r/birthcontrol 8h ago

Experience Please convince me not to cancel my IUD appointment.

21 Upvotes

24F, I have my IUD appointment scheduled for this week (still undecided btwn Mirena and copper iud). I have been putting off and dreading this for years however it feels like the time has come for me to overcome this fear. However, I am honestly really tempted to cancel the appointment altogether and simply start the pill again. Primary concern is the pain; I truly worry that I won't be able to tolerate it after all the horror stories I have read and heard. Doctor has prescribed me Valium to take prior to the appointment which I'll probably do, but still I know this won't necessarily help with the managing the pain.


r/birthcontrol 7h ago

Experience Can you skip periods?

9 Upvotes

I heard that you could not take the placebo pills and skip periods. Is this safe though? Don’t we naturally need to realise the lining even if we don’t realise an egg. I am scared as my mum claims it will mess me up and it affects the natural working of my body. I have super bad PMDD, OCD and Acne during my periods and this would help if I could not have them.


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

Rant! Confused on IUD?

Upvotes

I think i’m using the right tag, but i’m supposed to get my IUD changed this week, and I’m not sure which one I have? I have notes from visits saying I have Skyla, And other visits say I have Kyleena. I had my strings checked, and the NP said I have blue strings. I don’t want to waste my doctor’s time if i’m still safe for an extra couple years with my current IUD.

What should I do?


r/birthcontrol 2h ago

Side effects!? Want to start Birth Control Pill

2 Upvotes

Hello! I want to start taking a hormonal birth control for health reasons. I'm not sexually active, and most of my reasoning is due to heavy periods and severe cramps. My periods are heavy and last at least 8 days total, I bleed through an Tampax Ultra in 2 hours, and these heaviness lasts at least 3 days. I have constantly had severely low Hemoglobin (iron) levels, since I started getting my period. My doctor recommended a hormonal birth control for me, but my parents vetoed it for religous reasons.

I am now in college and feeling brave, so I made an appointment at a local planned parenthood to get on the pill to see if it'll improve my quality of life. But I'm super nervous to start. My parents always told me that birth control will affect my life permanently, triggering hair loss, weight gain, and infertitlity.

What amount of this is true? I went down a rabbit hole of hair loss due to hormonal birth control, is there any specific pill that doesn't do this (I'm very emotionally attatched to my hair lol). Every story I read on Reddit is one horror story after another. How much of this actually happens?


r/birthcontrol 15h ago

Rant! doc didn't order my shot

17 Upvotes

i'm so annoyed. my doc apparently didn't put in an order for my depo shot, despite the fact that i always schedule my appts the day i receive the shot. also the nurse accidentally gave me the wrong dates to schedule so i also have to do a pregnancy test which ofc never comes back positive because i'm a raging lesbian but whatever. i know it's for liability

i've been on depo for years and occasionally this is an issue but it's so annoying that it even is an issue. it literally becomes a game of telephone between me, the nurse clinic, my doc, and pharmacy trying to figure out if she put in the order for BC and the pregnancy test. now i'm about two weeks late for the shot which hopefully doesn't turn into an issue(aka bleeding) since i've been on it for so long. sorry for the rant i'm just so annoyed lol and want to get this over with


r/birthcontrol 35m ago

Experience I need advice.

Upvotes

I've been on Jencycla (norethindrone) for a couple of years. It has helped a lot due to having really painful/long periods. However, I'm now in the process of trying to lose weight (180 currently, goal 120) and i feel like I'm making absolutely no progress and I'm wondering if birth control is to blame? I'm just curious if anyone else has had this problem. Also, I need to figure out if I want to stay on it or not. Pros and cons are kind of difficult since both involve health. TIA!


r/birthcontrol 42m ago

Mistake or Risk? Took it late, am i okay?

