Do you wish you had more control over your menstrual cycle? Hormonal birth control offers a way to reduce the frequency of your periods. Many are unaware that monthly withdrawal bleeding while using hormonal birth control isn’t medically necessary. This article explores how birth control can be used to delay or stop periods, answering common questions and providing essential information.
Understanding How Birth Control Affects Your Period
Combination birth control pills, patches, and vaginal rings are designed to mimic a menstrual cycle. A typical birth control pill pack includes three weeks of hormone-containing pills and one week of inactive or placebo pills. Withdrawal bleeding occurs during this fourth week when you take the inactive pills. This bleeding is triggered by the drop in hormones, not a true menstrual period.
It’s crucial to understand that withdrawal bleeding is distinct from a natural menstrual period, and neither is essential for your health. This understanding is empowering, especially if you’re considering using birth control to lessen your periods for personal preference or medical reasons.
Continuous Use vs. Extended Use Birth Control
When it comes to reducing the number of periods, hormonal birth control offers two main approaches:
- Continuous-Use Birth Control: This method involves taking active hormone pills continuously for a year or even longer, without any breaks for inactive pills. By consistently maintaining hormone levels, withdrawal bleeding is prevented altogether.
- Extended-Use Birth Control: Extended-use regimens involve taking active hormones for longer periods than the standard 21 days, followed by shorter breaks. This reduces the frequency of withdrawal bleeding episodes throughout the year.
Hormonal Birth Control Options to Stop Periods
Several types of hormonal birth control can be utilized to decrease or eliminate periods. The ideal option for you will depend on your personal goals, health status, and preferences. It’s important to discuss your needs with a healthcare provider to determine the most suitable method.
Are you aiming to minimize or completely stop your periods? Do you prefer short-term or long-term birth control? These are important questions to consider when consulting with your healthcare professional.
Birth Control Pills for Period Suppression
Both combination estrogen-progestin pills and progestin-only pills can be used in extended or continuous regimens to delay or stop periods. Typically, this involves skipping the inactive pills in your pill pack and immediately starting a new pack. Your healthcare provider can guide you on the best pill schedule for your specific needs.
Specific birth control pills are also formulated to lengthen the time between periods. Examples available include:
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Jolessa (generic Seasonale): This pill involves taking active pills for 84 consecutive days (12 weeks), followed by 7 days of inactive pills. This results in a period approximately every three months.
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Amethia, Camrese, and Simpesse (generic Seasonique): Similar to Jolessa, these pills involve 84 days of active pills, but are followed by 7 days of low-dose estrogen pills instead of inactive pills. This regimen also leads to periods about every three months, and the low-dose estrogen week can help reduce side effects like bleeding and bloating.
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Rivelsa (generic Quartette): This 91-day regimen features 84 days of active pills with varying estrogen doses, increasing in three steps, followed by 7 days of very low estrogen pills. Periods occur roughly every three months.
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Amethyst: This pill is designed for continuous use with low doses of both progestin and estrogen taken daily for a year, eliminating scheduled periods entirely.
Vaginal Ring (NuvaRing) for Period Control
Similar to combination birth control pills, the vaginal ring can be used in an extended or continuous manner to delay or prevent periods. Typically, the ring is replaced monthly without a ring-free interval. To minimize unscheduled bleeding, some women choose to remove the ring for one week every three months to allow for withdrawal bleeding.
Birth Control Patch for Period Suppression
The combined hormonal birth control skin patch can also be used continuously to prevent periods. A new patch is applied weekly, and to avoid periods, you simply replace the patch each week without a patch-free week.
Hormonal Intrauterine Device (IUD) for Period Reduction
Hormonal IUDs are long-term birth control options that release progestin into the uterus. While approved for several years of use (depending on the brand, up to six years), they can also be effective in reducing or stopping periods, sometimes requiring earlier replacement if period cessation is desired.
