I have been getting myself into a right worry. Here's why:

1 - Firstly, I got my BFP on Saturday, my AF was due on Monday/Tuesdayish. Since then I have done another pregnancy test on Tuesday afternoon and another one on Thursday morning. While they have got a bit darker, they are not as dark as the test line - is this normal or is it a sign of something bad? Surely at eighteen days post ovulation I should be getting really dark lines (having said that, the tests I have been using measure at 50 miu or whatever the unit of measurement is).

I did a Clearblue digital last night to make sure I am still pregnant and it came up 'pregnant' in about a minute (maybe less) and it says to wait up to three.

2 - Secondly, while I have been having not much abdominal cramping at all, from yesterday afternoon until just now, I have been having lower back pain that seems to go from the right side lower down in my back to the top of my right leg. What do you think it means? I have been googling it on the internet - and there are quite a few sites that think this is a sign of an impending miscarriage.

I am going to go and visit my doctor today, but any advice would be welcome.

back ache is normal - i read it was the hormonal changes affecting the stuff between our vertebrae or soemthing. I'll try adn find the website I read that no. I have it anyway, right at the bottom, and sometimes into my backside. Esp if I sit funnily, slouched down in my chair with no support to my lower back.

And as for the permanent test line being darker - this is a sign that the test is working! I think it should ALWAYS be darker than your baby line - it's to prove the test isnt faulty I believe. Don't worry. (Easier said than done I know, I worry every day!)

Most women suffer from early pregnancy backache because of softening of supporting ligaments and disks due to an increase in progesterone hormone.
http://ezinearticles.com/?Dealing-Wi...ache&id=839269

Just phoned doctor - got an appointment at 9.30. I was told to bring in a urine sample (hope this doesn't mean she thinks it is something bad).

I had to go look for a container - all I could find was a spare contact lense container. She said that as long as I didn't come in with a urine sample in vase or something, she didn't mind what I put it in!

bet she thinks the back ache might be a urine infection. it'll be fine, you'll see, people must get these all the time. But honestly, I have had back ache on and off since the very early days. It's normal I'm sure.

good luck!

Backache is very common, that is what made me test with my last pregnancy......and it was a BFP!

These are the levels of hormone during pregnancy and as you can see, it is normal to have a low dose even at 5 weeks.......so try not to worry babe!x

Weeks of Pregnancy & Normal HCG Levels:

I tested so many time Poppy and sometimes the test line was nowhere near as dark as the control line & I would panic that my hCG was declining (this would be up to 7 weeks) so that is normal. Was it cheapies you used? Was with me.

x

Back from the doctor's - he did urine test and it turns out I have a very mild urine infection. He says he is not going to give me antibiotics because it is so mild. He looked at my back and said it looked like it was just muscular - like I have twisted it or something. He said that taking paracetemol is safe during pregnancy but not to take anti-inflammataries, asprin or ibuprofen.

I relayed all my pregnancy worries on to him and he told me that hpts are qualitative not quantitative and it could be the brand I am using or just the samples I am using and that a line is a line. I enquired about HCG level tests and he said that they don't do them unless you have had a specific problem such a recurrent miscarriages.

He also looked at my previous cycles and thinks that I might have ovulated later than I previously thought - however, I did explain that I got a positive OPK on cycle day 14 and ov pains followed by a negative opk on the following morning. He did not really know what opks were so I had to explain that to him, so I am not confident he really could tell that I ovulated later than I thought. He was going by my longer cycle (31 days) when I have been having shorter cycles lately. So???? who knows? I will probably have to wait until scan to find out.

Congratulations Poppy!!!

I'm so pleased for you!!!

I'm sure everything will be fine, glad to see you went to the docs to put your mind at ease. We can't help worrying though, I'm permanently paranoid!!

How you feeling?

Thanks Wobbles.

I used Clearblue Digital for two tests (the first one on Saturday took quite a while to come up - the full three minutes and the one I did last night took about a minute, maybe under).

The other tests I have been using (where I have been examining lines!) were Boots own brand and Asda (£3.90 for two). I have heard some negative reports about Boots' own brand. For me, the two Boots tests I have done recently (one on Tuesday afternoon and one on Thursday morning) the lines came up immediately but took a while to darken out and they weren't as dark as the test line.