Couple of pill questions
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| Mon, 03-08-2004 - 2:09pm |
Two quick questions about the birth control pill:
1) Say I took one pill about 12 hours late. Do I need to use a backup form of birth control? If so, for how long? A week? The remainder of this cycle? Does this kind of mistake effect my NEXT cycle (ie. after I get my next period)? Just curious what the recommended course of action is.
2) I've read somewhere that vomiting or diarrhea within a certain number of hours of taking your pill can make it less effective. Does anyone know what the number of hours is? I seem to remember it being two or four or something like that, but I'm not sure. Also, does this apply to BEFORE you take your pill as well as after (ex. if I vomited two hours BEFORE I took my pill, would that have any effect)?
Thanks for your help!!

Jessica
The one thing I would say, though, is that I would definitely check with your doctor before attempting to take the pill vaginally. From what I've heard, the theory that you can do this is very much that - a theory and not a completely accurate one. I would definitely check with the doc. After all, they are oral contraceptive pills! I'd be wary of putting them anywhere else :)
2. The literature that comes with my pills specifies a 2 hour window after taking the pill for vomiting or diarhea - the idea being that by the time 2 hours have passed, your body has absorbed the hormones in the pill so any problems with your GI tract have no bearing on the effectiveness. The concern is that if you throw up your pill, your body doesn't get the hormones. Vomiting before you took your pill wouldn't have any effect because you haven't taken the pill yet.
I don’t think oral contraceptives have been tested for effectiveness when inserted in the vagina. It is not something that has been approved by the FDA and frankly, it sounds like an urban legend. I would definitely NOT attempt taking your pill that way without talking to your doc about it.
Good luck
Jill