Yasmin & Yaz Survivors

Joined: 19 Jun 2010 Posts: 2 : Items

Hi everyone,

I was directed here by Meagan on another site after posting my horror story and I just wanted to double check something my doctor told me here. I went to her on Thursday and she told me to switch off of Yasmin to Loestrin FE 24. Okay, that's fine. She even gave me a pack of Loestrin to start on day 1. Problem is, I still have 8 active pills in my pack, and between the way I feel and reading everything on this forum, I don't really want to finish them.

So here's what I want to know: Do I have to finish my pack? My doctor told me to wait it out until the active pills are done to start the Loestrin, and when I asked if there was any way I could start earlier, she flat out told me no. My friend who's a nurse at Planned Parenthood said this sounded kinda arbitrary, but the Loestrin pack also says to take all 21 active pills. I just really don't want to. Haha. I feel disgusting and I want to chuck those pills as far away from my body as I can. Is there any way I can do this? I could just throw the pack out and wait to get my period, or I could start on Sunday after 14 active pills - I don't really care about the repercussions on my sex life, to be honest, I just want to feel normal.

Any and all advice is welcome. Thanks for introducing me to this forum!

Joined: 14 Jun 2010 Posts: 200 : Location: UK Items

Hi,
I now a lot of ladies here are very anti any BC pill (understandable) but if you have decided to go onto another brand then I don't think stopping the yasmin early to swap will cause any more issues than waiting till the end of the pack then starting the new one - you will still have thechange of synthetic hormones to deal with.
I was given Mercilon (See my previous thread) and also had about a weeks worth of active pills left. I actually had a pill free day as I couldn't bear to take any more yasmin, so I just started the Mercilon straight away. (No gap). I checked with my GP and she said it was fine but that y contraceptive protection is compromised (mainly due to the missed pill). Alternatively you could stop the yasmin early then follow the instructions for starting the new brand as if you weren't on the pill previously.
Just follow the 7 day rule contraception wise!!!

I have had some side effects but I already feel much better - check out the great supplement thread too - that really helped me.

Joined: 26 Sep 2009 Posts: 598 : Location: NJ Items

Hi littlelili:

Welcome! I'm glad you found your way here! Very Happy

As Lucia said, most of us here are quite anti-hormonal birth control because of what Yasmin did to us, but the decision is yours. Just know that without giving your body a break and going from one pill right to another might not give you a chance to properly heal from the Yasmin.

You can stop the Yasmin at any time, but you will most likely experience a withdrawal bleed, which is not the same as your period, but similar in heaviness and flow. It's basically a "fake" period. And the symptoms might increase if you do it this way. If you wait until the last day of your active pills, my recommendation would be to allow your body to have a menstrual period, and then start the Loestrin, but again, I would advise not starting another synthetic hormone at all!

Either way, please visit the "Nutrition Recommendations" thread, written by a very knowledgeable user, misspkm, and start on a good vitamin/supplement regimen since all birth control pills deplete our bodies of vital nutrients, such as B-vitamins, magnesium, and vitamin c, just to name a few.

And if you are interested in natural birth control (which works just as well as pills, as all of the women here can attest to), check out the "Natural Formes of Birth Control" thread.

I hope this helps, and please keep posting to let us know how you're feeling! Remember that we're all here to help. I wish you the best of luck and send hugs.

Love, luck, and hugs:
Meagan

Posted: Thu Jun 24, 2010 4:29 pm

Dear littlelili,

Humm... I don't want to sound crazy but - DON'T START TAKING ANOTHER PILL PLEASE!!!

Starting another pill right after stopping another will maybe give you both withdraw effects from yasmin, and side effects from your body getting used to the new hormones... you are doing yourself a huge disadvantage here without realizing it. It is not just yasmin that are bad - all synthetic hormones and medicines are bad and even toxic for you in the long run.

I know that I come on pretty strong here, but it is only because I am concerned; nothing else.

I have a pretty good idea of how you are thinking, because I used to think like that too - I thought that the pill was pretty much the only way to go to be safe and prevent pregnancy... that is what we have been taught all our lives and that is what most friends around us take. But trust me and all other women here - there is SO many other options out there that works! You just have to pick something that works for the both of you. Try it.. and if you are still thinking to start your other pills, give yourself a few months to recover from yasmin - 3 or something like that. And if you in the meantime find something that works for you - you don't have to go back on any pill and you will be pretty free!! Yeah, free is how I feel today!! No 'oh shit I forgot my pill yesterday' or whatever it may be. Just not having to run to pick them up every month or so is great!

