Early Pregnancy Symptoms & Faint Positive Tests: What to Do Next

Question
hi!my last period was 16thmarch,im not regular with mt cycles i was due around the 15th april.todays date 22nd april and still no period,we are trying for a baby,i ovulated on cycle day 13/14 and we did have sex everyday over the days i ovulated...i done a early pregnancy test a 10mu one around 7/8 days after ovulation and i had a faint postive,i done another one the next day it was negative,so around 6 days before i was due my period i done again early pregnancy 25mu...faint postive,so i done another one when my period was due got a negative with morning urine,2 days after my period was due i had again another faint postive with a clearblue pregnancy test!what is going on am i pregnant???i have no signs/just apart from urainting alot more and always wanting a drink...help me!!thank you amanda

Answer
Dear Amanda,

Home pregnancy are often inaccurate until pregnancies get to the point where the placenta is well-established and making the hCG. Although some tests claim accuracy on the first day of a missed period, I usually suggest that women wait until the week after a missed or spotty period before testing for pregnancy (usually 3 weeks after a potential conception). This tends to minimize the incidence of false negative results and also avoids wasting money on a test for a simple delay of a period by a few days. When/if you test make sure to use 1st morning urine to get a concentrated sample for the most accurate results.

I would suggest waiting another 5-7 days and testing again. If those results are negative, you can either wait for the next cycle to see if your periods resume or have your doctor's office do a quantitative blood pregnancy test (serum beta hCG). That test will give an actual amount of hCG in your bloodstream rather than just a positive/negative result. Any amount of 25 mIU/ml or more would be considered positive for pregnancy.

I hope this has helped you and answered your question. I wish you well.

Brenda