Is Ortho Tricyclen Lo Good For Skipping Periods?
Thursday August 14, 2003
Women's Health Forums: I want to know if I can skip my period with Ortho Tricyclen Lo? I didn't take the reminder pills and started a new pack. Will it work? I've been reading that many women are not successful doing this on this brand. What birth control pills have you used to skip a period?
Comments
I have skipped 3 period in a row. I am very nervous and don’t no what is goin on.
you are pregnant
Did u find out what was up?? The more you stress the less likely u will get it
With Ortho-Tricyclen Lo it is more difficult to skip periods. I recently asked my doctor about this. I was about to go on vacation and I didn’t want to start my period. With ortho, it is possible to delay your period, but not skip it. What you have to do is take the 3rd week of pills on a new pack after you finish the 3rd week on your old pack. This will delay your period for a week, but because each week has a different strength of hormones you cannot just start a new pack. Hope this helps
No you cannot skip period on ortho tricyclen-lo. As Cara mentioned, the hormonal level differs every time, so you can’t skip a period with it.
if you want to skip period, you need a birth control pill that has a constant hormone level. I’d say start looking at seasonale.
See right now I am in the same Boat as Mary and I am Freaking out cause I already have one kid I really dont need another right now. My fiance will litteraly crap his pants! LOL so my only question is How often does Ortho Lo Fail?? (shoulda asked that before I started it But I Figured it was the same as Ortho Tri) lol well keep me posted
I saw a special on tv about skipping periods intentionally and have done it a couple times before with tricyclen-lo with no problems at all, just took the 3 weeks then started a new pack at the beginning. this time though.. I have done it about 3 months in a row, and at the end of my first week of pills I got my period. it’s as strong as normal and lasting 3-4 days so far. I have been having unprotected sex, because I’m bleeding regularily, please someone confirm that there’s no way I could be pregnant?!
I also decided to skip my period a month ago and instead of taking the placebo pills, I started a new pack on Ortho Tricyclen lo. This week I should be getting my period but it has not come, except for a little spotting. Did anyone have a similar situation and when did your body adjust back into a normal period again? Hopefully I didn’t cause too much mix up in my body…
Instead of trying to ruin yourselves, why don’t you just stick to the normal cycle? It can be very harmful to your system, not to mention confusing, when you don’t have a regular period at regular times.
I wanted to skip my period about 2 weeks ago…so instead of taking the sugar pills I just started up a new pack. U nfortunately I ended up getting my period anyways…I just got it later than I would have had I not started a new pack right away….and now I’ve had it for 11 days now…it just won’t go away. Soon enough I’m gonna be done this pack of pills too…meaning that I’d be getting my period again…but it doesn’t look like THIS period will be done anytime soon lol….I’m freaking out, cause I don’t know if there’s something wrong with me….or worse…if I’m pregnant ?! If anyone, knows of any explanations, please help me out !! Also, my period at first was normal, but now it’s been weird…it’s not very much, but it’s not red, it’s more like brown-ish…Sry for the “too much info” lol…but like I said I;m really nervous
holy crap, the SAME thing is happening w/ me as the last comment by ashley (its now late march if she could tell me what happened that’d be great), i started on ortho tri-cycl lo 3 months ago and hadnt seen my b/f for a month right when i was supposed to start the period pills so i skipped them… not only did i get my period a few days later but i still have it and it’s been two and a half weeks and it’s really icky like ashley’s was… worse yet, my b/f is coming to town again when im supposed to start the period pills… i dont want to skip it again but seriously HOW long is this period going to last? a month???? advice to all women: just stick w/ taking the period pill, the hell that can follow is just now worth it… and if anyone has advice at this point for me, plz tell
Susan – are you a physician? Otherwise, I don’t see that your point is valid. Every OB/GYN I have spoken with (I have worked at a hospital for 7 years) has said that this is perfectly safe.
To ashley and moni – the same thing happens to me when I have a “light flow” period, which is about every other period I have (I am on BC). It’s brown because it’s old blood, that’s all. It’s not being shed as rapidly as if you had a “normal period”, so it has time to oxidize and turn brown just like blood does when exposed to air for a while.
Generally, if you’re trying to “skip” a period, you may not completely skip it, it at first, but you’ll just have shorter, lighter periods. The longer you continue using your BC without the placebo week, the more likely you are to miss a period completely. Those of you worried about getting pregnant should not try this method unless you are willing to pay for preg. tests as well to keep your peace of mind.
