There are numerous different kinds of contraceptive pills, and so choosing one might be more complicated than you thought.
In order to be sure that you make the right decision, first you should find out about the pros and cons of different kinds, and also don’t forget to have a talk with your doctor as well.
Different kinds of birth control pills
There are two main kinds of pills. One of them is the combination pill that contains estrogen and progestin in the same time. Besides this there is also the minipill that comes only with progestin. Even among the combination pills you can find different types of active and inactive pills.
Conventional pack
In case of these packs the contraceptive pills come in the form of 21 active and 7 inactive pills, or 24 active and 4 inactive ones. You should take these pills so that the inactive pills are taken during your menstrual period.
Extended cycle
Unlike the previous case, the birth control pills come in a pack of 7 inactive pills and 84 active pills. Just as in the previous case you should be taking the inactive pills when you are having your menstrual period. It is also possible to get a pack containing 28 active pills.
Monophasic
When it comes to the contraceptive pills you should know that there are different kinds of combination pills. In case of the monophasic pills, just as the name suggests all of the pills have equal amounts of progestin and estrogen.
Multiphasic
You may have guessed that in case of the multiphasic birth control pills the amount of hormones that the pills have varies from one pill to the other.
Dosing
When handling hormones it is very important to make sure that you have the right dose. The pills that come with less than 50 milligrams of estrogen are known as low dose pills. These contraceptive pills are just prefect for those women who have high hormone sensitivity. Nonetheless there is also a downside: the women taking these pills could experience spotting or bleeding between their periods.
Minipill
In case of this pill there aren’t as many choices as in the previous case because all of the pills contain the same amount of hormones and they are all active.
How do the birth control pills work?
The main point of these pills is to suppress ovulation, meaning that your ovaries won’t be releasing the egg. The combination pills also make the cervical mucus thicken and it thins the lining of the uterus so that sperm won’t be able to reach the egg.
The minipills act in the same way and they also have the ability to suppress ovulation. As it has been mentioned, these contraceptive pills don’t come with estrogen and the progestin level of these pills is lower than in case of the combination pills.
Which pills are suitable for whom?
It is important to keep in mind that not all pills are suitable for every woman. Your doctor might advise you not to use combination pills in case you breastfeed, you are a smoker and older than 35, have had stroke, blood clots, liver, breast or endometrial cancer before, experienced thrombosis, heart disease or pulmonary embolism.
There are some other problems as well that could prevent you from taking birth control pills of this kind, like problems with your kidneys, liver or adrenal gland, migraines, diabetes complications, or uterine bleeding, just to mention a few.
On the other hand the minipill contraceptive pills may not be the best choice if you are affected by breast cancer, uterine bleeding or you are taking anti-tuberculous agent or anticonvulsants.
The effectiveness of the pills
About 8% of the women who are using combination pills for a year will get pregnant. On the other hand about 1%-13% of the women using the minipill for a year will get pregnant. Since the progestin levels in the case of the minipill are relatively low, it is likely to fail in case of the highly fertile women.
What if you forget to take the pill?
You should know that the combination pills have the best effect if they are taken daily, at about the same time. In case it is an active pill that you forget to take, you should take it when you remember of it, even if you have to take two active pills in the same day. Then take the rest of the contraceptive pills as you should have, but remember to use another contraceptive method.
