Using BC to avoid periods [Archive]

Carrie

06-14-2006, 06:53 PM

I've been on Ortho TriCyclen for years but just recently heard that if you start a new pack of pills on the day where you would normally start the green placebo pills you can completely skip your period.
I'm scheduled for my annual in August and plan to discuss this with my doctor as I'm not sure it's safe to do, but was wondering if anyone here has done this and if it really does work.

lawstudent

06-14-2006, 07:01 PM

It's safe. When you're on a hormonal form of BC, you don't technically have a period. It's just a hormonal withdrawal bleed. The withdrawal bleed was introduced (depending on whom you believe) for political reasons or to ease women's minds.

I keep my Nuvaring in for 4 continuous weeks and change it the same day every month. I like it a lot.

LUVPINK222

06-14-2006, 07:05 PM

I've done it, it's safe and fine to do. There's a new pill out called Seasonale where they don't have the placebo pill and you never have your period but like twice a year or something like that.

Carrie

06-14-2006, 07:12 PM

Do you get any side effects? I doubt you would, but since you're not giving your body a break from the hormones I just wonder.

Sunshine

06-14-2006, 07:20 PM

I didn't take the placebo pills for a long time and never had any problems. I probaly got my period 5-6 times a year max. Now I'm on NuvaRing and leave it in for 4 weeks. No problems.

lawstudent

06-14-2006, 07:27 PM

Originally posted by Carrie@Jun 14 2006, 01:12 PM
Do you get any side effects? I doubt you would, but since you're not giving your body a break from the hormones I just wonder.
I never did.

Carrie

06-14-2006, 07:35 PM

Sorry for so many questions...but also read that with Ortho TriCyclen you need to start the pack you will use to skip your period backwards. In other words, you start with the light blue pills and work your way back to the white ones. Then the following month you start the with the whites...followed by another backwards pack. This is supposed to prevent any spotting...any truth to it??

Christine_99

06-14-2006, 07:52 PM

I did that just in March when I went on holidays. I normally am not on BCP so I just started taking it in March and continued through when I would expect my period. It did not come until after I stopped taking the pill. From researching it, its usually recommended to do this with a monophasic pill instead of a triphasic pill to avoid breakthrough bleeding.

I was bloated - but that was likely because I was not on BCP before.

aquadancer

06-14-2006, 08:27 PM

I've done it with Yasmine. It works. I did have some breakthrough bleeding in the 1st couple of months though. My gyno suggested I give this a try & she does this herself, so I trusted that she knew what she was talking about. I'd give it a try, if you dont like it or have problems, you can always go back to the regular way of taking BC.

aquadancer

06-14-2006, 08:30 PM

Originally posted by Carrie@Jun 14 2006, 01:35 PM
Sorry for so many questions...but also read that with Ortho TriCyclen you need to start the pack you will use to skip your period backwards. In other words, you start with the light blue pills and work your way back to the white ones. Then the following month you start the with the whites...followed by another backwards pack. This is supposed to prevent any spotting...any truth to it??
I've never heard of this. I know you are supposed to use pills that have the same hormone dose every week. (I think Ortho triCyclen uses varing doses of hormones every week so it's not such a hormone dip come period time.)

tintintgb

06-14-2006, 08:31 PM

You will have to switch pills most likely to one that gives the same hormone level for the entire month. I switched from Ortho Tricyclen to Cyclen. The only side effect I had was a bit of a spot every so often just around the time my period was due. That went away after a few months. Totally safe though - it was my obgyn that suggested it to me because of endemitriosis.

gin

06-15-2006, 02:16 PM

Does your insurance cover the pills when you do it this way? My pharmacist said that the insurance will only cover the perscription every four weeks so if I skipped to the next pack a week early they wouldn't cover it. Does that make sense? Anyone have that problem?

strongchick

06-15-2006, 02:25 PM

If you're going to do this do NOT do it with your regular birth control. Seasonale has a different amount of hormones that have been specifically MADE for this. Typical BC was not meant to be used in that fashion (although you can for a special event or something). If you use regular BC you can end up spotting and having other inconvenient problems, as well as the uncertainty of its protection.

fit_girlFL

06-15-2006, 06:30 PM

My doctor switched me to Apri so I could do this because it certainly won’t work well with every pill out there. I was on Ortho Tricyclen before I switched over. Check with your doctor first.

