[Always *]

You could be late for reasons involving stress, seasonal changes and "normal" fluctuations. Periods are never super consistent, like my period usually comes within 26-31 days, but is usually 27-29 days.

I totally understand your fears because I went through the same recently when my period was a few days later than the average. Bear in mind that I call it the AVERAGE, not anything else, because I know that my period fluctuates a little bit. I just hadn't dealt with it going 3+ days over due while NOT on birth control but BEING sexually active.

With the birth control, you can get false negatives. I don't think that it is as normal to get a false positive though. This is because you need certain levels of hormones in your urine, therefore if you didn't get enough pee on the stick or just otherwise didn't use it accurately enough OR if you used it to soon, you might get the "wrong" answer because if you use it to soon, you might be pregnant but your body might not have quite adjusted fully yet in terms of hormones. They actually recommend that you use the take home pregnancy kits 2 weeks afterwards. Some of them can be within 5-7 days but the sensitivity is still the best after 2 weeks.

I understand the amount of anxiety this is causing you. I know you probably can't just "flip the switch" on that just because I am going to tell you that it would be a good idea. I literally skipped a whole cycle a few times because I was under so much stress. If your under to much stress, your body will shut down certain functions, such as your period because your body will say "ok, your body cannot endure being pregnant right now" and you aren't necessarily pregnant - if this had happened to me when I was having sex, it would have made it so much worse because the possibility existed.

What I am trying to let you know is that I think you should wait. Give it until you are a full week late past the average (ex. my average is 27 days - I would give it until 34 days to get a pregnancy test because by then I am also 3 days outside of my wider range). If it has also been 2 weeks since you had sex by that point, you should get another pregnancy test and/or consult your family doctor just to make sure everything is in working order. (try the take home test first).

The fact that you might be skipping or late over stress is doubly true if you are under or overweight because women who are under or overweight are more susceptible to these sorts of fluctuations.

I would also like to suggest 2 additional things to you. This is for any time - pregnant or not pregnant.

1) "Period Tracker" - this is an app you can get on Androids and iPhones. you can click "start" and "end" for when your period begins and ends, you can monitor your symptoms, weight, etc. - this way you can really keep track of it. Like I found out that my period is not nearly as accurate as I think it is when I started using the app, I always thought it came at same time, but then I realized it really came, on average within a 3 day range, with a wider range of the full 7 days.

2) Birth Control - if you do not have any risk factors for strokes, heart attacks, blood clots and certain cancers, you should 100% get birth control. I am a big fan of the Nuva Ring because it keeps you on the same 4 week cycle that your body (roughly) functions on. You cannot "forget" it as easily as you can with the pill because you do not have to remember about it every single day, you just slip it in and take it out 3 weeks later. It is also the combination type with the 2 types of hormones, which makes it better than the mini-pills and stuff. And you can easily stop using it or what have you, unlike the IUD. But the pill is also a good idea. You have a lot of options and it is worth it. I would consult your family doctor