Jolessa...Generic Seasonique [Monday December 28th 7:10pm] birthcontrol [vivalameghan] Hi all, I've been on Jolessa for two cycles now, and my dr. told me to skip my placebos last cycle due to low iron levels. I have a bleeding disorder so for the first pack (3 months), I didn't suffer any blood loss or spotting. After skipping the placebo week and starting a new pack, I have been spotting daily. Its been 6 weeks now and I feel terrible. I've noticed that I stop spotting completely if I use a pad, but if I use a tampon or have sex, I get a large rush of blood. Anyone, please help me. I'm concerned as to why this only happens with penetration... {1} post

Hello question help please [Monday December 28th 2:08am] birthcontrol [shampoo_neko02] Hello everyone. I have a question and I'm wondering what your opinons are on the matter. I just had a baby 6 weeks ago and I'm up for getting birth control. Now the question is if I really want it or not. On a personal level, I ate(eat) most (what I can find or buy) organic food and use(d) only natural personal care products before and during my pregnancy. I never take medication. I don't get shots (vaccines). The only toxins that I take in ar the ones I can't control (air pollution etc) and from the occasional excedrin when I have a REALLy bad  migrane. I also took natural prenatals, fishoil, and vitamin c during pregnancy. I try to stay as natural as possible and I don't really believe in most birth control metheds that are out on the market today. I think hormonal birth control is horrible. It's so unnatural for your body to think it's pregnant all of the time, and the side effects can be pretty bad. I know some people are perfectly happy on the pill and have no problems, but others are not and experience all kinds of crazy side effects from weight gain to suicidal depressions. Before I became pregnant my husband and I were using the pull out methed. Worked for about two years and now I have my wonderful baby boy Draven. However we are unsure of having anymore children and if we do not for another few years. I'm thinking of going with the paragard IUD. It's non hormonal but because it's a forgin object in your body and not natral I'm not sure. I really am afraid to keep using the pull out methed I don't want to get pregnant again for another few years. My husband keeps saying not to worry and to not get the IUD because like me he thinks it will cause problems and I really can't afford to have any because we don't have health insurence. The only reason I would be getting the IUD is because I'm still on medicaid till Jan 8th. I have an appot on Jan 1st. to get the IUD but I'm thinking about calling and canceling the appoitment. I can't take the chances of getting the IUD and if it does cause problems for me I won't be able to go back to the doctor because I wont' have insurence anymore and I can't afford to go back for a while. See where I'm comming from. So anyone on here have paragard? Any problems? Anyone use natural birth control? (pull out methed) If you were in my situation what woudl you do and why? Sorry so long but just need some help and advice. Thanks in advance. Shannon {8} post

creamy white discharge [Sunday December 27th 11:52am] birthcontrol [mooandcookies] In my previous post, I wrote "While having sex with my boyfriend, the condom leaked, it didn't break, it just made a pool under us... We had sex on a Thursday and I got my ovulation fluid (the egg white type) on Saturday." I've read that it takes 13 to 16 days after ovulation to get your period, I'm on the 15th day and I've been having a creamy white dischage for what seems like over a week. I took the pill for over a week after that night to do what I could to prevent the possible pregnancy. So I got my egg white fluid, took the pill for a week, then its been about 8 days since so should I expect my period soon or am I late? Are the odds of pregnancy high? {8} post

YAZ breakthrough bleeding? [Friday December 25th 11:39am] birthcontrol [barbie_thighs]  I read through the memories, but most of them seemed to have to do with girls who had skipped their placebo pills. I have been taking yaz---normally--for a year and1/2 or so with no problem. on my last pack i had the a little brown blood a few days before the placebos, but then a normal period and then a new pack. this time around, I started bleeding (slow brown blood--not much but still annoying and maybe more than spotting) the other day and i'm not supposed to take my placebo's til tuesday. what's happening? is this break through? am i not protected? :( thanks! {2} post

Article from today's St.Pete Times [Thursday December 24th 3:13pm] pcos [nifbit] Interesting article here.  Couldn't help but add my own two cents, though! {4} post

