A late period is when a woman’s menstrual cycle doesn’t start as expected, with a normal cycle lasting between 24 to 38 days. When a woman’s period is seven days late she may be pregnant although other things may cause a late or skipped period.

If you haven’t had sex since you had your last period, it’s highly unlikely that you’re pregnant, and you probably don’t need to take a pregnancy test. It’s common to have light spotting or bleeding in early pregnancy, but it wouldn’t be like your normal period.

If some tissue temporarily blocks the flow out the cervix, it may result in light flow, followed by heavier flow when it passes. This may also create the start, stop, start again pattern. Generally, day-to-day variations in flow are considered normal if your period lasts around 3 to 7 days.

Natural causes most likely to cause amenorrhea include pregnancy, breast-feeding, and menopause. Lifestyle factors may include excessive exercise and stress. Also, having too little body fat or too much body fat may also delay or stop menstruation. Hormonal imbalances may cause amenorrhea.

If you are not pregnant, other causes of missed or irregular periods include: Excessive weight loss or gain. Although low body weight is a common cause of missed or irregular periods, obesity also can cause menstrual problems. Eating disorders, such as anorexia or bulimia.

During pregnancy, women expand their blood volume by approximately 30-50%. This is accompanied by an increase in cardiac output. The heart rate may also increase by 10-20 beats per minute. The changes peak during weeks 20-24 and usually resolve completely within 6 weeks of childbirth.

How soon can you take a pregnancy test? You should wait to take a pregnancy test until the week after your missed period for the most accurate result. If you don’t want to wait until you’ve missed your period, you should wait at least one to two weeks after you had sex.