Can I have periods during pregnancy?

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

It is believed that menstruation and pregnancy are two incompatible states of the female body, and conception during menstruation is excluded. In reality, everything is much more complicated, and both situations are possible in life. Menstruation during pregnancy - what are they, their causes and consequences? These and other questions will be discussed in this article.

Conceiving during your period

Contrary to the popular belief of most women, fertilization during menstruation is not excluded. Another question is on which day of the cycle the conception occurred. As a rule, the first days of menstruation are accompanied by unpleasant painful sensations and poor he alth, which is a common reason for refusing to have sexual intercourse. However, at the end of bleeding in the woman's body, a new egg may already mature, ready for fertilization. Therefore, the probability of pregnancy during menstruation, more precisely, on the last day of menstruation or immediately after, exists.

In addition to the physiological characteristics of the female body, the possibility of conception during "these" days depends directly onlifespan of male germ cells. Their viability under favorable conditions in some cases lasts up to seven to nine days after intercourse. Thus, if there is a mature egg in the body of a woman, conception can occur with some delay, because it is quite difficult to calculate the period of ovulation on your own. In addition, many women have an irregular monthly cycle, which makes it much more difficult to determine favorable days for fertilization.

Due to the physiological characteristics of the body of the future mother and father, the conception of a child can occur on almost any day of the cycle. In this case, a woman may not be aware of the fertilization that has taken place, relying on natural contraception. In fact, menstrual bleeding cannot be considered a reliable way to protect against an unintended pregnancy.

When determining the duration of pregnancy, gynecologists count from the date of the beginning of the last menstruation, while conception could occur immediately after the end of bleeding. Based on the fact of the discrepancy between the expected and exact period of conception, the woman believes that menstruation occurred after the fertilization of the egg, seeing alarming symptoms in this phenomenon.

Period after conception

Bleeding during pregnancy is rare but possible. The situation can be complicated by the fact that menstruation misinforms the expectant mother about her current situation up to 3-4 months. In this case, the tests may show a negative result. In exceptionalcases of spotting are observed during the entire period of gestation. The nature of such menstruation is different for every woman. Consider the possible causes of menstrual bleeding during pregnancy.

Bleeding associated with embryo implantation

After the fusion of the female germ cell with the male spermatozoon, the fertilized egg moves into the uterine cavity, where the future embryo must be securely attached to its wall. It is the process of attachment of a fertilized egg that often causes scanty spotting. As a rule, the volume of such secretions is insignificant (only a few drops of blood), but many women take the discharge found on linen as the beginning of menstruation. This process is considered natural and should not cause anxiety in a pregnant woman.

Period after fertilization

If conception occurred on one of the last days of the monthly cycle, menstrual bleeding may begin at the usual time for a woman. This phenomenon is explained by the presence in the body of a woman of another mature egg, which, together with the fertilized one, left the follicle and made a movement towards the male germ cell. However, the fusion did not occur and the second cell died. Due to its decay, the body launched the monthly process of menstruation. Thus, in the female body, two eggs coexist simultaneously, one of which is fertilized and the other dies, causing menstruation during pregnancy in the first month. Typically like thisthe phenomenon is observed only once and does not recur.

Changes in hormonal levels

Severe hormonal imbalance, accompanied by a decrease in estrogen production and a deficiency of progesterone, can cause periods during early pregnancy. The embryo has already begun to develop, while the female body has not yet had time to adapt to the new state and continues its usual way of life. In this case, menstruation during early pregnancy with such a deviation may appear for the first time after conception until the woman's hormonal background is fully restored. In cases where bleeding does not stop at a later date and proceeds in parallel with the growth and development of the embryo, the woman needs drug treatment aimed at eliminating the hormonal imbalance in the body.

Ectopic pregnancy

Incorrect attachment of a fertilized egg causes profuse painful bleeding, leading to the death of the embryo. After fusion with the male germ cell, the egg must be implanted, that is, it must be fixed on the wall of the uterus. If, for certain reasons, the fertilized egg could not reach the uterus, it is attached to the wall of the fallopian tube. As a result of the growth of the fetal egg, the fallopian tube ruptures. This condition requires urgent medical attention and inevitably ends with the death of the embryo. Ectopic pregnancy is not uncommon (about one insixty pregnant women). Bleeding in this pathology occurs suddenly and is accompanied by severe pain, sometimes with loss of consciousness.

Non-developing (missing) pregnancy

The causes of the death of an embryo with such a pathology can be any deviations: from hormonal failure to infectious diseases and genetic disorders of the female body. Fetal rejection (spontaneous abortion) is preceded by pain and spotting, similar to menstruation during pregnancy, which makes a woman seek advice from a gynecologist. According to the observations of experts, the risk of fetal development fading occurs to a greater extent at four and eight weeks, as well as between the eleventh and eighteenth weeks.