Nuva Ring to Tri-Sprintec [Wednesday December 23rd 7:29pm] birthcontrol [ebilgatoloco] Hi! I'm new to this community but not LJ or birth control. I went on Ortho Tri Cyclen when I was 20 and was on it for 3 years. I got off it because it made me gain a ridiculous amount of weight. Fast forward to the present, the weight never came off and that with other health issues, my doctor put me back on birth control. She thought Nuva Ring would be good for me, but after two months I've decided I don't like it mainly due to the side effects:  I have been experiencing nausea, lack of sleep, and continuous acid reflux. Has anyone else had these side effects? I'm usually a trooper when it comes to side effects but waking up at 3 AM with the urge to throw up and then not going back to sleep until 5 AM was the final straw for me. Though I did notice I lost some weight on it. Lol.   My doctor switched me back to Ortho Tri Cyclen and Target gave me the generic: Tri-Sprintec. Is anyone else trying this? I know the FDA gave it an AB rating claiming it's equal but I'd like to hear if anyone has gone from Ortho Tri Cyclen to Tri-Sprintec and how they compare. When I was on Ortho Tri Cyclen I didn't experience nausea or lack of sleep. I don't even recall being moody/depressed - just the weight gain.  Any thoughts? I feel that I might end up switching birth control pills a couple of times due to my health related issues.  {1} post

Nuvaring for 28 days - when do I put it back in? [Thursday December 24th 12:46am] birthcontrol [ambitiouskyo] I know this is kind of a rookie question, but I'm only on my second ring and I really want to be as certain as possible that I'm protected. Since my history with BC is pretty short, I'll just put in the whole thing: 21 Nov: Put in first ring 12 Dec (exactly 3 weeks after insertion): Removed first ring, started bleeding a couple of days later, bleeding stopped in roughly a week 19 Dec (exactly 1 week after removal): Inserted second ring I'm seeing my boyfriend for the first time in a long while on the 10th of Jan. Unfortunately, according to the 3-weeks-in-1-week-out schedule, I need to take my ring out on the 9th, which means bleeding will probably occur a couple of days after that and that sort of ruins things for us. So I did some reading up and found out that Nuvaring can be left in for up to 28 days. Yay! Just to be sure though, I have two questions: 1) Is protection compromised at all if I leave it in for up to 28 days? I really mean AT ALL? 2) If I were to remove my ring on the 13th, thereby leaving in my second ring for a total of 25 days, will that definitely eliminate any bleeding between the 10th and 13th? Basically the main goal here is to get rid of any bleeding (be it "period" or spotting) during those days. I know the fact that I'm so new to the ring, and that I'm switching from a 3-week to a 4-week cycle for the first time, has some effect on this. 3) Should I put in my next ring immediately after? Or should I wait for a week before putting in the next ring (making it 21 days in, 7 days out)? Thanks for any help you guys can provide! {1} post

Probably normal, but? [Monday December 21st 1:59am] menstrualhut [dviant] Brief background infos... And no, I'm not looking for a diagnosis, just ideas. It doesn't seem like anything serious, just an odd "This is probably normal but I wonder what others say" sort of thing where I have no idea how to go about searching the internets for clues, but figure this is an appropriate place to ask. I regularly have really heavy, messy, gross periods.. having to pretty  much live next to the bathroom as I was having to change tampons at least once every 30 min... periods didn't start until I was almost 16, and were really mild/forgettable until I was 21... from 20-26 (give or take a couple of years) the heavy bleeding started, and on top of that it was not unusual to have a 2 week period,  and then start again 2 weeks later...   or sometimes I would go 2-3 months (6 months one time) without a period, then back to the 2 weeks on 2 weeks off...   Then settled out a bit so that periods came every 6-8 weeks.. 2-3 years ago when I was living with a female roommate for a while, I started having them about every 4 weeks (though we never actually synched up, I would usually start a few days after she finished)...  Since then they've still usually been pretty heavy, but being more regular seemed to ease that up a bit (also, someone told me that orgasms can help for shorter or less miserable periods so... *cough*) This month... it came a week earlier than expected, and was pretty light. A  full period, just not a hugely heavy flow, and lasted about 4 1/2 days... ended about a week ago.  Started again today, really light so far...   I suppose if its coming back that means I'll be good for new years, lol...    Just thought it was odd.  I'm not on any sort of medications... Had been under a lot of stress, and just moved from IL to OK, and the stress is pretty much gone. I've heard that in the early 30's (32 now) things might sometimes change again, but dammit... I just a couple of years ago fell into a regular sort of cycle :( and yes I am sexually active, but the period that ended last week was I think the 2nd one since the last time I was with someone.  (Aka, I've had a full period before this odd one, so don't believe pregnancy could be the issue) Maybe once I get a job I'll just look into birth control, though I'd rather go IUD or steriliziation as I don't want kids at all... but something that helps regulte periods might help with the heavy flow. I suppose the question, if there is one, is "This is normal, right?" though since I'm here... I hear 'spotting' mentioned all the time but have no idea what that actually means... have a theory that this could be it, lol.. but? (sorry for any incoherence, tis 2am and I'm falling asleep here) {2} post

