Withdrawal bleeding but still pregnant?

[jan333]

So I am very very happy to have found this website. I have had months of being super anxious. I was on accutane about two months ago and now that I’m done and off the drug I am able to have sex again. every month I had a blood test and last month and this month I have been having sex w/ my boyfriend. I have the worst anxiety ever and am always convinced that i’m pregnant no matter what. I have been on birth control for my skin for about a year and a half now. A month ago I had my dermatologist appointment and was told I wasn’t pregnant and that all the results looked good. I was so relieved. Then a week later I got my withdrawal bleeding from the 7 days of inactive pills. (Usually starts on wednesday and goes until sunday.) Well I forgot to get my prescription filled!!! Sunday night at 10:30 was when I was supposed to take my first pill in the pack but ended up taking it at 9:00 in the morning the next day and then taking my second at night normally at 10:30. ( so two in one day). I read my pill packet booklet and it said if you miss one pill or start a pack one day late you will not have to use a backup method of birth control. The next day, tuesday I had unprotected sex w/ my boyfriend but felt like I was protected in the moment but as soon as it was wednesday I was already freaking out again. every weekend I had sex but it was w/ a condom so i’m not really worried about that. Although three weeks into the pills I started to feel like I had to pee all the time but nothing came out. well sometimes it would have a lot but seconds after just peeing i’d feel like I still needed to. Not really kike my bladder is full but more like I have a tingling that you get when you have to pee. I know that’s an early pregnancy symptom but I’m confused on why I wouldn’t have more symptoms but this is making me freak out. last wednesday I got my withdrawal bleed aftwr finishing the 21 daya and it felt the same as it always does. crampy the first two days. but this time the bleeding ended on sunday but on monday and tuesday ( today) I’ve had light brown spotting. I am just so nervous and scared especially because I have my very final blood test this sunday that I am so scared to take because I’m terrified of what the results will say. (I’m one of those people who always feels like the worst will happen) But anyways i’ve done hours of research on my phone on all different websites and some people are saying if you get a withdrawal bleed that is a sign that you are not pregnant and then some people are saying that that has nothing to do w/ not being pregnant and that you can still be pregnant while taking birth control pills and having a withdrawal bleed. Once again I am so grateful to have found this page and I hope someone can tell me once and for all the answer.

[Heather]

Welcome to the site, Jan.

We're happy to talk with you about a whole range of things, but we have a very strict policy when it comes to engaging with pregnancy scares that we developed after many years of learning that engaging in the way people in scares often ask for isn't usually helpful for anyone. Here's that policy:

We will not answer ANY questions about pregnancy fear or anxiety in our direct services from users who are not pregnant or who are not or have not otherwise been directly involved with an actual pregnancy.

Please do not post this kind of question. If you are seeing this text, and your thread is locked, it is because you have posted this kind of question.

We CAN and WILL talk about things like:
• choosing and using a method or methods of contraception for any future sexual activity
• creating your own sexual limits and boundaries based on your needs and/or presenting them to any partners
• making sexual choices that suit your own needs, abilities and limitations, including your own readiness for certain possible risks
• help locating or using emergency contraception if and when you have had a pregnancy risk
• discussing options with a real, existing pregnancy, and help finding and accessing those options, such as abortion services and pre-natal care, or discussing feelings or concerns about a past pregnancy
• help with anxiety like locating mental health services, sound self-help or asking for support from friends or family

For help dealing with a scare (including what poses a risk and your next steps based on your unique situation), you may use our tool on site built for this purpose: The Pregnancy Panic Companion.
For help with anxiety, click here.
For related help and information at Scarleteen, click here.
If you would like more information about this policy, click here.

* * *

That said and shared, it sounds very clearly like sex without a condom is just absolutely not a good choice for you given your anxiety, and that's extra clear since you say you don't have concerns about the times you did use a condom. So, while there's nothing we can do for you with this scare save telling you you'll have to wait it out, as we all do with scares, until you can take a pregnancy test, which you can anytime now, since you already had a withdrawal bleed after the fact.

I also have concerns about the urinary symptoms you are having, not because of pregnancy (urinary symptoms with pregnancy don't typically happen in early pregnancy, and when they do, it's not like this), but because it sounds like you may have a urinary tract infection. The symptoms you are describing are very typical with UTIs. If you do have one, and you don't get treated, that can not only make you feel very uncomfortable, but can spread to your kidneys and become dangerous.

So, I'd suggest you make an appointment with your healthcare provider as soon as you can. While you're there, you could also ask for a pregnancy test if you wanted one (they'll probably run one regardless if you're of reproductive age and sexually active: it's typical), and you also could talk about your anxiety. It may be that the anxiety you're having is about a general disorder, rather than just about pregnancy, and if so, they can probably get you started on some help with that, too.

I hope you feel better soon!