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One of the most important things to know if you are confused about when you should take a home pregnancy test is that you are more likely to get a negative result if it’s done too early.
How Does a Pregnancy Test Work?
Before going further, it will be helpful for you to understand how a pregnancy test works in order to know when to take one.
Pregnancy tests are made to detect human chorionic gonadotropin or the hCG hormone in the urine or blood. This is a pregnancy hormone that’s produced once a fertilized egg is attached to the uterus wall, usually starting around six days after the egg fertilization.
The hCG levels will continue to increase rapidly if you are pregnant, doubling every two to three days.
It is important to mention that there are some tests that are able to detect hyperglycosylated hCG or H-hCG, a variation of the hCG hormone.
The regular hCG is only produced after an embryo is implanted in the endometrium, while H-hCG is released earlier at some point right after fertilization.
When Should You Take a Home Pregnancy Test
You can get the most accurate result if you wait at least one week after missing your period. In addition, the result might be even more accurate if the test is done first in the morning as the urine is far more concentrated at this time. The urine-based home pregnancy tests offer about 97% accuracy.
This accuracy will depend on several factors such as how early the test is taken, if the instructions were followed closely, when ovulation occurred in the cycle, how early implantation takes place, and how sensitive the test is.
It is always best to take a pregnancy test after a late period to avoid false positive or false negative results.
If you have irregular cycles or you are not charting your cycles, it might best to take the test after passing the longest menstrual cycle.
For example, if your cycles are in the range of 30 to 36 days, it would be best to take the test at around 37 days after your last period or later.
Another thing to know is that you should not take the pregnancy test if you are using some fertility medication. An early test can detect the remnants of the medication [1].
How Soon After Sex Can You Take a Pregnancy Test?
Many women take a pregnancy test right after they have sex. This is actually a huge mistake because, as mentioned above, the levels of hCG in the body can be detected several days after the fertilized egg has been implanted in the uterus.
By taking the pregnancy test too early, it can result in a false-negative result and make you believe that you’re not pregnant.
So when is the right time to take a pregnancy test after having unprotected sex? According to experts, you can take the test 10 to 14 days after having intercourse since, during this time, the hCG levels in your body are already high enough to be detected.
Many home pregnancy test kits will include this fact in their instructions to ensure that users will get accurate results.
However, this 10-to-14 day time frame is only the minimum. If you’re not in a hurry, it’s advisable to wait for a longer time before you take a home pregnancy test.
Many experts recommend that you take the test 21 days after having unprotected sex for more accurate results [2].
This might seem like a long time to wait, particularly if you’re eager to get pregnant and want to know if you’ve conceived ASAP. But it’s important to note that conception doesn’t always happen right after you have sex.
Remember: sperm can live inside your body for up to five days, which means that fertilization can take place up to five days after you had intercourse. So, if you have sex a few days before ovulation, it can be difficult to pinpoint exactly when you conceived.
If the actual conception happened a few days after you had sex, but you decide to take a pregnancy test exactly 10 days after your intercourse, your body might not yet have produced enough hCG levels for the test to detect.
This might mean that you’ll get a negative result — even though fertilization did happen and your egg has implanted (or is about to implant) in your uterus.
So, to get accurate results, it’s best to wait for three weeks after having intercourse before you use a pregnancy test kit.
This is also the reason why you shouldn’t hesitate to take another pregnancy test even if you’ve already taken one.
If you get a negative result but genuinely believe that you are pregnant, take another pregnancy test around a week after you took the initial test.
By this time, fertilization and implantation might have already taken place, which means that the hCG levels are high enough for you to get an accurate reading.
If you get a negative pregnancy test few days after positive urine pregnancy test, you may have experienced a phenomenon called Chemical Pregnancy that accounts of 50-75% of all miscarriages. [3]
If you can’t wait for three weeks, you can visit your doctor and ask for a blood pregnancy test.
This test detects pregnancy earlier than urine-based home pregnancy tests since hCG appears earlier in the mother’s blood than in her urine.
You can take the blood pregnancy test at least eight days after you had unprotected sex [4] although, just like with home pregnancy tests, you can get more accurate results if you wait a few days longer after having intercourse.
Blood tests can detect pregnancies earlier than urine test because these tests can detect hCG levels as low as 1 mIU/mL, while urine test strips have published detection thresholds of 10 mIU/mL to 100 mIU/mL, depending on the brand. [5]
How Should You Take a Home Pregnancy Test?
