Birthcontrol

Happy Almost 2009 birthcontrol!

I'm pleased to let you know that a new extended cycle pill has been approved by the FDA.

"loSeasonique", manufactured through Barr Pharmaceuticals will be available in the U.S. in first quarter 2009.

The formulation and regimen of loSeasonique will look like this:

Biphasic	Ethinyl Estradiol 20 mcg Levonorgestrel .1 mg 1 mcg Ethinyl Estradiol
Regimen:	84 active pills + 7 theraputic estrogen pills

The formulation in the first 84 pills is equivalent to Alesse and its generics, with the last 7 pills having a "theraputic" dose of estrogen equivalent to what's in Seasonique, or Mircette. Since Seasonale, Seasonique, and now loSeasonique have the progestin "Levonorgestrel" in them, they can all be used as Emergency Contraception in a pinch.

About.com has a good article on why "continuous use" methods are safe and effective. :)

Barr's press release on loSeasonique is here.

We'll update you when we hear about an actual on-the-shelf date. In the meantime, if you're interested in the pros and cons of this type of pill, we're happy to try to talk about them, or you can call your doctor.

Have a happy and safe New Year!

DinDin

for
karolijn,ladykathryn, mslaynie and thette

I'm not sure if anyone's ever asking this before, I looked around and didn't see anything relevant to it, so here goes:
I've been on the generic of Seasonale, Jolessa for about two years now, i've been on three month birth control for about 3 or 4 years. I'm still on Jolessa and I wanted to know if anyone ever decided to have a period in the middle of the pack, not taking the last week of pills as if they were placebos, and using them like regular monthly birth control?
I'm asking because I like the idea of having a period every month if I want, or just taking them as directed, without having to see the dr every time and having to go from pill to pill...

hey everyone. i was on OTC for about two years, and with that i would skip the placebo week every few months to skip a period, which is why i got on seasonale. i've been on it for about a year, and i was just wondering if you can skip the placebo week at the end of the three-month pack and go straight to the next active pack like you can do with OTC. i know they are different kinds of birth control, and that's why i'm not sure.

For the past 3 weeks now I have been spotting throughout the day. Today I finished my 2nd month of quasense and I'm wondering if i should be worried about spotting for this long. And when i spot its normally around the same times from 2pm-9pm. I try to take my pill around midnight every night but have a hard time remembering to do it on time and normally get around an hour before or after midnight.
Could taking it at different hours that are so close together be making me spot for this long? Or what could be my problem?

I have a question, I hope you can follow this...

I had sex without a condom last Friday. I am on the pill, but I did leave them in a 90+ degree car while I was at the beach 2 days in a row. (I had taken the 1 pill I needed for each day out so that I'd have them to take at 6:00, but had nowhere cool to keep it.) I'm not sure how big of a deal this is.

I've been taking my pill since them, but I was thinking today that I might want to try and make myself have a period. I am on Jolessa, and I'm on the last week of the 2nd section (month). I already took my pill for today, but I thought maybe I would stop taking them tomorrow so that I have a period just to ease my mind. Is this likely to work? Then I can start taking my pills again next Sunday, right? (So that I remain a Sunday start). I'm usually not one to freak out about this stuff, but this time I feel the need to ease my mind.

Thanks in advance for your advice.

Does anyone know why they changed the name Seasonale to Seasonique?

Ok so my alarm on my phone just went off to take my birth control, and I realized I lost my pack. I took my last pill Monday night, and I forgot Tuesday night, and apparently lost them along the way. I take Jolessa/Seasonale and my placebo pills were set for next week. Would I be protected the rest of the week if I just didn't take any the rest of the week like it was my placebo pills and started back up on Sunday?

The only reason I'm really worried is my boyfriend is going to be in town this weekend and we haven't seen eachother in about two months. =/

Thank you...

Hey everyone! I'm new here, and I'm hoping you all can answer a question for me.

I've been on Seasonique for about a year. I've heard lots of horror stories about it, but it seems to work okay for me except for some strange bleeding I get.

When I started it, the first 2 packs went great - no spotting or anything. But in October, when I was on my 3rd pack, I was spotting the whole 3rd month of pills until I finished the pack and had my period. The next pack was perfectly fine with no problems, but here I am again, just starting the 3rd month of my current pack, and I'm spotting again. Or maybe I should call it btb. It's only been a couple days so far, but it seems to be heavier bleeding with some cramps - definitely more than just spotting. I'm just hoping (1) it'll slow down and (2) it doesn't last the next 4 weeks.

Has anyone else experienced this? Is it normal for it to breakthrough sometimes and not other times? And I've been taking it for a year - should I still be having breakthroughs?

 I'm currently on the Ortho Evra birth control patch, and I have been for about three months. I don't like having the patch on me, and I feel like as warmer weather comes I'll be wearing less clothes and it will be harder to hide. So I'd like to switch to a pill next month, and I was thinking about Seasonique, but I'm doing some research on forums online and it's all horrible things about it---but I think all the info. about all the birth controls seem to be horrible comments on the internet. (I guess you don't go online to say how great it is??) Is there really that much spotting? Because I really don't want that. Is it a good choice to switch?

