Mothers are a great blessing of nature, and if you are about to be one, it can be feeling on a whole other level. The most common ways to check if you’re pregnant are pregnancy test strips, which can be tricky sometimes, turning a whole excited feeling into confusion. If you’ve also got your pregnancy test negative while feeling otherwise, you would also be in a state of confusion and would be feeling stuck. Worry not; you can find answers to all of your questions here.
If you are pregnant and expecting twins, you may suffer from different phases like implantation bleeding etc; keep yourself ready to face.
If My Pregnancy Test Is Negative Today, Can It Be Positive Tomorrow?
The probability of the pregnancy test being accurate is about 90%, but if it is not done right, it can both be positive while you are not pregnant and can also be negative even if you are pregnant. It all depends upon the technique, like how you perform the test and especially the time when you get yourself tested. The most common way of checking the pregnancy is by pregnancy test strips, and these strips are time-dependent, meaning they can give you negative results one day and positive results the next day. It is all about how & when you use them.
Why Did My Pregnancy Test Change From Negative To Positive?
Usually, this is not the case, and the pregnancy tests are considered very accurate. Still, there can be multiple reasons for your pregnancy test to get positive after being negative the day before.
The most basic reason for this can be the insignificant quantity of HCG. HCG stands for Human Chorionic Gonadotropin. It is a hormone produced during pregnancy by the placenta to maintain the Pregnancy. Almost all the test strips check HCG’s presence in urine to give results. So, if you are checking the pregnancy test in your early days, you might not get the actual results.
Other factors include the tests incorrectly, taking the test when you were not pregnant, etc.
How Long Before A Negative Pregnancy Test Turns Positive?
The pregnancy tests usually use the HCG levels in urine as a standard to determine the results. Now a considerable level of HCG is reached after at least 6 to 10 days of conceiving.
So it totally depends upon the day you checked earlier. If you have found your pregnancy test negative but think it should have been positive by the end of the 2nd week, you can get your desired results within a few hours of recheck. And if the case is such that you found your pregnancy test negative just within the week of conceiving, then you might need to wait for sufficient levels of HCG in your body.
Why Am I Testing Negative But No Period?
There can be multiple reasons for if you have not yet gotten your periods by your due time this month and have also not gotten your pregnancy test positive. Although it is always important to consult with a specialist or a medical healthcare provider, but you can also look for some reasons by yourself. These include:
Low HCG Levels
The HCG levels increase gradually over a period of about 1 week to 2 weeks and attain their maximum level near about 5 weeks. So, if you check your pregnancy before that, you might not get a positive result.
You Might Have A Late Period
It is not always necessary that you might be pregnant. Instead, you can have a delayed period. This delayed period depends upon many factors like stress, nutrition, etc.
You Are Not Pregnant
Yes, if you have a hunch of being pregnant, it cannot always be true, and the best thing you can do is to recheck and wait for at least a whole week of your periods to pass before moving to any conclusion.
How Long Does It Take For HCG To Show Up In Urine?
The Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) starts to produce from about six to 10 days after conception, right after the implantation of the zygote to the uterine wall. It is produced by the placenta to maintain the pregnancy. The amount of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin is very scarce in urine at first and sometimes cannot make a test positive. Still, its levels start to rise gradually, and it is considerable enough after about 2 to 5 weeks of pregnancy that it can be detected in the pregnancy tests. Hence, this would be the perfect time for you to check your pregnancy.
Can Twins Cause Negative Pregnancy Tests?
Usually, having twins means more Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) levels in your body, and the test should also be positive. Still, sometimes having twins can cause a false negative pregnancy test. There are multiple reasons for this, some of which are given as follows:
High Levels of HCG
If you are pregnant with twins, the Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) levels would be considered very high than the normal single-baby delivery. This can prevent the antibodies from binding with the hormone during early pregnancy and may not get you a positive result while testing.
Low Levels of HCG
If you are expecting identical twins, they would be sharing a single placenta and a single amniotic sac. In this case, the placenta would have to produce more HCG. So, it can take time for Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) levels to be enough to be detected by pregnancy tests.
Medications
If you are taking any medications, especially diuretics or anti-convulsants, then there are a high chances that these might interfere with your levels of HCG and may disrupt the pregnancy test.
