One positive test, one negative test: am I pregnant or not?

anonymous
asks:
My boyfriend and I had sex without a condom 2 times and when he cummed in me the first time I thought I was pregnant and I took a test and it said positive and I took another one of a different brand and it said negative so I didn't worry about it the second time he cummed in me I got my period the next day could I be pregnant now?
Heather Corinna replies:

If it seems just like your period normally does -- with the same level of flow, for instance -- then it is very unlikely you are pregnant.

Rarely, a test will show what is called a "chemical" pregnancy, especially when tests are taken on the early side. In other words, it can test positive when an egg is fertilized, but before it fully implants. Since implantation takes a little while, and often enough an egg will be fertilized and not implant, that pregnancy doesn't complete, and thus, you can get a negative result with another test and not be pregnant. But usually, when a test is positive, the person taking the test is pregnant.

In any case where you get one negative result and one positive, I'd always advise taking one more test in a couple of days, with your first morning urine, because false positives are rare. It's false negatives that are a bit more common, so one should always trust a positive result more than a negative one. Additionally, if the bleeding you're having seems far lighter than your usual period, then that bleeding may not mean you are not pregnant.

Be sure when you take the next test that you also read the instructions carefully per how to take the test and how to read the results, and when in doubt, you can always call the toll-free number on the test given by the test manufacturer.

Suffice it to say, I'd also strongly advise anyone NOT to engage in unprotected intercourse if they do not want to become pregnant and are not prepared to be pregnant. Additionally, I'd not advise it if you and your partner have not been practicing safer sex for at least six months previous and each have at least TWO full and negative STI screens, and sexually transmitted infections are an even more common occurence than pregnancy is. If he's not cooperating when it comes to birth control and safer sex, then it's important that you two have a talk about it, and that you protect yourself by saying no to sex with him until he can also say yes to having it responsibly.

If you, or both of you, just figure you'll win a gamble, think again: within just one year, the majority of people with vaginas who have unprotected sex will and do become pregnant. Condoms are easy to use, affordable, and also essential in protecting you both from infection as well as pregnancy. If you're mature enough to be having sex, then you're also mature enough to have it responsibly and smartly, and it should be a no-brainer between two people who give a hoot about each other, okay?

More like This