I have not had any problems whatsoever, but I do think everybody is different so that may not always be the case. You might have spotting, you might not. It has been wonderful for me as I normally get very heavy and painful periods. Now that trouble is gone for me and has been so great.

I have heard that there is currently a pill in the works that will eliminate periods totally, going a step beyond seasonale. I can’t recall the name of it. Although I know that many women just keep starting up a new pack, skipping the 4th week in each package. That is what I do – I just start a new package every three weeks. My insurance does cover this, I have not had any issues so far. My doctor has prescribed it to me this way, is aware of what I am doing, so they do fill it with no trouble.

But I would certainly talk with your doctor first – better safe than sorry.

aquadancer

06-15-2006, 08:16 PM

I haven't had any problems with my insurance, I just have to pay the co-pay more often since I refill the pills more often.

PinkGlitter86

06-16-2006, 12:25 AM

I know it's supposedly safe, but I've just never felt comfortable w/this concept. We function to have a period once a month. And people are okay with manipulating your body to do it only twice a year? Trust me, I know how hellish periods can get. But...I dunno, it just doesn't seem right to me.

jmadog

06-21-2006, 01:06 AM

I take my pill for 3 months straight and only get my periods 4 times a year. My gyno told me to do it and i don't take any special kind of pill.
I have no side effects or bleeding.

would definitly recomend it.

ps. Women 50 years ago did not get their periods that much becase they were always pregnant. Now a days since women wait so much longer to start having children and have less of them they have many more periods than they would have had years ago.

Angelkae

06-22-2006, 10:29 PM

****Thread Hijacking!****

I skipped my period this time. I use Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo. I should be having my period right now, but of course I'm not, because I started my next pack.... but I feel PMS'y and bloated anyway. Like a period without the tampons. Sorry, that's gross... lol.

Anyway, what is up!! I assume it's because I'm back on the lowest dose pills and all. Does everyone else's bodies do this? What's the point in skipping? Does it get better?

Lust4FreeTime

06-22-2006, 10:59 PM

I'm trying this too. I haven't run through enough months to see if the usual physiological changes will occur on the week when I was supposed to have my period. I've read a few articles that question the need for women to get their period monthly. I think the consensus now is that as long as you allow a normal cycle every 3 months, your body's hormonal system will be fine.

Insurance companies will sometimes not cover that 4th pack of pills that you take within the 3 month cycle-free phases if the pill you are taking was designed to allow you to have a period every month. In that case, the insurance companies can insist that you pay for that pack out of pocket. If you have the Rx written specifically to prescribe a 21-day active pill taken continuously w/o the break, they may accept that. In my case, I had to use the BRAND NAME, and boy do they love to stiff you for not using the generic. I'd love for those insurance folks to walk around in my shoes for 4 months using the generic pill and then come back and tell me it works just the same as the brand name pill.

lckychrms

07-02-2006, 12:45 AM

I used to be on Seasonale and my gyno said there's no difference between it and taking a 3-week pill, like OrthoCyclin, back to back. You'll get the same results. Personally, I still got bloated and moody when I should have been having my period, so I switched to NuvaRing. Although it was nice having a period just 4 times a year, the side effects weren't worth it for me.

queenoftreats

07-13-2006, 01:53 AM

just curious - what is Nuvaring? :confused:

gymgurl

01-04-2007, 05:45 AM

Sorry bumping this old thread up... I want to do this this month (skip the placebos). Is it still an effective form of birth control then if you just go straight to the next pack.