Also, if anyone has any questions about the patch, feel free to ask me!

I am currently taking Seasonique, and this is the first time that I've been on birth control. During the second month I started to btb. So far, it's been at least 20 days that I've had this heaving spotting/light period.

It's gotten lighter now, to the point that I don't bleed when I'm sleeping/laying down...it is more like towards the end of your period when the flow is more brown/discharge-y, if that makes any sense.

So I was wondering, could this be a sign that my btb is slowing down (and hopefully ending), and if anyone had similar experiences when they stopped btb on Seasonique?

I am seriously this close to calling my doctor and switching pills, but I dont know if since this is my first bc pill, even if I did switch to something else, I'd experience the same btb since my body isn't used to the hormones. Anyone go through the same thing?

Also, I am about to start my 3rd month, but I'm not sure if I should wait out the 3rd month or just switch now. I've read really bad things about btb on Seasonique, so I'm seriously contemplating if waiting out another month of this torture will yield positive results or if it'll just be a waste of time. PLEASE HELP!

So here is the rundown:

I'm on Jolessa, and this is my second pack. My boyfriend and I are in a serious long distance relationship. We've had unprotected sex a few times, but I wasn't too worried because I'm on BC. About a month ago (my second month of the 3 month pills) we had unprotected sex that morning and I forgot to take my pill that night. That was the first time in 5 months I had ever forgotten, but I was reassured that I was protected when we had sex. After missing the pill, I spotted for almost a month. It stopped for a week, and then I came home for Christmas. We've been together a lot, a few times with no condom. Now I'm spotting again, and I'm wondering if I should be worried about being pregnant?

I just went to the gynecologist today and got on Seasonique. Has anyone tried that before? I haven't gotten my period this month so I have to wait to begin using it. This pill makes you have a period only every three months, which is great. I just hope this pill works out for me.

I also know that the pill can sometimes make you gain weight. I asked my doctor about this and she said it's very unlikely that this will. People mostly gain weight because it increases their appetite. And I also know that being on birth control can make your boobs larger. Can it make your boobs larger without making you gain weight?

Edit: I just thought of this.. since I can't start taking until the Sunday after my period I don't know what I should do about my painful cramps. One of the reasons I decided to go on birth control was to stop my painful cramps. The first day of my period they sometimes get so bad that I want to cry. Sometimes it even makes me nauseous and I feel like I'm going to pass out. Nothing seems to work for me either. I've been taking Midol but that doesn't work. Is there anything over the counter that is really effective on cramps?

Well, this question would encompass two topics- breakthrough bleeding and switching pills. I have been taking birth control pills for 4 years. I went from Nortrel (which is generic Ovcon 35) to Jolessa because I was interested in only having 4 periods a year.  I had no irregularities until the 2nd month.   I didn't take the pill before I went to bed like I usually do, and I wasn't able to take it until the next evening..I ended up taking two pills that day.  The next day I started spotting.  Well, the spotting didn't stop.  I read about other women who had taken Jolessa and were complaining about 6 or 8 week periods, so I decided to switch back to Nortrel since the Jolessa was apparently too strong for my system.  I finished up most of that pack (except for 2 pills) and started on Nortrel last Friday, but I am still bleeding every day.  I know my cycle is way out of balance, but what should I do?  I really don't want to stop taking the pills since I need protection.  I just want the bleeding to end.

Hello Beautifuls!

I posted this entry about a week and a half ago regarding how I have been experiencing PMS symptoms over 2 weeks before I expect to get my period when ending my first 3 month pack of Seasonique. I was trying so hard to wait it out and just finish the pack...I did so well over the entire 3 month pack up until the last 2 weeks!... but the PMS is getting excruciating.. I mean I am not having ANY breakthrough bleeding, but I can feel that my body is dying to have a period already... I am getting impatient and I don't think I can wait another week to bleed! (I am feeling rather miserable to say the least.. and my PMS/PMDD symptoms usually go away once I start to bleed.) So here is my question.. I had 3 active pills left in the pack.. then I was probably going to start bleeding a few days into my placebos (about a week from now).. so is it okay if I just disregard the last 3 active pills in the pack and start placebos TODAY so I can get my period sooner?

Will ending this pack early screw up anything? Here's the confusing part: I figured I want to start my new pack on a Sunday since the pack has the days on it and I don't want to get confused.. so can I start the placebo pills today (Wed, Thurs, Fri, Sat, Sun, Mon, Tue, Wed) and then finish those last 3 active pills out of order (Thurs, Fri, Sat) before starting my new pack on Sunday 11/25. So I would essentially be ADDING 3 extra active pills to my next cycle (The cycle on Seasonique is 84 days.. this would make it 87.)

I hope this made some kind of sense!
Thank you all SO much for any advice, input, knowledge, reassurance.. I really appreciate your help!

<3

Hello beautifuls!
I wanted to update all of you on my experience so far with Seasonique.. plus I have a question for you.