And for those of you wondering if you’re pregnant – talk to a doctor or buy a test! The internet is not the place to ask this question.
Hey guys,
I am totally confused and freaked out! After my pregnancy, i started taking ortho tricyclin lo, about in the middle of the month, i kept forgetting to take them, so i wanted to start over.Then when i stopped i started bleeding again as off it was my period, but it wasnt supose to be my period. I heard that happens when u miss pills. So i was waiting for my next period. I started spotting like it was the beginning of my period and it was on the same date i supose to have my period, then started a new pack, but spotting was for like 2 days and after that there was nothing, i guess it wasn’t my period ?, or was it the pills that stopped my period from coming down? Its been almost 3 weeks now and i still havent gotten my pd, is it also prob bec i was bleeding in between pds? i am having pd late this month?
i was told to use two packs. bc the hormones wary week to week, when u try to skip a period, your going from week 3 to week one and thats a big difference… i did that and i had btb for SO long!
so this is what im doing.
2 packs.
week one (pack one)
week one (pack two)
week two (pack one)
week two (pack two)
week three (pack one)
week three (pack two)
it doesnt vary it too much and you can skip it.
has anyone else tried this method?
i no going backwards on this pill doesnt work.
week 1
week 2
week 3
week 3
week 2
week 1
bc u end up bleeding on the light blue ones.
Meeeeeep.
I’m afraid that I’ll die if I do this, but you guys aren’t dead..
Will I get sick the first time I try this? I’m already feeling slightly nauscious. Does this mean I shouldn’t do this again?
I had skipped a period before in the past(taking ortho lo) this time i decided to skip 2. then all hell broke loose down there. I got a nice case of bacterial vaginosis followed by a yeast infection i think… oh yeah and some of that awesome brown discharge you guys were takling about. I don’t know if all that is related but i’ve never had any infections “down under”before.
I’ll have to agree with most of you. Skipping your period on these pills is a bad idea…you end up getting it a little later and for quite some time. Even though its not a full on period, you have to wear “protection” since you don’t know if this blood/discharge is coming or going. Doesn’t sound so great but that’s the awful truth;) If you plan on doing this often you should switch to a higher dosage.
If you miss a pill, sometimes you start bleeding just a couple of hours later…It definitely lets you know.
I’ll have to agree with most of you. Skipping your period on these pills is a bad idea…you end up getting it a little later and for quite some time. Even though its not a full on period, you have to wear “protection” since you don’t know if this blood/discharge is coming or going. Doesn’t sound so great but that’s the awful truth;) If you plan on doing this often you should switch to a higher dosage.
If you miss a pill, sometimes you start bleeding just a couple of hours later…It definitely lets you know.
Okay so I wanted to skip my period also but it didn’t skip, it just delayed. So i got my period while I was on my first week of pills and now im done that same pack (today actually) and the only pills I have left are the placebos but won’t that screw me up considering I won’t get my period the week of the placebos but the week that I start the new pack? And will I start my period this week because I’m not taking any pills?
ok let me clear some things up – there is absolutely nothing wrong with using birth control pills to skip your period; it doesn’t make you sick or cause you to get pregnant. It simply allows you to delay your period. People should stop writing about things they don’t know anything about.
wow i really dont know what advice to take. at the end of the third week on my last pack, i started a new one. what am i to expect??? i started a new one because my boyfriend had just gotten back in town and i didnt want my period to spoil anything. grrr…
There’s an article in the August 2007 issue of ELLE magazine about period myths and miseducation. I found it very interesting. It goes into detail about how birth control pills create an “un-natural” (for lack of a better word) cycle and skipping a period or not having one at all is not going against nature. I don’t believe everything I read but I think this article is worth checking out.
hi so i just finished my first month today and i was researching OTL and read that ur to start the pill while ur on ur period but i was told to do it exactly a week after did anybody else? is it normal?
