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How it changes your period: While it can help with your period, Greves says the mini-pill, which is a progestin-only option, is not my go-to for bleeding issues. Still, women who take the mini-pill can have periods that are lighter and experience less painful cramps than before, she adds.
What else you need to know: The mini-pill is pretty finicky. You have to take it the same time each day and if you take it outside of a small window, the efficacy can go down, Greves says.
Watch men answer questions about birth control :
How it changes your period: It depends on what kind of IUD you use. The copper IUD may make you bleed more heavily for the first few months and then cause spotting between periods, Greves says. But, given that it doesnt contain any hormones, it may not impact your period at all, Shepherd says. If you have a hormonal IUD , your monthly bleeding will usually go way down or even go away completely, Shepherd says. The majority of women with this IUD forget to carry tampons in their purse because they dont need them, Greves says.
What else you need to know: Everyone is different and while the hormonal IUD may impact your period, it also can have no impact on it, Shepherd says. Still, IUDs last a lot longer than other forms of birth control and are pretty fool-proof, making them an option many doctors recommend.
Can I Take More Than 21 Days Of Birth Control Pills In A Row
Some teens prefer to take 42 pills , 63 pills, or even continuous pills because of cramps, PMS, or convenience. In fact, there is a type of birth control pill that comes in a package with 84 pills and 7 reminder pills, and another with 84 pills and then 7 low dose estrogen pills. Talk to your health care provider about whether extended Pill taking makes sense for you.
Extended pill taking works best with monophasic Pills . The downside is that irregular periods or unexpected spotting may occur and some insurance companies may not allow the extra packages without a medical reason.
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How To Deal With Period
If you experience spotting or other period-related side effects from your birth control pill, its best to talk to your healthcare provider if these side effects dont start to go away within two to three months of you starting birth control.
Most of the time, side effects such as spotting can be solved by switching from your current pill to a birth control pill with a different amount of estrogen, or by changing your birth control usage habits.
If youre sensitive to the estrogen in birth control pills, your healthcare provider might recommend switching to a progestin-only pill, or to a non-hormonal form or birth control. For specific symptoms, such as period pain or discomfort, you might also be prescribed medication.
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Lighter Less Painful Periods
If you get discomfort or pain before and during your period, you might benefit from starting to use a combined or progestin-only birth control pill.
The hormones in birth control pills dont just regulate your periods timingwhen you use them on a consistent basis, your period might also become lighter and less painful, making it easier to deal with your menstrual cycle.
Birth control pills can also shorten your period, making them worth considering if your period is usually longer, heavier and uncomfortable. Many women notice that their period finishes faster after they start using the birth control pill for several months.
How To Make Your Period End Faster
Its bound to happen occasionally: A vacation, day at the beach, or special occasion is going to coincide with your period. Rather than let this throw off your plans, its possible to end the menstruation process faster and reduce the number of days in your cycle.
There are a few techniques you can try to end your period more quickly. Some of these are safe to do monthly, but others require moderation or a doctors approval. If you regularly struggle with long or abnormal periods, consult your doctor about a more long-term solution.
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Other Side Effects Of The Pill
Despite all of what has been discussed above, many will argue that taking the pill improves quality of life. It relieves monthly pain and therefore, must be good. However, for some women quality of life may actually be diminished where mood and libido are concerned.
There is data supporting a correlation between birth control and depression. Depression, which is a symptom woman have complained about since its adoption in medicine. With a significant increase in the number of Americans currently taking anti-depressants , it should at least give us pause before beginning the birth control pill.
For many women, resolving the underlying cause of their menstrual symptoms is a far more favorable option compared to the considerable impacts birth control would create in their intimate relationships, not to mention their long-term fertility.
The birth control pill isn’t necessarily an upgrade in quality of life for many women. Does birth control stop your period? It can. That seems like an upgrade, but it is important for women to weigh these risks before opting in.
Your Mood Might Change
Researchers of a Korean Journal of Family Medicine study published in November 2021 investigated the relationship between certain types of birth control and mood. They found that individuals were at a greater risk for developing mild depression when using injectable combined contraceptives or oral contraceptives over the course of a six-month period.
Thus, just as being on birth control can alter the way you feel, so might stopping its use. It may be possible that a person could see depressive or other mood-related symptoms go away after stopping birth control.
At the same time, a person’s mood may not improve if they stop taking birth control. One case where this might occur is if someone has been diagnosed with premenstrual dysphoric disorder .
