An off the wall Question

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-26-2004
An off the wall Question
2
Tue, 11-09-2004 - 11:19pm
My roommate and I were talking about birth control earlier today and a wierd thought came up.

If you are not currently on birth control and become pregnant, and then start taking birth control, not knowing that you are already pregnant, what happens? Can your baby die?

Thanks for answering all my questions tonight.. I appreciate it!

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-14-2004
Tue, 11-09-2004 - 11:27pm
Most doctors or health clinics will require you to have a pelvic exam and a pregnancy test before they prescribe birth control to you, to help avoid these things. That`s also another reason why you`re generally told to start birth control while on your period - that way, you know that you`re not pregnant and it`s also easier on your body.

However, if you are pregnant or become pregnant while on birth control, it`s generally not considered to really hurt the baby. I`m sure that there have been some instances of birth defects related with early-pregnancy hormonal contraception use, but I think that those are pretty rare. Of course, it`s a must that you stop taking the hormones as soon as you find out that you are pregnant. I know that Depo-Provera has been linked to some genital malformations when administered during pregnancy or if the method fails; that`s generally attributed to the strong progestin in the shot. However, I think that for other, comparably "low" hormonal methods when compared to Depo, won`t usually harm the baby.

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Wed, 11-10-2004 - 7:31am
Actually with Depo it's the specific type of progestin that causes birth defects, that's why the only medroxyprogesterone pills are for hormone replacement and not birth control. Conventional birth control pills have not been shown to have negative effects in early pregnancy, but as Lena said, they need to be discontinued as soon as pregnancy is confirmed.

I've never had a pregnancy test, but you are supposed to confirm a lack of pregnancy with a period before you start the pill anyway, and that should take care of that worry. ;)

Judie
Co-cl for Birth Control
Judie Cl for Birth Control