back on the pill... a question--------

[Katherine Brengle]

OKay, well I just went back on the pill today after about a year and a half off it, and my doctor told me it would be best to wait until my next period to start taking it, but I've always just started taking them as soon as they are prescribed and nothing bad has ever come of it, so why do they tell you that?

Are some women just more sensitive to it than I am? (Most likely I just answered my own question, lol.)

I was also surprised that she told me the nicotine patch wouldn't cause any problems--they advise against smoking bc of the possible negative effects of smoking while on the pill, but not with the patch? Maybe it is bc you are only getting the nicotine and not all of the other nasty crap in the cigaretts... Or maybe she was just trying to be nice, which is kind of sweet but mostly disturbing since we are talking about my health here...

Anyway, just curious...

[Heddi]

1. Some pill answers

**note--I am not a health care provider. I am a 6th quarter nursing student who will be getting her RN on June 8, 2006. The information I provide to you comes from my maternal nursing book "Maternity Nursing 6th Edition" by Lowdermilk and Perry.***

I believe they have you take the pill the Sunday after you start because by that point, ovulation has (most likely) already occured, and the Ovum (egg) has turned into a corpus luteum and will be dispelled from the body. So they have you start the pill after you've started your period to ensure that you're not ovulating and "fertile" during the time that you're taking the pill and to ensure no pregnancy occurs during that period.

"Use of oral hormonal contraceptives is usually initiated on one of the first 7 days of the menstrual cycle (day 1 of the cycle is the first day of menses). With a "sunday pack", patients begin taking pills on the first sunday after the start of their menstural period. If contraceptives are to be started any other time other than normal menses, another method of contraception should be used throughout the first week to avoid the risk of pregnancy.

I would suppose that you've not gotten pregnant using your method out of sure luck (my take). By starting the pack on the first day of your period, or the Sunday after your period, you're ensuring that ovulation has occured and there is no chance of becoming pregnant during that first week (if you start on Sunday or Day One of Menses).

As for the Cigarette thing--I'm sure she didn't make a deal out of the patch because you're showing signs of quitting, which is good. The dangers of cigarettes + contraceptives is the increased risk of blood clotting, which is caused by the nicotine in cigarettes. So smoking or using the patch isn't the greatest when using hormonal contraceptives, but I'm sure her line of reasoning is that you're using the patch to not smoke, and at some point will come off the patch and all nicotine totally.

[Katherine Brengle]

2. Ah, I'll be fine then----

In the past, I've always waited a month before ditching a backup method, if ditching it at all.

My husband won't be back from Iraq until next month, so either way it should be ok.

Thank you so much for answering!

[cally]

3. I've always heard that you should wait a month, also

Have a happy reunion with hubby. I'm glad he's returning soon.

[Katherine Brengle]

4. Thanks!

I realized something else last night--the doc said that waiting until after my next period would keep me "on track"--but I just had it last week, so I don't think it will throw things off all that much (although most likely I am going to skip the off-week this time since you-know-who is coming home, lol). So anyway, I think everything is cool, other than the fact that I am flooding my body with all this nicotine from the patch and the hormones from the pill all at once (started both yesterday--I was off the wall last night lol).

Yaay! :)

[Warpy]

5. Time to step down to a lower dosage patch, maybe?

The problem with nicotine is that it narrows all your arteries. That's why your hands get cooler when you smoke, the blood supply to your fingers is being slowed. We all produce small blood clots all the time and our bodies compensate for them and dissolve them all the time with no problem. When nicotine is narrowing arteries, those little blood clots have a chance of blocking smaller arteries, causing heart attacks, strokes, clots in the lungs, and other things you really, really don't want.

Birth control increases the clotting ability of circulating blood, so you can see how these two things are not good to have together.

Good luck on getting off nicotine completely and forever. We'd rather have you here and healthy.

[antigone382]

6. Just make sure you don't take up smoking again.

I spent Easter Sunday at a funeral for my friend's mom...she was smoking while on the pill and had a stroke. She was in her late forties, much too young to leave this world. I hate to be a downer, and I'm not trying to scare you or anything. I just would hate to see the same thing happen to someone else. It was such a tragedy.


Anyway, congrats on your hubby's coming home from Iraq! What branch is he in? My brother served over there two years ago with the army, and I'm so grateful every day that he's home now and in school.