I just wanted to let EVERYONE know that skipping periods or not having one (and not being pregnant) is EXTREMELY natural. I have been on BC for 7 years now and trust me I have done my research, even taken classes. Before any of us were born hundreds of years ago, women would only get their periods about 3 to 4 times a year. This was because food was different and had way less hormones than we are consuming now. The only reason we get periods so often and now as young as 8 years old is because of this change in female hormones and the consumption of hormones. Either way you should contact your doctor before switching anything up but you will NOT die or have months of “backed up” blood in your system from skipping a period. My advice to anyone worried about getting preg is just be constant in when you take your pill. Skipping periods won’t lessen your chance of having babies later. When I got off for just a few days to start a new type of BC I got pregnant!!!Hope this helps all of you
Furthermore we are all using the wrong word!! no woman on BC gets a “period” as long as you are on BC you will never have one. What we get is called a withdrawal bleeding, which is chemically induced by the hormones in the BC. So for all of you who are worried about not having a period you need to just get off birth control because a witdrawal bleedng and period are NOT the same.
i been on Ortho Tricyclen now going on 3 months. the doc told me to take all the pills my first time then b4 taking my 3rd months pack skip the sugar pills and take only the hormone pills. now i am 2 wks not having my flow and i feel icky. All test say neg. but i had twins i was almost 2 months preg with them b4 a hpt said yes. i was wondering can i be preg and the pills are causing test to be neg. or how long u went w.o a flow?????
HELP
I am on ortho tri cyclen lo, and I tried to skip my period by skipping the placebo pills and going straight to the next pack. I just finished the first week of the new pack, and I got my period. What do I do about all of the other pills that are still left in the pack? Should I continue taking them? Or wait until my period is over? Do I have to get a new pack when my period ends or can I just continue taking pills from this pack, even though I have already used a week of them?
I skipped my placebos and began a new pack and am having the same experiences as Moni and Ashely. i’m just going to stick with it and hope that the next placebo week clears everything up…
Ok, first off, you have to get your terminology right. If you are on the pill (I’m on Ortho-lo like most of you) you don’t ovulate. This means you aren’t having a period, what is actually occuring is a withdrawal bleed because your body isn’t getting the hormone it’s used to. The hormone in the pills is basically tricking your body into thinking you’re preganant. It is not dangerous to skip a period, but on this type of pill, just skipping the placebo week and starting the next pack may or may not let you skip. And if you do it once, your body will readjust and you will get your “withdrawal bleed” as normal when you get to the placebos on the next pack. This is the info I got from my OBGYN, she recommended switching to another ortho brand that allows me to skip my period more easily. I’m switching in a month.
Hello all!
I was looking into trying to have a period every other month on ortho lo cuz i am getting married and it would be perfect if i started that now. However, i have never skipped a period on these pills completely. i went to hawaii last year and didn’t want to be on my period. so the doc and i talked and it wasn’t simple. there were a certain number of each hormone level i took and ones i didn’t so that it bumped by period back a week or so. it didn’t mess up my flow or cause problems later, it was perfect. i couldn’t tell you exactly what i did, but just talk to your doctor that is what they are there for, cuz there isn’t an easy fix all answer. hope this helps!
Susan: “Instead of trying to ruin yourselves, why don’t you just stick to the normal cycle? It can be very harmful to your system, not to mention confusing, when you don’t have a regular period at regular times. ”
Because SOME of us are going on vacation and don’t want our period!!!! Where is your medical license?????!
So what? You are going on vacation. Many people have a period on their vacation.. Big whoopie..
OMG!!! Hillary is a MONSTER!!
I am on ortho tricyclin lo and i tried to “skip” my period and skip the placebo pack and go straight to the next pack. It didnt work, i spotted continually for a month:(
I am having the same issues as most of you
( I have been taking Ortho tri-cyclen lo for almost 2 years. I decided to skip my period for the first time. I just started a new pack instead of taking the placebo pills. Well it only delayed it for 3-4 days from when it normally would start. And now I’m experiencing breakthrough bleeding ever since!! I have now had it for 9 days! In another week, I will be on the placebo pills… I really hope this doesnt until then and then have another period!
I WILL NEVER TRY TO SKIP A PERIOD AGAIN ON ORTHO TRI-CYCLEN LO!!! EVER!
I just tried to skip a period and had the btb like everyone else about 2 weeks into my second pack. I’m just wondering how long it took people to get back to the normal cycle after experiencing this. I am getting married and am trying to avoid being on my period the week prior (and wedding day) to the wedding and the week of the honeymoon. So… I want to skip one more week to get on track. Any suggestions? Did the next normal pack of pills after the placebo pills turn things back to normal?
Ladies!
Call your doctors if you are nervous. Call a clinic if you don’t want to call your docs. If you are scared about your health take it seriously!
