QuestionHi Brigid,
About a year ago this month I stopped taking the form of contaception that I was on called depo-provera. Over the course of all last year, my periods were irregular and would skip for sometimes 2 to 3 months at a time. Recently my boyfried and I decided that I would try Ortho Tri-Cyclin to get me back on a regular period schedule. I visited my clinic, and they figured out a good time for me to come back to get me started on the pill (based on my last recorded menstural period). Ive been taking the pill now for a month and my period was scheduled to come yesterday, but I still have not gotten it. I am hoping its because my body is still not normal from when I was on Depo, but I thought that Ortho Tri-Cyclin would regulate that problem. My boyfriend and I have had unprotected sex within this first month, and im scared that I may be pregnant. Is this possiable?
AnswerDepo Provera is known to cause serious problems with menstrual cycles including infertility and ammenohrea, which you can attest to. It sometimes takes quite a while for your body to get back to regulating itself again after quiting the Depo, up to a year is not unheard of.
For you to go on the pill after not finding your cycles back to normal, is only compounding the problem. The cycles you have while on the pill are not true menstrual cycles. Your body is being tricked into thinking it's pregnant and it was confused on the Depo and now you are throwing more artificial hormone into it and it is even more confused.
Get a pregnancy to test to relieve your mind about that problem. And then decide how important your health is to you. If you haven't read the package insert with all the side effects and problems that the pill can cause, you should do that today.
No birth control is 100% and if the choice is between your health and "responsible sex" I would choose your health first and foremost because you have to live with that forever and this guy could be gone tomorrow and he won't care what happens to your health because of the pill.
Will he? If he will, then quit taking it, stay abstinent until you are ready to get married and have kids - and thank your lucky stars you found a great man!
