Hi,
I think Rosa meant that you could experience bleeding, but not a period. Most women would not care to know the difference between a "period" and "bleeding" (they just know they're bleeding, and want to know why!).
Since you do care about how your body is working on a more in-depth level, then women can not experience a menstrual period and be pregnant at the same time. I assume there is always the medical exception, but this could be an ectopic pregnancy or another medical condition. For the vast majority of healthy women who receive ongoing health care, a menstrual period sheds the lining of the uterus, making a pregnancy not possible. There are many stages that occur in a woman's cycle, and even once a woman's egg matures, the egg is released (ovulation), the egg is fertilized in the fallopian tube by sperm, then travels down the fallopian tubes into the uterus...she is still not pregnant! The fertilized egg must burrow into the uterine lining and implant itself, causing "pregnancy hormones" to be released. It is at this moment she is pregnant. If the fertilized egg is not able to burrow into the uterine lining, or if it does but a miscarriage happens from uterine bleeding, she would no longer be pregnant.
I hope this clears up some more of the confusion! I wish we learned this stuff in school, or that doctors had more time to talk about women's bodies during our physical exams...wouldn't that be nice! :-)
Comment Reply
Hi,
I think Rosa meant that you could experience bleeding, but not a period. Most women would not care to know the difference between a "period" and "bleeding" (they just know they're bleeding, and want to know why!).
Since you do care about how your body is working on a more in-depth level, then women can not experience a menstrual period and be pregnant at the same time. I assume there is always the medical exception, but this could be an ectopic pregnancy or another medical condition. For the vast majority of healthy women who receive ongoing health care, a menstrual period sheds the lining of the uterus, making a pregnancy not possible. There are many stages that occur in a woman's cycle, and even once a woman's egg matures, the egg is released (ovulation), the egg is fertilized in the fallopian tube by sperm, then travels down the fallopian tubes into the uterus...she is still not pregnant! The fertilized egg must burrow into the uterine lining and implant itself, causing "pregnancy hormones" to be released. It is at this moment she is pregnant. If the fertilized egg is not able to burrow into the uterine lining, or if it does but a miscarriage happens from uterine bleeding, she would no longer be pregnant.
I hope this clears up some more of the confusion! I wish we learned this stuff in school, or that doctors had more time to talk about women's bodies during our physical exams...wouldn't that be nice! :-)
Let us know if you have any other questions!
September 29, 2009 - 3:17pmThis Comment
Reply