Postpone your period by taking the pill

The period

For many women, periods represent a certain burden in their everyday life. Activities have to be planned accordingly and women often feel restricted by their period, be it during sport, at work or other obligations.

Therefore, there is often a desire to postpone your period. The aim of the following article is to address interesting questions on this topic. In particular, the question of how you can postpone your period with the pill should be clarified.

Read more about ovulation despite the pill

How can you best do that?

The pill is the most popular hormonal contraceptive and most women have been using it for years. Many women find the good tolerance and regular cycles thanks to the pill a great relief in everyday life.

Especially in the case of an otherwise irregular cycle, the pill can contribute to a good rhythm. Many women occasionally want to postpone their periods because of travel, commitments, sports, or work. Postponing your period is possible with the help of the pill.

If you want to postpone your period with the help of the pill, you take the pill continuously and do not take the seven-day pill break at the end of the blister. This means that you have no menstrual bleeding this month and you can start with the next blister immediately. In the following month, however, a menstrual period can be expected again during the pill break.

If you want to postpone your period again, you don't take a break and take the pill continuously. At the end of the next blister you take your pill break as usual and get your period on the same days as usual. If you don't want to postpone your period completely, but only change the day of the week on which your menstrual period takes place, you can shorten the pill break. Instead of taking a 7-day pill break, you can shorten the break to 3 days. So you can postpone the day of the first bleeding.

In the following month you take a 7-day pill break as usual. However, under no circumstances should you have a break from taking tablets longer than 7 days, since then there is no protection against conception. At best, however, you should consult your gynecologist before changing the days of your period or even postponing your period completely, as the procedure for different hormone preparations can vary.

In order to avoid errors in taking it is therefore advisable to seek individual advice. This is especially true for postponing your period completely.

Read more about this under: Contraception

What side effects and risks are to be expected

Postponing your period carries a certain risk of intermenstrual bleeding. The bleeding can be light or heavy.

This intermenstrual bleeding can actually be painful. The occurrence of other menstrual-like complaints is also possible. This can include a headache, stomach ache, gas, or nausea.

In addition, a general malaise can rarely occur.

Serious or even dangerous side effects are not to be expected. In the next month there may be irregular menstrual bleeding due to the shifting of the bleeding.
Postponing the first day of your period can also lead to intermenstrual bleeding and irregular periods.

Therefore, it is advisable not to postpone your period often.

How safe is the pill next?

When taken correctly, the pill is a very safe contraceptive. It is very important not to forget a dose, to adhere to the dosing intervals and not to take any medication that could weaken the effect of the pill.

If the latter cannot be avoided, a condom should also be used.

Postponing your period with the pill does not in itself endanger the safety of the contraceptive protection, provided that there are no errors in taking.

Ingestion errors can result, in particular, from taking too long a break in intake. If you want to postpone your period completely, you take the pill continuously without taking a break. You start with the new blister on the first day of the actual tablet-taking break.

At the end of the blister, however, you take another 7-day pill break. One does not extend the break because of the postponed period. The same applies if you want to postpone the first day of your menstrual period. You can take a shorter break and, for example, start with the new blister after 3 instead of 7 days, but never take a longer break than 7 days. In the next month, the tablet-taking break will last for 7 days as usual.

If you do this, the safety of the pill is not at risk.

Read more about this under: Forget the pill, what to do?

Can you do this more often?

Postponing your period with the pill is possible in principle, but you shouldn't do it more often.

Postponing the period is in principle not recommended by conventional medicine.

The hormonal cycle should be as regular as possible and intervening in this cycle to postpone your period does not make sense.

It is possible to postpone your period once, but you should refrain from postponing it several times. In particular, one should not suppress a period for several months in a row.

When changing the first day of bleeding, the principle that this is possible also applies, but you should try not to interrupt a regular intake rhythm by changing the day too often.

Read more about this under: What happens when you stop taking the pill

Critical evaluation of

Postponing the period with the pill is possible and enables women to postpone a period completely or change the day of the bleeding when the occasion arises.

Careless use of hormone preparations should be avoided, however, as any intervention in the hormonal system can lead to intermenstrual bleeding and other complaints.

Postponing the bleeding once can be justified and in most cases is not a problem. However, one should refrain from suppressing the menstrual bleeding for months.
The likelihood of intermenstrual bleeding then increases.

In any case, it is advisable to seek individual advice from a gynecologist in order to minimize the risk of ingestion errors or undesirable effects.