Faint to nearly non-existent (but there!) lines for 5 days. ANY positive outcomes?

[1babysmom]

I hate to be picky, but I've read plenty of negative outcomes, so I'm really just curious to see if anyone has a POSITIVE one??

I have been getting extremely faint lines on HPT's since Tuesday night.  I'm now around 15DPO.  Some are darker than others (but still extremely faint), and others would appear negative to someone who hasn't taken a bazillion pregnancy tests over the years.  I'm a POASaholic and had lots of cheapie tests so I've probably taken about 25 tests throughout 5 days (including Wondfo, Equate, FRE, Answer, and CBDigi).  The only one that was clearly negative was the digital ("not pregnant") which I actually expected, considering how light my lines are, so that doesn't surprise me.  The thing is, they ARE positives, I have definitely learned to discern light lines from evaps so I know what I'm seeing (plus with all of them over that many brands...).  But they should be darkening by now.  I know HPT's aren't a measure of HOW pregnant you are, but IME (and the fact that it just makes sense) they should be getting a LITTLE darker now, or at least more consistent.

With 4 of my 6 pregnancies (1 of the 4 being a miscarriage) I had early BFP's starting at 8/9 DPO and they darkened very quickly.  My very first pregnancy (also a miscarriage) I didn't get a light BFP until 17 DPO and lost the baby at 6 weeks.  My 3rd and most recent miscarriage was 2 months ago and was the first time I got early but VERY light lines that never darkened and I miscarriaged just a few days later.

I was expecting the same thing this time, but it's been 5 days now and other than the barely there lines, I have NO sign that this pregnancy is heading toward miscarriage.  No spotting, cervix is still closed up, no unusual cramping, etc.  

I know there is a possibility of ectopic with what clearly appears to be consistently low hCG levels (just based on lines), and if this persists I will take the next step in diagnosing that because I won't mess around with that dept. (as well as the possibility of a molar pregnancy or a blighted ovum)  I also know that I could always just go in and get a few blood tests over the next week and see what my numbers are, but I also feel like at this point I am just waiting to start seeing blood and that's a lot of money to pay to just come home and find myself losing the baby.  Plus if I'm losing the baby anyway there's nothing a blood test will do to help.  I've been praying about it all the time and am trying to hold on to faith that everything could be okay, but at the same time it's just hard. :(  I keep thinking that it's still early and some people don't even test positive at all yet, but the fact that I HAVE tested positive for nearly a week now with no sign of progression is what makes me nervous.

Has anyone had a week of extremely light, non-darkening BFP's (or just very low or very slow rising hCG in general) and went on to have a successful pregnancy??

Edited by 1babysmom - 6/11/11 at 11:20am

[Jaimee]

No direct experience to share, but I wanted to lend support by saying that when the embryo implants has much to do with how dark the line is.  Perhaps this pregnancy had a later implantation than some of your other pregnancies and is producing lower, but still viable hCG levels.  If it were me, I would probably keep testing every other day or so to see if it's still positive and starting to darken for the next week.  After that I would go in for an hCG quantitative test and see how the doubling time is.  I'm sure any care provider would authorize this for you considering your previous losses.

Good luck mama! 

[alittlesandy]

How do you feel about getting a quantitative HCG blood test? I think it would put your mind at ease, either way. I've researched this a ton (am also addicted to POAS) and everything I've seen says that these tests are qualitative (yes/no) rather than quantitative, and the darkness of lines can be misleading either way.

[stellamia]

I got a whole lot of evaps that were heartbreakingly convincing. If there is no pink in the line, destroy the test and walk away. Hugs to you mama, I know it's hard. 

[RosieL]

I have never seen a positive HPT, but I do know that different brands will have different levels of sensitivity. You mentioned you have a bunch of different brands. As a PP mentioned, the HPTs are not supposed to be used beyond yes/no, however if you're looking for a pattern I would say only look for a pattern within a specific brand...

[1babysmom]

Thought I would update this- it did end in another miscarriage (on my 26th birthday no less). They were definitely pink lines, just barely there.  I don't use the brands I've had convincing evaps on anyway (what a waste, huh?).  The reason I was using multiple brands was to sort of "confirm" that I was really getting BFP's...because if it just happens on one brand but not on another, I'm going to take that as a no...but if they are consistently positive (regardless of how much) that'd be a yes for me.  So anyway...here we go again.  At least after these last two losses I have a fairly good idea of where the problem is at (implantation), so we are working to change that.  Thanks for everyones replies.

[Jaimee]

Sorry mama!  Do you have a history of a short LP?  I've twice m/c just after my expected AF.  I tweaked some things in my diet and exercise routine to lengthen my LP. 

Hugs to you- I hope you figure it out soon!

[1babysmom]

Originally Posted by Jaimee 

Sorry mama!  Do you have a history of a short LP?  I've twice m/c just after my expected AF.  I tweaked some things in my diet and exercise routine to lengthen my LP. 

Hugs to you- I hope you figure it out soon!

No, long actually!  My LP is generally about 16-18 days, though after my last baby it's been as short (for me) as 14 days.