Hi Moms! I had my baby on November 22nd and haven't started birth control again yet and I haven't had a period yet either. I got birth control pills yesterday and the instructions say to start the pill on the first day of your period or the Sunday after your period starts. I don't want to keep waiting to start and have no idea when I will have a period. I called my doctor's office and the nurse said I should start the pack next Sunday. If she's saying I don't need to wait until my period starts is there a reason I need to wait to start specifically on a Sunday or can I just start today? My doctor's office also said to use a backup method for a month but the pill instructions said you don't need a backup method anymore after 7 days...what do you guys think? Thanks!!
When I went and got mine in Dec the doctor told me that if I started them with my period that I would not need back up birth control, but that if I didn't want to wait that I could go ahead and start them, but I would need to use a back up method for the first month.
Unless you want to have two under O., I would use the back up!
Congrats!
I would follow what the nurse said since you haven't had a period yet. You dont know when you 'cycle' will make you ovulate so you want to be extra careful if you dont want to have another baby right now. I had the same problem...didn't have a period becuase I was breastfeeding. Even after I stopped breast feeding I still didn't start so they had to put me on something to 'make' me have a period.
Normally Dr's offices just follow how the pills are packaged and just tell all of their patients to start on a Sunday. I was told by a doctor once that you can actually start the pill whenever you want.
Also, I would follow your Doctor's office advice and use back-up protection for a month. 7 days isn't long enough.
I'm not a nurse, just a voice of experience after having two kids.
Good luck!
You have to start at the first pill and since the packs are usually set up for Sunday start up it will be easier and less confusing. You can get pregnant while on the pill even though it is a slight chance so unless you do not care if you are then use a back up for the first month, it can not hurt to be extra careful. Congrats on the new baby, what a joy a newborn is.
Follow the nurse's recommendations.
After you have a baby, you are not "regular" for a while- meaning you can be ovulating and have irregular "periods" without realizing that the ovulation occurred, which is the need for "back-up" for the first month.
In theory, the pill is "effective" immediately, but if you have sex tonight, ovulate today or tomorrow and then start a pill... you could still be pregnant. Remember that the pill prevents ovulation, but if ovulation occurs, you can get pregnant.
Your body chemistry will be "off" for a while as you are adjusting to the synthetic hormone, so use a back-up if the doctor has suggested it!
If you check out your calendars, both online and home ones they usually start the week on Sunday, business planners will sometimes give you the option of grouping the days of the week together and then the weekend seperate but that's not common in regular calendars. In the USA that is considered to be the first day of the week. That's why most people start their BC on Sunday to coincide with the calendar.
Birth control isn't 100% effective until it has been in the body for some time. If you want to chance it them don't use another form to go along but if you want to make sure then use something safe.
I worked for almost 10 years in a women's clinic that dealt primarily in unwanted pregnancies. I would recommend following what the doctor's office said, especially in regards to using a backup method for a month.
Yes, you can actually start the pill any day of the week. It is more user friendly to start on Sunday because with a quick glance at your pack you can see if you took today's pill or not.
As for the backup method, yes, the pill is effective after 7 days IF taken correctly, which alot of women don't. What a previous poster said about the 3 ways the pill works is correct. You need to take it at the same time each day. Very important. Think of the hormones in each pill as a line. When taken everyday at the same time, you are keeping that hormone line flat. If you fluctuate on your times, say 8 one day then noon the next then 6 the day after that, then your hormone line looks like a roller coaster.
Also, avoid diet pills as they can cause the pill to leave your body sooner (on a daily basis) (think gaps in your hormone line) and St. John's Wort also effects the pill.
Hope this helps!
I'm pretty sure that you can start on any day of the week. The Sunday guideline is just because the packs come with that as the day one label, but most come with sticker's for any day of the week startup.
As for back-up-- is it the "mini pill" (used while nursing) that you are taking? If so, it is very important that you take it at the same time every day or else it is less effective. If it is the mini pill- I would definately use back-up.
