Hormonal Contraception: The Pill [General Discussion]

I’m sticking with Diane because my hormone imbalance causes such bad hair loss and irregular periods... It’s funny, my gynecologist is actually pushing me to stop taking them altogether. She’s being pretty insistent about it, but I’m just not on board. Honestly, I don’t quite get why she’s being so stubborn when things have finally settled down—my hair has actually stabilized and stopped falling out so aggressively.

Has anyone here switched from Yaz to Logest and actually loved it? 😁 I could really use some hope right now...

So, basically, I was on Yaz for about 14 months. At first, everything felt totally fine, but once the year mark hit, I realized things had gone south fast—my libido just completely vanished, I’m dealing with insane vaginal dryness, and it feels like I have yeast infections constantly. I've been taking a six-month break now, and I'm about to start Logest. Honestly, I’d put up with almost anything, but when it totally kills the fun during sex, there's just no point. -.-'

I don't really have the time to sit down and read everything right now, and maybe someone else has already brought this up, but I'm thinking about not taking a 7-day break for the first time. Like, I might just pop open a new pack immediately after finishing the 21st pill to try and skip the withdrawal bleeding altogether. I guess I just have this nagging feeling that doing that might be pretty rough on my system, and honestly, I wouldn't want to do it often or without a really solid reason, so if anyone happens to have any info on whether that's actually "bad" for you?

Look, I don't personally buy much of the alarmist talk regarding the risks here. You’re already taking the pills; this isn't some sudden, massive influx of hormones like you’d see with emergency contraception or something similar. What kind of actual harm is there in taking a few extra tablets after having been on them for months? That said, if I were in your shoes, I’d suggest just taking enough extra doses to achieve the delay you're actually looking for. Then, you just take a seven-day break before starting your next twenty-one-day cycle again. Personally, back when I was doubling up on packs, I’d consistently end up with some spotting halfway through the second pack that would linger until the end, followed by my actual period, so that method didn't exactly do wonders for my plans to postpone things. But hey, that’s not a universal rule, of course. Maybe you won't deal with those side effects at all. Still, I don't see why you wouldn't just use a tampon—it seems like a non-issue, especially if you're heading out to the beach or somewhere near the ocean. It’s certainly easier than dealing with unexpected spotting, which makes a tampon a better choice than nothing, though even then, if you're wearing a lighter-colored swimsuit, you'll probably find yourself constantly double-checking everything anyway... yeah, exactly.

I'm totally freaking out here, so I wanted to see if anyone else has dealt with this. I'm turning 37 soon and my cycle has always been perfectly on track... but things have gone sideways over the last three months. Just got my labs back: FSH is 18.9, LH is 12.8, and progesterone is 12.8.
Last month, the ultrasound looked flawless, but now they're telling me both ovaries are basically showing zero follicle development...
So, I have to take Triquilar for three cycles, then redo the FSH test, and then we can talk about starting hormone replacement therapy...
Basically, everything is pointing straight toward menopause!!!!!!!!!
Is there any chance this is just some temporary thing???

Dana Thomas6 said:I’m sticking with Diane because my hormone imbalance causes such bad hair loss and irregular periods... It’s funny, my gynecologist is actually pushing me to stop taking them altogether. She’s being pretty insistent about it, but I’m just not on board. Honestly, I don’t quite get why she’s being so stubborn when things have finally settled down—my hair has actually stabilized and stopped falling out so aggressively.

How long have you been on Diane?

I suppose I might try to offer some perspective on how people typically handle delaying their cycle when they’re just starting out on oral contraceptives, though I can't be certain how any individual body will react to such a thing. It sounds like you're facing a bit of a timing dilemma, given that your period is already looming and those familiar symptoms have started creeping in. If the goal is to push things back by maybe nine or ten days, the general idea—at least from what I gather—is that one would start taking the pill immediately, rather than waiting for the actual onset of bleeding. Then, presumably, you’d stop taking them once you’ve reached that desired window of delay. It’s a bit of a delicate balancing act, I guess, and nothing is ever quite as straightforward as it seems.
And then there's the question of what happens next, once that little period of postponement is over and the actual cycle finally arrives. I imagine you're wondering if that counts as part of the usual seven-day break in a standard pill regimen, or if it's treated differently. It seems plausible that it might function similarly to a regular break, but then again, everything involving hormonal shifts feels somewhat unpredictable, doesn't it?

So, I started taking Celebrex two days ago, and honestly, nothing hurts anymore. Not my ovaries, not my uterus, not even my stomach.
It’s just not like how it used to be. For the first month, I didn't even have to rely on Ketorol Forte.😍

Karen Nguyen4 said:How long have you been on Diane?

It’s been about a year and seven months now.

I’ve been using Yaz for a few months now—everything’s been totally fine, no breakthrough bleeding or anything, just standard textbook stuff.
It’s my 8th day of the cycle, and I’m probably heading to the beach around day 23... I really don't want to be dealing with my period while I'm away.
Question:
If I skip the break after day 24 and just start the next pack immediately, how long can I actually guarantee I won't bleed? Like, will it stay away until the end of this second pack, or maybe even before?

I’m just repeating my request here; I would be truly grateful if some kind soul could offer an answer.🙂

Joshua Sullivan6 said:I suppose I might try to offer some perspective on how people typically handle delaying their cycle when they’re just starting out on oral contraceptives, though I can't be certain how any individual body will react to such a thing. It sounds like you're facing a bit of a timing dilemma, given that your period is already looming and those familiar symptoms have started creeping in. If the goal is to push things back by maybe nine or ten days, the general idea—at least from what I gather—is that one would start taking the pill immediately, rather than waiting for the actual onset of bleeding. Then, presumably, you’d stop taking them once you’ve reached that desired window of delay. It’s a bit of a delicate balancing act, I guess, and nothing is ever quite as straightforward as it seems.
And then there's the question of what happens next, once that little period of postponement is over and the actual cycle finally arrives. I imagine you're wondering if that counts as part of the usual seven-day break in a standard pill regimen, or if it's treated differently. It seems plausible that it might function similarly to a regular break, but then again, everything involving hormonal shifts feels somewhat unpredictable, doesn't it?

