If you often find yourself
staring at a missed pill—either because you forgot to take it, or because you
just can’t stick to a schedule—there may be consequences. According to Dr
Gandhali Pillai, consultant obstetrics gynecologist, Wockhardt Hospital, side
effects like “nausea, breast tenderness, spotting, stomach upsets and mood
swings” may cause some people to be put off by the medication. She says that
breakthrough bleeding or spotting in between the cycle can also deter users.
However, doctors are quick to tell you to finish out the cycle before making
these changes. If you stop mid-pack, which is before you’d have your period
normally, your body may take longer to reach its normal cycle, leaving the
hormones at imbalanced levels through the month. Plus, since the ovulation
cycle is irregular, the risk for pregnancy is high until it is normalized. The
dangers of being irregular with your contraception are, of course, changes in
your cycle and bleeding. Women with hormonal imbalances may see their acne and hirsute coming back.
If you’ve forgotten to take the
pill for a few days, there are ways to make up for it.If you missed one pill,
you can take the normal pill and the missed pill the next day. If you missed
more than two pills, call your doctor to learn how to make it up without
loading the body with too many hormones all at the same time. Don’t, we repeat,
don’t self-medicate.
What
happens if you double down on the dose
For those that would rather go to
a wedding, the beach, a vacation or an important sporting event without their
period tagging along, doctors say that you can safely skip it for the month
without causing much damage. If you take the pills for three weeks, and then
start a new strip without taking a seven-day break, you can delay the period
until you start again. “It may feel slightly disconcerting, but you can skip a
period once in a while. Just start immediately after your first strip is over,”
says Dr Pillai. While this is not a solution for those with painful periods or
heavy bleeding, it can be done in an emergency if needed.
What
could happen if you stop completely
Women stop taking the pill for as
many reasons as they start it—some might be taking a doctor-mandated break,
some may be ready to become pregnant, and other may be struggling excessively
with the side effects. When you stop birth control, the risks would depend on
the reason you began in the first place.
Sometimes, birth control for a limited duration to
take care of certain concerns work well. If you started birth control due to
irregular periods, you could stop after a while to see if your periods have
normalized. Or, if you started due to severe acne, you could stop after a while
and see if your skin remains clear. Birth control often tends to stabilize your
imbalanced hormones, due to the extra dose of hormones you’re giving your body,
which could put an end to the symptoms you were seeing before you started birth
control. Having said that, there could also be a flare-up effect after
stopping; you could have irregular periods, mood swings, acne, hair thinning,
etc. Basically, all the issues you had before you got on the pill could come
back. So you need to consult your doctor and make an informed decision to stop
birth control,” she says.
For people that stop after a long
time of taking it, the menstrual cycle can get irregular till the body gets
used to regularizing it on its own. Some people might get headaches, have moods
swinging all over the place, see acne or hair fall, and struggle with weight
gain and water retention in the months just after stopping the pill. Usually
this waiting period lasts three to four months.
For more queries on birth control measures contact our Obstetrics department at Wockhardt Hospital.
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