To think people take pregnancy tests much too early these days?

[CounsellorTroi]

What is the point of doing it before you know you’re even late? Why not wait until you are late and getting a result that is at least conclusive even if not the one you want? Isn’t there something just a wee bit exploitative about these very early tests?

They can come in handy. I had a birthday night out planned and took an early test to just be on the safe side as we were TTC but I thought we hadn’t managed to dtd close enough to ovulation. Turns out I was wrong as I was pregnant so swerved the alcohol that night. It was 4 days before my period was due and I actually took a regular cheap test too that night and it was a faint positive. Basically woman are going to try and get early results anyway. Might as well give them something as reliable as possible.

I think the views here are pretty invlaidating of early miscarriage. I've had 3 losses before 5 weeks. They were extremely heavy and not at all like a period. The recurrent miscarriage clinic took me seriously and I found out I have a clotting disorder, which once treated immediately resulted in my DS. I had several early scans too, which is one if the few interventions with any evidence base for preventing reccurent muscarriage.

I do think there is a tendency on forums to test repeatedly after a positive result looking for 'progression' which is not what HPTs are designed for and does seem to increase anxiety.

At £3 for 15 on Amazon the tests aren’t expensive so I doubt the manufacturers are take it in. If you buy them in large quantities then the cost per unit is less.

False positives are very rare. You are much more likely yo get a false negative.

I had an early miscarriage around 5 weeks and it was really obviously not a period. Pain was extraordinary and I had contractions. Periods took a while to get back to normal afterwards.

I am TTC and am over 40. After this experience, I've had a chemical pregnancy last month and I'm around 5DPO now. To be honest, I might be more reluctant to test early after the experiences I've had as it's an emotional rollercoaster. Even when I had a faint BFP last month, I wasn't really expecting it to stick around but I was still devastated when my period came. But I would have been anyway.

I'd much prefer to know that I'm capable of conceiving. It's all data to give the GP if it comes to that later.

I agree that the early early testing strips are a bit OTT as they just cause paranoia (speaking from experience as i watched lines getting lighter during a MC) But i do believe its each to their own and if it makes someone less anxious then fine. Why does it matter? You can get them super cheap off amazon.

Also, chemicals/ early losses should absolutely be recognised, a loss is a loss no matter how early. I miscarried at 6 weeks and it wasn't like a period, but i constantly get told 'oh but it was so early' or 'xy miscarried at 10 weeks so hers was worse' Doesn't make anyone feel any better. I will 100% be using early tests in the future if i'm lucky enough to be late again!

Yy to early miscarriages not being like periods. I’ve had two miscarriages at 6 weeks both with weeks of bleeding and several episode lasting 1 to 2 hours were I was repeatedly passing numerous clots the size of oranges.

I was one of those who tested early and then had a "late period". Our baby was born exactly one year later after my early miscarriage. We don't think it was a coincidence. So yes I'm glad we knew.

When I was trying to get pregnant with my first I used them CONSTANTLY. I became really obsessed with them and used to buy them in bulk online for a fairly cheap price. They were the ones without the plastic casing but still early response. I used to do them even at the wrong time of my cycle. I must have done hundreds and it only took my four months to get pregnant.

I partly agree with you - chemical pregnancies are REALLY common but knowing about them just adds to the heartache. But they can be useful for reasons that others stated.

For some knowing that they are pregnant earlier means they can start medication earlier to prevent a miscarriage

YABU because it's no ones business but that person in that moment. I suffered years of infertility and would test from the earliest possible date because those 2 weeks post ovulation are beyond stressful and it's better to know so you can move on

I bought 100 dip tests off Amazon for a tenner. I tested strong positive a week before my period was due. 2 days before that I'd had a very faint positive but I thought I was imagining it. You don't have to spend a fortune on pregnancy tests. I was testing every 2 days. It's not exploitive. It's better to know earlier so you can tell work/adjust lifestyle to protect the baby. If I hadn't tested till my period, I wouldnt have known to rest when I started bleeding, I'd have thought my period was coming. Thankfully I rested up and stopped myself from miscarrying, which would have probably happened that night at work if I hadn't known I was pregnant.

The worst part of these tests is that they give so many false positives and then when the poor woman gets her period she thinks that she has had a miscarriage

But from the threads on here, most of the false positives aren't positive at all. There's no second line, but the OP and half the thread seem convinced that there is.

If you’re TTC there is a chance that every month you‘ll be pregnant, I can totally see why you‘d want to know this at the earliest possible opportunity. The uncertainty of not knowing is difficult to contend with on a monthly rolling basis so why drag that part out. And surely it will help make informed decisions about alcohol consumption and other lifestyle factors. I‘m sure many women would rather know they’re pregnant and then miscarry, than think they “might” be pregnant and then think they “might“ have had a miscarriage but not really be sure. I do agree with the underlying point though that the industry surrounding fertility and motherhood is horrendously exploitative under the guise of being helpful/essential.

