TTC And Overly Excited? Here's When To Take A Pregnancy Test

Are you trying to conceive and hoping to hold a positive pregnancy test in your hands as soon as possible? Though you're quite aware it may be months before you get pregnant, nothing is going to stop you from hoping that this month is the month you hit the baby jackpot. Chances are that the very fact you're actively trying to conceive means you know when you are ovulating. You may be on the constant lookout for very early pregnancy symptoms after your ovulation day has passed, but you ultimately know only a pregnancy test will give you a definite answer. 

Unless, that is, you take it too early. In that case, you might end up feeling unsure that your negative pregnancy test truly means you're not expecting, and you may well end up repeating the pregnancy test more than a few times. No matter where you buy your pregnancy tests, all that peeing on a stick is going to cost you more money than you need to spend.

Pregnancy Tests: The Basics

Yeah, yeah, you probably already know this. Just in case you don't, here are the basics of how pregnancy tests work. At-home pregnancy tests are all urine tests. They work by detecting human Chorionic Gonadotropin, hCG, in your urine. HCG is a hormone that is only produced during pregnancy, starting the moment that fertilized egg successfully implants in your uterus. That, on average, happens six days after conception. It can also take longer.

If you did get pregnant, your levels of hCG will continuously rise throughout the early period of pregnancy. This means that you may get a faint line on your pregnancy test early on, and a clearer line later. As hCG levels drop later on, though, you may get a negative pregnancy test if you test at eight weeks, despite being pregnant. 

Different Types Of Pregnancy Test

Right after the hormone hCG was discovered, scientists used — get ready for it! — aquatic frogs to determine whether or not a woman was pregnant. Xenopus, the African clawed frog, was quite well known for its ability to detect pregnancy. A scientist would inject a female xenopus' hind leg with some urine from a woman who wanted to find out whether or not she was expecting. If the frog ovulated, and frog eggs appeared in the aquarium, the test was positive. 

Blood tests can only be done at your doctor's office or a health clinic, for obvious reasons. They can detect pregnancy sooner after conception than urine tests: as quickly as six to eight days after ovulation. Because a lab technician will have to analyze the results, you have to wait longer before you know whether or not you are pregnant. In most cases, that means you may as well wait until you have the chance to do an at-home urine pregnancy test.  

See Also: Trying To Conceive - The Basics Every Couple Must Know

Urine tests detect hCG in a woman's urine. Some are more sensitive than others, so your mileage varies greatly. More about that on the next page. 

When Can You Take  A Home Pregnancy Test?

'Early' Vs 'Ordinary' Pregnancy Tests

At-home pregnancy tests have a lot going for them. They're private, convenient, and usually very accurate. Some tests are more sensitive than others, however, and those women who are looking for early but accurate results will generally want to opt to use those tests that are advertised as being aimed towards early results. Simply put, these tests are able to detect smaller amounts of hCG in your urine. They are going to be more expensive than the cheaper tests. Overall, they will be no more expensive than using "ordinary" pregnancy tests too early, as that is going to make inaccurate results very probable — meaning you are simply wasting your money. With sensitive pregnancy tests, it is possible to get accurate results between six and 10 days post-ovulation. 

Most women who are actively trying to conceive will have monitored their menstrual cycles to the point that they know how long their luteal phase tends to last, and they know when their periods are due. If your period does not start on the expected day or the they after that, go ahead and take a test. 

At what point of the day should you take your pregnancy test, then? Most tests used to advise women to use their early morning urine — the first pee of the day, in other words — for their pregnancy test. That is because the concentration of hCG in the urine is highest at this point in time. However, all but the very cheapest tests are going to work fine at any point of the day now. Remember that even a faint line means a positive result. Many non-digital tests work with two parallel lines. One line means the test worked, and two lines mean that you are pregnant. Some tests come up with a "+" or "-" symbol, while others show up in a certain color if you're pregnant. The digital tests will simply tell you that you are "pregnant" or "not pregnant". 

How To Take A Pregnancy Test

Urine pregnancy tests come in two basic forms. Cheaper tests are sometimes simply strips of paper with a reactive part. If you're using these tests, you collect your urine in a cup (sometimes but not always provided with the test package), and then dip the test strip in. You'd usually take the strip out again, and wait for the results.

Other tests come with plastic casing. These tests are what you'd usually find at your pharmacy. You can simply pee on the stick — mid-stream, many manufacturers say — remove the test and place it on the sink, or something, and wait for the results. These show up within a few minutes. 

See Also: Are You Pregnant? The Very First Pregnancy Symptoms

Are False Results Possible?

In short, yes. False results are indeed possible, but they are also very rare. False positives are much less common than false negatives. False positives — meaning the test shows you are pregnant when you're not — can be caused by protein in your urine or certain medications. False negatives, however, can be caused by taking the test too early, not taking the test correctly, or using an expired test.