How to Figure Out When I Conceived if I Didn't Have Period

If you're a sexually active female and you've missed a period, you may be considering the possibility that you're pregnant. Determining the time of conception is made more difficult if you have penetrative sex frequently -- three to five times, or more, weekly. While pregnancy can result from non-penetrative sex if semen is present near the vaginal opening, it's not very common. There's a process of elimination you can use to deduce the time frame in which you may have conceived.

Things You'll Need

• Pregnancy test
• Calendar

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Instructions

• 1

  Take a pregnancy test if you think you may be pregnant. Pregnancy tests are available at drugstores and at online retailers, including Amazon.com. You can also get a pregnancy test at your local Planned Parenthood branch or other family-planning organization at little to no cost. If any of your home pregnancy tests is positive, go to a doctor to confirm that you're pregnant and discuss next steps. If you don't have a doctor or don't have health insurance, family planning organizations can also give you a medical appointment. Visit Planned Parenthood's website to find the branch closest to you, or use another family planning organization that you're familiar with.

• 2

  Consider the circumstances of your sexual encounters. Have you had unprotected penetrative sex recently? Unprotected sex means you didn't use any sort of contraceptive, such as a condom or birth control pill. Having unprotected sex just once can result in pregnancy. If you remember the day you had unprotected sex, that's likely the day you conceived. If you have an intrauterine device or other type of birth control that doesn't require you to take a pill every day, check to see whether it's been dislodged or otherwise affected, which can decrease its effectiveness at preventing pregnancy.

• 3

  Use a calendar to track the amount of time that's passed since your last period. If your last period was not unusually heavy or light and happened at roughly the same time of month it usually does, you've probably become pregnant since then. Reconstruct your sexual activity since your last period. You're most likely to become pregnant when you're ovulating, which means your body is preparing an egg for fertilization. Ovulation typically occurs in the third week of a woman's menstrual cycle; that is, one week before your period begins. Some women can tell when they're ovulating by a telltale "twinge" of pain on either side of the lower abdomen. Your temperature also rises slightly, which is usually detectable only with a thermometer. If you had unprotected, penetrative sex the week you were ovulating, you may be able to narrow down the date you conceived to one of those occasions.

• 4

  Discuss your thoughts and concerns with a medical professional, whether it's your obstetrician/gynecologist, general practitioner or nurse practitioner in a clinic. Bring a record of your recent sexual and menstrual activity so the medical professional can help you pinpoint the date you conceived.