period question

If you’re not sure, you can always call your doctor to ask.

The Pill consist of 21 days of active pills (pills containing the hormones), followed by a pill-free interval of seven days (either no pills or sugar pills). The rapid decline in the artificial hormones which occurs in the pill-free interval results in a ‘withdrawal bleed’, which somewhat resembles a menstrual period and is often still referred to as a ‘period’ for simplicity. It is important, however, for women to understand that when they take the Pill the bleeding which occurs during the pill free interval is not a menstrual period.

Similarly, women should be aware the current packaging of the Pill (21 active pills, seven day pill free interval) was developed primarily for acceptability reasons and not because of any physiological reason. Indeed, contraception expert John Guillebaud explains “When you think about it we have here a bizarre contraceptive: one that we providers actually instruct the users not to use - for 25% of the time” (4). As Guillebaud suggests, the pill free interval is the ‘Achilles heel’ of the Pill’s efficacy as it can contribute to pill failure. To stop ovulation from occurring a woman needs to take seven consecutive active pills. In addition, if more than seven days are missed a woman risks ovulation and, if unprotected intercourse occurs, pregnancy. The lengthening of the pill free interval is one of the most common causes of pill failure and is often associated with a woman starting her new Pill packet late. It is very easy to start a pill packet late with women either simply forgetting or not having their new packet with them.

Similarly, if some of the active pills near the end of the previous packet or active pills near the start of the new packet are either missed or not absorbed properly (due to vomiting, diarrhoea, use of antibiotics) this can also mean that there has not been enough pills taken overall to prevent ovulation. Women who miss pills towards the end of their packet often mistakenly believe it does not matter because they are having their ‘period’ soon. They do not realise that missing pills near the pill free interval may mean they have not taken enough pills to prevent ovulation in the next month. The most dangerous time to miss a pill is at the end or beginning of a packet (because it lengthens the pill free interval beyond seven days). So why have a pill free interval?

As discussed above, the pill free interval was devised in the early days of the Pill because it was felt that women would find having a ‘period’ more acceptable. Additionally, all the data on the safety of the Pill was conducted using women who were having a pill free interval (5). If women did not have a pill free interval they would actually be taking more pills a year and, therefore, would be exposed to more of the hormones. For a range of reasons, however, women may choose to tricycle their pill (taking three packets together without a pill free interval), thus reducing the number of withdrawal bleeds a year from 12 to four. Who could benefit from tricycling?

Women who suffer from headaches or migraines triggered by the sudden drop in hormones during the pill free week and women who experience heavy bleeding may benefit from tricycling.

http://www.womhealth.org.au/healthjourney/pill_myths_misconceptions.htm

Your ‘withdrawal blood’ after your current pack ends shouldn’t be as bad as your real period with cramps before you took birth control. You can use tampons during your camping trip if it is more convenient for you. Still, your doctor knows your body better, so do ask him/her.