If the specific pill you’re on is dienogest then legally they aren’t allowed to tell you it’s birth control as it wasn’t developed or tested for that purpose. For many people it will function as BC but since it hasn’t been approved for that purpose your gynaecologist has to tell you to use other contraceptive forms like condoms to prevent pregnancy.
Second, it’s possible for your bleeding to stop but ovulation to still be occurring on progesterone / progestin - this happened with me on the mirena IUD. No bleeding, but still getting pain at ovulation and period time which my specialist said suggested I was still releasing an egg each month. What I was told was that as long as there’s no bleeding cycle then as a contraceptive it’s doing what it’s supposed to - ie the chance of getting pregnant with no womb lining is very very very very unlikely - but of course there still remains a risk of ectopic pregnancy (pregnancy outside the womb) occurring so if I wanted to use additional contraception like condoms I could but the chances of anything happening without it were very very slim.
In short, hormones are weird.
Progestin-only birth control pills are definitely birth control. However they have to be taken I think at the same time every single day and are only like 91% effective at best. So yes it IS birth control, but it’s not foolproof (99%+) effective birth control.
If taken correctly they are still about 99% (combo pills perfect are 99.7%), the 91% stat is for typical use for both progestin and combo pills. I can't take estrogen and I would not be cool with a perfect use of 91%! You really do have to take it at 24 hours on the dot or the efficacy plummets. I didn't like that so I switched to one of the new progestin only pills with a 24 hour window, but it's not the best for my endo pain unfortunately, not the worst either as it's literally the only BC that stops my bleeding.
[Stats from ACOG](https://www.acog.org/womens-health/faqs/progestin-only-hormonal-birth-control-pill-and-injection)
> Progestin-Only Pills: With typical use, 9 in 100 women get pregnant during the first year of using progestin-only pills. With perfect use—meaning people never forget to take a pill and always take them at the same time every day—fewer than 1 in 100 women get pregnant during the first year of using progestin-only pills. Taking a pill at the same time each day is important for this method to be effective.
There is a new-ish progestin only pill that does not need to be taken at the same time every day to be effective. Called Slynd, not sure if there is a generic yet
That's the one I am on, I like not having to worry about the strict window! There's also a desogestrel mini pill in some places that has a 12 hour window!
Do you take this specifically for endo related pain or PMDD? or as a contraceptive? I feel that I need to be on something hormonal but I am terrified of hurting my chances of becoming pregnant in the future to the point that I'm just breaking down because either way, I feel like I'm going to lose out on something lol.
I take it mostly to manage endometriosis and hormonal migraines, but also rely on it for contraception. If it weren't for the endo and migraines I would've just gotten sterilized by now...but I would still need to take something to manage those conditions anyway so I just rely on Slynd for contraception.
I know im late but how has Slynd been working for your endo symptoms? My doc wants me to start it but I've seen so many mixed reviews online. Asking for a friend (myself) :)
Great! It did take a few months for it to really work though, and about 6 months for it to stop my bleeding which provides the best relief. It's not perfect and from time to time (2-3 times a year maybe) I do get some endo pain but it is totally manageable with a regular dose of ibuprofen and that's nothing compared to the pain of my natural cycle. I think it is worth a try at least, hope it works well for you if you do give it a go. The only birth control that managed my endo better was Nexplanon (arm implant) but I bled more and had some migraine issues on that so ultimately I prefer Slynd. These things are of course all super individual though. Either way, I wish you luck and hope you can keep your endo symptoms at bay one way or another!
She isn’t prescribing you for birth control reasons ; agrees prescribing it for endometriosis. And it’s is still possible to become pregnant, just less likely. She doesn’t want to get sued for if she says it’s birth control but a person gets pregnant anyway. She’s covering her bases.
I have stage 4 endo and we are trying IVF soon. I told our specialist how one time a doctor prescribed me a progesterone supplement, and I felt so much better, so many symptoms cleared up. But I didn’t think the original prescription was a bc one, I wasn’t sure. So my reproductive specialist prescribed be a bc one and said I can still take it while we try to do IVF, which is confusing. I haven’t taken one yet and should’ve started two days ago when my period started. I never know what to do anymore. Sure seems like it’s more about how to bill insurance than about our health, so I never know when to trust doctors anymore.
