The pill

[Allybannsiders]

Will taking things like hot soup or hot cups of tea, 30 minutes after taking birth control pill affect it?

[Sam W]

Hi Allybannsiders,

Nope, something like that will not decrease the effectiveness.

It seems like you've had a lot of concerns about your pill lately. Are you feeling totally comfortable with it as your birth control method? Or would you like information on some alternative options?

[Allybannsiders]

I feel like I just worry too much about it even though I take it everyday and use condoms too


Quick question sorry,

will taking the pill without water and then burping affect it? Is it likely that the pill won't have reached my stomach?


I have irrational fear that even though I know I've taken it and haven't thrown up that something silly like not taking it with water or burping will bring it back up without me noticing

[Allybannsiders]

Hi Allybannsiders,

Nope, something like that will not decrease the effectiveness.

It seems like you've had a lot of concerns about your pill lately. Are you feeling totally comfortable with it as your birth control method? Or would you like information on some alternative options?

I feel like I just worry too much about it even though I take it everyday and use condoms too


Quick question sorry,

will taking the pill without water and then burping affect it? Is it likely that the pill won't have reached my stomach?


I have irrational fear that even though I know I've taken it and haven't thrown up that something silly like not taking it with water or burping will bring it back up without me noticing

[Karyn]

Do you have any idea where that worry might be coming from? For some folks, for instance, the pill has too much room for user error for them to be comfortable with it as a method, and they feel better with a method doesn't need to be taken every day (the patch or ring, or even the implant or IUD). Do you think a method other than the pill might be a better fit for you?

I also want to ask if you have this level of irrational fear or anxiety about lots of things, or if it's just the pill?

(We've given you information about what does and does not affect the pill: if you did not throw up, then you can trust that your pill made it into your system as it was supposed to.)

[Allybannsiders]

Yeah I do have the fear of things going wrong a lot

Although I'm anxious about the pill, I still prefer to know that I can see that I take the pill everyday at 11:30 rather than an IUD that I wouldn't see

[Allybannsiders]

Quick question sorry,

will taking the pill without water and then burping affect it? Is it likely that the pill won't have reached my stomach?

[Karyn]

No, everyday things like burping, taking the pill without water, drinking hot tea just afterwards do not affect the pill.

Have you ever considered seeing a therapist or counsellor to talk about your level of worry and how to cope with it? If it's something you experience a lot, and it's more irrational fear like you're expressing here, a trained mental healthcare provider could be really useful.

Too, is the kind of sexual activity you're engaging in currently something you feel comfortable with? (Sometimes worries about birth control are due to a person not really being okay with the kinds of sex that they're having.)

[Allybannsiders]

Does something like acid reflux affect the effectiveness of the pill?

I'm due to finish my pill packet in two days time and I'm just considering abstaining from sex for a while after this month, just to have a month of knowing I'm taking my pill properly everyday but not having to worry about anything else

[Karyn]

No it does not. I think in one of your other threads we linked you to this piece? Something You Can Worry About Less: Interference and Hormonal Birth Control If you haven't read it before, that lists everything that may interfere with the pill, and you can always ask a doctor or pharmacist too. If something like acid reflux is NOT listed there, you can assume it does not interfere.

It sounds like taking a break from sex would be really helpful for you, given your worries. We also have a piece about self-care strategies that might be useful for you: Self-Care a La Carte

[Allybannsiders]

I accidentally ripped a tiny bit of my pill packet for the pill the next day, will this have any effect on the pill vein exposed to a little bit of air, it's not a big enough tear that the pill could fall out or anything?

[Redskies]

That pill will be fine: a bit of air exposure for just one day will have no effect.

Can I bring us back to Karyn's question a few posts ago about whether you've ever seen a counsellor or therapist about your worries, and whether it's something you might consider? You said yourself that you think your pill worries are irrational, and also that you fear things going wrong a lot. Those sound like very hard ways to feel, and also like you're feeling them fairly often. That's the kind of thing where some knowledgeable and trained mental health support can be really useful. We don't have that training ourself, but we definitely don't want you to go on feeling so crummy!

It's also important that we don't do anything that might accidentally end up with you feeling worse. With you asking us about lots of pill concerns, I'm concerned that we might be getting into a cycle of reassurance (more information and explanation at that link), and end up hurting you rather than helping you.

You might also find our piece Anxiety Lies helpful.

What do you think about what I've said, and about the possibility of seeing a counsellor?