(no subject)

[therealocelot.livejournal.com]

I'm on my second pack of birth control pills. I skipped the inactive week on the first pack, because it came while I was on vacation, and I wanted to skip the hassle.

Now, I've just finished the first week of the second pack, and my period seems to have started. Lighter than usual, but heavy enough that I have to wear protection. I've been having spotting off and on the whole time since I started taking the pill, and this is definetly heavier than that.

I haven't missed any pills, and the latest I took one was 2 hours late (back on New Years Eve).

So I'm a bit confused. Is this an indication that I need a higher dosage? Should I continue taking this pack? If so, will it provide protection, and should I still take the inactive week at the end of this pack, or will I risk ovulating?

I know that this is stuff I should probably ask a doctor - just seeing if any of you have had experience with this before I call the big scary HMO.

Comments

[elfkin.livejournal.com]

My birth control pills do that too. I contacted my doctor about it and she said not to worry about it. In fact, sometimes my period doesn't come at all. She said as long as I take my pills regularly (same time everyday) I'm fine. In fact, I'm lucky if I don't have it all the time according to her.

[brandyshea.livejournal.com]

From what I've heard if you skip the placebo pills and go straight to the next pack it migh cause breakthrough bleeding. I've never done it though so someone correct me if I'm wrong.

[azulita.livejournal.com]

You'll be fine. It takes a while before your body adjusts to the glorious BCP.

JUST REMEMBER: Take your pills at the SAME TIME every day. The more accurate you are at taking them every 24 hours, the better your periods will be.

This is just my experience with almost 8 years on the pill.

Good luck!

[therealocelot.livejournal.com]

How close to "at the same time" does "at the same time" have to be?

I'm almost always within a half hour or so, and I've been figuring it's close enough. But if literal to-the-minute timing helps, I'll get a stopwatch and do that.

[gigglinggorgon.livejournal.com]

that should be fine, but if you are a couple of hours off every day, it decreases the effectiveness of the pill by up to 15%. Scary. They don't tell you that, you have to read the fine print's fine print.

[isolt.livejournal.com]

skipping straight to the next pack is a pretty good way of causing breakthrough bleeding. I did that once.

From anecdotal evidence, I gather this is especially likely if you're on ortho-tri-cyclen.

[urania.livejournal.com]

If you're on a multiphasic pill (like ortho-tri-cyc., where the dosage of hormones changes from week to week), then yes, breakthrough bleeding after that is rather common I'm told (and have experienced myself--*sigh*). Which is a bit of a pain. The good news is, it's not serious most probably, and by next month (next pack of pills) your body should be un-confused enough to stop spotting--if it doesn't stop, then you might want to talk to your doc though.