Started on PATCH...Questions!!!!

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-11-2004
Started on PATCH...Questions!!!!
7
Wed, 07-07-2004 - 8:13am
Hi everyone..I have posted here and there about going on the patch...well I finally did on July 4th...see I needed to be more responsible and me and my boyfriend decided this was the best way to go. He's actually getting out on saturday from the army so no more being apart from him..yahhh....well anyways...I've had the patch on for liek 3 days...I've swam with it and everything...i mean I'm confused because it doesn't come off but it has little creases because of my skin...yet the edges are stickign to me....yesterday i found one edge kinda loose...but the sticky part was still on my skin so i just put my palm on it for 10 seconds to smooth it out. Please if anyone has gone through the same situation please let me know what to expect because I have no idea how to tell if i'm getting in all the medicine into my body. I would appreciate a response...this confusion and anxiety is killing me...Oh yeah and the only place I can put it on is my butt...so I gotta switch each week between sides....can I switch to the other side next week and the following week switch back to the same spot that i have it on now..or it can't go on that area anymore? thanxs alot

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-28-2003
Wed, 07-07-2004 - 10:09am
i've been on the patch for a few months now. it did take me a while to get used to it being there and i would check every once in a while to make sure it didn't fall off. the best place for me to put it is right on my hip so my underwear covers it and if i wear tight jeans i don't have to worry about them rubbing against it. i have found that there are some creases in it just from when i sit down. so before and after i get out of the shower i make sure that it is smooth. i don't really know how much that messes with its effectivness. the only problems i have faced with the patch so far is that sometimes the sticky stuff leaves a mark on my skin after i remove the patch. like when you leave a band-aid on too long. so that's why i keep it on my hips because i have a small square outline on my shoulder area. i hope it all works out for you. because its so much more convienient for me than the pill was.
iVillage Member
Registered: 05-11-2004
Wed, 07-07-2004 - 12:06pm
but can u place it on yer hip? it just says the arm..torso..but and top of yer back...See i have to place it on my butt where no one can see it...like if i wear low jeans its low enough not to be seen...so i really dont know what to do about the little wrinkles..its totally stuck like i smooth it in and hold it tight every once and a while...but that is kinda tedious...and i dont know if its being fully effective...like u said is it totally being effective when we have to smooth it over because of wrinkles? My boyfriend told me that things can stick better when there is no hair because the folicles create air pockets....do u think thats best? Because if so i'm going to have to remove the little hair i already have there..lol...well how long did it take you to get any side effects when u started? and what were they? So when should i switch the patch when the corner is lifting? My corner only lifted when i was checking all the edges but the stciky medicated part was still on my skin and this was after i came from the pool so that would mean that no water went in. hey do u think it is possible to maybe cover it with something so it is pressured and doesnt come off? And if i wear a thong...will the jeans hurt my chances at keeping the patch on? Well that really suxs if i cant wear a thong anymore. Well let me know...thanxs again
Avatar for ilovemyfeet
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-04-2003
Wed, 07-07-2004 - 12:29pm
my patch seems to lift at the corners too and i get a good size wrinkle acrost it im going to try putting it on a different position on my but. i too dont want it to show id feel kinda atupid with a squair tan line on my shoulder. be shure you dont have any lotion on your skin where you put it and dont rub lotion over top of it try to keep it away from the patch after its on. i actually think removing the little blond hairs might help it stick better mabie ill try it today when i change my patch. ill be puttin on my third patch tonight so far side affects arnt bad though my brest do seem to be somewhat sore the last couple days. mu husband sweres they bigger but im not so shure its not just his wish full thinking. other than that im feeling better than what i did on the ortho tri cyclin. no more depression my sex drive is still low but its better the head ackes seem to be gone but well find out how it goes when i have my patch free week. hope things are going good for you let me know if i can help you with anything...

julie
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Avatar for lucy4980
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Wed, 07-07-2004 - 12:42pm
I've been on the Patch for a month and it lifts up a bit once in awhile, but pressing it back down works fine. The creases are normal, just part of being on your skin, as long as the majority of the patch is in contact with your skin. As for where to put it, each week you can switch cheeks. You just don't want to put it on the same site every week because it could cause irritation and the residue from the last patch could interfer. The residue comes completely off after a little while though, so the site is fine the next week.
iVillage Member
Registered: 05-11-2004
Thu, 07-08-2004 - 7:40am
Well I'm on my 4th day..thanxs soo much for everyone that replied it really helped...im just getting really nervous because the fact is I see the creases and I really dont know how to tell if im getting all the birth control im supposed to u know?! So if anyone knows how i can be certain, please share. Also, I tend to press it down during the day...so maybe thats helping it stay....I've havent gotten any side effects yet but we'll see. Hey if i take like tylenol pm...or tylenol allergy or advil...will that effect the BC?
Avatar for ilovemyfeet
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-04-2003
Thu, 07-08-2004 - 8:19am
you should call the pharmacist or your dr to be of what you can take. whne i got my first prescription i got a paper that had a drug inertaction section on it is said vitamin c could cause a drug interaction and to tell your dr if your taking it along wiht acetaminophen and aspirin those are two things found in alot of pain relieving meds so i would advise you to call your pharmacist before taking anything even if its something as simple as a multivitiam. thier was alot of other drugs listed on it also that so i would call and check to be shure. sorry im not more help...

julie

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iVillage Member
Registered: 05-11-2004
Mon, 07-12-2004 - 7:35am
Well I had posted something before about where I could place the patch. See I put it on my butt..the 1st week i had it on my butt but it got alittle wrinkled so this 2nd week i placed it on the other side...but closer to my back and hip.....is that okay? because putting it low on the cheek can make it wrinkle more...I mean this is still considered my butt but im not sitting on the area...is that allowed? Also....I wear low rise jeans so this creates a problem with wear to place the patch without it being seen or rubbed against.