Different hormonal IUDs contain varying doses of progestin. Higher-dose IUDs, such as those containing 52 mg of levonorgestrel (Mirena, Liletta), are generally more effective at stopping periods. Studies show that after one year of use, approximately 20% of women with a 52-mg IUD report no periods, increasing to 30-50% after two years.
DMPA Injection (Depo-Provera) for Menstrual Suppression
Depo-Provera is a progestin injection administered every 90 days. It’s a long-acting contraceptive that is also highly effective at reducing or eliminating monthly bleeding. After one year of Depo-Provera injections, 50-75% of users report no periods, with the likelihood of period cessation increasing with longer-term use.
Advantages of Delaying Your Period
Delaying menstruation can offer significant benefits, particularly for managing menstrual-related symptoms and improving quality of life. Consider period delay if you experience:
- Physical or intellectual disabilities that make managing sanitary products challenging.
- Conditions exacerbated by menstruation, such as endometriosis or anemia.
- Premenstrual symptoms like breast tenderness, bloating, or mood swings.
- Headaches or other symptoms during withdrawal bleeding week on cyclic birth control.
- Frequent, heavy, prolonged, or painful periods.
Furthermore, delaying your period can be beneficial when menstruation coincides with important events like exams, athletic competitions, vacations, or special occasions such as weddings and honeymoons.
Safety Considerations for Period Delay
For most women who are candidates for hormonal birth control, using it to delay periods is generally safe. However, it’s essential to consult with your healthcare provider to discuss your individual health profile and determine if period delay is appropriate for you. Don’t hesitate to ask your doctor about this option if you are interested.
Potential Drawbacks of Period Delay
Breakthrough bleeding or spotting between periods is a common side effect when using hormonal birth control to delay or stop menstruation. This is most likely to occur during the initial months of continuous or extended use as your body adjusts to the altered hormone regimen. Typically, breakthrough bleeding tends to decrease over time.
Another potential disadvantage is that delaying periods can make it more difficult to recognize pregnancy. If you experience symptoms like morning sickness, breast tenderness, or unusual fatigue, it’s important to take a home pregnancy test or consult your healthcare provider.
Managing Breakthrough Bleeding
While breakthrough bleeding often resolves on its own, several strategies can help manage it:
- Maintain Consistent Schedule: Adhering to your birth control schedule is crucial. Missing pills, delaying ring replacement, or late Depo-Provera injections can increase the likelihood of breakthrough bleeding.
- Track Bleeding: Keeping a record of breakthrough bleeding can help you monitor its pattern and identify when it starts to improve.
- Revert to Cyclic Use: If breakthrough bleeding is bothersome, temporarily returning to the standard cyclic use of your birth control (including inactive pill week or ring-free week) may reduce bleeding.
- Smoking Cessation: Smoking increases the risk of breakthrough bleeding. Quitting smoking can help reduce this side effect.
For those using combination pills or the vaginal ring, temporarily stopping hormones for 3-4 days (after at least 21-30 days of active hormone use) when breakthrough bleeding occurs can be helpful. After this brief hormone-free interval, resume your birth control regimen. Over time, breakthrough bleeding should become less frequent and eventually cease.
It’s important to remember that breakthrough bleeding does not indicate that your birth control is ineffective. Continue using your chosen method consistently to maintain pregnancy protection. If breakthrough bleeding becomes heavy or lasts longer than seven consecutive days, consult your healthcare provider.
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References
- Kaunitz AM. Hormonal contraception for menstrual suppression. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/search. Accessed Oct. 7, 2024.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Clinical consensus No. 3: General approaches to medical management of menstrual suppression. Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2022; doi:10.1097/AOG.0000000000004899.
- Edelman A, et al. Evaluation and management of unscheduled bleeding in women using hormonal contraception. https://www.uptodate.com/contents/search. Accessed Oct. 7, 2024.
- Cason P, et al., eds. Combined hormonal contraceptives. In: Contraceptive Technology. 22nd ed. ProQuest Ebook Central. Jones & Barlett Learning; 2025. Accessed Oct. 7, 2024.