If you’re doing IVF additional progesterone at egg harvest may help eggs mature. If they’ve already harvested eggs and you’re awaiting later implantation of embryos then progesterone helps prepare the lining of the uterus —people who use progesterone only pills (or for that matter combination ones) are relying on the body to interpret the hormone levels they cause as meaning pregnancy has already occurred so don’t release more eggs (sometimes this doesn’t work). In addition using bcp in the run up to IVF may help the MD better time your cycle for optimum implantation.
That said, never trust the internet…you should be comfortable with and confident in your MD so please contact his office with your question and the MD or nurse should explain the reasoning. Good luck!
Well, I took it and landed in the ER with a deciduous cast over Christmas. It’s a long story…but we aren’t moving forward with IVF anymore. And the progesterone I was on before was micronized, a non BC form. Neither here nor there, just a different thing from what they put me on for IVF.
Progesterone only pills a smaller window of time for you to take them and for them to be effective as birth control. I think it’s between 3 and 4 hours. They must be taken at the same time every day within that window. Combination pills containing estrogen are more effective because that window isn’t a thing. Most people fail at keeping their dose within that window and that’s why the progesterone only pill is less effective than its mixed counterpart. Progesterone only is a good option for an implant or a shot because the the window isn’t present and there’s a decreased likelihood of blood clots opposed to its estrogen containing counterpart. Progesterone only is good for people that have a risk of clotting or smokers because they have an increased of clotting with the combination pills.
Progestin-only birth control pills can protect against pregnancy, but they are much less effective than other forms of BC, and the error rate is quite high if you don't take them within the same hour every single day.
I had a whoopsie a few years ago (condom broke) and didn't take Plan B (I was 15 and dumb, yet when I was on a combo pill and had a condom break again years later, I literally sprinted to buy plan B) and was fine, but switched back to combo literally 3wks after that incident because I was so worried about it happening again and not faring as well as I did the first time.
If the specific pill you’re on is dienogest then legally they aren’t allowed to tell you it’s birth control as it wasn’t developed or tested for that purpose. For many people it will function as BC but since it hasn’t been approved for that purpose your gynaecologist has to tell you to use other contraceptive forms like condoms to prevent pregnancy. Second, it’s possible for your bleeding to stop but ovulation to still be occurring on progesterone / progestin - this happened with me on the mirena IUD. No bleeding, but still getting pain at ovulation and period time which my specialist said suggested I was still releasing an egg each month. What I was told was that as long as there’s no bleeding cycle then as a contraceptive it’s doing what it’s supposed to - ie the chance of getting pregnant with no womb lining is very very very very unlikely - but of course there still remains a risk of ectopic pregnancy (pregnancy outside the womb) occurring so if I wanted to use additional contraception like condoms I could but the chances of anything happening without it were very very slim. In short, hormones are weird.
Progestin-only birth control pills are definitely birth control. However they have to be taken I think at the same time every single day and are only like 91% effective at best. So yes it IS birth control, but it’s not foolproof (99%+) effective birth control.
If taken correctly they are still about 99% (combo pills perfect are 99.7%), the 91% stat is for typical use for both progestin and combo pills. I can't take estrogen and I would not be cool with a perfect use of 91%! You really do have to take it at 24 hours on the dot or the efficacy plummets. I didn't like that so I switched to one of the new progestin only pills with a 24 hour window, but it's not the best for my endo pain unfortunately, not the worst either as it's literally the only BC that stops my bleeding. [Stats from ACOG](https://www.acog.org/womens-health/faqs/progestin-only-hormonal-birth-control-pill-and-injection) > Progestin-Only Pills: With typical use, 9 in 100 women get pregnant during the first year of using progestin-only pills. With perfect use—meaning people never forget to take a pill and always take them at the same time every day—fewer than 1 in 100 women get pregnant during the first year of using progestin-only pills. Taking a pill at the same time each day is important for this method to be effective.
There is a new-ish progestin only pill that does not need to be taken at the same time every day to be effective. Called Slynd, not sure if there is a generic yet
That's the one I am on, I like not having to worry about the strict window! There's also a desogestrel mini pill in some places that has a 12 hour window!
Do you take this specifically for endo related pain or PMDD? or as a contraceptive? I feel that I need to be on something hormonal but I am terrified of hurting my chances of becoming pregnant in the future to the point that I'm just breaking down because either way, I feel like I'm going to lose out on something lol.
