Birth Control Forum - Keeping coverage constant

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Q: Keeping coverage constant

asked by: freyja on December 1st, 2008

New User

Okay, so here's the story: I lost a pill (dropped it and for the life of me, could not find the little bugger)...so being that I am on Lutera and it is monophasic, I just took the next pill in the pack and continued on to the end.

But now I'm at the end of the pack and the end of the prescription, so I cannot steal from another pack. This means that I had to start my placebo week 1 day early.

I've since been to the doctor and got a new year's prescription. My question is this: do I start the new pack a day early to keep the placebo week to 7 days, or should I start on Sunday as usual? Can I maintain optimum effectiveness by starting the new pack a day early (keeping placebo week to 7 days), or is my coverage compromised either way?

If there's no difference, then I guess I'll just start on Sunday as usual and be extra careful because I had an 8 day placebo week; but if I can keep my coverage constant by starting the new pack a day early, I'd rather do that. My doctor wasn't really sure. Thoughts?

Replies(5)

rooted

replied on December 3rd, 2008

Supporter

The Lutera product package should contain directions for what to do if you miss a pill. However, I've found an online source that outlines your options. http://www.rxlist.com/lutera-drug.htm (page 7)

f you MISS 1 white "active" pill:

1. Take it as soon as you remember. Take the next pill at your regular time. This means you may take 2 pills in 1 day.

2. You do not need to use a back-up birth-control method if you have sex.

freyja

replied on December 4th, 2008

New User

Hey, thanks for the link.

I've looked at the Lutera info that comes with my pills, but the problem is that it does not address my question at all, which is odd, considering I would think this probably happens a lot.

It tells you what to do if you forget a pill, but it does not tell you how to proceed if you lose a pill and it is gone, therefere making your pack 1 pill short. You can't make up the pill if it does not exist.

I'm just trying to figure out how much losing the 1 pill at the very end of my pack increases the failure chance of the bc. If I start the new pack a day early and keep the placebo week to 7 days, are the chances of ovulation/pregnancy greatly increased, slightly increased, or not at all increased? Does it matter at all if I start the new pack a day early, or is it the same failure chances either way?

No one I've asked seems to know. I find that a bit odd, but there you go...

rooted

replied on December 5th, 2008

Supporter

Losing a birth control pill

I see. Well, I think that you'll just have to "borrow" a pill from the next month's pack. The manufacturers should really make 28 day supplies with some "Extra" pills for this case. At the moment, you'll always need to have an extra month's supply to account for the missed pill.

freyja

replied on December 5th, 2008

New User

Yeah, they should make a pack with extras!

Yeah, that's what I have been doing...I kept taking a pill from the next month's pack to complete my current one. The problem is that my prescription ran out, and so this month I did not have another pack that I could borrow from. By the time I could get an appointment with the doctor to refill the prescription, I was already a few days into my placebo week. Hence, my question about coverage/effectiveness and when to start the new pack.

It seems nobody knows the answer, so I guess I'll just start the new pack a day or two early and hope for the best.

Maddie34

replied on December 7th, 2008

Moderator

Normally you are supposed to just get a new pack and use the old as a back up pack for if/when this happens again.

You can plan for the best by just using a back up method for a week.

Next time, double check what you do by asking the person who prescribed your pills. You don't need to go in and ask, just a simple phone call to your pharmacist to make sure you're protecting yourself correctly. There's no sense in taking birth control pills if you're just going to hope for the best and leave everything up for chance, you know?

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