Anyone on Cyestra -35? [Sunday December 20th 3:18pm] birthcontrol [mmnessa] [ mood | anxious ] Hi everyone! I just started taking this new pill my doctor prescribed (it's been three days now), called Cyestra -35. When I went to see him my main concern was my severe back/face acne but I was also interested in getting on the pill since my and my partner are going steady now. I spent the past week or so reading information online about Cyestra (not to mention I have almost memorized the pamphlet), and it's all too vague for me to feel comfortable. First of all, the pill is described as an acne treatment FIRST, and a contraceptive SECOND. Is this in terms of effectiveness?? Should I be taking another pill combined with Cyestra -35, or another non-oral contraceptive like condoms?? I would appreciate answers from long-term users of this pill, or someone who has information SPECIFIC to Cyestra -35. Thank you {4} post

Leaked Condom [Saturday December 19th 9:16pm] birthcontrol [mooandcookies] While having sex with my boyfriend, the condom leaked, it didn't break, it just made a pool under us. I don't think there was any on my vagina but it leaked just under it. I immediately washed it off and changed my underwear. We filled the condom with water to check for a tear, there was no rip. I was off my birth control for a while but started taking it after the incident. We had sex on a Thursday and I got my ovulation fluid (the egg white type) on Saturday. It's been a little over a week and my nipples are tender and dark, but my areolas are not darker. I feel more tired. I don't know if I should be concerned. I haven't been eating well lately so that might explain my fatigue. {3} post

No libido? [Saturday December 19th 7:03pm] birthcontrol [topolinaxx] Alright, lately I've been having a lot of problems and I'm not really sure where the problem lies, but I thought someone here may have some insight. When I was 15 I was put on Ortho TriCyclen, and after a few months, switched to OTC-Lo, which I am still on now. I'm almost 23. I have never had any problems with it before, and I've always loved it. I'm hesitant to switch to anything else, because I never experienced any real weight gain (MAYBE 5 lbs?), my periods come like CLOCKWORK- I seriously always know exactly when I'm going to start which is amazing, and I love, and it has always protected me awesomely from getting pregnant, no scares at all. BUT over the last eight or nine months, I have noticed such a change in my behavior. I moved in with my boyfriend last July, and we've been together almost two years. I used to have an AWESOME sex drive. When we first got together, I had just started a Paxil + Xanax cocktail for depression and anxiety. I kept the xanax, because I only take it when I have a panic attack, but I kicked the Paxil after about seven months because it made me feel worse. I had a struggle with side effects for about two months, then I thought maybe I had it under control. Well, ever since then, I have noticed that I have lost joy in basically everything. Now, for full disclosure, since July I have been working two jobs and going to school full time. BUT, I really am lost at to what the problem is. I no longer have hardly any interest in drinking, I never want to do anything, I barely leave the house, constantly want to be alone, etc. My sex drive, which I previously stated was awesome, is NON EXISTENT. It's causing so much more stress with my boyfriend because he thinks I'm uninterested in him, which is not the case at all. I still love him, I still think he's sexy,etc etc, I just am not interested in sex at all. Sex is a chore, and I hate that.It didn't used to be that way at all. Basically, I don't know where I'm going with this. I don't know if it's that I need to be put on another anti-depressant, or if I do need to switch birth control (I read a forum where people who had been on it for years started noticing things like this way down the road), or if it really is JUST the stress and anxiety I've been under lately, etc. All I know is that this is a sex related issue, and I didn't know where else to ask. :/ {8} post

