Is Clear Watery Discharge Sign Of Pregnancy?

Question: Is clear watery discharge sign of pregnancy?

Most women “that are expecting” may easily confuse any change in color and texture of their vaginal discharge as pregnancy.

While expecting mothers will want to learn about their pregnancy as quickly as possible, women “who are not expecting” but involve in unsafe sexual intercourse will panic when they see a clear watery discharge.

The truth is clear watery discharge can sometimes happen in early pregnancy because of elevated hormones, but it is also very common in a normal menstrual cycle and with other conditions, so it is not a sure sign of pregnancy on its own. Your missed period and a positive pregnancy test are still the most reliable early clues. Mayo Clinic

If you have clear watery discharge and you are worried about pregnancy, you are not alone.

Here’s a mail I received from one of my readers

Hi Doc,

I need your advice as am worried am already pregnant. I had sexual intercourse with my boyfriend seven days after the end of my period. Today is 22nd of July and I’ve missed my period for about 3 days now.

I’m scared now because I feel pregnant as my breast feels hard and I feel like throwing up all the time. Worse still, I get this watery vaginal discharge that is becoming easily noticeable.

Am I pregnant? Should I take a pregnancy test?

The truth is if you missed your period after having unprotected intercourse during your fertile days, clear watery discharge could be related to pregnancy — but many women also notice watery discharge just before a period or at other times in their cycle. Only a pregnancy test can confirm if you are truly pregnant.

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What makes vaginal discharge to turn watery or fluid-like?

Vaginal discharge can vary in both volume and texture between your menstrual periods, and this occurs because of estrogen rise after your menstrual period ends. Medical News Today

After the end of your monthly period, your body hormones are usually low at first and then start to rise again (especially estrogen). This causes women vaginal discharge to change from the thick creamy discharge (that you will notice just after your period) to a more watery like discharge (that occurs just days before and during ovulation).

While most women will presume watery discharge before period to be abnormal and a pregnancy sign, if your ovulation is delayed, it is possible you will experience this type of vaginal discharge later than expected.

This article explains the causes of clear watery discharge, signs that indicate you are pregnant and when to worry.

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Is clear watery discharge a sign of pregnancy?

If you are expecting, then there is every reason to be happy if you’ve missed your period and experiencing a clear vaginal discharge.

During your menstrual cycle, it’s expected that your discharge will become thick and creamy after ovulation and in 2 – 3 days before next period starts, your vagina may feel drier than before.

However, if you are 2 – 3 days from your next menstrual period and your vaginal discharge are excessive and watery-like, it could be due to elevated hormones (estrogen and progesterone) in early pregnancy – but the same type of discharge can still be normal for many women who are not pregnant. nhs.uk+1

Fourteen days before next menstrual period, your body produces an egg during ovulation. After ovulation occurs, the ruptured follicle will form the corpus luteum, which continues to produce hormones like estrogen and progesterone.

These hormones play different roles in your body and most importantly thickens the uterine endometrium for possible next pregnancy or next period (if you do not get pregnant).

Should you not get pregnant, your body automatically will adjust and your corpus luteum breaks down leading to falling estrogen and progesterone levels.

On the other hand, if you’ve had unsafe sexual intercourse during your fertile days, you can get pregnant. During early pregnancy, the corpus luteum will not break down, leading to the continuous production of estrogen and progesterone.

This elevated hormones will make you feel pregnancy symptoms and change your expected thick discharge before menstrual period to a more watery vaginal discharge (sometimes called physiologic leukorrhea). Medical News Today+1

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Other symptoms you experience in early pregnancy are

1. Implantation bleeding and cramping

Apart from excessive watery discharge, spotting that occurs a few days earlier before period can sometimes be an early pregnancy sign.

This occurs because your baby (embryo) burrows into the thickened endometrium about a week from your next period and causes bleeding as the baby is attached to the endometrium.

If you experienced this kind of light spotting with abdominal pain a few days before period and then miss your period, it may suggest pregnancy, but spotting can also be caused by hormonal changes, infections or early miscarriage, so do not rely on this sign alone.

2. Breast feels painful

Depending on how long you’ve been pregnant, you may or may not feel breast changes.

While some women will quickly see changes even before missing their menstrual period, it may take days to weeks after missing period to feel breast changes.

If you are pregnant, you will notice tenderness in your breast, especially on the sides. As pregnancy advances, your breast will grow bigger and get more painful when touched.

Itchy nipples, darkened skin around your nipples (areola), and breast pain will occur when you are pregnant.

3. You feel very tired

If you noticed increased weakness just before period or after a delayed period, it could be pregnancy. Hormonal changes in early pregnancy can make you feel unusually tired and exhausted, even when you are sleeping well. Mayo Clinic

4. Raised basal body temperature (BBT)

Another sign of pregnancy is a raised basal body temperature around your next menstrual period.

Before having any exercise or getting up from the bed in the morning, if you consistently check your body temperature, you can tell if you are pregnant or not.

After your period ends, your basal body temperature is usually low and increases slightly after ovulation. If you are not pregnant, and just before your next period, your basal temperature will fall due to a drop in progesterone.

If your basal body temperature is still raised before your next period, it’s a sign you may be pregnant. However, stress, poor sleep, infections and some medications can also affect your temperature, so BBT should not be used alone to diagnose pregnancy.

Other symptoms of pregnancy are:

• Nausea

• Vomiting

• Headache

• Change in Mood

• Dizziness

• Food cravings and aversion Mayo Clinic

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What to Do?

If you think you are pregnant, it’s best you confirm with a pregnancy test. Usually, if you’ve already missed your period for seven days now, you will most likely get an accurate result. Many home pregnancy tests are already quite accurate from the first day of a missed period, and waiting a few extra days reduces the chance of a false negative. Mayo Clinic+1

On the other hand, a quick test before your period may come out negative. This is not 100 percent accurate as hormones are still low at this stage of pregnancy.

It’s best to take a pregnancy test after missing menstrual period. If the test is positive, see your doctor or clinic early so that you can start antenatal care and check that the pregnancy is in the right place.

See your doctor or go to a clinic urgently if you have watery discharge with a bad smell, itching, burning, pelvic pain, fever, blood clots, heavy bleeding, or a sudden gush of clear fluid in pregnancy – these may be signs of infection, miscarriage or your waters breaking and need medical attention. Mayo Clinic

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What if I’m not pregnant?

If you are not pregnant, you should know there are other reasons you will experience a watery discharge.

This guide explains non-pregnant reasons women experience watery discharge and when to worry.