The Next Steps After a Positive Pregnancy Test

The moment you’ve been hoping for is finally here. Your pregnancy test is positive! It’s natural to feel a range of emotions at this stage. You’re undoubtedly excited to be pregnant. But you may also feel anxious about telling others too soon and losing the pregnancy. Rest assured that your RISE team will pay close attention to you and give you the support you need during this time. 

Confirm the Results

In many cases, the next step after a positive pregnancy test is to confirm the results. It’s best not to use home pregnancy tests if you’re receiving fertility treatments that involve hormones because the hormone treatment itself can cause a positive pregnancy test, especially early on. Instead, wait for your doctor to perform a blood test, which usually occurs about two weeks after treatment.

And because the hormones you’re given during treatment can influence the results of pregnancy tests, you will often be given at least two tests to confirm you’re pregnant.. 

Take Time to Process

Learning that you’re finally pregnant can be overwhelming. We encourage you to take time to process the news with your partner and seek help from a therapist if needed. Both the emotional toll of infertility and the changes in hormones from treatment and pregnancy can lead to intense feelings. Be sure to talk to your doctor or mental health professional if you are feeling very anxious, depressed, or overwhelmed. 

If you haven’t already done so, you should also discuss with your partner about when you want to share the news. Some people are excited to tell family and friends the good news right away. Others prefer to wait until they feel more certain that the pregnancy is going well.

Monitor for Complications

Some fertility treatments, like in vitro fertilization (IVF), can make you feel uncomfortable. And sometimes, you might develop complications during treatment or afterwards that affect you while you are pregnant. For instance, the hormones that cause your eggs to grow in order to be harvested for IVF can also cause a condition called ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS). 

If you develop OHSS or other complications, your treatment team will act quickly to treat the condition and minimize your discomfort. So it’s important to let us know if you are having any symptoms like abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, or trouble breathing. OHSS can be serious, so prompt treatment is necessary. Fortunately, most cases resolve quickly with appropriate treatment.

Labs

We want to be sure that you’re healthy and your pregnancy is progressing normally, so we’ll do blood tests every week to keep an eye on important markers that give us information about the health of your pregnancy. This includes monitoring your progesterone, estrogen, and hCG levels.

Once you become pregnant, the placenta makes large amounts of progesterone. Monitoring your levels helps us ensure the pregnancy is progressing properly and alerts us to potential problems, like an ectopic pregnancy. Your estrogen levels also help us determine the health of your pregnancy and give us information about whether you may be suffering from OHSS. Finally, hCG is a hormone produced during pregnancy that helps us know whether your pregnancy is progressing normally and whether you may have a multiple pregnancy.

Ultrasounds

As part of our comprehensive fertility care, we do an ultrasound each week to look at how your pregnancy is progressing. The ultrasound helps us see that your embryo has implanted in the uterus. We can also rule out any problems, like ectopic pregnancies and check for multiple pregnancies.

As the weeks progress, we’ll continue to monitor your baby’s development. And at around six weeks, we should be able to detect your baby’s heartbeat for the first time! We’ll continue doing ultrasounds, along with lab work, every week through the first trimester of your pregnancy. That way we can ensure your pregnancy is progressing as it should and discuss your options if any problems are found. 

Transition to an Obstetrician

After your first trimester, it’s time to transition to an obstetrician. We have loved having you in our RISE family, and we hope you’ll keep in touch. But once you reach your second trimester, you will be best served by an obstetrician, who specializes in pregnancy care and childbirth. 

Remember, this is a new phase of your journey, so you shouldn’t expect your care to be the same as it was here at RISE. Fertility treatments require intensive intervention and monitoring, with lots of appointments. When transitioning to an obstetrician, it’s common to worry that you aren’t seeing the doctor frequently enough. However, this new phase of your pregnancy means you won’t need such intensive monitoring. 

Understanding the next steps after a positive pregnancy test can help you feel reassured about what happens at every stage of your fertility and pregnancy journey. And remember, your RISE treatment team will be with you every step of the way. 

If you’re looking for a fertility care partner, we encourage you to learn about what sets RISE apart. Then, schedule a consult to review your fertility and family planning goals.