Discharge Before Period vs Early Pregnancy: Signs & Symptoms

Having vaginal fluid is a normal thing. If you have hit puberty you have probably noticed a clear resembling an egg white consistency fluid. This fluid is called a vaginal discharge and it helps your vagina to stay clean, keep a normal bacterial flora and fight off infections. Sometimes this fluid can change its color, smell, or consistency in which case it is best to consult with your doctor. But what about the time when you might be pregnant, or you want to differentiate between having your period and noticing an early pregnancy sign like an increased amount of vaginal fluid? This can be a little tricky, but let's explore together if this is possible and what you can do at home. 

What Is Vaginal Discharge?

Vaginal discharge is the fluid that the glands around the vagina alongside the cells in your vagina, cervix, and uterus produce. This fluid helps keep your vagina clean and infection free and is made out of liquid, cells and bacteria. This fluid keeps your vaginal pH level from 3.8 to 4.5 which is slightly acidic and also helps in keeping your vagina healthy. The amount of vaginal fluid that you will have will vary during your lifetime. Newborn female babies sometimes have it for a couple of days after being born because of the exposure to estrogen in the womb. Girls before puberty have a small amount of it that is thinner than the one they have after entering puberty and their ovaries start producing estrogen. Vaginal fluid during menopause will also reflect the changes in hormone production. It will become white, cream, or clear and less in volume. The changes are also prominent during the menstrual cycle where the volume increases during ovulation time. 

Jasmina Andonova

Discharge Before Your Period

The amount of discharge and its consistency change during the menstrual cycle. It is normal to have it every day but you will notice that in the days leading up to your menstruation, it will be  thick and sticky. This is due to the progesterone that increases after ovulation. In terms of color, it can be clear, white, or cloudy with a possible yellow tone or sometimes you can notice spotting which will make it have a brown or a red color. A subtle musky smell can be present as well. The volume is less in the days before your menstruation starts.     

Early Pregnancy Discharge

The first change in your vaginal fluid when you are pregnant and in your early days is increased volume.This happens because you are in a greater need of protection from infection. The consistency will be thin and watery and the color will be clear or a little white. You can also notice it is odorless. You can spot an early pregnancy discharge more easily if you connect it to some other early signs when you are pregnant like nausea, having the need to pee more frequently, tenderness in your breasts, bloating, changes in your mood, constipation etc.

Key Differences: Discharge Before Period vs. Early Pregnancy

This difference is not an easy one to make as the differences in the vaginal fluid are very subtle. So let’s see which are the changes that can give you a clue of what is going on:

• Volume: One of the differences is the volume of it. In the early days of being pregnant, the volume will be more than the volume before starting your menstruation.
• Smell: There will also be changes in smell as the one before the start of your menstruation has a subtle musky smell and the early pregnancy one is odorless.
• Color:  You should also notice the color of it as the before-period one might be whitish with a yellow tone or it may have a red or brown color as where the one in the early days of being pregnant will have a clear or slightly white color. It is important to note that a red or brown spotting can sometimes be seen in the first weeks of being pregnant too, and this is known as implantation bleeding.

Discharge Color Guide: What Different Colors Mean

There are some occasions in which your vaginal discharge will change its color so it is important to know what color indicates what and when to seek a doctor's help if needed. So let's see what different colors mean so that you will have an idea of what might be wrong before you visit your doctor:

• Clear egg-white discharge: Normal, that is usually produced during ovulation.
• White or milky white discharge with a yellow tone: Normal. This is produced after ovulation and in the days before and after your menstruation.
• Yellow, grey, or green discharge: These colors can say that you have a bacterial infection or a sexually transmitted infection.
• Red, pink, or brown discharge: These colors are indicators of bleeding. They normally present around ovulation and your menstruation, or implantation bleeding during the first trimester. They can also be present as signs of some diseases of the reproductive system.

A common condition that can cause a change in the amount of vaginal fluid is uterine fibroids (myomas). Uterine fibroids are benign growths of the uterus. They are sometimes linked with increased amounts of vaginal discharge that will be clear or white. They do cause bleeding so it can become brown or reddish too. If you notice a bigger amount of it and you know you are not pregnant it is worth exploring the possibility of having them. Please talk with your doctor as he or she will perform a pelvic exam and an ultrasound test to diagnose your condition. Sometimes, if the myomas can’t be seen on ultrasound other diagnostic procedures are needed like MRI, hysterosonography, hysterosalpingography, or hysteroscopy. After you have been diagnosed your doctor will choose a treatment for you that can be a wait and see approach, medicine and, or a surgical procedure. The wait and see approach is useful as many women don’t experience symptoms, as they grow slowly or sometimes even stay the same size. Available medicines are: GnRH agonists, GnRH antagonists, progestin-releasing intrauterine device, tranexamic acid. If treatment with medicine is unsuccessful there are surgery options like: focused ultrasound surgery, uterine artery embolization, laparoscopic radiofrequency ablation, laparoscopic myomectomy, endometrial ablation, hysteroscopic myomectomy, hysterectomy or abdominal myomectomy. Depending on whether you are planning to become pregnant your doctor’s decision will vary as some of these procedures are linked to permanent infertility. The increased amount of vaginal fluid will go away after successful treatment with medications or surgery.

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When to Take a Pregnancy Test?

When to Take a Pregnancy Test?

If you have noticed a change in your vaginal discharge you can take a test. Usually, these changes will happen around the time you will miss your menstruation,so it is best to take the test when you see that you are running late. Because the changes in the vaginal fluid are subtle it is best if you notice other signs of being pregnant too when you take the test. Be mindful that sometimes home tests are not accurate and you should follow up with a doctor if you think you might be pregnant.

When to See a Doctor?

The best time to see a doctor is if you notice something that raises a concern like a change in the color, consistency, volume, or smell of your vaginal fluid. Changes like a chunky or foamy fluid, with an unpleasant fishy odor that is grey or green in color is certainly a change that you want to check out as early as possible. Also if you have vaginal itching or burning accompanied with possible swelling, pain in your pelvis or pain when you pee, it is a clear sign that you should pay a visit to your doctor. These changes may be accompanied by a rash or a sore. Red or brown spotting that is not around the time of your menstruation, ovulation, or early days of being pregnant is also a time for visiting your doctor.  

Conclusion

Alongside with other early pregnancy symptoms or symptoms that you experience before getting your menstruation it can be possible to differentiate whether you are pregnant or not based on the changes in your vaginal discharge. The best way to approach this is to take a home pregnancy test around the time you have missed your menstruation and then follow up with a doctor to make sure you are pregnant. Other conditions can also be excluded with the doctor's visit. It is crucial to remember that you alone at home might have a hard time differentiating the changes that happen in the early days of being pregnant, so don’t be afraid or shy to ask for more guidance navigating these changes.