I was looking for info here because my husband surprised me with a honeymoon and it is the same week I’ll have my period. I don’t feel like being romantic and being on the beach at that particular time. I only need to delay it by a few days so, looking at all your comments, I’ll try taking the third week pills.
However, for safely sake, I will also double up on the contraception! I only want to being a nice tan home from my vacation, not a reason to celebrate Mother’s Day before we are ready!
I’m not a doc. I did teach safe sex for years. If you are playing with your pills at all, it is always wise to double up on your contraception! Better safe than a unplanned Mommy!
The ortho tri-cyclen does work to only get 4 periods a year but there may be spotting in between it is how my clinic gyn advised me to take mine… just take it regularly except the period pills until the third month its completely fine
Evryone is different. Not evryone’s body is the same as others.
I was thinking about what Erica stated a while ago, taking week 1 twice, week 2 twice, and week 3 twice. Has anyone else tried this? In a way it does make sense…
the reason why you’re having trouble with skipping a “period” and starting a new pack is that you are starting over by taking week 1 doses….week one has less hormones than week 3 so if you want to skip the “period” start the new pack but go straight to swallowing week3- you know, a continuous level of higher hormones to prevent “period”.
thus- pack 1 with week1 week2 week3,and after week 3 start pack 2 and take week 3 only
If you want to skip your period Ortho Lo is not the right pill for you. I’ve done it with other pills successfully, but with Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo, it doesn’t work. And even if it does work the first couple of times, you will end up with breakthrough bleeding that lasts MUCH longer than normal periods. A couple of years ago, after successfully skipping for a few months, I had 21 days of bleeding! No cramps, just bleeding, but it was extremely annoying.
hey, im also on Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo. Ive been under alot of stress and i was recently (like the 2days before my period) REALLY sick…now im late-and its been two days. I took one of my pills 18 hours late-is it normal to be late because of sickness, late pill and stress? im freaking out. and all three of the preg. tests said i was neg-but i dont know. HELP
I too have been looking to skip my period because i’m going on vacation in a couple months. What I read online, and what I think I am going to do, is that you take a whole pack just like normal, but than delay starting a new pack by a week, you aren’t protected from pregnancy during that week (i’m not going to trust the week after that either) but it will delay your period by a week. You have to plan in advance for this one, and it does make you unprotected. But I have a long distance relationship anyways and won’t be seeing him during those weeks.
I’m also looking to see if anyone else has tried the week 1 twice, week 2 twice, then week 3 twice thing. I would like to know how that worked out for other people.
I skipped two periods, but the second period month, I had my period on the last day of that week when my period was sopposed to end that month. I don’t know what is happening.
i started the sugar pills of the ortho tricyclen pills this is my second packet.. i started the sugar pills from the first packet the second day of my period on a sunday. then i unexpectedly had sex this sunday. that same day i had started my second pack. i started with a sugar pill. and then the next day i had a sugar pill and a hormone pill. i havn’t gotten my period. it’s about five days late. i’m worried. could i be pregnant?
Last month I skipped my period by skipping the placebo pills and going right into the next pack (Im on Ortho-Tricyclen Lo). I am now 5 days into my sugar pills of that new pack..and havent really started my period.I have have cramping and swelled breast as usual..and only a lil brown spotting..but no flow. I am wondering if it is just late..i have two more days on sugar pills. Does anyone know why this is..and I am still protected being that I never skipped an active pill right?(meaning no possibility for pregnancy right!? )
I wanted to skip my period because my boyfriend is leaving for 3 months this summer. I’m in tri sprintec [triphasic pill]. I took my pills regularly 1,2,3. and then I skipped my placebos, and took my next pack backwards 3,2,1. this isn’t working! I started my period a week after skipping. I am reading post where women did this and bled for more than a week! I hope this doesn’t happen to me… It seems that the 1,1,2,2,3,3 is the best method. Or just getting on a monophastic pill!
I’ve been on this pill for over two years. I tried to skip my period once for the sake that i thought I could and ended up learning my lesson. I got my period for over two weeks!!! Then it went back to normal. Well now, I have prom this week when I should be on day 2, my heaviest day! So I’m going to try delaying my period a week by taking the 3rd week twice then taking the placebo pills and starting over like normal with week one. I’ll let you all know how it works!!
