Heres Exactly How To Find The Best Birth Control Pill For You
Thanks to the plethora of options at your disposal, choosing the right birth control can feel like youre blindfolded and trying to pin the tail on the contraceptive donkey. Even if you narrow your focus to just the pill, you still have a lot of possible choices out there. But if you do your homeworkand are prepared to possibly engage in some trial and erroryou can pinpoint the best birth control pill based on your needs.
Birth control pills that contain a mixture of estrogen and progestin are the most common type out there.
So, how do combination pills work to keep you pregnancy-free? During your typical menstrual cycle, theres a hormonal surge that triggers the release of an egg to potentially be fertilized, Justine P. Wu, M.D., a family planning expert and assistant professor in the department of family medicine within the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Michigan, tells SELF.
overrides that normal hormonal surge, and because of that, theres no egg released, says Dr. Wu, who is also a board chair member of the Association of Reproductive Health Professionals. Progestin does its part by thickening your cervical mucus to make it harder for sperm to move and thinning your uterine lining, which makes it less likely for any egg that does get fertilized to attach to it.
Pros:
- Your fertility should return pretty much immediately after you quit combination birth control pills, if thats of interest to you.
Cons:
I Cant Use Contraceptives That Contain Oestrogen
Contraceptives that contain oestrogen are not suitable for women who:
- are over 35 and who smoke
- are very overweight
- have certain medical conditions, such as problems with blood circulation or migraines with aura.
If you cant use contraceptives that contain oestrogen, there are other options, including:
- intrauterine device
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How Does The Pill Work
Compared to other birth control methods, the pill is hormonal contraception that is taken daily. The pill works by making it harder for sperm to reach the egg. Specifically, it prevents the egg from being released from the ovaries. It also thickens the cervical mucus and changes the uterus lining. Each pack of birth control contains active pills and inactive pills, meaning pills that have hormones, and ones that dont. You would typically have your period when taking the inactive pills. Each brand varies, but you will usually see 21 active, 7 inactive or, 28 active, 4 inactive pills.
Be mindful that the pill does not protect against sexually transmitted infections.
Is The Birth Control Pill Safe
Birth control pills should not be used by women who have a history of:
- uncontrolled high blood pressure or heart disease
- liver tumors or liver disease
- increased blood clotting or stroke risk
- or if currently pregnant
Smoking increases the risk of serious heart side effects when using a combined estrogen and progestin birth control, including the ring or the patch. Combination estrogen and progestin birth control should NOT be used in women over 35 years of age who smoke due to an increased risk of rare but serious side effects, such as heart attack, blood clots, and stroke.
Women should talk to their healthcare professional about their individual risk profile before deciding which birth control method to use. Heart risks linked with the pill increase with:
- family history of heart disease
- number of cigarettes smoked per day.
Let your physician know if you have migraine headaches when discussing birth control options.
The birth control pill does not protect against any form of sexually transmitted disease , including HIV / AIDS. A male latex or female condom should be used in combination with any other form of birth control if protection against STDs is needed.
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How Do Birth Control Pills Prevent Pregnancy
The birth control pill works by stopping sperm from joining with an egg. When sperm joins with an egg its called fertilization.
The hormones in the pill safelystop ovulation. No ovulation means theres no egg for sperm to fertilize, so pregnancy cant happen.
The pills hormones also thicken the mucus on the cervix. This thicker cervical mucus blocks sperm so it cant swim to an egg kind of like a sticky security guard.
What Are The Risks Of Taking Birth Control Pills
may seem like an easy go-to option for treating hormonal acne, there are some risks associated with hormonal serious side effects that need to be considered before starting or inserting birth control and monitored over time. If significant side effects occur, it may be a good idea to consult your physician about a different birth control option
for women with acne typically contain at least 35 mcg of Ethinyl EstradiolDermatology categorized the different contraceptive types by their efficiency in clearing acne. We found the study super interesting, so we just had to share the findings with you!
According to this study, drospirenone was the most helpful in preventing acne, while levonorgestrel and norethindrone were the least helpful.
The U.S.
Having said that, many other birth control pills, including Ocella, Yasmin, Trinessat, MonoNessa, Apri, and Reclipse. As mentioned above, some of these medications come with additional risks and side effects that should be considered before starting.
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Other Possible Benefits Of Birth Control
Birth control pills have benefits besides contraception. They lower your risk of ovarian and endometrial cancer and can help with acne. But it’s not clear if ultra-low-dose formulas do as good a job of providing these perks.
Birth control isn’t one-size-fits-all, so you should weigh the pros and cons of going extra-low with your doctor.