They stopped making my pills! [Thursday December 17th 9:33pm] birthcontrol [prozackisyummy] [ mood | annoyed ] My very nice dad went to pick up my prescription at Target today and apparently Sprintec is no longer being manufactured! The pharmacy did not give the option of getting the brand name, instead they are filling my prescription at another Target way across the city where they still have some in stock. I have it on auto refill. They should have called me! I wonder if I can buy several months at once? That would be awesome. Has anybody heard about Sprintec being discontinued? Does it just affect this certain generic? Are there other generics out there for Ortho Cyclen that are still $9? I guess I could just call around for the answers, but I just wanted to share because I thought it was just weird. {6} post

I lost my pack mid-week [Thursday December 17th 9:18pm] birthcontrol [chibitsunade] Okay so here is what happened, I went to see a movie with my friend last night, and to keep the effectiveness of the birthcontrol I took it with me to the movie and waited to about the usual time that I take it. I took it and then put it into my purse and went back to watching the movie, like the billions of other times I've done it. Anyway today, went to go take it at the usual time and I found the pack was missing! I searched my purse and the house inside out and still can't find it. So to calm me down my parents told me to start a new package on where I left off. I keep really good track of which pill and day I am on. I mark it on my calendar, but I am still kinda worried if it is the right thing to do. Oh and I am currently on Yazmin 21. {3} post

Microgestin side effects after 6 months? [Thursday December 17th 8:57am] birthcontrol [aody24601] Hi all, I posted here back in June when I first got on Microgestin and was suffering from nasty nausea/side effects. Those side effects went away, and y'all were very helpful. So thanks. :) However, I've noticed that the pill is throwing me very out of wack emotionally - I cry at the drop of a hat, yell at my boyfriend, and feel quite depressed. My doc is notoriously hard to reach, so I've gotten an appt with her right after the new year. So, I decided that this would be my last month on this pill, and I would keep a journal of my "symptoms" each day to really pay attention. Then I could talk to my doc about the symptoms and probably stop after my withdrawal bleed. BUT. All of a sudden, the pills are giving me extreme nausea and diarrhea, like they did when I started. I'm on day 4 of the active pills, and I'm waking up in the middle of the night with nausea so bad I can't get back to sleep. Not to mention cramps and gas. (Sorry for all the gruesome detail.) I tried taking it a little earlier, with more food, but I still have these nasty side effects. Why would these kick back in after 6 months? I don't want to stop mid-cycle, as it will screw up my period, but I can't function like this for 3 more weeks (especially not during Christmas and New Year's) :( I have a call in to my doc, but she is, again, notoriously hard to reach. If I stop mid-cycle, will that completely screw me up? Or would it be best to try to stick it out through the month? (And why the heck have these side effects come back after 6 months?) {3} post

Pain Advice [Wednesday December 16th 8:26am] pcos [battyvamp] [ mood | drained ] Hello ladies, This is the first time I have posted here since I joined a couple years ago. Slacker I know... But I come to you with a question. Off and on for months now, I have been getting sharp stabbing pains in the left side of my tummy, general area of my ovary. It's really bad when I sit up, or lay on my left side. I was wondering if any of you have experienced this or not. I am not currently on any medications for my PCOS, tho I should be on Metformin and Yasmin (I think, I know it started with a Y), due to the healthcare here in my state and county it's hard for me to get to see a doctor at all, and I am jobless so I don't have work insurance. I don't know if these pains are a sign of something serious or just a typical side effect of PCOS. If it is serious, the only thing I can do is go to the ER and get treated there, since I have no doctor or anything. But I don't want to go unless it is a sign of something really bad. So any advice? Thank you in advance, BV {2} post

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