Placental abruption

Placental abruption before a period determined by nature is accompanied by vascular damage and bleeding that is quite noticeable for a pregnant woman. Such a process requires emergency medical intervention, which consists in drug treatment of a woman, if the process can still be stopped, saving the life of the embryo. In severe cases, the fetus dies. Such periods during pregnancy are one of the clear signs of placental abruption. However, in some cases, bleeding may be hidden (inside the body).

Other reasons

Infections in the cervix, endometriosis diagnosed in a pregnant woman can alsoaccompanied by characteristic spotting.

Did you get your period while pregnant? In some cases, the cause may be a deviation in the structure of the uterus, the so-called saddle or bicornuate uterus.

In addition, if a woman has multiple pregnancies, the death of one fetus causes spontaneous bleeding and subsequent miscarriage, while a viable embryo continues to grow and develop.

Character of discharge

Depending on the intensity, duration, color and consistency of bloody discharge, one can judge the presence or absence of a threat of abortion.

During pregnancy there are periods, but such manifestations cannot be considered a normal condition. Any suspicious discharge during the period of gestation is a reason for careful observation and additional examination.

Often, expectant mothers, especially in the early stages, are concerned about the question, can there be periods during pregnancy? Due to hormonal disorders, menstruation can indeed continue simultaneously with the development of the embryo. The nature of such secretions remotely resembles the monthly bleeding familiar to every woman, but the intensity and duration may differ. As a rule, periods during pregnancy are more scarce and stop faster than before conception. Such discharges do not pose a real threat to the life and he alth of the mother and child. However, they require some treatment and constant medical supervision.

Absolutely do not fit into the previous concept of menstruation during pregnancy, abundant discharge of a bright scarlet color, associated with strong cramping pain. In such cases, we are not talking about the usual monthly discharge, but about bleeding that threatens miscarriage. If bleeding begins suddenly, is accompanied by abdominal pain and a significant deterioration in the well-being of a pregnant woman, it is necessary to urgently seek medical help. This condition may indicate a threatened miscarriage.

Unpredictable bleeding after conception in almost one hundred percent of cases portends the likelihood of fetal death. The only exception to this terrible rule is menstruation, which lasts throughout the entire gestation period until the birth of the child.

Bleeding as a sign of threatened fetal death

Usually, menstruation during pregnancy, abdominal pain is the first sign that makes a woman see a doctor. At the same time, not each of the reasons for the appearance of such secretions is manifested clearly.

For example, the presence of such a pathology as premature detachment of the placenta, in a certain number of pregnant women, occurs in a latent form and can only be diagnosed by an experienced specialist. This condition is usually accompanied by spotting, but in some cases, bleeding can be internal. If the pathology is not detected in time, the death of the fetus may be followed by the death of the mother.

That is why it is important to pay attention to any changes in yourwell-being, for example, pain, as during menstruation, during pregnancy. In this state, you can not endure or try to relieve discomfort with the help of medications. A referral to a specialist is mandatory.

It is impossible to save an ectopic pregnancy. With such a pathology, it is important to recognize the threat to the life of the mother in time. Bleeding during ectopic pregnancy is usually poor, but the pathology has a number of other symptoms that indicate abnormalities in the female body. Most often, this symptom is regular pain in the abdomen. Often, even a consultation with a gynecologist does not shed light on the nature of such symptoms until the woman's condition becomes critical.

Missed pregnancy can also not give itself away for a long time. Blinded by the happiness of the upcoming motherhood, a woman often does not even notice such signs as: a sharp disappearance of the symptoms of toxicosis, a decrease in basal temperature, and the absence of a feeling of breast engorgement. And only the appearance of spotting on underwear makes a woman urgently consult a doctor. Moreover, in the early stages of pregnancy, by nature, such discharge is very scarce and does not have a pronounced scarlet hue.

Evaluation of the possible causes of bleeding during pregnancy allows us to draw the only correct conclusion: menstruation and pregnancy are a sign of deviation from the norm. Despite the fact that the development of pregnancy in rare cases is compatible with the process of menstrual bleeding, this is normalphenomenon is difficult to name. Even if the cause of menstruation is a violation of the production of hormones, such a condition requires specific medical treatment.

Conclusion

Do you have periods during pregnancy? The answer is obvious, in exceptional cases they have a place to be. If you are among the pregnant women who have experienced menstruation during pregnancy, you should not rely on the experience of other women who have safely carried and given birth to a he althy baby in the presence of similar abnormalities. Each organism is individual in its physical development, any anxiety conditions in different women may indicate individual he alth problems. Therefore, when menstruation appears after conception, do not hesitate to seek advice from a gynecologist.