Mini Pill Time Frame Question

Yes. My 4th child is evidence of this. Use backup birth control for a while. I forget how long you need to use back up. When I got pregnant, I had taken it in the afternoon instead of the morning on a Wednesday and Thursday and was back to the morning on Friday. My husband and I got together Friday night and from that hook up, I got pregnant. So two days of being a few hours off was enough to throw my body out of whack and trigger ovulation, but I'm ridiculously fertile.

Just read your package insert and follow what it says, but please know that they're not kidding when they say take it every day at the same time. There is no wiggle room.

You have to take it at the EXACT same time each day. I would sometimes take it an hour different on accident, and then I would bleed profusely like I had my period. It happened a few times during the course of a few weeks and I just stopped taking it. Good luck!

Updated

You have to take it at the EXACT same time each day. I would sometimes take it an hour different on accident, and then I would bleed profusely like I had my period. It happened a few times during the course of a few weeks and I just stopped taking it. Good luck!

You need to take it at the exact same time every day. The pill loses effectiveness otherwise.

Taking this progesterone-only pill early (instead of late) should not put you at greater risk for pregnancy. It's when it's taken more than an hour LATE that you should be concerned. This is because taking it LATE causes blood level of the ovulation suppressing hormone, progesterone, to drop and possibly allow ovulation to occur. To all breastfeeding mothers who have babies older than 6-9 months, I highly encourage you to entertain the idea of switching to another more effective method of birth control as the "mini pill" has a higher pregnancy rate and if you do get pregnant while taking it, it has a higher incidence of ectopic pregnancy. Nurse Midwife Mom

I gave up on the mini pill. I was really bad about sleeping through my 'time frame', or forgetting it... I even set an alarm on my phone, but then I would have to finish up what I was doing when it went off and then forget to take the darn thing. So I just switched to condoms. Much less hassle. It's recommended to use a back-up method anyway.

My youngest is 7 months so I'm still not having periods. I keep finding myself forgetful about taking mine on time (in spite of having the alarm set on my cell phone) so I buy the pregnancy test strips online and test once or twice a month just so I don't have a three-months-along surprise at some point. (Even with perfect use, they are not 100% effective.)

I believe that the packaging on mine says that you need a back-up for 48 hours after starting and/or missing a pill or taking one late. If you normally struggle to stay awake until 8, start taking it closer to 6 every day as your new time rather than within that three hour window. My doctor has emphasized that it should be at the same time every day, but at least within the same one-hour window. Find a time that will work with your schedule every day and stick to that, but keep a back-up in the bedroom handy.

I'm hoping this past week (when I forgot to pick up my refill until I was VERY behind) do not have long-term consequences. Mine is now on auto-refill and I have to make sure I pick up the refill a day or two early to be safe.