OTClo may be tooo low for me? m
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| Fri, 07-30-2004 - 8:12am |
Been on OTC lo for 4 months now-- EVERY MONTH my period has started the THIRD week yes still on actives-- ends on this third week too-- The first 3 months i took the placebos ( well last month i started my new pack early) I am skipping my placebos this pack and starting a new pack today ( when i should take my first placebo) since im bleeding on my third week does this mean i need a higher dose? I havent called my dr yet-- i still have 2 more packs of OTC lo he gave me for free. I love OTC lo-- my acne is almost totally gone-- only one pimple this cycle! I have no side effects, my flow is alot lighter ( instead cups are wonderful) and in general im just really happy with it. I havent missed a pill yet-- take em around 630 am everyday.
So i guess my question is do i need to switch to something higher in dose to realign my period? I am still protected right during my placebo week should i take them and even though im not having a period? DH has turned into a sex fiend in the last month-- its every day and twice a day when i work in town. I just want to be sure-- we sure dont need another baby since we just had Auburn in April.
any sugesstions?
Thanks guys -- yall are the best!
Amity
DS- Taylor 9.12.00
DD- Auburn 4.12.04

If you're already having problems with your period starting during the inactive pills, I'm not sure how well trying to skip placebos is going to work, especially considering that you're dropping from the higher progestin of the third week to the lowest progestin of the first week! Are you sure you want to try? You may end up bleeding until your next period, or things might get better, but.....
But to your original question, if after 3 months you're still having bleeding in the last week of active pills, yes, you may need a higher progestin dose than what you're getting. Don't panic, there's LOTS of room to grow here! You still have plenty of options to go with either larger doses of milder progestins or similar doses of stronger progestins, and various estrogen contents along the way.
And about the acne, there's nothing that special about OTC that makes it better for acne, all birth control pills can help with acne if it's hormone-related. Ortho McNeil has gone through the effort of running the necessary tests to be able to legally claim that their pill (OTC--notice they didn't do this with Ortho Cyclen or OTC Lo, even though the hormones are exactly the same, just in different doses) helps with acne. You might find that your next pill helps with acne just as much!
I'd call your doctor. If you do switch to another pill, you might be able to stop by the office to pick up some samples of the new pill to see how it goes before you go fill a prescription.
Good luck!
Co-cl for Birth Control
so does OTC have a higher progestin level?
Thanks again!
Amity
DS-9.12.00
DD-4.12.04
Anyhoo, the list given by: http://www.fpnotebook.com/GYN115.htm shows pills in order of progestin activity from low to high. OTC and Ortho Cyclen are at the top (low end) of the list, the Loestrins are at the bottom (high end). OTC Lo would be somewhere in the middle, but probably not too far from OTC considering that Alesse has less estrogen and a stronger progestin. This is not an all-inclusive list, there are a few pills that aren't here, and the patch and ring are missing. For late-cycle bleeding, you'd be interested in a pill with a higher progestin activity than what you're taking now.
When I had breakthrough bleeding with OTC, my doc (general, not gyn) got out the elephant gun and put me on Loestrin 1.5/30. Whoa! I went from one extreme to the other, and it sure took care of that breakthrough bleeding, but it caused a lot of other problems along the way because there was SO much progestin and not enough estrogen, so you'll want to find a happy medium that works well for you.
And a note from this same reference, the ring supposedly has less breakthrough bleeding than pills containing levonorgestrel, which is supposed to be one of the best at controlling bleeding (and it's in Seasonale probably for that reason)! I think that's cool. ;)
I hope that helps!
Co-cl for Birth Control