birth control

okay, i'm horribly embarassed to be asking this, but given that I respect and love you all... I'm going to ask my question - don't laugh at me.

I have very heavy periods. Short lasting (2-3 days) but those days are like hell on earth for me. I'm lucky to function as well as I do. My mood changes a whole bunch beforehand as well.

I'm not sexually active, haven't found a nice guy yet.

Now ... is there anyone here who take birth control to control periods? able to give me advice, or tell me if its a good idea?

... I just want to stop being such a pain in the *** to deal with for a few days a month, and not have so much bloody pain.

<font color="green"> I have a 19 y/o daughter who is dd and vulnerable so we have her on birth control as a precaution. She gets a Deprovera shot every three months. An added bonus of this is that her monthly menses and her PMS symptoms are much reduced. I used Deprovera myself as a treatment for endometriosis. There is another pill out there being advertised as shortening periods but I don’t know anything about that. </font>

that other pill starts with an M. i'll look it up. sounds promising.

WebMD Home A to Z Guides Email a Friend Print Article Birth ControlFont SizeA A A Choosing a Birth Control Method
With so many methods available and so many factors to consider, choosing birth control can be difficult. You may be able to decide on a method by asking yourself the following questions.

Might I want to have a biological child in the future?
One of your first considerations might be to determine whether you want permanent or temporary birth control. In other words, you should consider whether you want to conceive any (or more) children. This is a decision that will affect the rest of your life and can be made only after thinking it through carefully.


If you are not sure about the future even though you know how you feel now, a temporary method is a better choice. If you are young, have few or no children, are choosing sterilization because your partner wants it, or think it will solve money or relationship problems, you may regret your decision later.


How effective are different types of birth control?
See a table showing the birth control failure rates of each method.

Hormonal injections (Depo-Provera) and the hormonal and copper IUDs are highly effective methods of birth control (97% and 99.9% effective). That means fewer than 1 to 3 out of 100 women using these methods will become pregnant in a year.11

Birth control pills (both combination and progestin-only) have a high success rate of 92%. That means that 8 out of every 100 women taking pills become pregnant in a year. If taken carefully every day or at the same time every day, birth control pills are over 99% effective.11 The hormonal skin patch and vaginal ring are thought to be about as effective as birth control pills.


The male condom is 85% effective.11 This means that out of 100 couples who use only male condoms for birth control each time they have sex, 15 will become pregnant in a year.



Consider how comfortable you feel about using a particular method of birth control. If you are not comfortable with or might not consistently use a birth control method for any reason, that method is not likely to be reliable for you in the long run. A reality check for birth control methods can help you determine which method is right for you.

How can I prevent sexually transmitted diseases?
Unless you know that your partner has no other sex partners and is free of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), you are at risk for STD infection. If you are at risk, protect yourself from infection every time you have sex. Use a condom in addition to any other birth control method you choose.

You can choose between a male or female condom to reduce your risk for HIV (the virus that causes AIDS), gonorrhea, syphilis, chlamydia, genital warts, herpes, pelvic inflammatory disease (PID), and other infections.

What health factors could limit my choice of birth control?
If you have health problems or other risk factors, some birth control methods may not be right for you.

Smoking. If you smoke more than 15 cigarettes a day and are 35 or older or have high blood pressure, a history of stroke, a history of blood clots, liver disease, or heart disease, you may not be able to use combined hormonal methods.
Migraines. If you have migraine headaches, talk to your health professional about whether you can try combined hormonal contraception.
Diabetes. If you have advanced or long-standing diabetes, discuss the risks of taking hormonal birth control methods with your health professional.
Other health problems that might keep you from using a particular birth control method are relatively rare, especially in young women. However, before using any method, you should talk with your health professional to see if it is safe for you.

If you are at risk of sexually transmitted disease (STD) infection,
Depo-Provera. Use of Depo-Provera may increase the risk of chlamydia or gonorrhea infection among women who are exposed to these diseases.13 If you have any risk of getting an STD, use condoms.
Using Depo-Provera for 2 or more years can also cause bone loss, which may not be fully reversible after stopping the medication.14 Bone loss can lead to osteoporosis later in life, a condition that causes bones to become thin and brittle, making them more likely to break.

A small study among teens showed that bone loss from Depo-Provera was reversed after they stopped getting the shots.15 Talk to your doctor about your risks if you have used Depo-Provera longer than 2 years.

What other factors might influence my decision?
Each method has benefits.

Combination pills, which contain both estrogen and progestin, may reduce acne, pain during ovulation, premenstrual symptoms, and heavy menstrual bleeding and cramping.
Seaso One combination pill called Yasmin may help reduce severe mood and physical symptoms that some women get before they start their monthly periods.4 These symptoms are called premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).