And what if, last month I had to actually start my period a week early so I stopped taking the non-placebo pills a week early. Therefore now I have an extra week 3 of pills. Would it be possible for me to just take this 3rd week of pills where the placebos would be this month and then continue on with the new pack on the same day that I normally would?

demille

01-04-2007, 05:51 AM

jrb1980

01-04-2007, 06:07 AM

demille

01-04-2007, 06:17 AM

I use Marvelon, which is a same dose pill. Never had any breakthrough bleeding or spotting with it. But definitely, different pills are different for the individual. matter of finding what works for you. I´ve had a good 12 years on this brand now.

gymgurl

01-04-2007, 06:19 AM

By stopping your pills a week early to force your period, that would i believe take away the protection of the birth control pills themselves? But since you´ve already done that, it´s not your question, just thought I would point it out.

I have been taking my pills back to back for a few years now, with my doctor´s approval. You would be fine taking the pack back to back, and likely there is no trouble throwing in the extra week of pills too...but your period may be out of whack if you plan to go back to your regular cycle afterwards.

Thanks for the posts. Yah, I know by stopping early I took away the protection for that month but now I"m just wondering this month, if I added that extra week in now where the normal placebo's would go, would it still be messed up in terms of protection? (this isn't going to be a regular thing, normally I use the placebo week, just these last two months I've had things that required me to change it around).

Protection wise would it be better for me to just start the next pack rather than use the extra pills.

And then with the spotting, when does this normally happen and for how long?

Thanks again for your guys help.

jrb1980

01-06-2007, 08:17 AM

Thanks for the posts. Yah, I know by stopping early I took away the protection for that month but now I"m just wondering this month, if I added that extra week in now where the normal placebo's would go, would it still be messed up in terms of protection? (this isn't going to be a regular thing, normally I use the placebo week, just these last two months I've had things that required me to change it around).

Protection wise would it be better for me to just start the next pack rather than use the extra pills.

And then with the spotting, when does this normally happen and for how long?

Thanks again for your guys help.

Just make sure your pill is MONOcyclen - not the ortho tricyclen

As for spotting, I don't know in general terms but for me it was consistent throughout the days I would have had my period

Blondell

01-06-2007, 04:28 PM

wow :blink:

I'm somewhat old-school.....forgive me :oops:

~Amanda~

01-06-2007, 07:04 PM

I have discussed this with my doctor and bottom line:

-okay to do with a monocyclen pill, but if you are going to make a habit of it switch to seasonal - not okay to do with Ortho Tricyclen

Personally, I spot pretty heavy when I try to do this and end up needing a liner anyway so it's just not worth it - oh yeah and cramps are killer for me.

Can I ask why you were told to not do this with Ortho Tricyclen?? That is what I take and my Dr has had no problem with me doing this a few times a year. I've never had a problem; no cramps, spotting, etc, ever.

Sportsgirl

01-07-2007, 01:26 AM

For those of you with NuvaRing, does your partner feel it during sex or have you ever had it fall out?

linds

01-07-2007, 03:56 AM

For those of you with NuvaRing, does your partner feel it during sex or have you ever had it fall out?

I think because of the way my plumbing is designed (sorry TMI) mine didn't like to stay in I'd check every couple days because it would slide down and I'd have to push it back in place. My partner wasn't a fan of it and could feel it in certain positions.

I also seemed to be more prone to bladder infections while I was using it. Just my personal experience some people swear by it

tintintgb

01-07-2007, 03:42 PM

Can I ask why you were told to not do this with Ortho Tricyclen?? That is what I take and my Dr has had no problem with me doing this a few times a year. I've never had a problem; no cramps, spotting, etc, ever.

Tricyclen pills have varying amounts of hormones throughout the pack (the 3 different colored pills). The monocyclen pills have the same amount of hormones in each pack so the level stays the same.

As for spotting, I think it varies from person to person. I had spotting around the time my period was due for the first 2 or 3 months but after that there has been no more spotting.