Can You Be Pregnant While On Period

Can I Get Pregnant At Any Time During My Cycle

Can You Get Pregnant While On Your Period?

Yes, but its unlikely youll get pregnant just before or just after your period. You are most fertile when you ovulate, so this is when youre most likely to get pregnant. Understanding your cycle and knowing more about what is happening month during the month, can help you learn the best days to get pregnant.

Find out more about ovulation and fertility, including top tips for finding your fertility window. You can also use our ovulation calculator to find out more.

Factors That Change The Time You Ovulate

The sex hormones estrogen and progesterone largely determine the duration of a menstrual cycle. For example, over the course of a cycle, rising estrogen levels trigger ovulation and thicken the uterine lining so that you can potentially conceive and nurture a fertilized egg.

Slight changes in estrogen and progesterone levels can lead to changes in cycle duration and when you ovulate. These changes can come from factors like age, ethnicity, and body mass index.

Stress, illness, and other medical conditions can also affect when you ovulate, and alter the typical length of your cycle. “Even somebody with a 31-day cycle might have a shorter cycle than their average and have a slip-up,” Childson says.

Can You Get Pregnant Right After Your Period

Yes, it is possible to get pregnant right after a period if the fertile window starts immediately after menstruation ends. Sperm can live for up to five days inside the body. If bleeding stops on day six, sex happens on day seven, and ovulation occurs on day 11, the sperm from day six may still be in the uterine tubes. In this case, pregnancy is still possible. The likelihood of pregnancy after a period increases with every day after bleeding has stopped.

For people trying to conceive, this can be an ideal time to try. Having sex every day increases the chance of conception.

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Can A Pregnant Woman Have A Menstrual Period

No You cannot have a menstrual cycle when pregnant. During pregnancy, some women have vaginal bleeding. Some even experience sporadic bleeding that seems to be a regular menstruation. Menstruation is not the same as vaginal bleeding during pregnancy.

In such situation, you may not notice you’re pregnant until you’re approximately eight weeks along. This sort of bleeding is commonly referred to as “break through bleeding,” and it is the most common form of bleeding that is misdiagnosed as a period when pregnant.

Can You Get Pregnant With An Irregular Period

Can I Still Get My Period While Pregnant?

Yes, women can get pregnant with an irregular period. However, the ability to get pregnant decreases significantly. The disadvantage is ovulation becomes difficult to determine. The pregnancy success rate of a healthy woman with a regular cycle is 30%. Studies show this decreases exponentially if periods are off by ten days or more.

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My Menstrual Cycle Is Still Irregular Has The Pill Affected My Fertility

Its unlikely the pill has caused any fertility problems, but it can sometimes cover up problems you already have, such as missing periods or PCOS .This is because the pill prevents the ovaries from releasing an egg , so although its normal to experience period-type bleeding on the pill, you dont have a real period.

Contact your GP if youre still having irregular periods 3 months after stopping contraception.

The Ins And Outs Of Period Sex

So now we know it is possible to get pregnant on your period, its important you take the right precautions. When used correctly, barrier methods such as the condom are very effective at preventing pregnancy and also offer protection against STIs.

While many may think its gross or messy, having sex on your period is perfectly healthy and lots of women swear by it for a number of reasons. Due to a dip in progesterone, you may find your sex drive increases around menstruation. On top of this, orgasms can alleviate period cramps and cause the uterus to contract more, which in the end can mean shorter periods too.

Before you get into the swing of things, make sure you remove any tampons or menstrual cups before sex. These block the vaginal passage and it can be dangerous if they are misused or left too long inside the vagina.

While you might be expecting a Stephen King-style horror scene, you may actually be surprised by how little menstrual blood there is. The heaviness of your period is a very personal thing that varies from cycle to cycle, however, the average woman will only produce 6-8 teaspoons worth of blood during her entire period. That being said, you might want to have an extra towel on hand, or suggest things get steamy in the shower.

