Can I choose my start date?

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-06-2006
Can I choose my start date?
1
Thu, 03-30-2006 - 10:47am

I am getting married on July 29th and am trying to avoid setting up my cycle to land on the wedding date. I am due to begin my period around April 14, which would have me starting my period a couple of days before the wedding. Blah!

I am planning to use Ortho-Lo and really would rather choose my start date, rather than attempt to skip my period later. Is this possible or should I just plan on trying to skip? I read the FAQ board topic about trying to skip, but having never been on birth control, it is all completely foreign to me. I also know that there is a method out there called "quick start".

If you can help me at all, I would truly appreciate it! :)

Jessica

iVillage Member
Registered: 12-30-2003
Thu, 03-30-2006 - 11:10am

Hi jchuck02, welcome!

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!

>>I am planning to use Ortho-Lo and really would rather choose my start date, rather than attempt to skip my period later. Is this possible or should I just plan on trying to skip?<<

If you are certain you aren’t pregnant you should be able to start right away, although, depending on where you are in your cycle you may get more side effects putting the pill hormones on top of your natural ones. For more about common pill side effects see the post in our FAQs.

‘Quick Start’ is an off label procedure for starting women on BCPs that is catching on now with a lot of doctors. If there is no possibility of her being pregnant the patient takes her first pill before she leaves the doctor’s office regardless of where she is in her cycle. With this method she should use back-up for at least 7 days while her hormonal protection is established. Contraceptive Technology 18th revised edition (2004) p.420 says this about quick start: “The reason Quick Start is preferred is because other approaches leave a time gap between the time the patient is prescribed her pills and the time she is intend to take them. As many as 25% of young women starting by one of the conventional start methods failed to begin their pills as instructed because they had conceived in the interim, forgot the pill tasking instructions, failed to fill the prescription or were worried about taking the pill after their visit. Quick Start does not increase irregular spotting or bleeding.”

This board recommends using back-up for the entire first cycle while getting into the habit of taking your pills correctly. That way if you are late or forget a pill there’s no reason to panic.

Thanks for stopping by. Discuss Quick Start with your doctor and see what s/he thinks. Let us know what you decide and how you’re doing, ok?

Good luck,

      Jill