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What Are The Benefits Of Low Dose Birth Control
Here are some of the many benefits of using low dose combination birth control pill:
- It may reduce the symptoms associated with PMS or premenstrual syndrome.
- If your periods are irregular, taking these pills can make them regular.
- You may experience lighter menstrual bleeding than usual.
- You may get extra protection against PID or pelvic inflammatory disease.
- Your menstrual pain or cramps may be less severe and painful than before.
- You may be at a lower risk of developing any kind of ovarian cancer, ovarian cysts, or endometrial cancer.
Now lets us discuss some of the pros of taking low dose progestin-only pills:
- You may experience less painful periods because of reduced cramping.
- Your menstrual flow may become lighter .
- You can take these pills even when you are breastfeeding, as a low amount of estrogen proves to be a safer bet for breastfeeding mothers.
- Taking these pills also means a lower or reduced risk of pelvic inflammatory disease, endometrial cancer, and other such complications.
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What Are The Specific Symptoms Of Migraine With Aura And Birth Control
The timing of your migraine attack may be a clue that your birth control method is the cause rather than a typical migraine that may have other causes.
And if you have migraine with aura, you may be especially sensitive to the estrogen in birth control pills. Your migraine attacks may also feel more intense if youre sensitive to estrogen.
If you take hormonal birth control pills, you typically take an active pill containing estrogen and progestin for 3 weeks. During the fourth week, you take an inactive placebo pill which doesnt contain hormones.
During that week, your estrogen levels drop as they would if you werent taking birth control. When estrogen dips, you may experience migraine, with or without aura.
If you take an extended-cycle pill, this drop in estrogen occurs less frequently. This can reduce how often you get migraine attacks that result from a dip in estrogen.
Other possible side effects from birth control pills that may also occur along with migraine with aura include:
Migraine with aura can often be managed with medication. If your migraine attacks last longer than 1 hour or linger for an extended period of time, let your doctor know.
Seek immediate medical attention if you experience symptoms such as:
- weakness on one side of the body
- confused speech
- a reduction in alertness
If migraine with aura coincides with your menstrual cycle, talk with a doctor about your choices for birth control that wont increase migraine severity or your risk of stroke.
The Effectiveness Of Birth Control Pills
One way to manage many perimenopausal symptoms may be a treatment you thought you were done with: the Pill.* Because hormonal birth control provides estrogen at an even, predictable rate, the Pill can smooth the dips and peaks of fluctuations and balance out the hormones you’re losing.
For many women, hormonal birth control is an escape from some of the more disruptive symptoms of perimenopause and menopause. If you’re having a hard time of it, and are a good candidate for hormonal birth control , a few years on the Pill might be a good way to go.
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How Are Very Low
Very-low-dose birth control pills are usually started on the first Sunday after your period starts. If youâre perimenopausal but you arenât having regular periods, you can probably take a hormone called medroxyprogesterone acetate to start your period. These pills are taken for 21 days in a row and then not taken for seven days. During the seven days without medicine, your period will start. Seven days later , youâll start taking the very-low-dose oral contraceptives for another cycle .
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What Are Family Planning Clinics
Family planning clinics offer a range of reproductive and sexual health services to the general public. These include information and advice about contraceptive options. Clinic staff may also be able to prescribe contraceptive medicines, insert IUDs or contraceptive implants and refer people for sterilisation procedures.
Clinic services may have a cost so be sure to ask when you book an appointment.
- Find a Family Planning clinic near you using the healthdirect Service Finder.
- Call the Family Planning NSW Talkline on 1300 658 886 Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm or email on
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How Is Low Estrogen Diagnosed
Diagnosis and treatment of low estrogen can help prevent many health issues.
If youre experiencing symptoms of low estrogen, talk with your doctor. They can assess your symptoms and make a diagnosis if needed. Early diagnosis may help prevent further complications.
During your appointment, your doctor will discuss your family health history and assess your symptoms. Theyll also perform a physical exam. Blood tests will likely be needed to measure your hormone levels.
Your follicle stimulating hormone levels may also be tested to determine whether your estrogen is low if youre experiencing:
The Function Of Estrogen
Estrogen is the hormone thatâs mainly responsible for sexual development in girls as they reach puberty.
Other functions of estrogen include:
- Initiates changes in breast tissue during teenage years and pregnancy
- Helps regulate body weight by helping to control metabolism
- Involved in the development and growth of healthy bone tissue
- Plays a role in promoting healthy cardiovascular health, according to the American Heart Association
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How Birth Control Pills Work
The hormones estrogen and progesterone signal your body to produce eggs and prepare for pregnancy.
If a sperm doesnt fertilize the egg, the levels of these hormones fall steeply. In response, your uterus sheds the lining that had built up. This lining is shed during your period.
