Period 10 Days Late White Discharge And Cramping: Am I Pregnant?

Last updated on July 27th, 2018 at 05:08 pm

Question: Why is my period 10 days late with white discharge and abdominal cramps?

A delayed or early period can cause women to panic especially after an unprotected sexual intercourse.

If you’ve missed your period for ten days now, it’s likely you’re itching to know if it’s pregnancy or not.

The truth is during pregnancy; your menstrual period will stop coming. This is not abnormal and could be the reason your period is delayed for 10 days.

This is more so if you’ve not practiced safe sex with your partner or if you are not on contraceptive pills.

Unsafe sexual intercourse without using an emergency pill may also result in pregnancy.

Alternatively, you should know there are other reasons for 10 days late period. In fact, stress, not having enough rest, losing too much weight, over-functioning thyroid, and a postinor pill will delay your period.

This article explains causes of 10 days late period, and when you ought to worry.

Why is my period 10 days late?

Between your period is your menstrual cycle, which can be determined by the number of days between 2 periods.

A lot of women will get their next period 28 days from the first day of last period. Though it could come earlier or later and still be normal, most women will have a menstrual cycle to range from 21 to 35 days

If your period is ten days late, it’s possible something is wrong. Here are the possible causes

1.  You are pregnant

After unprotected sex, it’s possible pregnancy may follow; In fact, pregnancy is the most common reason for 10 days missed period in reproductive girls.

Before pregnancy, hormones will control your menstrual cycle and result in cyclical menstruation that comes every month.

However, when pregnant, these hormones – estrogen and progesterone, will stop your period from coming

Therefore, if you are expecting a baby after series of an unprotected sexual intercourse, a missed period that follows is not unusual.

Pregnancy signs may not be pronounced immediately after missing your period. Nevertheless, these are some symptoms you should watch out for

• Abdominal cramping that is mild and low in your abdomen
• Feeling very weak and tired
• Your breast hurts with soreness
• You notice your breast is getting bigger
• You’re now overeating than usual
• You are no longer interested in some meals
• You are vomiting (especially in the morning)

The truth is you may have experienced and ignored these symptoms;

The earliest sign you could have experienced is implantation bleeding that occurs about eight days after conception.

This spotting is brown and comes out because the embryo has successfully been implanted into the uterine endometrium.

What step should I take?

If you have these symptoms listed above and you’ve missed period for ten days now, it’s likely pregnancy.

Do you experience breast pain, nipple itching, and mood swings? If yes, it another way to know you are pregnant.

However, the easiest way to confirm pregnancy is through urine or blood pregnancy test

A urine test can easily be carried out at home and involves purchasing your test kit online. Blood pregnancy test will need you to consult your physician.

You should know it’s possible you will still test negative; You can read this guide to see other possible reasons, or this one if you feel abdominal cramps.

If HCG hormones are rising normally, you should test positive for pregnancy 10 day after an expected period, if pregnant.

Should you still test negative, here are other reasons

2.  Thyroid hormone dysfunction

A high or low thyroid hormone will cause your body systems to function abnormally.

Thyroid hormones, T3 and T4, are produced by the thyroid gland located in front of your neck. These hormones are critical as they control many systems in your body

Thyroid hormone controls your breathing, muscle power, body temperature, heartbeat and menstrual cycle

If your thyroid hormones are excessively secreted (hyperthyroidism), or deficient (hypothyroidism), it may affect your period.

Women with hyperthyroidism may have their period delayed for some time, Other symptoms you could experience are a light menstrual period, sweating, anxiety problems, and moodiness.

On the other hand, hypothyroidism will cause your periods to come too frequently or maybe heavy; other possible signs are a lack of night rest, dry skin and feeling depressed.

If your period is delayed for about 10 days with these symptoms, you should tell your doctor now.

3.  You had a stressful week

Because you are human, your body can get tired and react negatively.

If you do not give a lot more time to your health and get worked out for a long time, your body increases cortisol hormone production.

This hormone becomes elevated when you’re stressed and interferes with other hormones that regulate your menstrual cycle.

Estrogen and progesterone directly help prepare your uterus for menstruation by building up the endometrium that covers the inner uterus; They also help regulate ovulation (release of an egg from the ovary) and make your period regular.

High level of cortisol will cause a decreased estrogen and progesterone with an absent period for days, weeks or sometimes months.

If you are already tested negative or never had an unprotected sexual intercourse, it’s likely your cortisol levels increased due to stress.

Ways to get your period back are exercising regularly, taking a healthy diet and finding much time to relax.

4.  You had your baby terminated (Abortion)

It’s possible you never attempted to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, got pregnant and had an abortion.

If this happens, your hormones will get disrupted for a while and your period will not show up as usual.

In most women who undergo an abortion, it takes about 1 – 2 months for period to return. Sometimes, if you’ve had a complication during a D & C, your period may be delayed too due to Asherman syndrome.

Ten days late period is not abnormal after an abortion and your period will come in few days time. Talk to your doctor if period gets missing for two months.

5.  You had taken postinor pills

Having sexual intercourse without a condom can result in pregnancy, especially if you’re not in your safe period.

If your menstrual cycle is regular, your safe period is after ovulation or just before your period.

It’s possible you can use postinor pills (emergency contraception) to prevent pregnancy. These tablets contain levonorgestrel that helps prevent ovulation and subsequently make your period come later.

Therefore, if your period is late for ten days after taking these pills, you should not panic.

On the other hand, these pills are more effective when used within five days after unsafe sex. In fact, the earlier these pill are taken, the more effective the will be. If you did not take postinor pills within this time and missed your period, you should test to rule out pregnancy.

Other causes of delayed period are

• Severe weight loss
• Eating disorder
• Continuous oral contraceptive pills
• Years before menopause
• Polycystic ovarian syndrome

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Period 10 days late white discharge, what does it mean?

If your period is delayed for a day or two, it may not mean a serious problem because hormones can sometimes fluctuate due to stress, sleep deprivation, strenuous exercise, and weight loss.

However, period 10 days late white discharge occurs because your body increases pregnancy hormones – estrogen and progesterone. These hormones get increased in early pregnancy and stimulate your body to discharge more.

See other causes of excessive discharge here.

Period 10 days late and cramping, Am I pregnant?

During pregnancy, it’s normal for women to have increased lower abdominal cramps. This occurs because you now have elevated hormones and increased uterine blood supply.

Cramping during pregnancy could also be due to a vaginal infection, ectopic pregnancy, or a miscarriage.

If your period is now late, and you test negative, cramping may be caused by pelvic inflammatory disease, urinary tract infections or an ovarian cyst pain.