. But also kinda just thought I was crazy. 

Buy anyways, I wanted to talk more about implantation bleeding too because any bleeding if you think you’re pregnant or are hoping to be pregnant can be really scary, but this kind of light spotting or discharge is completely normal and happens in about 20-30% of pregnant women. Implantation bleeding happens when the emryo is attaching to the uterine lining and embedding itself deeper, potentially causing light spotting. Some women may have mild cramping like if they were expecting their cycle to start and rule out pregnancy at this point, and then if they do have bleeding sometimes implantation bleeding can be mistaken foro a light period. But the bleeding itself is usually small, is light pink or brown in color, and lasts for a few hours to at most a 2-3 days. So overall, much less bleeding and for a shorter amount of time as compared to a regular period.

So I hoped that helped you understand more about pregnancy tests, early pregnancy symptoms, and that light bleeding in early pregnancy doesn’t always have to be scary. And actually I would hate for that to be something you worry over day and night for days or weeks if it really is just implantation bleeding! I love helping women become informed and confident in the process of pregnancy and the journey that follows and feel good about what they are going through every step of the way. So if you are newly pregnant or are hoping to be soon, I would love to hear from you on Instagram @bethconnors_cnm. Send me a DM with your due date or that you’re trying to conceive and I’d love to be on this journey with you and support you however I can. Thank you so much for tuning in today and I hope you’ll stick around for another episode next Tuesday. Bye everyone!