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Period Tracking And Logging Sex

Women who use Natural Cycles take their temperature every morning and record it in the app. The method works by identifying a rise in body temperature just before ovulation. This means Natural Cycles can tell you when you can and cant get pregnant, so you will know your own fertility whilst on your period, or any day of your cycle, for that matter. On top of this, you will also know where you are in your cycle, meaning you can plan for your period, PMS or when to do a self breast exam.

If you are looking for a hormone-free birth control option that learns your unique cycle, then Natural Cycles could be the solution youve been searching for.

That Said There Are Several Situations That Can Cause Period

Can You Become Pregnant While On Your Period!?

If you get your period at the usual time, it lasts for the usual amount of days, and the amount of blood that you see is pretty typical for you, its pretty unlikely that youre pregnant, G. Thomas Ruiz, M.D., lead ob-gyn at MemorialCare Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley, California, tells SELF. But you could have bleeding in early pregnancy that just so happens to coincide with when your period is due, Dr. Schaffir says. In fact, up to 30 percent of pregnant people have some form of bleeding in early pregnancy, according to the American Pregnancy Association.

For instance, you might experience implantation bleeding, which is light spotting or bleeding that can happen when the embryo burrows into your uterine wall, and can also be a cause of bleeding in early pregnancy. But Dr. Ruiz says its unlikely this would be mistaken for a normal period because it tends to be much lighter.

Or you might have a cut or tear in your vagina, inflammation of your cervix, or irritation of your cervix from an infection that causes bleeding, Dr. Schaffir says. It can even be caused from sex: Sometimes women have blood vessels close to the surface of the cervix and, during sex, the friction causes a little bleeding, he explains. However, again, these usually produce far less blood than a period.

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Why Do Women Have Periods

A period is normal vaginal bleeding that is a natural part of a healthy monthly cycle for a person with a uterus and ovaries.

Every month, in the years between puberty and menopause , your body readies itself for pregnancy. The lining of your uterus thickens and an egg grows and is released from one of your ovaries.

If pregnancy doesnt occur, estrogen and progesterone levels fall, eventually hitting a level that tells your body to begin menstruation. During your period, the uterus sheds its lining and its passed, along with some blood, out of the body through the vagina.

The average person who menstruates loses about 2 to 3 tablespoons of blood during their period.

The time between periods typically averages 28 days, with bleeding typically lasting around 4 to 5 days. However, people can experience longer time between periods, and fewer or more days of bleeding, and still have totally regular periods.

Having Your Period When You’re Pregnant Is Pretty Darn Unlikely

I have heard from some women who say they had periods throughout their first trimester, Jonathan Schaffir, M.D., an ob-gyn at the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, tells SELF. But in reality, physiologically its pretty impossible to have actual periods during pregnancy.

Just a little refresher: Every month , the lining of your uterus thickens and an egg makes its way from one of your ovaries through the fallopian tubes. If it comes in contact with sperm, the sperm can fertilize the egg. If fertilization happens, the egg will continue its journey to the uterus and can implant on that lining. If things continue from there, the fertilized egg becomes an embryo and the placenta will develop from the uterine lining.

But, if the egg doesn’t get fertilized, your body sheds that built-up uterine lining through your vagina, causing a period. And, as you can probably guess, it’s kind of an either/or situationeither the egg is fertilized and the process of pregnancy begins, or it isn’t and the process of your period begins instead.

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Pregnancy With A Period: Is It Possible

While some people may experience intermittent vaginal bleeding while they are pregnant, it isnt possible to have a period. Menstruation only takes place in the absence of pregnancy.

Each month, ovulation occurs when your ovary releases an egg to be fertilized by the sperm. The uterine lining thickens in anticipation of a fertilized egg being implanted, which then results in pregnancy. If an egg isnt fertilized and implanted, both the egg and the uterine lining are shed through the vagina as menstrual blood.

So, can you have a period while youre pregnant? The short answer is no. Since you dont ovulate or release an egg during pregnancy, you will not get your monthly period.

Can I Use My Menstrual Cycle To Predict My Due Date

Is a Period While Pregnant Possible? Pregnancy Bleeding 101

Yes. You can work out how far along your pregnancy is by counting from the first day of your last period.

