Can UTI = Pregnancy?
September 12, 2011 6:55 AM   Subscribe

Can a UTI be an early sign of pregnancy? (Possibly NSFW)

My husband and I are trying to conceive, so naturally we are doing the deed fairly regularly. I have had problems with UTIs in the past when I was young and stupid and forgot to pee after sex, but I always make sure to pee afterwards now and haven't had any UTIs for about 4 years.

You are not my doctor, and I have an appointment with an actual doctor at 2pm today, but I am wondering if any other MeFites have experienced similar circumstances. FWIW, I am a 27/f, actively trying to conceive for about a month and a half. We did the deed two days ago and I dutifully peed afterwards, and since waking up and going to work, I suddenly have a UTI. Thanks in advance.
posted by ThaBombShelterSmith to Health & Fitness (10 answers total)
 
I know someone who got a UTI around the same time she became pregnant. That's just one data point though; I don't know whether they are usually related.
posted by Juffo-Wup at 7:16 AM on September 12, 2011


Looking back, you might say, "oh, look, I must've been pregnant when I had that UTI." But a UTI by itself wouldn't be a sign of pregnancy. Have you peed on a stick?
posted by dawkins_7 at 7:29 AM on September 12, 2011


Pure anecdata, but I did get a UTI the month I finally conceived. I did not know I was pregnant at the time, since I got the UTI right after ovulation and did not test positive on a pregnancy test until around 11 days later.

Good luck!
posted by barney_sap at 7:39 AM on September 12, 2011


Don't confuse correlation with causation! Sex can be a root cause of both UTIs and pregnancy.
posted by chesty_a_arthur at 8:09 AM on September 12, 2011 [10 favorites]


Two days after sex is too early for any signs of pregnancy. Even if you did conceive two days ago, your body doesn't know you're pregnant yet.

Good luck though!
posted by thirteenkiller at 8:49 AM on September 12, 2011 [1 favorite]


Like thirteenkiller says, until implantation, your body has no idea conception has happened; that little egg is still floating down the fallopian tube on its way to the uterus. That usually happens around 9 days after sperm meets egg. So if you just ovulated and did the deed 2 days ago, there's no way that your UTI could be related to your conception status.
posted by rabbitrabbit at 9:56 AM on September 12, 2011


That usually happens around 9 days after sperm meets egg.

By that I mean, implantation usually happens around 9 days after sperm meets egg.
posted by rabbitrabbit at 9:57 AM on September 12, 2011


If you've recently starting doing it more often in order to conceive, it's possible you're just inflaming your urethra over and over. If this particular pain isn't due to UTI bacteria or pregnancy, you should up the amount of lube you're using! I've had 15 UTIs in the last ten years and realized recently that UTI bacteria can exist without a full blown infection. It's possible you're like me - you might just bruising your ladyjunk over and over.
posted by theraflu at 11:24 AM on September 12, 2011


Best answer: You are really jumping the gun here! A UTI could be caused by any number of things, and only some are related to trying to get pregnant. For instance, if you were on hormonal birth control, going off of it could cause hormonal issues that made it easier for you to contract a UTI.

All you are going to get here is anecdotal stuff, and that's not going to be very useful, except maybe when you look back later to what actually applied. Every pregnant woman is different. I've never known a woman who realized she was pregnant because she fainted, like on television, but other than that, pretty much anything goes. I first realized I was pregnant after I gained 5 pounds for no reason and--no kidding--a co-worker told me I looked "radiant." My sister and one of my friends knew when they had terrible morning sickness several days in a row. Another friend missed her period but otherwise doesn't remember feeling any different at all when she took the pregnancy test and it came up positive. Again, all anecdotal, and you may be completely different from all of us.

Get the UTI treated, and if in a couple weeks it turns out you were pregnant all along, great! But don't assume every little thing might be an indication of OMGPREGNANCY, or you will go crazy second-guessing yourself in the weeks ahead.

And don't worry if it takes a few months. A month and a half is not very long to be trying. You could get pregnant the first day you try, but despite what you see on TV, you really shouldn't even start to worry unless you've been trying for a year without results.
posted by misha at 12:58 PM on September 12, 2011 [2 favorites]


UTIs are sometimes called "honeymoon cystitis" because they can be caused by lots and lots of sex.
posted by Houstonian at 4:41 PM on September 12, 2011


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