Starting Ortho-tri-cyclen question
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Starting Ortho-tri-cyclen question
| Fri, 06-11-2004 - 8:55pm |
Hey ladies, after being off of the pill for 4 years--I picked up my new prescription today.
| Fri, 06-11-2004 - 8:55pm |
There is no health risk in starting your pills anywhere in your cycle. However, you would probably feel better starting on day one or at least by the first Sunday after as your natural hormones will be lower then than they are at mid cycle. The hormones from your pills on top of your natural ones might cause you some discomfort. If you start your pills anywhere in your cycle other than day one, you should use back-up for at least 7 days. Or, if you have to get back into the habit of taking your pills correctly, it might be a good idea to use back-up for the entire first pack. You didn’t specifically ask about skipping your period on OTC but if you want to skip that is difficult for many women to do on a triphasic pill such as OTC. That is because your body may react to the decrease in progestin between the first week of a new pack and the last active week of the old pack of OTC as the signal to begin to bleed. Most women have greater success with a monophasic pill such as Ortho Cyclen that has 21 days of the same hormones as week three of OTC. If you want to try skipping using OTC, try it several cycles before you actually need it to see if it will work for you or if you will need to switch to Ortho Cyclen for a pack.
Good luck,
Jill