A fake negative result can happen if you take a pregnancy test too early. Getting ready for a big change in your life, like becoming pregnant, is also a good time to make sure you have the best knowledge.
How do you know when it’s not too early to take a pregnancy test? When will the readings be correct?
In her book “It’s Not Hysteria: Everything You Need to Know About Your Reproductive Health (But Were Never Told),” Dr. Karen Tang tells you when to take a pregnancy test and what signs to look out for that could mean you are pregnant.
How early in the game can you check for pregnancy?
Tang says that the “most sensitive” pregnancy tests at the shop can find pregnancy as early as three or four weeks after you stopped having your period. Every day during the first few weeks of pregnancy, hormones are rising. If you take a test early on and it comes back negative, but you think you might still be pregnant, Johns Hopkins Medicine says you should take another test in a week. A doctor may also be able to help you by giving you a blood test. Blood tests can find pregnancy before urine tests and ultrasounds.
“You should take a test as soon as you are worried you might be pregnant – but most over-the-counter tests may not turn positive until around the time that you’d be due for or missing your period,” she says. “Pregnancy hormone (HCG) is most concentrated in the first morning urine, so that may have the best chance of showing a positive, but obviously take the test whenever in the day you’re able to.”
Also, just so you know, Tang says that you are pregnant from the first day of your last period, not the day you became pregnant.