What Are The Best Pregnancy Tests?
There are a lot of pregnancy tests available in the market, and you can use any of them. You have to ensure that all of them are certified by the government health agency. In most of cases, all the strips available in the market are government certified and can be used for checking your pregnancy at home. Still, if you can’t trust the market pregnancy strips and tests, you can always go to the hospital for a proper pregnancy test, which your gynecologist or a health care provider does.
How To Properly Use A Pregnancy Test Strip At Home?
Checking your pregnancy by pregnancy strip is one of the most easy and most common methods, but still, a considerable number of women cannot get it right. All of the basic steps are given as follows:
- First of all, read the instructions carefully, and you have to follow all the steps written on it. Different brands can have different methods of performing the tests. For this, you have to read the instructions manual carefully.
- Gather all the things that are needed for performing tests. These include pregnancy test strips, a clear jar for collecting urine samples, tissues, and a timer.
- Then take the urine sample in the jar. It is best to check the pregnancy test from the very first urine of the day, as it is found to have the most levels of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) in the first urine of the day.
- Now carefully remove the pregnancy strip from its pack and dip it in the urine sample collected in the jar. Some strips require you to urinate directly on the strip, so keep in mind to read the instructions beforehand.
- After dipping the strip in the urine jar or keeping it under your urine stream, clear it with tissue paper and wait for the mentioned time. It can differ according to the company you are using for pregnancy strips.
- After the mentioned time has passed, observe the strip carefully, there can be strips of different colors or different numbers for the positive test, depending upon the manufacturer. Even if the line is faint, the test is still considered to be positive.
- Finally, discard the strip as advised on the box. In most cases, the strips can be disposed of in the normal waste bins.
It is advised not to keep the strips for more than the mentioned time in urine or under the direct urine stream. This can flood the strip and may cause false test results. You can test with more than one strip at a time for a safer and more accurate reading.
How Many Pregnancy Tests Should I Take?
If the pregnancy test is perfectly right and perfect on time, then there is no need to perform the test again and again. Only a single test would be enough. But if there are chances of any problems regarding the test or the time, then it is advised to use at least 2 different pregnancy test strips from different manufacturers. It can ensure the validity of the test.
FAQs
Why Do I Feel Pregnant But Test Negative?
It can be because the levels of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) are low in your blood or urine, and the pregnancy test cannot identify it yet. In such cases, you should wait for a few hours or days before taking the tests again. HCG levels increase and are easily noticeable by the pregnancy strips by the second or 3rd week after conception.
How Long Should I Wait To Take A Pregnancy Test After A Negative Result?
It actually depends on when you took your first test. The pregnancy strips conclude the results from HCG levels in your urine. These levels are considerable enough to be detected by a pregnancy strip by the end of 2nd week after conception. So, depending upon this, you should take your test again.
What Should I Do If I Took Two Pregnancy Tests And Got Different Results?
There can be multiple instances like that where there can be multiple results for different pregnancy tests. This can be caused by hormonal imbalance, faulty tests, low HCG levels, etc. In such a case, you should wait a few hours and retake your pregnancy test, but it is most suitable and advised to go to a hospital and get yourself checked by a professional medical healthcare worker.
What Do Faint Pregnancy Test Lines Mean?
Normal pregnancy tests use the presence of HCG in the urine to determine whether you are pregnant and show a line to confirm pregnancy. Similarly, if the levels of HCG are low, the line which will be produced will be faint, representing an early pregnancy.
Can 12 Hours Make A Difference In A Pregnancy Test?
If you are taking your pregnancy test again after about 2 weeks of conception, then yes, it can be possible that you might see a positive result after a gap of 12 hours. If you are in your first week after conception, then taking the test again after 12 hours would NOT affect your test.
Conclusion
Well, there is a very dire possibility that if a pregnancy test done today is negative, but it can be positive tomorrow. It all depends upon when the test was performed and how the test was performed. There can be a lot of factors causing the test to be negative at first but positive on the second attempt. These include incorrect use of the pregnancy strips, low levels of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG), etc. Hence it is always recommended to have a get yourself checked by a professional medical healthcare provider before reaching any conclusion.