I had been on tricyclen lo for 3 packs (including the placebo)…meaning close to 11 weeks all together. and decided i’d try continuously taking the next pack and skip the placebo of the 3rd pack.
I ended up bleeding through at the regular time anyways, like most people apparently. but it was a normal amount of bleeding the first 3 days. Since then i’ve just had a little bit of the brown blood for 7 days. It’s not excessive at all, just a little inconvenient I guess. So I’ve just started my 3rd week of the active pills(blue) and based on what i’ve researched, will be expecting what i’ve had to continue.
No one really follows up on what happens afterwards…so i’m gunna try and do that. I’m going to go back to the placebo, and I should be starting my regular bleeding in a week and a bit. And I intend on posting my results after as to whether or not my period goes back to normal immediately, or if it takes a while.
good news
so i finished my 3rd week of the pills, and luckily the last 3 days i had no discharge whatsoever, which made things much easier for my boyfriend and I 
. then i began my placebo week & started my regular bleeding 4th day in. 
so relieved. hope things go back to normal as quickly for others as it did for me
I want to skip my period for my wedding. I agree messing with your body is a bad idea but give me a break. This is my once in a lifetime experience.
My doctor suggested I stop taking the pills a week earlier so that I bleed a week earlier. Anyone have experience with this?
I started Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo in January 2009. Two weeks ago, I went on a family trip, and decided to skip my period. I took the pills normally, but skipped the sugar pills, and went to a new pack. Like this:
123123
and then I will start the sugar pills in a couple of days. Hopefully, my period will come.
I’m 20 years old, and my dad thinks I’m pregnant, and that if I am, it’ll be the worst thing ever.
Ugh.
I am on ortho trycyclen i am attempting to skip a period i have read up that people are skipping the sugar pills and directly starting a new pack however i have heard that these people are having trouble regulating their bodys after attempting to skip…i came across the method of taking week 1 week 1 week 2 week 2 week 3 week 3 from two packs…my question is…does this work??? has anyone tried it? and also if anyone has tried it, after taking these sets of pills does your body regulate back to normal if you start your 3rd pack as usual? please help anyone
Hello everyone, I have read most of your posts and I just want to share my experience with ortho-cyclen as well as ortho-lo. I was placed on BCPs when I was about 13 because I had very long, very heavy periods and was missing school because of my cramps. I am now 26 and have had no problems other than severe headaches with ortho-cyclen,that’s why my doctor switched me to lo. I have been skipping my “periods” for at least 7-8 years without any problems at all. I know that all of our bodies are different and I am not trying to convince anyone otherwise. I just take the first 3 weeks of pills and instead of taking the placebos, I just start a new pack. I have done it for up to 3 months. I’ve tried 4 but I got my “period” on the 4th month.I only did the 3 month thing just to see how long I could go without having my “period” while on the pill. I was not sexually active during this time because I was unsure of how my body was going to react to skipping the pills and I didn’t want to get pregnant. Now, I just stick with every other month because my cramps are still very painful. Being able to skip “periods” really came in handy for graduation, parties, dates, my wedding/honeymoon, and if I just didn’t want to deal with the cramps one month. That’s just my experience and I hope you ladies continue to post yours, they’re very informative.
Thank you
I am on ortho tricyclen lo and just went on a vacation the last week in august and skipped my period by starting a new pack of pills after my third week and have been fine. My period is coming up again this coming week and I plan on skipping it again as I am going on vacation again. I have never done it 2 months in a row, but I did not have a problem doing it last month
I’m on otcyclen pills and I’ve been on them for a 3 weeks I’m currently on week 4 and is on my second day my period has not come yet but hopefully it would I recently took a pregnancy test but it was negative i’m thinking about taking another just to be on the safe side but this is a very scary feeling!
Hi Everyone,
I’ve read most of these posts and wanted to share my experience: I tried skipping my period once (just to test it) by going from Week 3 to Week 1. I ended up spotting on the new pack for an entire month! I just kept taking my pills like I normally did.
Since I haven’t seen my boyfriend in almost 1 month, I’m supposed to have my period when he comes to visit this month (he’s in the military). This time, I’m going to go from Week 3 of my old pack to Week 3 of a new pack…like someone suggested in an earlier post. Hopefully, I won’t spot like I did last time and it’ll only delay the start (which is all I care about since my boyfriend is only on leave for 4 days and then he’s gone for 1 year.
I’ll let you gals know how if it worked.
Thanks,
T.