The authors of a June article published in An Independent Review indicated that regularly taking active pills in an oral contraception pack has the potential to offer depressive-symptom relief for individuals diagnosed with PMDD. This suggests that the discontinuation of birth control could result in an increased instance of depressive symptoms.
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Exercise On A Regular Basis
It has been seen that taking part in regular, moderate exercise activities can assist in ensuring that your periods remain regular, as well as in ensuring that they become light. Apparently, regular exercises are essential in keeping your weight steady and making sure that your body remains healthy. With regular exercises, you will be less likely to experience body fat fluctuations, which can lead to periods that are heavy and irregular.
How To Safely Reduce The Length Of Your Period
TL DR:
Behold the mighty interrupter of romantic beach baecations and cute white outfits: The Ill-Timed Period. Even if your period isnt killing the vibe at major life events , it might just be extra heavy and uncomfortable. Chocolate and a heating pad can only do so much.
Luckily, there are a few ways, both scientifically proven and science-ish-yet-widespread, to shorten your period. Yup, you heard that right. And were talking simple, quick hacksnot crazy multi-step strategies, weird diets, or prayers to an ancient goddess.
Read on to learn how to kick your period to the curb a little sooner so you can enjoy that date night, wedding, or concert menstruation-free.
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You Could Experience Breast Tendernessagain
Many individuals report achy breasts before their period, thanks to the spike of progesterone that stimulates breast milk glands. Birth control can be used to treat breast tenderness, so going off it could bring the sensitivity back.
However, breast tenderness can also be a side effect of being on birth control, Guirlaine Agnant, MD, chair of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Montefiore Mount Vernon Hospital in Mount Vernon, New York, previously told Health.
So if you were dealing with tenderness while on birth control, stopping will bring back normal breast tissue, and no tenderness should be experienced, Dr. Agnant added.
Is It Safe To Try And Stop Your Period
Whether its for a week, a month or even long-term, its possible to stop your period.
Some people want to stop or delay their period because of special events like a wedding or honeymoon. For others, the desire to stop their period stems from a medical reason like:
- Heavy bleeding.
- Uterine fibroids.
While its safe to stop your period, remember that your body is normally on a cycle, which ranges from 21 to 35 days. And it all has to do with hormones.
Estrogen is the hormone that makes tissue build up in your uterus, which provides a nice cushiony lining for a pregnancy to implant, says Dr. Jhaveri. If you dont get pregnant, that tissue needs to shed, and thats your period. After you ovulate, another hormone, progesterone, is released and helps to keep you pregnant. But if you dont get pregnant that cycle, the progesterone goes away and thats when the period comes.
That decrease in progesterone causes your uterus sheds its lining, which results in a period.
If you can prolong the progesterone, thats the most effective way to stop your period, says Dr. Jhaveri. Youre faking your body into thinking youre pregnant.
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Quick Read No You Dont Need A Period Period
- Stopping your period is safe having a period isnt necessary for good health.
- Hormonal shots and intrauterine devices are the most effective methods.
- The most common side effect is breakthrough, irregular bleeding or spotting.
- Period suppression does not put someone at risk for infertility, if they want to have kids.
- It also lowers the risk for uterine fibroids and endometrial polyps or cancer.
Most people who have periods can agree: They arent exactly fun.
Research has shown that heavy, painful and otherwise disruptive periods also can have a significant impact on someones life, such as missing more days of work.
The good news? If you have a uterus, you dont need to have a period. There are safe, effective ways to stop getting a period for a little while or a long time. Heres what you need to know.
Birth Control Pill Is Nutrient Depleting
Many patients are not informed of the numerous studies showing the nutrient depleting effects of oral contraceptives.
In 2013, the European Review for Medical and Pharmacological Studies called for all women to be on a multivitamin while taking oral contraceptives due to the known nutrient depletions, most notably magnesium, zinc, selenium, folic acid, vitamins B2, B6, B12, vitamin C and E.
Birth control depletes the body of folic acid, which is vital in many metabolic processes and is absolutely essential should you become pregnant. Folic acid is necessary to prevent neural tube defects in a developing fetus. Unfortunately, the critical window for folic acid in development occurs before the majority of women know they are pregnant in just those first few weeks.
Now imagine if you do become pregnant while suppressing your period youve depleted your nutrients, are oblivious to the early signs of pregnancy, and the damage has taken place before you ever realized you were pregnant.
And yes, pregnancy does occur while taking birth control pill.
It is the doctor’s responsibility to provide a true informed consent and guide women in understanding the pros and cons of the medical decision they are faced with. This is the only way in which women can make the best decision for their body and it is their right to know that while the pill may help relieve symptoms, it may also have unwanted side effects with long term consequences.
