This blog will primarily be about my ttc (trying to conceive) journey. We are ttc in our 30's as full-time working professionals, and trying for our second baby. We have been blessed with one wonderful child.

I decided to start this blog to record my experiences and express myself, to give information and support to others, and to receive information and support from others. Please understand that although this blog is public, my husband and I plan to keep it anonymous. Please feel free to leave comments or ask any questions. I hope you will share this journey with us!

Friday, January 1, 2010

Chemical pregnancy

Ok, I believe I had a chemical pregnancy because my period, aka AF (aunt flo), was late, I had pregnancy symptoms, and I had a faint positive pregnancy test. Remember everyone, a faint positive is still a positive. And I truly felt pregnant, different than I've felt any other month. Coincidentally, I had my annual obgyn appointment during this time, but it was too early to take a pregnancy test. My doc explained I needed to wait 14 days after ovulation to take a pregnancy test. Also, for the first time in my life I spotted after the Pap smear, which is another sign of pregnancy. So, I waited several more days and got my faint positive, just as the doctor had said. Several days later I got AF - the pregnancy didn't stick. It was disappointing, but it didn't really upset me that much because I knew chemical pregnancies were very common, it's just that most women don't know they are happening.

This is when I began to realize something was wrong, and not just chemical pregnancy wrong, but more than that. My cycles have always been around 36 days. This was the first time I figured out when I ovulated, and I ovulated on CD (cycle day) 28. I began to research this stuff on the internet, and learned that ovulation after CD20 is considered "late ovulation." I also learned that being vegetarian will give you longer cycles and make you ovulate later. Most distressing of all, I realized that my luteal phase was too short to sustain a pregnancy. The luteal phase is the part of a woman's cycle from ovulation until her next period. Anything 10 days or less is considered bad for ttc, ideally you want around 14 days. Mine was 8 days that cycle. There's even a term, "luteal phase defect."

3 comments:

  1. I had a chemical pregnancy , & I have no one to talk about it because no one seems to understand what i'm going through.

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  2. i ama trying to figure out if i had a chenical preg. i tested neg on day 24 and 27, got my period on 29 ( i usually get it on 24 -26), and the bleed is very heavy. I also bleed with a pap on day 8. i never knew that was a sign of preg.
    HOw do you know for sure? does a chem preg indicate you will miscarry again?

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  3. Hi Elizabeth,
    A chemical pregnancy is when you test positive on a pregnancy test, but you miscarry before it was confirmed by a doctor. I would only say you had a chemical preg if you tested positive. It's still possible you did, for instance, you could have tested positive on CD28 or 29, but there is really no way to know. It has absolutely no bearing on any future miscarriages, so I wouldn't worry about that. Take me for example, I had a chemical preg, and my next preg was full-term and healthy. Spotting after a pap is only an indication after ovulation, once it is possible you conceived. It is not possible to be pregnant on CD 8, at least that would be extremely rare. Hope this helps! Good luck! :)

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