Just out of interest has early testing led to an increase in the number of recorded miscarriages. Miscarriage rate is estimated at 1 in 4 pregnancies. But this was based on historic figures when the earliest you could test was 6weeks.

@Angrymum22

I doubt it as people tend to still wait until after they've missed a period before seeing an EPU. 99% of people don't report chemical pregnancies as they are only pregnant a couple of days then get their period. An EPU also won't see people until at least 5-6 or more weeks and will just advise people to wait and test again in a week so don't record that. They only record as a miscarriage those that have been seen and treated in the hospital

@BarbaraofSeville

The worst part of these tests is that they give so many false positives and then when the poor woman gets her period she thinks that she has had a miscarriage

But from the threads on here, most of the false positives aren't positive at all. There's no second line, but the OP and half the thread seem convinced that there is.

It's so sad isn't it, there's obviously no line at all yet posters are falling over themselves to offer their congratulations. Any suggestion that there is no line is generally met with 'You need your eyes testing'.

(and when I say 'sad', I mean as in not 'you saddo')

I’m inclined to agree, OP. But it is an incredibly sensitive issue, and a very personal decision.

Some may want to find out early to ensure they’re healthy etc and taking vitamins; I did a test for DS as we weren’t trying, and I wanted to know- I think I was about 3/4 weeks.

But overall, I’m not sure how good it is for mental health, because of early miscarriages, and the heartache and devastation they bring. A few friends have sadly miscarried very early, and they were understandably very upset.

You can get decent pregnancy test strips from amazon very cheap. I used them with my pregnancies as soon as I "felt" pregnant, a couple of days before my period was due and got positives.

@namechangefail2020

Yep. But have you been so upset at not getting pregnant for months/years or had miscarriages?? If not you won't ever understand the obsession

Yes I have known what it is like to not get pregnant for years - in fact to never get pregnant in my case. When I was ttc in the 90s you had to wait until your period was at least a day late before testing. I expect that if very early tests had been available I would have been using them. God knows I spent enough on OPKs. I might have had chemicals for all I know but I never will know. Perhaps I'm better off not knowing. I do understand the desperation - it's the exploitation of it that gets me.

I agree re the exploitation @CounsellorTroi , coming from someone who has been so desperately unwell with ttc. Many losses, many failed IVF.

I've started to feel a bit the same about some early scans. I've seen posts here and elsewhere where women have paid for a scan at less than six weeks then been left terrified as to what's going on. I appreciate every area is different but even with all those miscarriages behind me and a high risk pregnancy my consultant wouldn't do a scan here any earlier than 7 weeks because it would only ass to the fear.

An early test was good for me because I knew I was terminating.
I got sickness before my period was due, tested a couple of days later and was able to start the ball rolling. (They wouldn't book me in until I was 6 weeks)
This was after a MAP fail
Incidentally I miscarried the day before my termination was booked on the morning of a job interview
I've no idea how I got that job. I was bleary on painkillers and hungover because was struggling to cope with the situation.
Was desperate to be a mummy, but the timing couldn't have been worse.

Yes, I was glad to find out early with an unwanted pregnancy too and for the same reason. If I'd waited until I was several weeks along before testing then I could have easily been close to 10wks before having a termination, as it was it was all done and dusted within two weeks of getting a positive test. In terms of risk and ease of procedure, sooner is better than later for termination of pregnancy so it is beneficial to find out if you're pregnant as soon as possible.

@ViciousJackdaw I completely agree about the false hope and the IVF clinics. Our clinic were paid a lot of money (£15k+), no baby, a load of shit abnormal embryos which had to be binned, poor after care and didn’t even figure out the problem. If we ever do IVF again, now we have figured out the issue with no help from that clinic, l will most likely do it abroad. Cheaper, better technology and less lethargic l have been told

I agree that they can be used in a way that cause further anxiety but as others have said, they can have their uses where it might be beneficial to find out early.

Also back up what others have said about early miscarriage which often get conflated with chemical pregnancies and are often thought of as just a heavy or late period. I had two losses at around 5 and 6 weeks and definitely would have known what was going on even if I hadn’t confirmed a few weeks earlier with a positive test - I had a bloody hard time getting my GP to acknowledge it properly though! Much more painful with clots and what I now know to be contractions - but without the ability to take pain relief before the miscarriage was confirmed.

The marketing is definitely Somewhat exploitive - like the ads make you think you have to buy expensive branded tests - when the Poundland ones are fine !
I have similar feelings for private scan centres - their ads for early reassurance scans - make you feel more worried and that you should go there and spend money rather than wait for the free nhs scans !

I think they are like anything else in the modern age. People want immediate answers.

I think the women that shout "exploitation" do other women a disservice; as if women don't know their own mind enough to use a product or not; that they need to be protected somehow.

As for fertility clinics selling false hope, surely any medical service could be accused of the same thing?