It is one of the first questions we ask ourselves when this fact occurs. Reason for concern for some, nerves for others, impatience, fear ... feelings multiply. If I have a delay in my period, am I pregnant?
It is normal for us to ask ourselves this question, since the absence of menstruation is the most important symptom of pregnancy and probably the first, along with other symptoms that we have often talked to you about and that can indicate that fertilization has occurred And we wait for a baby. But it's not always like this.
If the rule disappears during pregnancy, it is because in the fertile phase of the ovulation cycle, which occurs a few days a month, a sperm has reached the egg and fertilized it. Menstruation (period or period) is defined as the physiological process by which women (and other animal females) periodically expel a mature, unfertilized ovum through the vagina, along with blood and other materials from the uterus. But, when the egg has been fertilized and the embryo is implanted, it makes no sense to "drag" that content to the outside through bleeding.
So, it is logical to think that there may be pregnancy if the rule does not arrive (if unprotected sex has been maintained), but a delay is not always pregnancy, as we have advanced above. And the fact that you don't lower the rule can have multiple explanations that we list below.
Possible causes of a delay in the rule
A delay of a few days is not exactly "amenorrhea," but we will approach this concept. There are three types of amenorrhea or absence of menstruation:
Physiological amenorrhoea, which are those that occur naturally, without any disease, and therefore do not require treatment (pregnancy, lactation, menopause or period before puberty).
Primary amenorrhea, when menstruation does not arrive throughout puberty.
Secondary or pathological amenorrhea, when a woman has had the period for a certain period of time and subsequently ceases to have it for a period longer than three months (as long as physiological amenorrhea has previously been excluded).
As we have just seen, amenorrhea or absence of a period does not necessarily mean that the woman is pregnant. There are several organs that regulate menstruation (central nervous system, hypothalamus, pituitary gland, ovaries, uterus, vagina) and certain alterations in some of them can lead to the absence of a period.
We are talking about a pathological or secondary amenorrhea, which does not indicate a pregnancy (nor menopause or puerperium and lactation) and that could be due to the following causes:
A strong state of stress, anxiety or emotional distress can cause a delay in menstruation.
Taking certain medications can lead to the absence of a period.
Women have been taking birth control pills or have received certain hormone injections, when they stop taking these hormones their periods may not return for more than six months.
There are extreme physical situations that can also cause a delay.
The modification of eating behavior as an impact is another possible cause. For example, if you lose a lot of weight suddenly due to strict or extreme diets, or after a gastric bypass surgery, anorexia nervosa ...
Obesity can also cause amenorrhea (usually caused by non-ovulation).
Polycystic ovarian syndrome, which makes the cycles quite irregular. This imbalance of female sex hormones can cause changes in the menstrual cycle, cysts in the ovaries, difficulty getting pregnant and other changes in health.
Overactive thyroid gland
Other more serious causes would be: brain tumors (pituitary), chemotherapeutic drugs for cancer, drugs to treat schizophrenia or psychosis, ovarian insufficiency, Asherman syndrome (after uterine surgery) ...
In any of these cases you should also consult the doctor to determine the cause of the lack of rule and prevent any risk in the health status of women. The treatment and prognosis depends on the cause of the amenorrhea, in the most common and less severe cases the normal menstrual periods usually return after the treatment of the condition.
When in doubt, perform a pregnancy test
If the absence of a period is accompanied by other symptoms of pregnancy, it is quite likely that fertilization has actually occurred and we are not facing a pathology. But we can only make sure after having performed the pregnancy, urine or blood test. If the pregnancy is already around six weeks, transvaginal ultrasound may offer an image of the embryo.
Remember that the home pregnancy test that can be purchased in pharmacies works by detecting the pregnancy hormone in the urine (chorionic gonadotropin hormone or HGC). What happens is that at the beginning of pregnancy the levels of this hormone are very low, so sometimes, if we have done it too soon, I could not detect it. Therefore, it is recommended to take the test at least after a few days of delay in the period.
However, we remind you that, although the results of the urine test are quite reliable, there is a margin of error whereby pregnancy tests can fail, giving both false positives and false negatives. If the symptoms confuse you, try the test again later or go to the doctor, who can send a blood test or an ultrasound.
Definitely, The best way to solve my doubts about whether or not I will be pregnant is to take the pregnancy test. Congratulations if the pregnancy has been confirmed and if it is not, probably the menstruation will not take long to return. But if there is still no rule, you have to go to the doctor to determine the causes.
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In Babies and more | A delay is not always pregnancy, When in doubt, take a pregnancy test, How and when to do the pregnancy test
