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You call your doctor and you say, "Doc, I'm going on vacation with my boyfriend. How do
I prevent my period from coming? I'm in that phase of my cycle where if I take my placebo
pills, I'm going to get my period." Well, this is one of my favorite questions to answer
because it gives the patient the power of deciding when or when not to have her period.
And when you're on birth control pills, you have that option.
When you're taking a conventional birth control pill, one that has 21 days of hormones and
1 week without hormones, what you can do is take the pills continuously. What that means
is that you take 21 active pills, and instead of taking the week of placebo pills, throw
the pill pack away and start a new pack of pills. When you do that, you can skip your
periods and not cause any harm to your body. It does not affect the contraceptive effectiveness
of the pills, and it does absolutely no harm to your body.
If you are considering skipping your periods with the birth control pills and you are uncertain
of how to do it, call your doctor or your nurse practitioner. We are happy to provide
that information for you to make your life easier, and there is nothing wrong with making
your life easier when you're on birth control pills.