Switching pills?

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-29-2003
Switching pills?
6
Thu, 05-06-2004 - 11:44am
I recently went to my new dr here at college for my yearly (thanks for the advice everyone) and it went a lot better than my first one. While talking to her, she asked if I wanted to be switched to Nordette because I still have some mild (and rarely bad) cramps. I figured that cramps were just a normal part of it because I had them before the pill. Am I wrong? Would this merit a pill change if I have no other complaints? I was pretty confused and she told me it was up to me without any more explanation. I took my regular prescription (Ortho Tri Cyclen lo) and she told me I could switch at anytime. Any advice? Thanks a lot :) You gals are awsome here!

Melissa

Melissa

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Registered: 10-04-2003
Thu, 05-06-2004 - 12:05pm
Congrats on going! i'm glad it was better this time. If it were me, i would not switch... Only because cramps in my opinion, are normal to a women's cycle, and i'm not sure that they are something we can get rid of entirely... Not to mention, other than some MILD cramps, you have no other problems. Who knows what kind of side effects you could have by switching. They may go away, but you'd still have to go through them. I have often tried to decide which side effects merit a pill change, and i'd say mild cramps aren't worth a pill change. I'd stay on them if i were you. Maybe in a few years you can change when your body starts to change. Until then, enjoy what you got!

Good luck!

Dani

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Thu, 05-06-2004 - 1:23pm
I agree with Dani--it doesn't sound like it's broke! In the last seven years, I've taken four different pills and the ring and I've had cramps with all of them. Some pills were better (high progestin or low estrogen), some were worse (low progestin, higher estrogen), but they're nowhere near as bad as before I was on the pill at all. And all four of those pills weren't winners (for me), so I'm always voting for a little known discomfort rather than the potential for a lot of unknown discomfort!

Good luck!

Judie

Judie Cl for Birth Control 
iVillage Member
Registered: 11-20-2003
Tue, 05-11-2004 - 12:14pm
I had an OB-GYN ask me the same thing - if I wanted to switch pills because I still had cramps. She told me that if you're on the right pill, you shouldn't have any cramps at all, ever. I found that very hard to believe. She mentioned that if I could never get my cramps to completely go away, no matter what kind of BCP I was on, it is possible I could have endometriosis. So I don't know if switching pills is some kind of informal endometriosis diagnosis tool that doctors use or what. I DID switch pills, not just because of the cramps (they could be pretty bad at times), but also because of low libido (non-existent would be a more accurate term). I've switched 3 times and still have cramps, and still have no sex drive. Go figure! LOL!

So to make a long story short - I wouldn't switch pills if I were you. In my experience it's been a lot of trouble for not much benefit. If you are generally satisfied with the pill you're on - stick with it! :-)

-Emily

I would give up chocolate, but I'm no quitter...

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-19-2004
Tue, 05-11-2004 - 3:58pm
it's strange that your doctor would say that. both of the GYNs that I've had have made it clear that my pills should be softening my cramps, but have never told me that they'd go away completely. also, I was under the impression that some pills were good for endometriosis, presumably helping to get rid of the excess endometrial tissue that's forming in the wrong places and causing that extreme pain during menses.
iVillage Member
Registered: 11-20-2003
Tue, 05-11-2004 - 4:21pm
Guess I should mention that I don't see that GYN anymore. I kind of thought she was a lunatic anyway, and she wasn't very nice to me. :-)

Yes, BCP helps endometriosis - I guess her theory was that if your cramps don't totally go away when you're on the pill, perhaps you have endo. If it was "just cramps", they'd totally go away. Again, those are my GYN's words - not mine. I don't necessarily believe it.

.... which is why I have a new GYN now! :-)

-Emily

I would give up chocolate, but I'm no quitter...

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-08-2004
Tue, 05-11-2004 - 5:17pm
Funny how you get so many different opinions. I was told being on the pill before an endometriosis diagnosis is the absolute worst thing you can do, because the endo feeds off the estrogen. So confusing :)


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