What is Implantation Bleeding?

I hear this question again and again and there are several places on the web that offer pretty much the same answer I have pasted below. I have always been upset with RE's and their nurses for not warning Surrogates or anyone going through IVF that implantation bleeding may happen...this bleeding can occur even while becoming pregnant naturally. I hope that this calms some fears!

If you are trying to get pregnant, you may hear about implantation bleeding. The term implantation bleeding implies that you would see the amount of blood that you typically see with your period, but this generally isn't the case when you are experiencing implantation. Implantation bleeding occurs when an egg has been fertilized and implants into the lining of the uterus. Because the lining uterus is made up of blood, there can be a bit of blood expelled in some women.

Implantation will appear before you expect your period and many people mistaken it for spotting before their period begins. As mentioned before, most women do not experience a full on bleeding with implantation. Instead, they may experience a bit of spotting in their panties or even some pinkish or brown discharge. This usually is usually not a flowing type of blood, so if that is what you are experiencing it might be better to assume that you have your period. If you happen to get a positive pregnancy test and you are experiencing a flow of blood you might want to get in touch with your doctor to ensure that all is well.

Because there is typically so little and it is before you would expect your period it would be normal to think you are just getting ready to start your period. But, if you are attempting to get pregnant and you know that you ovulated and you had sex around that time it might be a good indication that you are in fact pregnant. Of course, you can't confirm pregnancy with the presence of a bit of blood, but it may be a very good indication that you'll get a positive pregnancy test in the very near future.

It's important to remember that you will usually experience implantation a week or more before you would expect your period, depending on when you ovulate. Also, if you don't happen to see any spotting around this time you shouldn't assume that you aren't pregnant. While a big deal is made about implantation bleeding in a lot of books and all over the Internet, there are actually very few women that actually report experiencing the phenomenon. This could be because most of us assume that we are just spotting before our period starts or it could just be so little blood that it goes unnoticed.

Implantation bleeding is something that many women assume that they will experience, but generally doctors believe that it is the exception not the rule. Knowing this, you probably shouldn't watch for implantation bleeding. Because you know that it does happen every so often you also do not need to be alarmed if you do experience it!

Sharon
www.InfertilityAnswers.org