Here is some helpful information and links about pregnancy tests.
- Many sources suggest you don't bother with the "early" pregnancy tests (i.e. "Find Out Five Days Before a Missed Period"). Now, why in the world would you want to wait any longer than absolutely necessary?! Well, because if testing five days before a missed period, you might catch evidence of a chemical pregnancy or one that would have ended right around your period anyway. Who needs that kind of stress and disappointment unless you are trying to prove to yourself that you can get pregnant at all.
- Check out this chart - if you test prior to a period and come up positive, there is a 1 in 3 chance of you not being "positive" for long.
- According to the American Pregnancy Association: "Chemical pregnancies may account for 50-75% of all miscarriages. This occurs when a pregnancy is lost shortly after implantation, resulting in bleeding that occurs around the time of her expected period. The woman may not realize that she conceived when she experiences a chemical pregnancy." So, in my opinion, sometimes maybe ignorance is bliss!
- Different brands of pregnancy test register at different levels of HcG - so, it's completely possible to have one result "Positive" and one that says "Negative" all in the same day if you are mixing brands. In the beginning of our journey, I wanted the most sensitive tests. But after my first miscarriage, I went for the least sensitive so I could be sure I was "more" pregnant and further along!
- Here's a great link that lists almost any pregnancy test brand you could think of and the corresponding level of HcG it registers.
- http://www.fertilityplus.com/faq/hpt.html
- Digital tests are usually less sensitive than the regular double line tests.
- Over-hydrating yourself before testing is the best way to come up with a BFN (Big Fat Negative)! The pregnancy tests are testing for HcG levels which have a way lower concentration in your urine during the early stages of a pregnancy (this is why doctor's will often check your blood to confirm that a pregnancy is progressing properly). This is why most of the information you see will say to test first thing in the morning - because that is when the HcG is most concentrated in your "first" urine of the day. If you get a positive in the morning and then drink a gallon of water like I did the first time I saw a positive, it's highly likely your next test will be negative. This doesn't mean you aren't pregnant.
- False Negatives are more common than False Positives. Yes, "bad tests" happen and/or it's surprisingly easier to screw up "peeing-on-stick" than you might think. But, it is far more likely that a test would miss low levels of HcG in your system than it would be to suggest there are levels when there are not. If you have one positive pregnancy test, it's much more likely that you are actually pregnant in some degree (chemical or otherwise) than if you test negative and assume you are not. Either way, keep testing - and put down that martini!
- Many experts suggest waiting one, even two weeks PAST a missed period to actually test as this is the time that "99% accurate" promise on the little pink box actually kicks in. I'm sure you aren't going to do that. But even if you test early, you will still want to retest a week or two later to know with more confidence either way. And who knows - within that two weeks, you might just get your period. Remember when Carrie Bradshaw was a week late and then got her period walking home at the end up the episode. Exactly. And so begins, that miserable "Waiting Game" that I talked about earlier.
- If the waiting gets the best of you, you can always go see the doctor and get a quick blood test to confirm either way. But don't be fooled - you will still have to wait! One HcG reading from your blood will confirm if you're pregnant or not, however, the doctor will then want to test again in a couple of days to ensure the levels are rising appropriately. But even that is up for interpretation as all pregnancies are different and thus, while "averages" can be provided, they are by no means definitive. If you don't like needles, try to wait it out on your own until you have more concrete evidence via the pee sticks.
- Here's a great link to more info and a chart for HcG levels in pregnancy from the American Pregnancy Association.
- And here's another take on the topic from WhatToExpect.com
- As you'll see... there is no "perfect science" in the science of HcG levels.
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