Seasonale is a combination pill you take for 84 days rather than the normal 21 days; then you take no pills for 7 days in order to have a period (menstruate). This decreases your menstrual periods to only 4 a year.

The progestin IUD (Mirena) and the progestin-only injection (Depo-Provera) can relieve cramping and menstrual bleeding, make periods less frequent, or even stop periods altogether. Unlike the combination pill, most women can take the progestin-only pill, including those who are breast-feeding (because estrogen lowers milk supply). However, you must take the progestin-only pill at the same time each day to prevent pregnancy.

so much information!

thanks both of you. i guess I have lot of thinking to do.

talking of birth control.... i am going to my GP about my periods and think he will prescribe the pill.... anyone know what that will do to me?
also he will ask me if i am pregnant. i havent had sex but there are other ways and i have thought it possible before, i doubt i but....
i bloody hope not....
tc all
self

I'm a little curious as to how one gets pregnant without having heterosexual intercourse -- that's a new one on this old dog! (Unless you're talking in-vitro or something.)

My experience with the Depo shot was absolutely miserable and I would never do it again. PM if you want details, they're ugly!

Of course, the pill gave me blood clots....

</font><blockquote><div id="quote"><font class="small">Quote:</font>
i havent had sex but there are other ways and i have thought it possible before

</div></font></blockquote><font class="post">
Yeah, that has me wondering too... I know this generation of children have new technology at their beckon call, but you don't get pregnant unless you're messing around.

TC
I hope you are fine.

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There are a lot of women that take birth control pills to help control their periods and/ or medical problems that arise due to their monthly cycle.... and
Heck I had my tubes tied (a triple whammy) after my last child was born 17 years ago and lately my doctor has been considering putting me on a low dose birth control pill to help with the enormous PAIN that comes around every 4 weeks with my Period & PMDD.

Hey Canders,

Yeah I went on the pill as a teenager at my mother's suggestion to help control my periods, they made me dizzy and vomity, and the icing on the cake was when I fainted in my chemistry lab class!

I went on Monofeme initially, but was changed by my doctor to Loette when I was diagnosed with depression (about 3-4 years ago now). I don't think there's a proven medical link between monofeme and depression, but the depressive symptoms flared up after I'd been taking it for a couple of months (although this coincided with other major life-events that my T thought triggered it).

The pill is super awesome at controlling periods, just a few minor craps occaisonally that a paracetamol can fix. Plus you can skip your period every second month if you want too.

Definitely worth looking into, imo.

immaculate conception maybe? hehe

virgin births are possible because you don't need penetration with a penis in order to get sperm inside the vagina (use your imagination peoples).

i've been on the pill in order to control period pain. that is why i went on the pill at 16 (and i wasn't sexually active with a guy for a good 5 years after that). it worked out well for me (no pain, lighter periods). i fact it worked out SUPER well for me. used to have 7 day very heavy periods with a good week of cramping before hand and during the first couple days. went from that to a fairly light 3 day flow that i could really forget about between tampon changes because i didn't feel bloated or crampy or heavy or anything like that. i also liked the control it gave me over delaying or missing periods (though best not to do that too often it is helpful for when you have something special planned).

stopped taking it a while later because i kept forgetting to take the darned thing.

i went on the depot a couple of years ago because my periods were starting to be painful again. didn't work out for me. apparently about half the people who take it think it is WONDERFUL and they swear by it, whereas the other half swear they will never have another one of those ever again. i'm not sure whether this affects things... but i actually had the injection about 3 days before my period was due. i didn't have a period... but i felt crampy and bloated (like i really needed a period) for 6 months until my period came again. not very nice at all. maybe it would be different if you have the shot just after having your period (but then probably not because i think the idea is that the lining builds up and stays there 'cause it works by fooling your body into not flushing it out 'cause your body thinks it is pregnant.

depot is worth a try (wonderful if it works) but not so wonderful if it doesn't. or... if the not so wonderful thing really doesn't sound appealling then the pill can work quite well. sometimes people get a bit of spotting during the first couple months, however, and people do often gain a bit of water weight.

i've recently stopped taking it because i was unhappy about the weight gain...

Oooooh depo made me CrAzY.....my emotions were all over the place, and I ended up with menopausal symptoms at 24. And the weight gain!! Yikes! Didn't work for me at all. Its worked wonders with some of my friends though.

my doctor wants me to go on birth control pills to regulate my mentrual cycles.. i have pcos and will get maybe 1or 2 periods a year if lucky...
i just ignored it
thank you all for responding to canders post it has given me some more insight
i still chose no due to the weight gain...
but thank you all...