Now that you have an idea as to when you should take a home pregnancy test, you need to know how to use it.
The home pregnancy tests are easy and quick to use. Once the instructions are followed carefully you will get accurate results.
They are all made to work in the same way. You’d use one of these ways to test your urine:
- Collect some urine inside a cup and then use a dropper to place it in another container.
- Collect some urine inside a cup and dip the pregnancy test stick in it.
- Hold the pregnancy test stick under your urine stream.
For all of these techniques, you’ll have to wait several minutes to see the results. The results can show as a color, line or symbol. Some digital tests will say not pregnant or pregnant.
What is The Meaning of the Pregnancy Test Results?
When you do the test and the result is positive, this means you are pregnant. Bear in mind that this will be the case, regardless of the faintness of the color, line or sign.
It would be a good idea to contact your doctor in order to know what will come next if you get a positive result.
A negative result will mean that you are not pregnant. Nevertheless, you could still be pregnant in cases where the test is taken incorrectly, the test stick is expired, the test is done too soon, you are using certain medications like antihistamines or diuretics, and large amounts of liquid is consumed immediately before the test (which dilutes the urine).
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You could try retesting about one week after getting a negative result to get a more solid confirmation. There are some home-based pregnancy tests that will suggest this no matter the results.
Although this only happens in rare cases, a pregnancy test can give a false-positive. This means the test is saying you are pregnant, but you are not.
You could get this result if your urine contains protein or blood and if you are using certain drugs such as anti-convulsants or tranquilizers.
When you are ready to take a home pregnancy test, you can buy it without a prescription at the drugstore, or online on Amazon.
Be sure to contact your doctor if you have questions pertaining to the pregnancy test or results.
References
- https://www.verywellfamily.com/can-my-medicine-effect-my-pregnancy-test-results-2759855
- https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/ureport/story/2001287100/how-soon-after-having-sex-you-can-take-a-pregnancy-test-and-how-accurate-the-results-will-be
- Chemical pregnancy facts: https://www.healthline.com/health/pregnancy/chemical-pregnancy
- https://www.babymed.com/normal-hcg-blood-level-by-week-during-pregnancy
- Waddell, Rebecca Smith (2006). “FertilityPlus.org”. Home Pregnancy Test hCG Levels and FAQ. Archived from the original on 2006-06-15. Retrieved 2006-06-17.
I last saw my period 18 of November and it was in drops , sometimes its there and sometimes , its not there but in drops, and today is 28th December, no any sign. Am late by 10days no sign of pregnancy what could be the problem
Hello Ayia, if you are 10 days late it is a good time to take a pregnancy test with or without signs of pregnancy.
I’m officially 11 days late last period was November 9- November 14 on December 14 I took a pregnancy text & it came back negative I’m currently unsure on what to do next I made a doctors appointment but that won’t be until February…. should I retest
Hello Nortaisha, thankfully your doctor will be able to do a blood test to determine if you are pregnant or not and other tests if further assessment is needed.
Hi this is my 36th day since my lnmp,pregnancy test negative. I have used some ecp for a week somewhere within these days and I have currently started feeling lower back pain, stomach cramps, breast tenderness which lasted for one day.over and above I experience cervical and uterine pain during sex this time, could be that it implantation or I am bout to see my periods? No changes in appetite no nausea no vomiting. What could it possibly be?
Hello Aud, until something actually happens we will not know. You can wait on just to see if your period will return. If not, take a pregnancy test 7 days after you’ve missed it.
Hey there, so I haven’t been taking birth control for over a year now To get my cycle back up to normal for when I was ready to conceive. My last period started on October 27th 2017 and ended on October 31st 2017. Then my period was due between November 26-29th and now I am 8-11 days late (i track my cycles with a period tracker called Flo) I did take a pregnancy test on December 1st which came out negative. I am not having any symptoms of pregnancy other than I noticed I have a heighten sense of smell as well as I am constantly eating chocolate, like all day every day I cannot get enough which is super unlike me as I never eat chocolate. I have been have little tiny streaks of blood on toilet paper when I wipe after I pee. Could this be due to being pregnant? I am freaking out because this has come on so quickly and I hope this is a Christmas miracle!
Another thing that might help is that some times my cycle is 28 days and the longest it has been was 36 days and based on everything I am on day 41 now.