This can be confusing because you probably didnt get pregnant until around 2 weeks later, after you ovulated. Even if do you know the date you got pregnant, this is counted as day 14 of your pregnancy , not day 1.

Your pregnancy is calculated from your last menstrual period because every time you have a period this is the bodys way of getting ready for pregnancy. It also gives healthcare professionals a standard to follow because its very difficult to know exactly when the sperm fertilised the egg.

If your period is irregular or if youve recently been on the pill it will be harder to try and work out your due date.

The most accurate way to work out your due date is to have an ultrasound scan when youre around 11 to 14 weeks pregnant. This is used to see how for along you are and check your babys development.

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Understanding Your Menstrual Cycle

For starters, it helps understand your menstrual cycle. “A period is defined as the blood loss that happens at the end of an ovulatory cycle, as the result of an egg not being fertilized by a sperm,” explains Michele Hakakha, M.D., a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist based in Los Angeles and co-author of Expecting 411: Clear Answers and Smart Advice for Your Pregnancy.

“Every month, a woman releases an egg on approximately day 14 of her cycle,” says Dr. Hakakhathough ovulation date varies for everyone, and it’s also possible to have irregular cycles. “Prior to the release of the egg, the hormones in a woman’s body increase to prepare the lining of the uterus in case the egg is fertilized and a pregnancy occurs. If there is no fertilization, the lining of the uterus is sloughed off about 14 days later. This is called your period.” Most people have periods that last from two days to eight days and take place every 26 to 34 days.

Ovulation typically occurs midway through the cycle, and it’s the most fertile time in your menstrual cyclemeaning when you’re most likely to conceive. Because sperm can survive for several days in the reproductive tract, a woman can get pregnant by having sex during ovulation or the days leading up to it.

What Does A Regular Menstrual Cycle Look Like

Each month, the menstrual period accompanies the woman of childbearing age and lasts approximately 28 days, 21 in some and up to 35 in others. Menstruation has different stages, according to the influence of hormones in the female body:

  • The first day of the menstrual cycle begins when menstruation goes down. The duration of bleeding can be between 2 to 7 days, depending on the woman. It occurs because the lining of the uterus prepared to implant an embryo is shed, which falls as blood through the vagina.
  • From the first day of menstruation until day 14, you are in the follicular phase, which is the days before ovulation.
  • This is followed by ovulation, the release of an egg. This occurs around day 14.
  • After ovulation, the luteal phase begins there, due to the hormonal influence of the ovum, the body prepares to nest it in case it becomes fertilized and pregnancy occurs. If pregnancy does not happen, hormones drop drastically, and menstruation occurs again after 28 days of the cycle.

These phases and days correspond to a regular menstrual cycle that lasts approximately 28 days. If you want to know more about the menstrual cycle and phases, see Menstrual Cycle Phases.

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Why You Might Experience A Period During Your First Trimester

Though people stop getting their period during pregnancy, its possible that they may still experience some bleeding. This bleeding does not necessarily indicate an underlying issue, but its important to understand the cause of it and whether its time to see a health care provider.

Bleeding tends to occur more often during the first trimester of pregnancy than the second or third. Estimates suggest that about 25 to 30 percent of pregnant people experience spotting at some point during their first trimester. There are a number of reasons for this bleeding.

Implantation bleeding: This refers to the light spotting that occurs about 10 to 14 days after conception, around the time when your period is due. Many people havent yet taken a pregnancy test at this point, so its easy to mistake the spotting for a period. This bleeding is lighter than a normal period, however, and only lasts for a couple of days. It occurs due to the implantation of the fertilized egg into the uterine lining.

Cervical changes: Spotting can occur shortly after you get pregnant due to cervical changes, and particularly after having sexual intercourse. As long as no infection is present, theres no need to be concerned about this.

Other causes: Heavier bleeding that more closely resembles a period during the first trimester of pregnancy can indicate something more serious, including:

  • Back pain
  • Uncontrollable vomiting and nausea

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