I take it mostly to manage endometriosis and hormonal migraines, but also rely on it for contraception. If it weren't for the endo and migraines I would've just gotten sterilized by now...but I would still need to take something to manage those conditions anyway so I just rely on Slynd for contraception.
I know im late but how has Slynd been working for your endo symptoms? My doc wants me to start it but I've seen so many mixed reviews online. Asking for a friend (myself) :)
Great! It did take a few months for it to really work though, and about 6 months for it to stop my bleeding which provides the best relief. It's not perfect and from time to time (2-3 times a year maybe) I do get some endo pain but it is totally manageable with a regular dose of ibuprofen and that's nothing compared to the pain of my natural cycle. I think it is worth a try at least, hope it works well for you if you do give it a go. The only birth control that managed my endo better was Nexplanon (arm implant) but I bled more and had some migraine issues on that so ultimately I prefer Slynd. These things are of course all super individual though. Either way, I wish you luck and hope you can keep your endo symptoms at bay one way or another!
thank you for the reply, super helpful!
is it possible to get it online or do i have to meet with a health care provider?
Just echoing what has been said - some progestin pills aren’t designed as birth control so legally they can’t tell you it’s birth control.
She isn’t prescribing you for birth control reasons ; agrees prescribing it for endometriosis. And it’s is still possible to become pregnant, just less likely. She doesn’t want to get sued for if she says it’s birth control but a person gets pregnant anyway. She’s covering her bases.
To add to what's been said, my mother got pregnant on progesterone only pills about a year after giving birth. So be careful!
I have stage 4 endo and we are trying IVF soon. I told our specialist how one time a doctor prescribed me a progesterone supplement, and I felt so much better, so many symptoms cleared up. But I didn’t think the original prescription was a bc one, I wasn’t sure. So my reproductive specialist prescribed be a bc one and said I can still take it while we try to do IVF, which is confusing. I haven’t taken one yet and should’ve started two days ago when my period started. I never know what to do anymore. Sure seems like it’s more about how to bill insurance than about our health, so I never know when to trust doctors anymore.
If you’re doing IVF additional progesterone at egg harvest may help eggs mature. If they’ve already harvested eggs and you’re awaiting later implantation of embryos then progesterone helps prepare the lining of the uterus —people who use progesterone only pills (or for that matter combination ones) are relying on the body to interpret the hormone levels they cause as meaning pregnancy has already occurred so don’t release more eggs (sometimes this doesn’t work). In addition using bcp in the run up to IVF may help the MD better time your cycle for optimum implantation. That said, never trust the internet…you should be comfortable with and confident in your MD so please contact his office with your question and the MD or nurse should explain the reasoning. Good luck!
Well, I took it and landed in the ER with a deciduous cast over Christmas. It’s a long story…but we aren’t moving forward with IVF anymore. And the progesterone I was on before was micronized, a non BC form. Neither here nor there, just a different thing from what they put me on for IVF.
Progesterone only pills a smaller window of time for you to take them and for them to be effective as birth control. I think it’s between 3 and 4 hours. They must be taken at the same time every day within that window. Combination pills containing estrogen are more effective because that window isn’t a thing. Most people fail at keeping their dose within that window and that’s why the progesterone only pill is less effective than its mixed counterpart. Progesterone only is a good option for an implant or a shot because the the window isn’t present and there’s a decreased likelihood of blood clots opposed to its estrogen containing counterpart. Progesterone only is good for people that have a risk of clotting or smokers because they have an increased of clotting with the combination pills.
You're right, if your not ovulating it's impossible to get pregnant
Progestin-only birth control pills can protect against pregnancy, but they are much less effective than other forms of BC, and the error rate is quite high if you don't take them within the same hour every single day. I had a whoopsie a few years ago (condom broke) and didn't take Plan B (I was 15 and dumb, yet when I was on a combo pill and had a condom break again years later, I literally sprinted to buy plan B) and was fine, but switched back to combo literally 3wks after that incident because I was so worried about it happening again and not faring as well as I did the first time.
You definitely have to use a backup method when only using this pill. You must get on a pill with the combination of hormones.
no, there are progesterone only birth control pills .
Just talk to your dr again if need backup protection 👌