how does it work

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-05-2004
how does it work
4
Wed, 05-05-2004 - 10:29pm
Okay so I've been on the pill now for about six months and its working really good. But now I'm just curious about how it works. I know there are hormones in there and I heard it makes my body think its always preggo. But then how come I still get periods at all?
iVillage Member
Registered: 01-05-2004
Wed, 05-05-2004 - 11:02pm
hi. i can answer one question for ya. the reason why you have a period is because during that 4th week your body doesn't have any of the hormones. its a false period- due to withdrawal of the hormones. have you noticed that its not as heavy as before you went on it?

~pink~

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-30-2003
Wed, 05-05-2004 - 11:25pm
Hi redstapler, welcome!

For a good explanation of how oral contraceptives work see the FAQs on the Board’s website:

http://pages.ivillage.com/cl-judie_rae/id1.html Technically, once you are on hormonal contraceptives you no longer have a true period where your endometrium grows as your estrogen rises until ovulation. Progestin rises and maintains your endometrium waiting for a fertilized egg to implant. If there is no implantation, about 2 weeks after ovulation your progestin drops and you shed your endometrium. That shedding of the lining of your uterus is your period. The hormones in your pills prevent ovulation and the estrogen and progestin in your pills is just enough to hold a small amount of endometrium stable until your pill-free week. The removal of hormones during your pill-free week caused ‘withdrawal bleeding’ which is seen as your pill-period. If you want to know more about your cycle an absolutely super book on the subject is Toni Weschler’s Taking Charge of Your Fertility. Does this help?

Good luck

      Jill

    

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Thu, 05-06-2004 - 8:02am
That's our #1 FAQ in the board website, I'd recommend checking it out! The "the pill makes my body think it's pregnant" is kind of a misnomer of sorts, as there's a whole lot more to pregnancy hormonally than what the pill is doing. What it does, though, is send a chemical message to your pituitary gland telling it not to start sending the hormones that start the ovulation process (FSH and LH, follicle stimulating and leutinizing hormones). The absence of those hormones prevents ovulation, but otherwise that's the only way that it's simlar to pregnancy.

After you've read the FAQ's on the website, if you have any questions, please come back and ask!

Judie

Judie Cl for Birth Control 
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-13-2003
Thu, 05-06-2004 - 2:03pm
Hi redstapler. Good question. The birth control pill works in 3 main ways (there are other ways, but this is just a general overview.)

First, the pill works by preventing ovulation. This means that no egg is released and fertilization can not occur. Depending on what type of pill you're on, this mechanism can either work pretty well (on the combination pills) or work relatively poorly (the mini-pill.)

A second way that the pill works is by thickening the cervical mucus making it harder for the sperm to reach the egg (if one has been released.)

A third mechanism is to deteriorate the uterine lining. This makes it harder for the new baby/fertilized egg to implant itself in the uterus.

Some people, including myself, have a problem with this third mechanism because we see it as abortive. If you have any questions about this, let me know. I've done a lot of research on it.

Hope this helps...