Think about it, and whatever you decide I will try to help you with whatever I can.

Hugs,
Helena

Posted: Sat Jun 23, 2012 12:43 pm

littlelili wrote:

Hi everyone,

I was directed here by Meagan on another site after posting my horror story and I just wanted to double check something my doctor told me here. I went to her on Thursday and she told me to switch off of Yasmin to Loestrin FE 24. Okay, that's fine. She even gave me a pack of Loestrin to start on day 1. Problem is, I still have 8 active pills in my pack, and between the way I feel and reading everything on this forum, I don't really want to finish them.

So here's what I want to know: Do I have to finish my pack? My doctor told me to wait it out until the active pills are done to start the Loestrin, and when I asked if there was any way I could start earlier, she flat out told me no. My friend who's a nurse at Planned Parenthood said this sounded kinda arbitrary, but the Loestrin pack also says to take all 21 active pills. I just really don't want to. Haha. I feel disgusting and I want to chuck those pills as far away from my body as I can. Is there any way I can do this? I could just throw the pack out and wait to get my period, or I could start on Sunday after 14 active pills - I don't really care about the repercussions on my sex life, to be honest, I just want to feel normal.

Any and all advice is welcome. Thanks for introducing me to this forum!

I'll also beg you to not start another pill. You're trading one poison (Yasmin) for another (Loestrin 24). Why? For convenience? So your bf/significant other has easy sexual access and doesn't have to use a condom? (Btw, what is wrong with condoms? They are more effective than BC pills - BC pills are 92% effective; condoms are ~96-99%).

Please think about what you're doing to your body - you are risking your future fertility and ability to have children by remaining on birth control long-term.

Even Loestrin 24 will be pumping your body full of artificial hormones. After a couple months, your body will forget how to make its own, natural hormones.

The BC pill also screws up your body's ability to absorb nutrients and vitamins. It increases your future risk of breast cancer, cervical cancer, liver failure, and other health problems.

It does not protect you against any kind of STDs: even if you think your boyfriend/partner is 100% faithful, well, you might be wrong, and you could end up with HPV, or worse.

You can find more reliable methods of birth control - these don't cause much inconvenience.

Fertility Awareness Method requires a very committed partner and it is cool to actually be that in tune with your body to know when you are ovulating and when you are fertile each month. It's better for very committed, long-term relationships, however, where you have both been tested for STDs. And you need to be very vigilant about tracking your temperature and pinpointing ovulation. So I'd suggest waiting till you're with a fiance or husband.

There are condoms, which are very effective when used properly. ~96-99% against pregnancy and STDs. There's the diaphragm, old school, but still about 92% effective (same rate of effectiveness against pregnancy as BC pills!).

You could try a non-hormone releasing IUD (copper ones are relatively safe - don't use Mirena, it releases hormones).

It is ultimately your decision; but please, think about your future and not just convenience when making your choice?

If I could go back, I would slap myself for choosing to take BC pills at age 18. If I could, I'd have used condoms instead, no matter what my stupid selfish boyfriend preferred (a couple were very adamant that they wouldn't use condoms, and pressured me to be on a BC pill - they were assholes, I shouldn't have dated them!).

And I might already be expecting my and DH's first child right now if I'd made that smart decision 10 years ago. Instead, I have infertility problems, a PCOS diagnosis, and am very depressed and bummed out that it will be very tough for me to get pregnant. I'm only 28! Sad

Instead, I need to get poked and prodded by OBGYNs and Fertility Specialists. I possibly will need to inject myself with fertility hormones to make myself super-ovulate, just to have a small chance of getting pregnant.

It's incredibly depressing, and I feel very defective for not being able to get pregnant with my husband and start a family, when DH and I are ready to do so.

Nobody warned me about this risk when I started BC pills at age 18, or at 21, or at 23. I really wish they had. If I'd known BC would affect my ability to start a family at age 28, I never would have taken any of those BC pills.

I wonder if I'll ever be able to have a family, now, and that makes me cry just thinking about it. Crying or Very sad

Sorry, got off-topic there! Again, it's your choice, but consider your options carefully, please?