Confused about lines on hcg test?!

[Kateeeeeeee]

Yesterday I was about 10DPO, although could be 9DPO, since my positive LH was 11 days ago and that’s all I track.
I have never had anything resembling a possible positive hcg test before, all tests I ever did were stark white and not even the slightest doubt about reading them. This looks different. I don’t want to put my hopes up but I am curious. I posted in another forum and everyone said it looks positive.

I retested this morning hoping to see a darker line, and line looks exactly the same as yesterday 🥲 isn’t it supposed to get darker?!

I also just saw reviews of these Proov tests I used, where people were comparing them to others and so many have found that they show up much fainter than other tests! Have any of you experienced that too? I just ran out and bought some Clearblue early tests too, and wondering whether I can wait until tomorrow… since morning urine is most accurate, would it even be worth testing this evening, or would that likely be a waste of an expensive test?

Would appreciate your thoughts on any of that. At this point I was worried if I could even get pregnant at all, so as terrible as that sounds, I would even be grateful for a chemical so knowing whether I am pregnant or not is very valuable for me right now 😭

@Kateeeeeeee definitely looks positive to me lovely! Although tests can appear darker the next day, HCG doubles every 48-72 hours so you're only likely to see progression every other day or so, so try not to panic! I'd definitely hold off on the clear blue as they aren't as sensitive and are expensive, so you're best waiting to use those until you were expecting AF to show up! First response pink dye tests are your most reliable early tests if you want to see a true positive pre-AF - when I had my pregnancy, the FRER was way darker than the strip tests. Good luck and tentative congratulations

Thanks so much for your positive words! 🩵
The strip tests I used here are supposed to be extra early ones, with a sensitivity of just 10 instead of the usual 25 mIU/ml, so I had hoped that it would show up early. But as
I mentioned in my post, I was so confused when so many reviews said online that they haven’t found these tests to be sensitive at all! 😅 I did not read those reviews before I bought them…
The clearblue ones I just bought are also supposed to be with the sensitivity of 10 mIU/ml… was your FRER the same sensitivity?

@Kateeeeeeee yes the FRER ones are 10 and one of the most sensitive and reliable out there, but the strip tests are totally reliable so you are totally safe using these and can definitely trust them. But I have also found they don't tend to be as sensitive/clear as they state - hence why I often use FRER just to be sure. Are the clear blue ones you have the digital ones?

That’s great to know that you’ve found them to be reliable!
The clearblue ones I got aren’t digital, they are those with the pink dye that turns blue and just show a single blue line.

@Kateeeeeeee I see! I'd def wait to use those clear blue ones then as they're terrible for evaps. Maybe wait a couple of days before using one of those 🥰 keeping everything crossed for you!

Oh no are they? I used these before and always got very clear white negative results, never noticed any evap lines luckily.
Thank you so much 🥰🤞🏼
Hope you have a great evening tonight and happy new year!

Had to share this!!
Tested with the new test this morning and I have no doubts about it!! 🥹🩵 I am sooo grateful and happy but equally terrified because I have never been in this position before!
I am massively terrified of ectopics, I know they are rare but in the early stages it’s probably hard to rule out, right?! I feel like I can not relax until I know it’s in the right location… do you know how soon this can be ruled out?

@Kateeeeeeee definitely no denying that! Congratulations!! Ectopics are super rare so not something to be overly worried about. You can book an early scan from 6 weeks but they say to try and wait until 7 weeks so they have a better chance of seeing something in case you implanted later etc. NHS will only scan you if you have unusual bleeding so you'd be best booking a private one if you want early reassurance it's in the right place 🥰

Thanks so much for your support, massively appreciate it! 🙏🩵
That’s good to know, I will definitely look into private scans for reassurance.
What a beautiful way to start the new year! 🥹

hope you had a good start too! How many children do you have?

@Kateeeeeeee a beautiful way to start the year indeed! No thanks needed at all - we're all in the same boat and until you're in it you don't know just how tricky TTC can be.

I sadly had an early MC over Christmas, so not ideal but having a 3YO being properly excited about it for the first time was a good distraction! I'm just hoping my cycle gets back to normal quickly so we can keep TTC for number 2!

So sorry to hear that! Wishing you all the best - hopefully it will happen very soon!
Christmas with a 3 year old sounds beautiful though, glad you got to enjoy it! :)

Hey my lovely, is it ok to bother you with another question? 🙏😅

I am finding myself going down a rabbit hole with comparing tests and line progressions. I keep seeing those on forums and wonder if this is more damaging than helpful. I know how silly this is especially since I use very uncommon brands and most people online are comparing the same popular brands. But I realised that many others have darker lines than I do at the same DPO and it kind of worries me. There are so many stories of women saying how their lines didn’t get very dark and it ended up in a chemical/miscarriage or even ectopic! This massively freaks me out and I am really in need of some reassurance. My test lines are getting steadily darker, which should be a good sign, but today at 18DPO the lines are still not as dark as the control line. Most posts where pregnancy has progressed well say they had even darker lines than the control line at this point… I don’t know if that’s due to the tests I am using or if I really should be concerned. Interestingly I have to add that the clearblue did get as dark as the control line at 16DPO. So maybe the cheapie strips are just not as strong? I may be totally overthinking this. I am especially nervous because my boobs are a lot less sore today than the past week and that’s the only symptom I was having!

@Kateeeeeeee absolutely fine! If it's any consolation, I think your lines look really good! I definitely found with my successful pregnancy the cheap strip tests weren't as strong as the FRER for example... I got a dye stealer on FRER quite early but nowhere near on the strip tests!

Thank you so much!! 🙏
I told myself that I will stop obsessing over strips now. It’s too tough on my mental health.