Hello Alexandra, it is a good time to retest for pregnancy if negative ans your period has not returned then see your doctor.
Hey i had my period October 16 but lasted 3 days and i was supported to start my next November 12 but i am 6 days late! What do i do?
Hello Trish Sandlin, please take a pregnancy 7 days after your missed period to determine if you might be pregnant.
Hi, I was expecting my period to come at the end of October the 26th 17. But No, so on the 1st of November I get brown discharge till the 3rd and then the 4th I bled a little and it was only when I wiped. And then gone. And my periods last 5-6 days and this is the first I have ever experienced this. I’m always regular on my periods. And today 11-13-17. Still no period and to scared to do a HPT due to the fact I’m scared for a Negative response. But I do have a Dr apt 11-17-17 so yeah just hoping for a miracle! But what do you ladies think??? Anyone in the same boat??
Hi there Jerry, take a pregnancy test 7 days after your missed period.
Thanks 😊
hi! I had sore and heavier breasts for 7 days after having a lighter period last month which lasted for 6 days. 14 days after the last day of my period I took a PT and it came back negative. My problem is that I still feel nausea and sharp pain on both sides of my pelvic and creamy white discharge .could I still be pregnant?
Hi there Welly, take a pregnancy test 7 days after your missed period.
I was in my fertile window from October 31 through our November 6. FROM 3 No on , we’ve I’ve had unprotected intentional sex; twice a day.. My nipples are the most sensitive , I am cramping here last (2 days) ,last night woke up feeling nauseated . I also have a metallic taste in my mouth. Is it possible to be experiencing very early pregnancy systems.
My actual cycle is on 19Nov and is always on time.
The Last two days, by 831pm,; I feel like someone has pulled the plug and I pass out tired and I wake up at 1220am .
Hello CAM OOC, take a pregnancy test 7 days after your missed period.
I missed my period for 13days and have negative result. I do not have any brown discharge whereby i have milky discharge for past 2-3 days. Could i be pregnant? i have a cycle of 45days which i am a PCOS.
Hi there Rachael, this might be as a result of PCOS, some information from the link below should be useful to you: https://womanjunction.com/pcos-polycystic-ovarian-syndrome-affect-pregnancy/
Hi, so I had unprotected sex on sep 24 and 3 days got my period ( sep28 -oct2) Then again on oct 26 but it was weird because I spotted 1 day and had 2 regular days and spotted again. But I’m regular but idk why this happen! But I’ve noticed after my recent period my boobs started to hurt more and I’m getting blue veins around my nipples and I’m constantly dizzy ,nauseous, but I gotten negative results so can someone give me advice Lol
Hello Michelle, these symptoms might be unrelated, however, take a pregnancy test 7 days after a missed period to determine if you might be pregnant.
I had sex on the 31st of October and its only been 5 days but food that I used to eat, makes me sick and nauseous. I’m cramping, ligheaded and get overly hot out of nowhere. My breast don’t hurt but my nipples hurt bad for a day, there’s no spotting. Yesterday I had thick white mucus come out of my vagina and earlier I had a liquid white discharge come out. My period is supposed to come the 17th of November. Could I be pregnant?
Hello Mani, test for pregnancy 7 days after a missed period. All the best!
Hi I had unprotected sex. I took the test and it came out to be negative, but still my periods has not come its already been 3 days late. I had brown discharge. What does this mean?
Hello Poo, retest for pregnancy 7 days after missed period.
my period came on on the 30 of September but it did not come on in October should I wait a little long to see what is going on??
Hello Camesha, take a pregnancy test 7 days after a missed period.
I was on depo for 3 yrs and my last shot was on March 26 and I got my period on June 2017 and on 21 Sep I have my period and on the last week of October I had unprotected sex until on 6 and on 09 I get an early period and on my date of which is 21 October I don’t get my period,on 01 Nov I take a home pregnant test and it says negative may I be still pregnant?
Hello Thembeka, take a pregnancy test 7 days after a missed period.
Am 19 years,.had sex a day after my period stopped and took postinor 2 two days later,. How precisely can pregnancy occur?
Hello Faith, pregnancy is unlikely to happen a day after your period.
Hi. Im 12 days late after my period . I flew overseas and arrived back a week ago. Took a preg test when i was 6 days late and it came out negative. I have brownish jelly discharge. Whats going on with me?
Hi there Ruthy, please re-take pregnancy test.