Menstrual Cycles and Pregnancy

[girl123]

Hi again,

I have a rather odd question, not to mention a hypothetical one, but here goes.
Can a woman have unprotected sex a few days before her period, get her actual period a few days later, and then miss her period the following month?
I know pregnancy is indeed possible if a woman has unprotected sex a few days after menstruation or even towards the end of her period if she has a short cycle (early ovulation), but is pregnancy still possible in the way I have described (sex, period, then no period?)

Thanks in advance.

[Sam W]

Hi Girl123,

You can find a fairly detailed answer to that question in this article (it's towards the bottom) http://www.scarleteen.com/article/advic ... ds_and_sex

A basic summary from that piece is, "Pregnancy isn't something that happens instantly: it's a process which takes around a week or so to complete. However, because a period has you shedding the lining needed for a fertilized egg to implant in, and because around the time a period starts, there usually is not an egg available to be fertilized, it would be very unusual to become pregnant with timing like this. When you get your period after a risk -- so long as it comes around the time you expected it and looks and feels like your usual period -- it's usually safe to assume pregnancy did not or is not going to occur from that risk."