QuestionI've already asked this question to one expert here, but it's been 5 days with no answer and I'm getting desperate.
I think I've pretty much run out of options here, but it doesn't hurt to ask. Okay, here's the story: I am a 25 year old Caucasian female at 5'5" and I weight about 100 lbs (if that matters). I have Hashimoto's Thyroiditis and Celiac disease, both of which cause a lot of problems. One is very heavy and painful periods. Now that I'm being treated for my thyroid problem, the super-crazy heavy periods I used to have are now somewhat more manageable.
I'd like to take birth control to end my heavy periods once and for all, but I've tried quite a few now and nothing's been right. I don't remember the first kind I tried, but after that first one over the past year I've tried:
Sronyx
Yaz
Nor-QD
Jolivette (currently taking this one)
Any pill that has estrogen, no matter the amount, makes me very, VERY sick. I get terrible headaches, nausea, and vomiting. The mini pills I've tried work fabulous...at first anyway. After my first nice, "normal" period I start to have breakthrough bleeding 24/7. It's never more than a tiny amount per day, but it never really stops for more than a few days at a time.
I am absolutely and completely terrified of needles, so any kind of injected birth control is out the window. I'm not sure a patch would be any better for me than the pill, and I'm not sure they even make ones without estrogen. I would really rather not use a vaginal ring (it looks painful and I'm a virgin so that can't help things). And I would rather not have an implant or surgery done, that seems pretty frightening and drastic.
So...does that even leave me with any kind of option?
AnswerHi Valerie,
I don't think there is any simple solution. I might suggest trying Ovrette, the mini pill containing levonorgestrel. The 2 mini pills you've tried both contain norethindrone, and I think levonorgestrel is less likely to have breakthrough bleeding. Something else that may work for you would be to take 1/2 of a low dose (20 mcg estrogen) combined birth control pill along with the mini pill. I've never seen any study of that, but it would give you a very small amount of estrogen, which would probably help the breakthrough bleeding. Yaz and Sronyx both contain just 20 mcg of estrogen. Just an idea.
