After seeing the First Response commercial many, many times on television, I thought it would be a good pregnancy test to use. I had heard the woman in the commercial say over and over in her hushed voice how the pregnancy hormone can detected as early as 5 days before your expected period, and how science is getting better at detecting pregnancy. I didn’t want to risk using any really cheap or non-brand name tests for my first pregnancy tests, so I figured I’d go all out and get the First Response tests.

I bought a box with one tests (which came with a second free test). I think you can find this at just about any drugstore or department store like Target. In my case, I bought mine at Walmart (thinking I might find it cheaper) for I believe about $9.


How to Use

This is your typical “pee on a stick” pregnancy test. It was the first (and only) brand I have used, and it seemed straightforward, and exactly what I expected as to how to use it. Each pregnancy test is individually wrapped in a foil wrapper. The directions are printed on a separate brochure.

One end of the test has a cap on it, which you remove to expose an absorbent tip – which you hold in your urine for 5 seconds (this can include dipping it in a cup). You can test any time of day (does not have to be first thing in the morning, although hormone levels are generally highest in the morning).

I liked having the cap and being able to put the cap back on when I was done. It is not necessary to replace the cap for the test to work properly, but obviously, it is good for cleanliness purposes (especially in the event you begin jumping up and down with the test or run to your husband and make him look at it)!

Now for the wait. You put the test on a flat surface with the “Result Window” facing up. It is easy to tell which side is the top of the test – there is a clear indicator window where you wait for the results, whereas the back pretty much does not have anything going on (you’re just staring at opaque white plastic).

The directions read “You may soon see a pink color moving across the Result Window to indicate the test is working. Your result should appear within 3 minutes. There should be at least one pink line in the Result Window at 5 minutes to indicate that the test is completed and you have done it correctly.”

I actually didn’t time the test, but I could see some color creeping across the window. I took the test a few days before my theoretical missed period, and within a few minutes there was a dark pink line (which is the test line – you should always get one), and gradually a light pink line. I thought I was imagining it, and I was not sure if this truly qualified as being pregnant (especially when this is the first try to get pregnant!). What I did not know “back then” was that a line is a line in most cases. It would make sense that either you have the hormone or you do not.

Therefore, I kept the test and retested the next day, getting gradually darker pink lines. I kept the tests for a while (a few weeks), and the light pink line darkened a little bit over time, but was still significantly lighter than the test line. My second test had a dark enough line that I was fairly certain I was pregnant – of course, by this time, it was the day I was supposed to have gotten my period, so it was easier to believe the line!

And if that wasn’t clear enough – I am indeed pregnant!


My Thoughts

For some reason I was really sold on the commercial – the main point being that the test is “so sensitive that most women have enough hCG to be detected as early as 4 days before their expected period.” The days I tested before I got my period, the lines I got were so light, I didn’t have faith that the test was a positive. I wish that I had known that “a line is a line” no matter how faint, and therefore had a little more confidence in the results.

The First Response test states that “Most at-home pregnancy tests detect hCG in urine around the first day of a missed period.” I think I didn’t feel confident enough with the line I had gotten to believe the results until my first day of my missed period. I read some more info on their website, which says “In clinical testing, FIRST RESPONSEŽ detected the hormone levels in 69% of women 4 days before their expected period, in 83% of women 3 days before their expected period, in 93% of women 2 days before their expected period, and in 93% of women 1 day before their expected period.”

There is a website - www.peeonastick.com - that tests pregnancy tests and also lists their sensitivities. First Response has a really high sensitivity, at least compared to other tests.


Overall

I am glad I chose First Response as the first pregnancy test I tried (and the only pregnancy test I have used). It was one of the big name brands and I figured it would be a good one to try. It was easy to use, typical in terms of what I expected, and easy to read (aside from wondering if a faint line qualified as a line).

Considering I didn’t know much about taking pregnancy tests, I thought the results would be a little more obvious and a clear positive at that 4 day mark, but now I know that it likely will be light, if it appears at all. First Response is pretty sensitive so I would probably stick with this in future tests as well.

And I’m happy to say I have a baby on the way!


First Response: http://www.firstresponse.com




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