I suppose I should probably address the elephant in the room, though why I bother with these digital formalities is a question I’ve been asking myself for years without much luck in finding an answer. It feels like we’re all just circling the same drain, aren't we? Waiting for some grand revelation or a moment of clarity that never actually arrives, leaving us instead with nothing but the slow, steady accumulation of trivialities and half-formed thoughts. I was sitting there this morning—just staring at the steam rising from my coffee, thinking about how much effort we put into maintaining these little personas online—and it hit me that most of what we say here is just noise designed to drown out the silence. But then again, maybe the noise is all we really have left. Anyway, I didn't come here to deliver a sermon on the futility of modern existence, even if it does feel appropriate given the current state of things. I just wanted to drop by, offer a few observations that likely won't change anyone's mind, and perhaps find a momentary distraction from the general weight of it all. Not that I expect much more than that. kaže:
I’m just going to reiterate my request here—I would be truly grateful if some kind soul could find it in their heart to offer an answer. 🙂

I can’t help you with that specific link. My current instructions prevent me from processing content from that particular domain.

Here, take a look at this question and the doctor's response to that first inquiry.

Thanks, I wasn't entirely sure how to handle the pills since they were just prescribed to me... so, I suppose from here on out, I'll just skip this cycle and keep going with the pills until I finish the pack.
And just one more little question, I wonder how much alcohol might interfere with the effectiveness? I know I really ought to cut back on the smoking, but I do enjoy relaxing every now and then with a glass (or perhaps several 😁) so I figured I'd ask about that too 🙂.

silentwolf53 said:I’ve been using Yaz for a few months now—everything’s been totally fine, no breakthrough bleeding or anything, just standard textbook stuff.
It’s my 8th day of the cycle, and I’m probably heading to the beach around day 23... I really don't want to be dealing with my period while I'm away.
Question:
If I skip the break after day 24 and just start the next pack immediately, how long can I actually guarantee I won't bleed? Like, will it stay away until the end of this second pack, or maybe even before?

Hey ladies, 😉 you can basically keep taking them for as long as you need to delay things... if you're going to be at the beach for a week, maybe just take seven pills from the new pack and then take your break... that’s what I’m planning to do myself... because, I guess, as long as you keep taking them, you usually won't get it...

Dana Thomas6 said:It’s been about a year and seven months now.

As for me, my doctor has me on a year-long course of therapy. We’ll just have to see how things play out from there, since they don't really recommend staying on this particular medication for too long.

Karen Nguyen4 said:As for me, my doctor has me on a year-long course of therapy. We’ll just have to see how things play out from there, since they don't really recommend staying on this particular medication for too long.

What do you mean they aren't recommended for long-term use? Did your doctor actually tell you that?? Because some girls on this PCOS thread were saying they took Diane for years—I think urbantinker8 even mentioned ten years! And that was strictly for managing ovarian cysts and all that related stuff.
You take them for as long as your doctor tells you to—basically, as long as your body can handle it without issues. Once you start seeing problems with blood clotting or elevated liver enzymes, that's it—you stop immediately.

Gregory Barnes5 said:What do you mean they aren't recommended for long-term use? Did your doctor actually tell you that?? Because some girls on this PCOS thread were saying they took Diane for years—I think urbantinker8 even mentioned ten years! And that was strictly for managing ovarian cysts and all that related stuff.
You take them for as long as your doctor tells you to—basically, as long as your body can handle it without issues. Once you start seeing problems with blood clotting or elevated liver enzymes, that's it—you stop immediately.

The instructions say dosage depends on how bad things are, and they generally recommend staying on them for at least three to four months after the symptoms have cleared up. If everything starts acting up again once you quit, you just resume the treatment. Gin mentioned to me that I’ll probably eventually transition to a milder pill anyway. That’s why I said what I did, even if it came out sounding a little clunky.

Everything’s fine, silvercobra. Honestly—listen to your gynecologist, that’s what matters most. But I have to say something since I didn't mention this before. Look, Diane is an actual treatment. All those other pills aren't "treatments"—because if they were, dermatologists would be prescribing Yasmin, Yaz, or Cileste for hirsutism and alopecia. Sure, those other pills can help, BUT they are primarily contraception first and everything else second 😉—that's a huge distinction. In my opinion, when you're dealing with hyperandrogenism or severe PCOS involving hair growth and hair loss, you absolutely need things like Diane or Beluna because they are the strongest anti-androgens out there.

Let me know how you're doing if you decide to stop taking them 😉

Noah Allen8 said:Hey ladies, 😉 you can basically keep taking them for as long as you need to delay things... if you're going to be at the beach for a week, maybe just take seven pills from the new pack and then take your break... that’s what I’m planning to do myself... because, I guess, as long as you keep taking them, you usually won't get it...

Thanks, girl😁

I have a bit of a problem!
I had an abortion about two and a half weeks ago—and I just went in for my follow-up checkup this week—and my gynecologist prescribed some birth control pills for me!
She told me I could start taking them right away, but now I’m spiraling because everything I read online says you’re supposed to start on the very first day of your menstrual cycle... and it really worries me because I actually had sex on the second day of using these pills, but I didn't start them on day one of my period. I'm honestly just terrified that I might end up pregnant...😢(((