Implantation bleeding

Implantation is the prologue of pregnancy.  If there’s no implantation, there would be no pregnancy that will occur.  Implantation happens after ovulation and fertilization, where the fertilized egg becomes a cluster of cells called the “blastocyst”.  The blastocyst undergoes several phases while it travels from the fallopian tube to the uterus where it subsequently becomes the embryo.  The embryo penetrates and implants itself in the lining of the uterus, instantaneously triggering the production of the hormone hCG and other hormones, giving rise to the placenta, which will sustain the embryo.  The embryo then starts to receive the essential nourishment from the mother and it will dwell there, eventually becoming the foetus, for over 9 months until its delivery.

            Implantation happens six to eight days after the egg is fertilized, and it lasts for a couple of days.  In some women, it triggers discomfort and other symptoms.  The hormone progesterone is responsible for the thickening of the uterine lining, as it prepares the uterus for the incoming embryo that will be nurtured.  Once the embryo implants itself to the thick and blood-rich uterine lining, it can irritate the lining and cause it to move.  A small amount of blood may be let out by the uterine lining during implantation.  This is called implantation bleeding or implantation spotting.  Other signs of implantation include slight cramps or tenderness and sudden drop followed by a sharp rise of the basal body temperature.  Since there are only a handful of signals of implantation, it is very easy to go unnoticed unless the woman takes an early pregnancy test.  Most women may mistake the symptoms as the beginning of their period and they do not realize they are already pregnant.

            Implantation bleeding is a very pale, light, spotting, which might be experienced right after the embryo implants itself in the lining of the uterus.  It can be mistaken as a start of a period because it is typically blood, and the color, at a fist glance, is the same pale brown, pale red color.  Implantation bleeding differs from a period because it is spottier, more smeared, and lighter than a normal menstrual period.  While some women may take this as the beginning of the period, they will find out that it is not because implantation bleeding does not last long.  The typical implantation bleeding can last for less than a day but not longer than a couple of days.

            Not every pregnant woman experiences implantation bleeding.  Only 5 to 30 percent of pregnant women notice implantation bleeding but not experiencing it does not mean that a woman is not pregnant. Confusion whether a woman is experiencing implantation bleeding or just the start of her period can be cleared by taking a pregnancy test.  If a normal period does not occur after a few days or the test did not have a convincing positive pregnancy test result, the doctor should be consulted for there can be a lot of unseen factors which might have caused the bleeding.