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One of many things that differs the pregnancy of my Keplerians and that of humans is that in Keplerians, there is a symptom that is equivalent to a positive pregnancy test. To explain this, first, I need to explain what goes on during a normal menstrual cycle in Keplerians.

During a normal menstrual cycle in Keplerians, there is no bleeding directly from the vagina, all the bleeding is from the uterus. In their vagina, there is a layer of tissue similar to the endometrium of the uterus, but it responds to different hormones. These hormones that the vaginal endometrium responds to are pregnancy hormones.

Now, let's say a Keplerian gets pregnant. The zygote is going to start dividing. This triggers pregnancy hormone production. As the pregnancy hormone increases, the vaginal endometrium thickens, up to a point. Then once it reaches the threshold of pregnancy hormone, the vaginal endometrium sloughs off until it is back to its normal thickness. This causes a painless vaginal bleed to happen several days after ovulation and this bleed is equivalent to a positive pregnancy test. The bleed happens to correspond with when the embryo implants into the uterus.

This vaginal bleed in response to pregnancy hormones lasts for several days and so it is often called a "Vaginal Period". This not only confirms that the Keplerian is indeed pregnant, but it comes before the whole slew of pregnancy symptoms from nausea to abdominal rash. I know that there are real situations in humans where a change in hormone levels causes it to change from a positive feedback loop to a negative feedback loop involving the same hormones, with the menstrual cycle being one of those situations. So it isn't totally out of the question that the bodily equivalent of a positive pregnancy test in my Keplerians could be caused by a positive feedback loop changing into a negative feedback loop that leads to a leveling off of pregnancy hormone levels.

However, is the painless vaginal bleed for several days a plausible symptom to be the bodily equivalent of a positive pregnancy test?

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  • $\begingroup$ The sound you just heard was large numbers of persons saying "ICK!" $\endgroup$
    – puppetsock
    Feb 18, 2020 at 19:00
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    $\begingroup$ You do know that humans have a similar symptom, only reversed? In humans, not bleeding is the equivalent of a positive pregnancy test. $\endgroup$
    – AlexP
    Feb 18, 2020 at 21:30
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    $\begingroup$ @AlexP But not bleeding in humans can mean many other things besides that, from genetics to a uterine infection. $\endgroup$
    – Caters
    Feb 18, 2020 at 21:49
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    $\begingroup$ And the Keplerians are of course immune to diseases? By and large, missing one or two periods with no other obvious reason (such as extreme malnutrition) is an very strong indication of pregnancy. $\endgroup$
    – AlexP
    Feb 18, 2020 at 22:21

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Ah, the old subvert the menstruation trope, if I had a dollar for every time that's come up, I'd have something around a whole dollar.

A doctor once told me, after a test came back with potentially serious results, that "this is like you are walking down the street, tossing away dollar bills." It's not a normal occurrence, and it can happen for no reason but it can mean there is something very seriously wrong. We'll repeat the test, and if it's negative, then there is nothing to worry about."

Fortunately, the test came back negative the second time.

For a body to bleed without injury, and without purpose, is like that. Blood is important. And when a female is pregnant, their body needs every resource to ensure they and their progeny survive. So, arbitrarily bleed solely to signal conception seems inefficient.

Maybe it only looks like bleeding. Maybe, pregnancy in your Keplerian triggers a shift in bodily functions. Human livers filter out dead blood cells from our circulatory system. Maybe pregnancy in your species taxes the liver and as an evolutionary adaption, the mechanism you are describing is actually filtering out soon to be dead blood cells so the liver has more filtration potential to keep mother and child alive and healthy.

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There's as much logic or more to aliens having a bleed response from pregnancy as humans having one every month. It helps if you have some internal logic to explain it. For example, it could be a signal to males to leave a female alone (no point bothering this one...) or a sign someone is messing with a male's harem. Depending on social roles, it might even invoke a violent response to induce spontaneous abortion so the female would be available again for a different male to impregnate (biology is cruel).

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Actually in humans bleeding can be a symptom of pregnancy. Specifically nose bleeds. This is because of hormonal changes and because the pregnant body has more blood running through it, resulting in higher blood pressure. https://www.nhs.uk/pregnancy/related-conditions/common-symptoms/nosebleeds/

Maybe your aliens have some similar tissue which already bleeds easily and more so in pregnancy.

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