Pregnancy test getting lighter

I found out I was pregnant on Tuesday, my lines since then have gotten darker until they can’t get any darker. I took a test this morning and it was so light, another one this evening but is darker than this mornings but lighter than the others. (All the same brand and usually all taken in the morning other than the one i took this evening) has anyone every experienced this? Am I having a miscarriage?

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Are you looking at the right line? It could be a dye stealer

I’m looking at the test line x

How far gone do you believe you are?x

coming up to 5 weeks now x

Depending on how far along you are it could be the hook effect

I’m coming up to 5 weeks, what is the hook effect? X

I had similar. Stop testing or you'll drive yourself insane x

I’m now going to wait a week to test as told by midwife but I am just so stressed already!!! X

I have had very light spotting only sometimes when I wipe for 2 days but no pain or full flow. My doctor won’t do any bloods and I have to wait a week test again and if still positive I can have a reassurance scan, I suffered with HG in my last pregnancy and have been very nauseous again already! X

idk your options there but here we can buy our own HCG blood tests at local labs for about $49. I did that for a while until I saw my OB.

At about 5-6 weeks the tests become pretty unreliable, unfortunately. This is because your hcg levels are getting pretty high and can ‘overwhelm’ the test. This can lead to the ‘hook effect’ where the tests start to look lighter or even come up negative, even though you’re still very much pregnant! It’s best to try to get blood work done and wean yourself off the home tests for your own sanity. (I know that’s easier said than done!)

Apparently after a certain level of HCG tests stop working and in fact can get lighter.

once you get past a certain gestation your tests naturally become lighter as women only produce an increase of HCG for the early stages of pregnancy. I would definitely go get blood work if you’re concerned with your HCG levels or even get an early scan which I did instead ☺️

It could just be the hook effect. Home pregnancy tests are only designed to pick up certain levels of HCG. Once your HCG exceeds those levels the rest gets overwhelmed and can’t register and it can give a negative result.
However it could also indicate a miscarriage. This has happened to me 3 times.
GPs will rarely do HCG and you’d need another repeated 48 hours anyway to know for sure.
If you phone your midwife and say you’ve had spotting and you’re very concerned, they should be able to refer you to your local EPAU for a scan.
You can get private beta HCG done though Medichecks or Superdrug’s that have a clinic.

Why are you stil testing if you think you are 5 weeks? You will drive yourself crazy

some of us just can’t help it. When it’s taken yours to conceive and multiple losses, it’s more of an obsession that a choice.

I can understand that. I would say for now stop testing and wait for your midwife appointment/scan.

now she’s had that fainter test I’d say it’s more impossible than ever for her to stop testing

I started seeing the hook effect at 5 weeks! Dilute your urine with half water and half urine and test it again. If it comes back darker then it’s hook effect, and it’s time to stop testing. And trust me I know how hard it is after 2 losses but you’ll be relieved when you do xx

Agree with above I had hook effect around this time too x

I had this happen to me around 6 weeks or so. I diluted my urine with water and it came out stronger. Even when I went to my dr apt they said it was really light for how far a long I should have been. I mentioned the hook effect and she didn’t know what I was talking about lol. They just thought maybe I wasn’t as far along as I thought. I booked my scan the next week and baby was perfectly fine. Measured 8w4d. So try not to worry. If you don’t have loss of symptoms or bleeding and cramping I wouldn’t worry about it. Good luck!

Its a dye stealer, at 5 weeks amd above the tests become dye stealer as your hcg is really high at this point.

Same happened to me and i got worried then called my dr to check, and she told me this and is true, i was 5 weeks then.

I had no issues with tests up to 11 weeks pregnant. It's not always a dye stealer x

a due stealer is when your test line is stronger than the control line. Not when the test is negative

yes i know. She didn’t say there negative, she said there lighter.

test line would be darker then control line if a dye stealer. It wouldn't be lighter then before x

okay sorry, but she says the test line is fainter. Still not a dye stealer. With a dye stealer the test line is so dark it’s darker than the control line. Not the other way around.

Any update?

she's been told not to test for another week by midwife x

that’s the best advice really, baby dust for next week ✨ x

couldn’t help myself! Tested yesterday and it was super dark again, tested again today but was a bit lighter! If still positive on Sunday I have to call the midwives to book for an early scan! Xx

keeping everything crossed for you girl 🥰 I have a feeling that it will just be the hook effect, if it was super dark again yesterday it’s a good sign!xx

I hope so, I still have sickness and also now have increase in discharge and constipation which I had in my first pregnancy but it’s so different this time I’m just baffled🤣🤣xx

every pregnancy is different! Hope you’re okay ☺️ let us know what happens on Sunday xx

so true! Just sooo stressed for the outcome! Sunday can’t come soon enough! Xx

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Anyone else up feeding their Bebe?

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Is this normal??

I’m 29 weeks pregnant and having really aching legs and they’re all lumpy and swollen. Above the knee and behind the knee . Should I be worried ? My legs have never looked like this up until a few days ago. ??

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I just wanted to share my experience with being induced as I wasn’t sure what to expect and thought it may help others.

I opted for the foley balloon which was inserted at 8am Saturday morning, I had to stay in hospital due to hypertension and protein urine however usually you can just go home once this has been done. The insertion of the balloon was not painful, was slightly uncomfortable as there was slight pressure. I actually found having the cervix checked prior to be worse (again not painful at this point just uncomfortable) The balloon had little effect and after having it removed I was still only 1cm. Removal also was pain free and hardly even noticeable.

I then had my first dose of the gel and definitely noticed a difference, I started experiencing period like cramps almost immediately however they were light and manageable. After 6 hours I had another cervix check and although my cervix was soft it was still only 1cm and was only open at the front. I had another dose of the gel and felt an increase in pressure and more intense cramping where I now required pain relief (codeine). After another 6 hours I had another cervix check and I had now dilated to 2-3cm however was still quite difficult to get all the way through so a third gel was recommended which I agreed to.

Almost immediately I noticed the difference and was in considerable pain, I had paracetamol and codeine however the contractions had now become intense and a lot closer together (around 3 minutes apart). After a couple of hours I had my last cervix check and was 4cm and taken down to the Labour ward to have my waters broken and an epidural.

I had been in my room for approx 20minutes when my waters broke by themselves and I was now 10cm and actively pushing…. There was no time for the epidural and my beautiful girl arrived into the world within 2 minutes of pushing.

All in all I would say the cramps/contractions were manageable up until the third gel where it became pretty unbearable however it was for a very short time a gas and air helped take the edge off. The worst part about any of it was actually the later cervix checks where after stimulating the cervix my contractions were at their most painful.

If I had to be induced again I would skip the balloon and opt for the gels immediately as thy had a quicker effect and I would have been out a lot sooner if I had done this to begin with.

One more thing, I’ve never believed when people say “you forget the pain once they’re here” but I can honestly say this is true. It’s been 4 days and I would do it all again in a heartbeat.

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