“Birth Control?”

I really and truly hope that whoever prescribed your birth control counselled you on this information as it’s crucial to understand how birth control works. When you start ANY birth control pill, you NEVER TRUST THE FIRST MONTH on that pill pack as you cannot guarantee that you will stop the process of ovulation that first month. If takes a sustained overriding of your system to prevent ovulation. When you start a birth control pack on d5 or 6 and you ovulate on d14, then your body cannot usually interrupt the ovulation cycle fast enough that month, you must use a barrier form of contraception during that first month to further insure that you will not become pregnant. And if you miss 1 day, you take 2 pills the next day (AM and PM) and then resume taking once/day, that will not get you in trouble. And if you miss 2 days on your pack of pills, then you take 2 pills the next 2 days (AM and PM for 2 days) and that will usually keep you on track and you will not get pregnant. And if you have the misfortune of missing 3 days on your pack of pills, then you cannot make that up; you need to finish out your pack of pills AND CONTINUE TO USE CONDOMS FOR THE REMAINDER OF THAT MONTH AND FOR THE NEXT MONTH to be certain that you will not become pregnant. OR, you can allow yourself to have your bleed as you have now missed 3 pills in a row and then start a whole new pack, but you MUST USE CONDOMS THE ENTIRE NEW MONTH and NOT TRUST that first month back on the pill. Birth control pills work really well…when you take them as directed.

That is not a great pill for you. Are you breast feeding? It will not take effect until the second month. Only 65% effective.

Sincerely,

Dr. Janice Alexander, RN, MD