Can You Get Your Period While Pregnant?
Last updated on July 27th, 2018 at 05:28 pm
Can you get your period while pregnant is a common question women ask during pregnancy.
It is not possible that you will have period while pregnant. However, you can have spotting while pregnant.
Do you feel abdominal pain with spotting? Are you having heavy bleeding while pregnant?
This article explains the reasons why you have bleeding while pregnant and when to worry?
What is period and what causes it
Period is monthly cyclical vaginal bleeding that occurs in women due to interplay of hormones resulting in shredding of the endometrium.
Days between 2 period is your period cycle length and can vary among women. However, normal period cycle length is 21 – 35 days.
4 parts of period are
- The follicular phase (which occurs before ovulation)
- Ovulation
- The luteal phase (which occurs after ovulation)
- Period (shredding of the inner uterine lining called endometrium)
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Causes of bleeding while pregnant
These are the possible reasons you may have bleeding during pregnancy
Implantation bleeding
More than 30 percent of women during pregnancy will have bleeding during the first trimester. Implantation bleeding is the most common cause.
What is implantation bleeding?
If you get pregnant after fertilization, the embryo or fertilized egg is moved back to the uterus, where it is attached to the endometrium.
This attachment to the endometrium may cause slight vaginal bleeding in some women. This bleeding last for 1 – 3 days and is called implantation bleeding.
Implantation bleeding occurs few days to a week before you’re expecting your period.
Different form of vaginal discharge that may be due to implantation bleeding are
- Bloody mucus discharge before period
- Brown mucus discharge before period
- Pink discharge before period
If you are still not sure about pregnancy, you can use first response pregnancy kit to test. First response pregnancy kit detects pregnancy before your period.
If negative, you should wait till 7 days after your period is late to test again.
Symptoms if pregnant are
- Increased vaginal white discharge
- Breast soreness
- Nipple discharge
- Breast swelling and pain
- Felling like vomiting
- Cramping before your period
- Cramps after your missed period
- Abdominal swelling or bloating
- Food craving and aversion
Miscarriage
If you are already pregnant, your vaginal bleeding may be resulting from a miscarriage.
What is miscarriage and what are the types?
A miscarriage is actually an unexpected loss of pregnancy before unborn infant can live out of the womb. There are several types of miscarriage women experience
Threatened miscarriage – You may or may not have abdominal pain with bleeding from your vagina.
Missed miscarriage – You stop feeling pregnant without any vaginal bleeding
Incomplete miscarriage – This occurs when some part of the fetus is still within the uterus resulting in heavy bleeding.
Symptoms and signs of miscarriage are
- Abdominal pain
- Back pain
- Nausea and vomiting
- Vaginal bleeding
- Body weakness if bleeding is severe
What to do?
You must inform your doctor about any bleeding during pregnancy. If due to a miscarriage, an ultrasound will be carried out to determine if your baby is still alive.
If you have threatened abortion, you will need bed rest. Though not much evidence to prove its beneficial.
However, if pregnancy is not viable, surgical evacuation is done to remove products of conception.
Ectopic pregnancy
Ectopic pregnancy occurs, if your baby after fertilization, is implanted outside the uterus. If it occurs within the Fallopian tube, it may cause rupture and bleeding into the abdomen with very severe pain.
If you’re bleeding from your vagina with severe abdominal pain, you should certainly convey your symptoms to your health care provider as quick as possible.
Other signs of an ectopic pregnancy are
- Feeling tired easily
- Abdominal pain worse on either the left or right side of the abdomen
- Generalized pain in the abdomen due to collection of blood inside the abdomen
- Feeling like fainting
- Fainting attacks
- Dizziness
- Low blood pressure in severe cases
Who are at risk to develop ectpic pregnancy?
- Untreated chlamydia infection
- Untreated gonorrhea infections
- Pelvic inflammatory disease
- Untreated bacterial vaginosis infection
- You’ve had an ectopic in your previous pregnancy
- Previous Fallopian tube surgeries
- Intrauterine devices
During sexual intercourse
Did you notice vaginal bleeding after a rough sexual intercourse with your partner?
Sexual intercourse during pregnancy may cause trauma to the cervix and vagina resulting in slight bleeding. This occurs due to improved circulation to your vaginal canal and cervix during pregnancy. However, this bleeding is for a short while.
If your bleeding after intercourse is heavy, you will need to communicate to your doctor to exclude numerous other causes of bleeding.
Placenta bleeding
Abruptio placentae and placenta previa is a common cause of bleeding after 24 – 28 weeks of pregnancy.
Abruptio placentae occurs due to detachment of placenta from uterine wall with reduced blood supply to your baby leading to fetal death.
Other symptoms are
- Abdominal pain,
- Body weakness
- Contractions
Placenta previa occurs as a result of abnormal position of the placenta that may cause bleeding during the second half of pregnancy. Depending on the location of placenta can prevent vagina birth, thereby necessitating cesarean section.
If you are bleeding after 22 to 24 weeks, its likely due to placenta issue. You should notify your doctor as quickly as possible.
FAQs: Can you get your period while pregnant?
These are some commonly asked questions that may concern you if you’re spotting while pregnant.
Can you get your period and still be pregnant in the first month
You cannot get period when pregnant. If you have period, then you are not pregnant. However, if you are pregnant, you can have spotting once in a while due to intercourse, trauma to the cervix or miscarriage.
The most known reason for blood loss during the first month of pregnancy is implantation, which occurs before your expected period with mild cramps. Implantation bleeding does not last more that 3 days with light intermittent flow.
Other reason you may spot in your first month are
- Ectopic pregnancy
- Pelvic examination by your doctor
- Pap smear
What to do?
Always inform your doctor about any bleeding during pregnancy.
Can you have heavy bleeding and still be pregnant?
If you’re having heavy bleeding during pregnancy, then the chances you are still pregnant is slim. Causes of heavy bleeding are
- Miscarriage
- Ectopic pregnancy
- Abruptio placentae
- Placenta previa
You should inform your doctor. It’s possible you are bleeding heavily due to retained products of conception.
Can i be pregnant and still have regular period?
You cannot have regular period while pregnant. If you have period like regular bleeding that last between 3 – 7 days, then its unlikely you’re pregnant.
However, you can confirm pregnancy by informing your doctor or taking a pregnancy test.
How rare is it to be pregnant and have period?
You cannot be pregnant and still have period. During the first 3 months of pregnancy, about 25 to 35 percent of women will have vaginal bleeding. Implantation bleeding is the most common reason women bleed in the first trimester. During the second half of pregnancy, bleeding occurs due to placenta problems.
Other reasons you’re bleeding are
- Ectopic pregnancy
- Miscarriage
Now its your turn. Still worried why you’re bleeding while pregnant? comment below.
