Doubt about contraceptive pills and doctors

[coolrainbow111]

Hi Scarleteen!!
This time around here I wanted to ask for advice about birth control and a weird situation that happened recently, related to it. I'm a pretty anxious person due to my OCD and I decided that even if I do non-risk practices, I can never be enjoying the moment.
So after some time of thinking about it, I want to start on birth control pills, since I also have severe problems about bleeding a lot during my period, and ultrasounds didn't show anything wrong, so maybe the pill can help.
The thing is that I went to a gynecologist that was recommended to me through my insurance, and she prescribed me the Zoely pill, which contains 2.5 mg nomegestrol acetate and 1.5 mg estradiol.
When I asked her what to expect about this pill, she told me that for the first few months I could spot, have no bleeding or bleed more and that there is not a lot you can do about that since when you start taking the pill “is not you anymore, is all the pill”. And well, that sounded kind of weird to me. I figured that she wanted to express that I wouldn't have my normal period anymore, but saying that “nothing can be done” is scary, I guess to everyone, but especially to me.
Then, she told me that I didn't need checkups for how I was doing with the pill, that I could just talk with my GP if I needed it, and that was everything. I felt kind of disappointed because now I have more doubts about taking the pills than before. This is because some time ago, when I was in a severe crisis I went to a gynecologist that my insurance didn't covered to ask about this too, and she told me that you needed to get checked every 3 months when you first start the pill and that if any weird thing happened, then you would need to take a test (maybe not in my case since I'm not having sex that involves any risk, but it's important to know), change the pill or see what the issue is. That kind of gave me reassurance to think about starting it. I obviously would like to go to this other doctor again but it's very expensive and I don't have the money for that now, so I'm just wondering about what is the right perspective here and what should I do, I thought about maybe going to a new gynecologist or wait a bit, because this made me panic a bit and made me thought that I will lose control over my body.
Thank you!!

[Latha]

Hi Coolrainbow111,

I'm sorry you didn't feel reassured by your visit with the gynecologist! The first few months of taking a new medication like birth control can be a period of adjustment where you might experience some negative side effects. But there are definitely things you can do if that happens. If you speak to a doctor, they may recommend that you address the side effects as they appear and wait for some time, since such symptoms often get better on their own after a few months. Or, as the gynecologist you visited before said, you can change the kind of birth control that you use.

GPs are often qualified to address some of the concerns that come up with birth control, but if you would prefer to visit a gynecologist instead, you would be well within your rights to do so. Do you think you could ask this doctor if you could visit her for regular checkups instead? She may be able to accommodate your request.

[coolrainbow111]

Hi Latha, thank you so much for your answer.
I guess I could ask for that, but since I felt a bit intimidated my mind just went blank in the moment. I will try doing that, but it leaves me a little bit more at ease knowing that there is indeed something to do about it.

[Latha]

Hi Coolrainbow111,

That is a very common experience- it can be really intimidating to speak to doctors, to ask questions or request a different kind of care. Understandably, your mind blanked. Practice and experience will make it easier for you to advocate for yourself. Try to remember that while doctors may have a lot of knowledge, you know yourself and your needs best, so you can and should work with your doctor to determine the right kind of care for you. If regular checkups are what you need to feel confident about taking birth control, you can ask for that.

Also, it is perfectly normal to have questions after you've had some time to think. Do you think you could call the gynecologist's office to ask these questions or set up a follow-up appointment to ask them in person? If you want, you could write down the doubts you have, so they are easier to remember when you speak to the doctor.

Here is an article of ours that may help you: Dealing With Doctors: Taking Control of Your Health Care Destiny

[coolrainbow111]

Thank you for the info!
I will do that and I will also try and ask to see what they tell me, if they don't want to make that checkup I always can go to other gyno.