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How To Delay Your Period Safely According To Ob
Find out how to postpone your period, plus the methods you should skip.
Stocksy
If you menstruate, then you’ve likely experienced a sinking feeling while glancing at your calendar at some point. It’s easy to feel bummed out by the realization that the start of your next period coincides with a camping trip or wedding, when you don’t want to have to time out your bathroom trips to change your tampon.
Assuming you don’t want to plan every life event around your cycle, you might be curious about whether there are ways to put off your period instead. Here are the details on how to delay your period and whether that’s safe in the first place straight from ob-gyns.
The Need For A Balanced Accurate Discussion Of What’s Normal And What’s Healthy
The National Women’s Health Network supports the availability of menstrual suppression products as an option for women. Our concerns about this method lie with the way these products are being marketed to women by manufacturers and health care providers.
Below are some examples of problematic marketing:
- One doctor brought to a media briefing by the makers of Seasonale asserted that using Seasonale could improve high school girls’ test scores because, she said, girls score lower on the SATs when they are menstruating, although she provided no evidence for this claim.
- Several physicians have referred to the experience of women in earlier eras who menstruated less than women today due to more frequent pregnancies and longer periods of amenorrhea associated with breastfeeding to support the claim that women weren’t intended to menstruate as much as they do today. One gynecologist who conducted research on menstrual suppression said “It’s having seven or 10 kids that are natural,” explaining that menstrual suppression “gets women to a more natural state.” It is accurate to say that women menstruate more today than they have at other times, but the assertion that monthly menstruation is unnatural is unfounded.
The NWHN calls for young women to have accurate, comprehensive information about menstrual health.
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You May Have Some Hair Loss
If you dealt with hormonal-related hair loss before you went on birth control, going off of birth control might bring it back. This switch could trigger telogen effluvium, a temporary condition that causes your hair to shed. Thankfully, telogen effluvium doesnât last forever, subsiding usually within six months, and stress is also a factor. However, this isnât super common. Most women wonât see a significant net effect on their hair after stopping birth control pills,â Josh Klein, MD, chief medical officer at Extend Fertility in New York City previously told Health.
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How To Start Taking Birth Control Pills
You may start the pill on any day of the month. Talk to your health care provider to choose what day is best for you to start.
Combination pills: If you start combination pills within five days after the start of your period, you will prevent pregnancy right away and do not need to use a back-up method of birth control. If you start taking the pill at any other time throughout your menstrual cycle, you will need to use another method of birth control for the first seven days.
Mini-pills: You should use another method of birth control during the first 48 hours of use, after which you will be protected from pregnancy. Remember that taking the mini-pill at the same time each day is essential to prevent pregnancy.
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Avoid Processed Foods Sugar And White Flour
Processed foods have been seen to exacerbate the PMS symptoms, and therefore end-up making your periods very painful and difficult. Even though it has not been proven that avoiding carbs and sugar can actually assist in shortening the duration of your foods, it has been seen that it can assist in reducing cramps and bloating.
Additionally, many women have reported experiencing lighter periods, after paying increased attention to their diets. Potato chips and ice cream could be what you are craving when your period comes around, but choosing to avoid them can make a ton of a difference. Note that
- Crackers, pasta, cookies, white bread, pretzels, cookies, sugary confections and other pastries are in the list of items that you should avoid. You need to swap them out for natural sweeteners like honey and fruits.
- Managing to avoid some and all these foods for the entire month will be your best bet to ensuring that you are able to manage your period.
But if you feel that you cannot stay without consuming a few scoops of chocolate ice cream during your menses, you will still have the option of eating healthy in the few weeks preceding your periods.
However Is Using The Pill To Stop Periods Really A Good Idea
Some women will not want to dig deeper to understand the underlying cause of their PMS. Some women want the perceived freedom of not having a monthly cycle despite knowing the short and long-term consequences. And some women absolutely can not get pregnant and the pill is what they have chosen for contraception.
It is important to recognize that this is 100% their choice and our reproductive health should be our choice.
My philosophy is that you are the only one living in your body. No one, not even a doctor, knows how to live your life best for you. You deserve to have ALL the information before making this decision.
But period suppression to escape symptoms is not healthy or necessarily whats best for your body. And you should have a doctor who is willing to ask why. To help you get to the root of your problems before opting to mask them with the pill. The first step toward this is demystifying menses, hormones and womens health for every woman. So they can make the absolute best decision for her body and her life.
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