For most people, the ideas of periods and pregnancy have often been closely associated with each other. It is not uncommon to find people trying to conceive asking about the relationship between conception and the periods.
The same question is also sometimes asked by expectant mothers, especially those who happen to experience vaginal bleeding in the course of their pregnancy.
Information on periods and pregnancy
It is fact that one of the easiest ways to tell whether or not a woman is pregnant is by observing her menstrual cycle. In the event that she happens to miss a period, this is generally usually taken as a sign that she may be pregnant. Of course there are other causes that may result in the same effect but the most renown of them all is normally pregnancy. Late periods may also be considered in this respect.
The first step in discovering the true relationship between periods and pregnancy is understanding clearly what periods are as well as the processes that are normally involved in the same.
Periods are basically just menstruation and they are a normal process of life that every woman has got to undergo at some point in their lives. They usually begin at around the age of thirteen, although this may differ from person to person depending on a number of factors.
Every month, the ovary releases ova to be fertilized by sperms. These ova move to the lower parts of the fallopian tube where they await fertilization and at the same time, the walls of the uterus or womb also begin to thicken in readiness for the fertilized egg.
In the event that the ova fail to get fertilized after staying in the fallopian tube for a while, they together with the new walls of the uterus are passed out of the body in the form of periods.
This is what is normally witnessed as menstrual blood and the entire process constitutes menstruation. However, if the egg or ovum in the fallopian tube happens to get fertilized, then there is likely to be no menstruation as the egg moves and attaches itself to the walls of the uterus where it develops into a viable fetus.
From the foregoing discussion, it is evident that the relationship between periods and pregnancy exists up to the time of conception. In answer to the question of whether or not you can have periods during pregnancy, it is safe to conclude that no, you cannot have periods when you are pregnant.
The reason why there is so much confusion regarding the relationship between periods and pregnancy is due to the fact that there are expectant women who have from time to time reported the occurrence of vaginal bleeding during the period of their pregnancy. This vaginal bleeding is often misconstrued as menstruation or periods. The bleeding, while it may bear most of the characteristics of a normal period, is not caused by menstruation.
In medical terms, vaginal bleeding in the early stages of pregnancy is referred to as breakthrough bleeding and it occurs when the menstrual cycle controlling hormones happen to overcome the pregnancy hormones in the body.
