Pill storage question

[annabanana]

Hello!

I have a question about storing pills. The packet of my tri-phasic pills says to store between 68 and 77 degrees, but that seems like a really narrow window. The reason I'm asking is that a couple weeks ago (may 8) I went over to a friend's house and may have left my pills in the car, parked in the shade, for 1-2 hours (I can't remember if I took them inside with me or not) on an 83 degree day. This is the only time this has happened, and I always store my pills indoors within the specified temperature range.

I'm not really concerned about a pregnancy risk because I take my pills every day on time (never missed one) and the one time I have had sex since then we used a condom (correctly and with no apparent failure) but I'm wondering if something like that could make pills less effective.

Obviously, I don't plan on making a habit of leaving my pills in a hot car, but I'm thinking that taking my pills every single day and always having them available to do that might mean that, on a rare occasion, they might spend an hour or two outside that very narrow range. I can see how prolonged exposure to extreme heat or cold might render BCP, or any other medication, ineffective, but surely the failure rate of BCP would be a lot higher if an hour or two of hot or cold could render an entire pack of sealed pills ineffective, right?

I realize that I should probably ask my pharmacist about this when I go pick up my refill, but instinct tells me that as long as I am ~storing~ my pills at the correct temperature I should be fine. Long story short, do I need to be paranoid about temperature? Thanks!

[Heather]

Nope, you don't, and your instincts and logic are spot on. So long as when you are out and about with your pills for short periods of time, they're not in direct sunlight or a freezer, you're good.

It's also wise to use a backup method, period, like you have, for anyone who wants the highest protection from pregnancy: dual contraception (using two methods, not just one), has been studied and very clearly found to be the very best way to prevent pregnancy.

[annabanana]

My boyfriend and I always use dual contraception, but I just wanted to make sure we were getting the full effectiveness of both methods! Thanks so much for your help, Heather!