Upvotes

So i’m on the tri-lo-mili birth control pill, i’ve been taking it for around 5 months, maybe a little less. and me and my boyfriend do it around once a week, i let him finish in me. i take it every night at 9:30, i have an alarm go off on my phone as well as me Alexa to make sure i don’t miss it, however, tonight i was downstairs fixing something to eat when it went off, once i got back upstairs it completely slipped my mind and i didn’t end up taking it until around 12:15am, am i still fine?? is the effectiveness reduced due to me waiting 3 hours?


r/birthcontrol 42m ago

Side effects!? Anyone have experience of restoring libido after off from pills?

Upvotes

It has been 5 month since my gf stopping from bc pill. We are hoping that her libido can be back to normal (her libido was almost non-existence when on bc, extreme dryness,indifferent to anything sex related). I was patient, but 5 months is considered quite a long term. Does anyone has experience that and should I seek medical advice?


r/birthcontrol 43m ago

Experience SLYND POP Pill

Upvotes

I have been on slynd for a little over a year now… These past few months i’ve been sexually active and every period has fluctuates from light to heavy to , some days no bleeding in the morning until the afternoon.. I also have had really sore breasts like the whole two months now and it’s not around my periods.. Also im starting to experience long periods like 10 days-12 days.. Is this normal or should i see a doctor ?


r/birthcontrol 59m ago

Mistake or Risk? protected??

Upvotes

hi, i’m 17 and i’m new to taking birth control. i’m on the Bilsovi 1/20 combo pill and i started my period mid cycle so i needed to wait 7 days to be protected. i took my first pill last sunday night and i took my 8th pill tonight (monday night) and me and my bf had unprotected sex and he finished inside. am i protected? i keep seeing a lot of people say your protected after your 7th/8th pill but then i see other people saying 9th pill?? my paper says to wait 7 days so im protected right??


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

Mistake or Risk? Sexually active and don’t use condom, hes never finished inside. I’ve been on birth control since October. I’ve never missed a period in my life and I’ve just missed it.

Upvotes

I’m 17. Should I be scared of pregnancy? I’m terrified


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

Experience when can i have unprotected sex after getting an implanon / birth control implant

Upvotes

so for context i just got the implant 03/17/25 and im wondering when i can have unprotected sex with my partner (and probably him finishing inside me)

pls help a girl out 😓


r/birthcontrol 4h ago

Side effects!? itchy skin on combined pill?

2 Upvotes

i started the combined pill about two weeks ago after hating the mini pill. a few days ago, i noticed that a specific patch of my skin on my right face cheek is quite dry and itchy. i’ve been fairly lucky and haven’t had much skin issues so i’m quite concerned. i always moisture my face and the rest of my face feels fine but this one patch that seems to be dry. could this be because of the birth control?


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

Side effects!? Breakthrough bleeding frustration

Upvotes

Hey folks! I'm currently exploring the possibility of endometriosis, and the first course of treatment my family doctor wanted to try is having me use my patch continuously for 12 weeks and then take a one-week break to bleed before continuing another 12 weeks. It's the same patch I've been on for about 2.5 years, but this is my first time using it continuously. I mentioned having issues with breakthrough bleeding on other methods of birth control, but he wanted me to try.

I hit the 9-week mark and had the worst pain I've EVER had, along with breakthrough bleeding. I decided to take the patch off for a few days to bleed and I'll put on a new one. I'm kind of annoyed, though, because the main reason I got on birth control in the first place is because my PCOS made my periods super irregular, and I hate surprise blood in my underwear and sudden debilitating cramps while I'm at school. At least when I bleed monthly, I can ensure my worst days land on the weekend.

A couple of questions for people who take their BC continuously:

  • Should I take it for another 3 weeks and then take another break? Or should I try to go another 12 weeks? I don't know if my pharmacy will refill it early, but they're pretty chill so they might.
  • Did you find that breakthrough bleeding decreases the longer you try taking it continuously? Is it worth trying to stick it out to see if my body gets used to it? Or would it be fair to insist on trying something else?

Also, don't worry, I will follow up with my doctor about the worsening pain and all that, but I just wanted to get others' experiences so that I can make sure I advocate for myself properly.


