Bloody Discharge on Pill

[Digdawg]

Hey Scarleteen,

I’ve been on the combination hormonal pill for two years now, so everything should be balanced out. I take it consistently and have only missed a pill on the rare occasion I did not get them on time, the last time this happened was a year ago. I tend to take my pills as soon as I wake up.

I woke up late this morning since I didn’t have anything going on. So needless to say, I took my pill maybe 3 or 4 hours late. Not great but it is what it is I suppose. I had slight cramping this morning before I took it, and went to the restroom after I did and found I had some bloody discharge. I’m thinking that it was just because I took my pill late, but I did have vaginal sex with my boyfriend last week, although we used three methods of protection including my pill. I understand implantation bleeding can happen but I think it would be too early for that to be the case.

What are y’all’s thoughts?
Thanks.

[Valerie J]

Hi there!

Thanks for writing.

Taking the pill a few hours late one time is not the end of the world because of how birth control is made. Situations like these are factored into "typical use" which would still mean that in a year, the pill is 91% effective at preventing pregnancy. The typical use effectiveness rate takes into account that people make mistakes and likely will not take their pill perfectly, either being late or missing one here and there. If you like more info you can check that out here Birth Control Bingo!
Important quote from this piece: "With combined pills, you have a 12-hour grace period before a pill is late, and a 24-hour period before you are considered to have missed a pill. So, if you normally take your pill at 3:00 PM, and one day took it at 6:30, no need for worries."


This could very easily be a withdrawl bleed (or a "light period" even though when you are on the pill you are not having an actual period) which probably had no direct correlation to you taking the pill a few hours later and nothing to be worried about. The pill doesn't stop working the moment you do not take it. And given that you had extremely protected sex and it was a week ago, I don't think you are at any more risk.

This article also has information on discharge while on a combination pill. M.I.A or, Dude, Where's My Period?

I also wanted to check in on how you and your boyfriend are doing since you last posted. I remember you had mentioned you might try solowing down. How has that been going?

Let me know if this helps!

Best,
Val

[Digdawg]

Hi Val,

First off, my boyfriend and I are doing okay. I did end up getting my period so we figured we were safe to go back to having sex.

I think it probably was just slight withdrawal bleeding. Now that I think about it, I have had cramps before taking a pill a couple hours later than what is typical for me, just without bleeding. I’ve also been under a lot of stress the past week for unrelated reasons, and given how weird the body can be under stress, it wouldn’t really surprise me if that was a factor in it.

I have ten days or so till my next period, so we’ll just have to wait and see. While I know that technically it’s not a true period, I don’t think I would if I was pregnant even on the pill.

[Valerie J]

I'm really glad to hear you and your boyfriend are doing okay. Are you feeling okay with have safe sex again?

It sounds like things are pretty safe to me. Stress can do wild things to our body and having a withdrawal bleed is one of the many things your body can do in response to stress. It most likely has nothing to do with you taking your pill a few hours late at all. Glad to hear that you are recognizing your body's response to stress! That's hard for some people to do. Its a good think to have self awareness around how your body responds to your mental health.

- Val

[Digdawg]

I’m probably okay continuing to have safe sex. And as I’ve learned how to live with an anxiety disorder, I’ve also come to learn that a lot of random pains or feelings or whatever are caused by my stress. A few years ago I suddenly started getting aches in a muscle near my sternum, and they were constant. I genuinely started to think I was having breast or heart issues until I learned that stress can cause aching like that, and then it just stopped. Bodies are strange.

[Valerie J]

That's good to hear. Bodies are strange! Most of the time they are just doing what they can to protect us but its hard to navigate that.

I hope things continue well with your boyfriend. I hope you are enjoying your time with him because that is the most important component! That this makes you happy.

Best,
Valerie

[Digdawg]

Slight update that made me feel better:

I decided to look up what implantation bleeding looks like out of curiosity just so I can be sure to rule it out, and the big thing I saw was that it tends to be a brownish pink. The little surprise I got this morning was definitely a light red. Apparently implantation bleeding also lasts longer than the spotting I had this morning, and I’ve completely stopped spotting.