I am currently on Seasonique (I switched from Loestrin24fe) I am up to Week 11 and I have had almost no problems so far skipping periods and switching to the higher amount of estrogen and different progestin. I am very happy to say that I have had absolutely NO breakthrough bleeding or spotting at all. I was so scared because of all the negative reviews I read on other sites and because of all the warnings on the Seasonique pamphlet of the high occurance of breakthrough bleeding and spotting. So I just wanted to let you all know that it is indeed possible to have none (yay for being lucky for once!). I'm crossing my fingers that this continues until my scheduled "period" which is not until Week 13.

Okay, so here is my problem.. According to my pill pack, there are 12 active pills left until I start my placebos.. I expect to get my period sometime in the middle of the placebo week based on how my body has reacted the various other HBC pills I have been on over the years.. Okay, so if I am not supposed to bleed for at least 14 days from now, then why did I start having cramps and that PMS-esque feeling TODAY? I always take my pills on time religiously.. I am a perfect user. Is my body just confused with the skipping period thing NOW? I feel like maybe my body is like "Okay.. you've skipped 2 periods.. we kinda wanna have a period already!"

My mom said I should call my gynocologist and ask her.. But I know she'll just tell me to continue taking my pills til the end of the pack. I just want to know if this is normal for other women who skip periods with Seasonique, Seasonale, or any monophasic. Have any of you experienced the same thing? I mean.. if I am giving my body the same steady amount of hormones every day for 11 weeks with no fluctuations, why is my body confused NOW?

Sorry this is so long and that I ramble :) I really appreciate any input you all have. Thank you!

<3

*crossposted to seasonale

i checked the faq and all the posts were of people that had recently started bc.

so basically i have been taking seasonique for about 2 years but have been on a form of bc for 4 years and i ALWAYS got my period on tues of the placebo week and always have spotted a little and had minor cramps a couple weeks before.

well its wed night and i have no signs of anything. i didnt spot at all this cycle and i have no cramps or any sign that its coming.

my bf and i did have sex on sat w/o a condom but i feel like it should be unlikely that im pregnant since i have had sex countless times w/o a condom and have been fine.

this cycle i have been working out more since im taking pliates for school and i have lost weight (not meaning to) to where i am concidered underweight its also midterms so im a little stressed out so i dont know if any of those could be a factor or if my body has finally gotten used to seasonique and ill get my period soon w/o cramping.

So I'm on a generic brand of Seasonale. I started my placebos yesterday and was wondering how long it usually takes to get your period. I'm really paranoid, and I know it's for no reason. My boyfriend and I had sex a few weeks ago and the condom broke. I was actually spotting so I don't know if that lowers any risks, but yeah I'm just the super paranoid type and was wondering.

I'm on my first pack of Jolessa, and I am supposed to take my placebo pills in two weeks. That week happens to be the time my boyfriend is coming to visit me. We're in a long distance relationship, and I would really not like to be on my period. My question is not "Can I skip my placebo pills" because I know that I can. I would like to know that I am not pregnant (the condom broke about two weeks ago and I'm paranoid about it), so my question is can I take my placebo pills a week early and skip those active pills?

This is probably going to look like a very stupid question, but I'm a little out of the loop and wondered if someone more wise could clear me straight?

I was wondering, does anyone know if seasonale or lybral are availible in the UK? I researched a while ago on seasonale and only found very old articles from past years rumouring it would be availible in the uk soon, but no new evidence or confirmation or anything up-to-date. Lybral was also in my newspaper stating it would be availible here soon, but again, nothing defenite. (Boo!)

I've been taking my pill full whack, meaning I have no break and no period doe to anxiety and OCD issues. I was investigating taking a pill that was *meant* for skipping, aka seasonale with the one a year (I think? or it it four, forgive me) period, or Lybral which would equal none and taken full stop. The reason being I'm going to make an appointment with my doctor and discuss this, but I just wanted to know if anyone from the UK has taken, or is taking, maybe seasonale at the least? Can we get it here yet? If not, I'm just going to have to explain and ask if it's okay to just keep taking my regular ones with no break instead. Again, very sorry for the n00b question!

Thanks bunches <3

Almost three months ago, my OBGYN put me on Seasonique. The reasoning was that I have horrible migraines during my placebo weeks, which she attributed to withdrawal from the extra hormones. She said the best we could do was put me on a pill that made the migraines less frequent - every three months instead of every month.

From the start, I wasn't very happy with Seasonique. My appetite was horrendous - I was hungry ALL the time. No matter how much I ate, I wasn't full.

But it got worse. Midway through month two, I had my period. It was absurdly heavy [I normally have light, short periods]. And it has. not. stopped. At the most, I stop bleeding for a few days before it starts again. I am now midway through month three, and this is not spotting. It is heavy, with clots nearly all the time. I'm tired all the time, and my cramps are way worse.

I'm planning on changing BC AGAIN once I find the time to make an appointment with a gyno here in town. [My normal OBGYN is in my hometown, and I go to college an hour and a half away. It's just not possible to get home on the weekdays, seeing as my fiance is my ride and he works 10 hour days.] Since this time last year, I have tried the NuvaRing, Yaz, and now Seasonique. I'm beginning to get really frustrated.

What I'm wondering is, have any of you experienced this? Also, do you think I should be taking an iron supplement since I am bleeding so much?