Pill question

[Leia1997]

Hi again! So I've just started my new pack of pills (tri-sprintec) this last Sunday (so about 5-6 days ago) so far I've taken my pills on time. I've been on this pill for about 4 months and I've taken it perfectly every time except....

Before I started this new pack last Sunday, I completely missed my second to last active pill before my break week because I actually lost it. I wasn't too worried because I haven't had sex at all in that cycle so I just took my last pill the next day when I was supposed to, and got my period and then stared back up this previous Sunday. I realize now that I should have took that last pill in place of my skipped second to last pill and just started a day earlier.

The packet says that if I missed 2 pills in the last week, I should start a new pack right then and skip the break week. But it doesn't say anything about missing only one...
I might be planning on having sex in this new cycle without a condom, so should I wait a couple more days until I've taken 7 consecutive pills? Or did my skipped pill in the last cycle not affect my protection very much in this cycle ?

Thank you!!

[Jacob]

Hi Leia,

Maybe someone else can offer a bit more insight about the specifics but I would say that if you've not taken your medication properly it could be safer just to use condoms for the whole month (or whatever the literature on your medication says)... as you would if you had only just started using birth control. At least that way you can be certain.

I hope this helps!

[Heather]

If you have not missed any in this pack, then you may well be fine in this cycle. But by all means, backing up with condoms is always a good idea, for a few reasons, and if you want to play it safe, backing up for the first week of this pack should absolutely have you covered.

[Leia1997]

Thanks everyone! So my protection from my new pack of pills I'm on now could be compromised just because I missed the second to last active pill in my last pack?
I didn't think I could ovulate on that day that I missed my pill because 2 days later I got my period like normal...but I guess anything can happen. I'll make sure I don't lose another pill! Haha

[Heather]

So sorry, I misread you. I was editing my answer (above) to you just as you were posting your reply!

[Leia1997]

No problem! So I will take my pills perfectly and wait until after a week to have sex on this cycle just to be extra safe. My partner and I really want to experiment without a condom this time but I'm not sure now that I missed that pill last cycle. I was thinking of backing up with withdrawal and spermicidal lubricant this time but I hear it's really not THAT effective and it can cause a lot of irritation...
Anyways, I'm definitely going to be more careful now on with my pill taking. I'm still mad at myself for skipping it because normally I'm a perfect pill-taker! Haha

[Heather]

Personally, if you're still waiting on STI testing -- yours, his, either or both -- I'd suggest sticking with condoms, until you DO both have tests and they're clear, for that reason alone.

[Heather]

(Aaaaand, I think I just misread your old posts, too. What is my problem today? You were waiting on pregnancy testing. So, assuming you both already ARE currently tested for STIs, and are both all clear on that front, feel free to ignore my last reply.)

[Leia1997]

Haha thanks so much! And yes we're all good on our STI testing so if we did go without a condom I wouldn't be too worried about that.

[Heather]

If I make another mistake with one of your posts you have my permission to lash me with a wet noodle. Thanks for being understanding!

[Leia1997]

So one last thing- I'm eight days into my new pack and if I did decide to have sex any time after without a condom, I should be fully protected again, right? I'd definitely use withdrawal along with the pill

[Redskies]

Eight days in to your new pack, with those 8 all taken correctly, your pill should be at full effectiveness, yep.

[Leia1997]

Update! After I took my tenth pill in this new pack I decided to have sex without a condom (this was yesterday) and I had my partner pull out way in advance. I'm not too worried because on this new pack I haven't missed any pills and I've only taken one about an hour and a half to two ours tops from my original time. I trust my pill completely and I know I really shouldn't worry this time.

However, I've been having awful nausea the day before having sex and the day of having sex (which again, was yesterday). I usually always have a bit of nausea but it was so intense those 2 days that I can't help but wonder if it was because my missed pill last cycle? The only other reason I could think of is because I just haven't been eating/drinking enough. I don't think I have the flu, either.

Another thing that concerns me is that I always shave cramps from the beginning of my packs and they gradually get worse before my withdrawal bleed comes. Maybe it's because the pill isn't agreeing to my body? What do you think it could be?
Thanks again!

[Heather]

Do you feel any stress or anxiety around sexual activity? Because I'd say what is most likely is that nausea is about feelings more than your pill than about your pill, which isn't doing anything differently when you do or don't have intercourse. It does the same stuff regardless.

That said, one other possibility is that you're someone sensitive to the chemical things that happen with sexual activity, in your body, and your pill may be making you a little more so.

Full-time cramping is definitely something someone -- on or off the pill -- should discuss with a healthcare provider. because, no, that should not be happening, and you want to find out why it is.

[Leia1997]

I feel like I've definitley gotten better with my anxiety even though it may not sound like it. It's just so weird to trust a tiny tablet but I'm getting better...slowly. The thing is, I 100% want to be able to have sex without those little worries because I know I'm in a wonderful relationship and I am responsible with my birth control and I only ever messed up that one time. I truly want to have that kind of sex, I just want to be able to completely trust that pill.

And I agree, I probably stressed myself to the point of being nauseous the other day. It's gotten better because I definitley calmed down a bit!

And the cramps, yes I definitley will talk to my doctor about it. I just thought it was a normal side effect. The cramps are only slight and random and they just pick up right before my period and I always thought it was a sign of my withdrawal bleed coming.

Thanks so much for your time though, I really don't think I could talk to anyone else about all this

[Heather]

Happy to be of help.

A lot of people, btw, have trouble wrapping their brain around "invisible" methods like this pill. It might help, perhaps, to think of ALL the "tiny pills" people trust and we know work -- and the pill has been proven to work not only as fully as other medications, but studied more than most -- that people rely on because they can rely on them. Heart medication, diabtetes and cancer medications, anti-seizure mediations, the works. This pill isn't different: it's a medication, and one that is as effective as it states.