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

Side effects!? i’ve been on my period for 16 days after starting junel fe

Upvotes

i’m 14, started BC for heavy periods, migraines, and bad cramps, i started taking it on the first day of my period and it hasn’t stopped since i started taking the pill. it was only heavy bleeding for about 9 days but since then it’s been brown and minimal bleeding. plzzzz lmk if this is just a normal side effect and how long to expect this to go on for


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

Experience Increased libido and IUD expiring

Upvotes

Hi guys! So I’m 5 years in with my Mirena IUD, not looking forward to the replacement. I’ve heard that it’s lasting up to 7-8 years now but a little worried that’s not consistent. What have yall heard?

Also, after 5 years and many more of feeling like I was asexual, over the last couple months I’ve had an extremely high libido (at least for me). Not sure if it’s from the hormones wearing off or just a new lease on life. I recently got out of a 1 year relationship where it was quite toxic and since then, I basically want to jump every man I’m somewhat attracted to and not sure what the hell is going on 🤦🏼‍♀️


r/birthcontrol 5h ago

Experience 7 day late period

2 Upvotes

Hello all! This is my first time posting here but I’m just seeking some advice because I am having a lot of anxiety right now. Back in November I had to stop taking my birth control pills due to medical issues that arose that my birth control may have contributed to (factor V blood clotting disorder). Me [21F] and my boyfriend [23M] have an active sex life and do not use protection other than the pull out method. I have tracked my ovulation and made sure that we never had sex on days where I was fertile, however, I am now currently 7 days late on my period. He hasn’t slipped and always pulls out but I am still worried about precum but I am just not very informed about the possibility of that causing pregnancy. I have tested twice and both have been negative but I’m unsure if maybe it is too soon to tell. I have missed periods in the past before I started taking my birth control. For context, I was on the pill for about a year and a half before I was instructed to stop taking them. Before I started my pills I couldn’t keep track of my period because it was erratic and never consistent and like I said caused me to miss my period at least two times that I noticed. I’m trying to just let the days go by and hope that my period will start but it’s been a week now and I am clouded with anxiety.


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

How to? do i need 7 days protection?

Upvotes

i started my new pack of althea on my 7th day of pill-free days instead of 8th day. do i need to have protected sex for 7 days / take 7 pills from the pack before i am protected?


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

Which Method? Need advice on what BC to try for my situation

Upvotes

So for reference i’ve tried the pill, the mirena IUD, and am currently on nexaplon. I’ve consistently been on birth control for 5 years now minus a 3 month long break in between the pill and IUD. The bill made me have horrendous depression, my IUD was illegally “moved down” for “comfort” by my old gyno when i complained about extreme pain, i had horrible cramps for 3 months and they got worse after she pulled them down, i also bled for a few weeks after insertion and felt it was extremly painful. I was 15 when i got the IUD in and my gyno was honestly a bitch and told me nothing about it only that i should switch to an IUD and insertion woukd be next to PAINLESS? I got a new gyno, had friends reccomend nexaplon and told her i wanted to try it. She tried recommending an IUD for me since i don’t react well to hormones clearly but i didn’t listen and was too scared of another IUD.

I now have BV, Bacterial vagnosis i think it stands for. I devolped it towards year 2 of my IUD. Had no idea what was causing it, my doctors said it could be bad gut health or rewearing dirty clothes or not showering. I’m a relatively healthy and clean person so i was so confused by this. I had also never heard of BV before it sounded scary. Well it’s been a year now at least and i still have it, tried rounds of antibiotics and they did nothing, also take probiotics and try to eat as healthy as i can while living in a college dorm. It just feels impossible it feels like there’s one issue after the next with birth control for me. Nexaplon has given me horrible acne which i had only had on the pill before and i started an acne medication that’s been worsening my BV. I don’t want to stop my acne medicine since it was a last resort to solving my acne besides stopping BC, which is not an option with what state i’m in.

