Can someone tell me EVERYthing they know about birth control?

I am assuming your brown pills are the sugar pills. If you take the pill the same time every day, then pretty much every month you will get your period around the same time on the same day. So if you started on a Sunday (most people do) then your last real pill is on a Saturday, and you probably start your period sometime Monday, or whatever day you start your period, you will be able to predict it within hours.

If you throw up within 30 minutes of taking the pill it is possible you did not get all of the hormone I would think. You might want to use a back up method that month.

If you are on the pill and take it regularly it should not matter how often your partner ejaculates in you, but just know the pill does not protect you from STD’s.

If you haven’t figured it out yet from my answers, it is very important to take your pills the same time of day every day.

You doctor would be the best source for information, since it might depend on other factors about your health that we aren’t aware of. For specific information about the brand you are using, go to their website and read what they have to say. There will probably be a question and answer section for any personal concerns you have.

@JLeslie Nailed it. I sometimes differ slightly in when I get my period on the sugar bills, but it’s always within a day.

Also, make sure you give a birth control enough time to see if it works for you before immediately switching. I switched three times, but the third wasn’t perfect until at least five months after I started. Be in touch with your doctor to find out what signs mean it isn’t working, and what means your body is still adjusting to it. Continuing to switch kinds makes it harder to count on.

*Oops, sorry, I initially interpreted “fifth pack” as five different birth control types. Void the second part of my answer!

makes you gain weight. sorry.

@charliecompany34 And lose your sex drive, right? Not always. I’ve been on for three years and the only weight I gained was [much needed] in my boobs and my sex drive skyrocketed. Good times.

Just say NO

That the best birth control is using your brain and not your gonads when you feel an overwhelming need to have sex. Be smart, and don’t have sex if you’re too young still.

Birth control pills can fail and it’s higher than that 99.9% crap written on the tiny writing insert thingie. I took pills religiously for years and was pregnant twice, the second time using a diaphragm in addition to. So many medications reduce the effect so be really careful. Looking back I wish I’d have gone with an IUD instead.

The most important thing I know is that it doesn’t always work. I became pregnant twice while on birth control pills.

@Neizvestnaya Aren’t we lucky!!

@Neizvestnaya @perspicacious what type of bc pill were you on?

Ortho Novum at one time—it’s been a long time and I don’t remember for sure. Seems like I took two different brands over the years. The other may have been Ortho Tri Cyclen.

@perspicacious I always wonder if it is on those tricyclics or tri-phasals that people have “accidents.” Or if they were on very low doses of pill. I don;t think the brand matters as much as the dose of hormone, and God forbid if there was a problem with the manufacturing. Goodness knows their are scandals about drug manufacturers, especially in China, sending out medication that actually had little to no medication in it. But, I have never heard those stories about BC pills. Were your periods very regular on the pill? Same day within hours it started each month?

@JLeslie Yeah, they were like clockwork. I never missed taking the pill either. I was shocked that another person on this thread also had two pregnancies while taking the pill. The published stats make that almost unbelievable. But, I had two babies so I can tell you it happens. My OB was as surprised as I was—both times.

@perspicacious Did you switch pills after the first pregnancy to a different dose?

I just find it so odd. Not saying I don’t believe you.

@JLeslie I don’t remember, but maybe, because I do know that at some point he changed the brand I was taking.

I know one other person who got pregnant twice on the pill. Meanwhile I took the pill for 8 years with a break of a few years in the middle. I had sex almost every day when I was in my late teens while on the pill, never became pregnant. I did get pregnant the first month I tried though when I was off the pill.

@JLeslie
I also was on Ortho Novum and then two other kinds that were supposed to be higher doses. Yes, I was having daily sex so I know that ups the odds but I became pregnant twice in the span of less than 3 years so I am pretty pissy about pills. I had also tried the Depo Provera shot but it made me bleed everyday for about 7mos. Birth Control sucks.

@Neizvestnaya I wasn’t saying sex us the odds, even though I guess it would. I never worried about it when I was on the pill, I had sex almost every day like I said for many years. I am surprised after the one mishap you stuck with just using the pill. Although, like I said I have a friend who did the same thing. I would never do a shot, because once it is in your system you can’t get it out. If you feel like shit you can’t just stop taking it. I would not do any long acting shot for anything.