If you’re actively trying to get pregnant or your period is late, chances are you’re thinking about taking a pregnancy test. But when is too early to take a test? And what kind should you take?
When trying to conceive her second, third, and fourth kids, writer and mom Virginia Duan bought both ovulation and pregnancy test strips in bulk.
“I had a schedule and a plan and I don’t believe in unnecessary sex,” Duan said. “Since pregnancy tests are expensive and I wanted to know ASAP, I bought the strips to test first thing in the morning every day once the window for testing appeared, which experts say is five to seven days before your period. Of course, I started like a week after sex because I could.”
When to take a pregnancy test
Reasons for a missed period besides pregnancy
If your period is late and your home pregnancy test is still showing a negative result, there may be a different reason than pregnancy.
“What a late period can signify besides being pregnant is that you may not have ovulated that month,” Dr. Minkin said. “Many things can cause you to not ovulate: gaining a lot of weight, losing a lot of weight, exercising big time, or just being ill; all of those can cause you not to ovulate. Your care provider can help you figure it out.”