Birth control pills contain either a combination of synthetic estrogen and synthetic progesterone or synthetic progesterone alone. This manmade version of progesterone is also known as progestin.
Estrogen and progestin work in different ways to prevent pregnancy. Both work to prevent the pituitary gland from producing hormones that trigger ovulation.
Progestin also thickens your cervical mucus, making it harder for sperm to reach any released eggs. Progestin thins the uterine lining as well. This makes it harder for an egg to implant there if the sperm fertilizes it.
Common brands of low-dose birth control pills include:
Lo Loestrin Fe is actually considered an ultra-low-dose pill, as it only contains 10 mcg of estrogen.
There are multiple benefits of taking a low-dose combination pill:
- Your periods are likely to be more regular.
- Your periods may be lighter.
- Any menstrual cramping you have may be less severe.
Progestins And The Risk For Blood Clots
Deep vein thrombosis is a condition where blood clots develop in the veins , and can be life-threatening if they travel to the lungs, heart, or brain.
Progestin-only methods are generally not thought to increase risk for blood clots . But when combined with estrogen in combined hormonal birth control, the type of progestin may make a difference in the risk for blood clots .
A large study in Denmark showed that people using birth control containing the progestins desogestrel, gestodene, and drospirenone were twice as likely to develop a blood clot in a vein than people using birth control containing levonorgestrel . Another study that combined data from six studies did not find a connection between progestin type and the risk for blood clots .
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Testosterone And Sex Hormone Binding Globulin
Testosterone is found as either bound or unbound in the body. Unbound testosterone is considered Free Testosterone. Testosterone that is bound to albumin, a transport protein, is also considered free since it is a relatively weak bind. Surprisingly, only about 3% of testosterone in the body is completely free, or unbound, and about 30-35% if bound to albumin. The remaining 70% is bound to sex hormone binding globulin, SHBG.1
A Joint Problem: Rheumatoid Arthritis And Hormonal Birth Control
nearly 75 percent are women13 percent of women may get rheumatoid arthritis in their lifetime.
At this point in my research into hormonal contraceptives, any disease that affects women so much more drastically than men I find suspicious. While reading the Nelson Pill Hearings , the testimony of Dr. Giles Boles, a professor of internal medicine, caught my attention. He was discussing oral contraceptives and rheumatoid arthritis. Like diabetes, this is another connection I had never heard about before.
At the hearings, Boles describes a 24-year-old woman who was experiencing mild rheumatic symptoms. After running some tests, she showed three abnormalities commonly associated with lupus. She had been taking oral contraceptives for 8 months and was on no other medication. She was advised to discontinue her oral contraceptive therapy and within 6 weeks all of her laboratory abnormalities had disappeared. Doctors continued to monitor her for over 2 years and she remained disease-free.
He also spoke about a two-year study published in 1969 that showed rheumatoid arthritis in women taking oral contraceptives increased more than 50 percent. Another study from the same year reported that 22 women with rheumatic symptoms had their symptoms diminish or disappear after discontinuing the pill .
That study, which was originally published in the British medical journal Lancet, was also discussed in Barbara Seamans book The Doctors Case Against the Pill :
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What Does Perimenopause Mean
When your periods stop completely, it’s called menopause. Perimenopause means around the time of menopause. The peri-menopausal years are the few years before your periods stop. The timing of menopause is different for each woman. Although some women stop having periods in their 30s, the average age is the early 50s. So, peri-menopausal women are usually in their 40s or early 50s.
What Are The Types Of Birth Control Pills
There are two different types of birth control pills. Both types contain hormones that prevent pregnancy.
- Combination pills contain estrogen and progestin.
- Progestin-only pills are also called the minipill. Theyre better for some women, such as those who are breastfeeding or have a history of blood clots and strokes and shouldnt take estrogen.
The pill comes in different dosing packets from 21-day pill packs to 90-day pill packs, to even 365 days of active pills. Traditionally, depending on the brand and dose, you take at least three weeks of active pills followed by two to seven days of hormone-free pills. This is called cyclical dosing. Most women have a menstrual period during the inactive pills. Some brands do not provide any inactive pills at all in the pack . With the 21-day packs a woman does not take any pills for a week. During this time, youll have your period, similar to what happens when taking the inactive, hormone-free pills.
Some formulations offer continuous dosing, which means you do not have any inactive pills, and a woman takes an active pill daily. Alternatively, extended cycle dosing is when inactive pills or breaks in the active pill regimen only occur three to four times per year. Skipping the inactive pills prevents menstruation. Your healthcare provider can discuss the best option for you.
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