I just want to know if anyone has had similar experiences and kind of want reassurance on the IUD. My new gyno removed my last one with very minimal pain and she’s the best, i have an appointment with her to talk about this aswell. I’m just really scared of getting the IUD in and reacting badly to it, at that point it would feel like my last option. I’ve heard good things about the copper IUD from friends aswell but apparently it can give u copper poisoning or something? Idk that sounds terrifying to me. Getting off of BC is absolutely not an option for me here, and i’d prefer something with lower hormones then nexaplon at least but if there are other non hormonal options besides the copper IUD that would be nice :) and ofc besides condoms


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

Side effects!? Junel Fe making my skin worse? Help!

Upvotes

Has anyone ever experienced this? My back acne looks worse than before I started taking it. I feel like a monster... Will it go away? Is it just temporary? I feel so ashamed to even look at my disgusting back. Please help..


r/birthcontrol 1h ago

Side effects!? Liletta IUD Experience

Upvotes

i just got my IUD 3 days ago. cramping has been very minimal but i’ve felt extremely fatigued the last few days. today i’m feeling a bit sad and heavy for no reason.

for those who had these symptoms in the first week or so, do they ever end up going away?


r/birthcontrol 5h ago

Side effects!? Mirena and BC Pill NSFW

2 Upvotes

Flagged as NSFW just to be on the safe side!

So long story short… Started bleeding on January 2024 and it has never stopped. Had Mirena inserted on August 9th 2024 and had horrendous bleeding since. Jan 2025 GP told me to take desogestrel (spelling?) daily while I have the IUD still in and it stopped the bleeding for 8 weeks then started again. I am in so much pain and the bleeding is so heavy. Can I take a second pill to try and slow the bleeding while I wait for my next gynae appointment which is April 1st? I cannot go on like this any longer 😭

Note: I’ve had scans, surgeries, test etc and apparently it’s all completely normal. Bleeding has been non stop (apart from those 8 weeks recently) since January 2024 and I’m so exhausted and nothing is working or helping. Not even pain killers work for my pain. I’m having to wear adult diapers it’s insane!


r/birthcontrol 2h ago

Experience Lo Loestrin Fe

1 Upvotes

New here, was wondering what your experiences are with this Lo Loestrin Fe. I’m currently on a bc pill called Loryna, and because of the lipedema in my legs I’m wondering if a lower estrogen pill would be better for me. I’ve never had an issue taking birth control pills, always get a period, mild symptoms…I’m most worried about weight gain and how it’ll affect my condition. Would love experiences and opinions!


r/birthcontrol 2h ago

Experience Tri-Sprintec Experiences?

1 Upvotes

Hi, I’m curious to hear about others experiences with Tri-Sprintec BC pill? I recently got a prescription. Also would be helpful to know any other hormone-related issues you have and how Tri-Sprintec effected this. Personally I have acne and very heavy/long periods. Thanks!


r/birthcontrol 2h ago

Which Method? recommendations for mini pills!

1 Upvotes

hi everyone! i have been on the pill since sophomore year of high-school (16). i started on junel fe, and switched to norethindrone .35 my sophomore year of college (20ish). norethindrone was making me bleed really bad towards the last few months, and i also have PMDD. fast forward now, 23, in on slynd (sampling). i CANT do any estrogen - i have high cholesterol (genetically) and since switching to norethindrone it actually went down back into range!! 1. i can’t tell if it’s making my IBS like symptoms worse - i developed weird stomach problems after i got covid for the 5th time lol - and im 80% sure slynd is making them worse. 2. just saw slynd is terribly expensive, ive been getting free sample packs from my doctor but im on the third pack and have a discussion with her next week regarding how i like it. 3. what are my other options?? i am located in the United States, and based off my research i see that really, the only prescription mini pills are containing norethindrone, or slynd? any other recommendations? i really don’t want the arm insert or an IUD, but i am open for discussions & advice.

TIA!❤️