Question About Only 3 Periods a Year???

This request was from a couple days ago, so you may not be interested anymore, but I thought I would respond anyway. Yes it is totally possible to have blot clots and strokes from BC. However, like the other women have said, all birth controls run that risk. The BC that have a period once a week, can be taken right after another without taking the placebo week to skip periods. I worked for an OB/GYN for 5 years and the doctors there would tell their patients to do that all the time, if they wanted less periods. Basically the new 3 period BC are just skipping the placebos. And making it so you only have to fill 4 prescriptions a month. If you are really worried about the possibility of clots and strokes, one simple way to watch, (on top of talking with your doctor) is to watch your blood pressure. If your blood pressure gets higher while on this pill it may be something to watch.

I think it's a coincidence that she's on a 3-period/year pill. As you stated, taking any birth control pill comes with a risk of blood clots. Medications aren't always 100% safe, but typically they do more good than harm.

As you may or may not know, when men designed the "original" pill, they decided to have a placebo week simply because they thought women would think it "unnatural" to not have a period, although there is no proof that NOT having a period is detrimental to your health.

And it's always a good idea to check with your doctor if you have concerns, since he/she is best able to address them.

I was on YAZ for about three months, but I didn't like it...it seemed to have the opposite effect on me--I gained weight! And it made my periods really weird. So I quit taking it. When I was on it, though, my doctor never mentioned anything about having only 3 periods a year...However, about 10 years ago, I went to Korea to teach English for several months. I had heard a rumor (that wasn't true, as I discovered when I got there) that they did not have the kind of tampons and maxipads that we have in the U.S. When I asked my doctor what I should do about this, my doctor at that time suggested that I just take my birth control pills one pack after the other, skipping the sugar pills and therefore not getting my period. SHe seemed to think that it was perfectly safe to do this. I thought it sounded weird, but I did it--it was much easier than having a period! But I only did this a few months, and when I returned home to the U.S. I went back to having my periods again. I am not sure if any of this helps you, but I never had a problem with any of that stuff.

Birth control CAN increase your risk for a clot--all of them can. So can hormone replacement during menopause. The birth control patch has shown higher rates in studies though. A huge deal: smoking can increase that risk further. Stay active and avoid being sedentary for a long time (i.e. sitting in an office chair for 8 hours without walking around a little)
When a drug company does a study they are required to report all adverse events. These events may or may not be related to the drug.

From what I've read and in talking to other women, its my conclusion that women all react differently to BC. I react very badly to it, but I have a good friend who swears by it and if she doesn't use it religiously, then she has some severe mood swings,problems with weight gain, and acne.

The risks, like blood clots, are there for all women, but I think it really depends on your individual body chemistry and what your doctor recommends.

Since I was 16 I was on birthcontrol of some sort or another. I was on Depo injections and I didn't have a period until I got married and stopped taking it...after I had kids I was on a low dose pill and I never took my placebos and skipped my periods all together. So total in the last 13 years I have only had periods when I was trying to get pregnant...I have had no ill effects and no problems. I am not a smoker of have any other risk of DVT...

I am a 29 yo mother of 2 beautiful kids.

I agree that it had more to do with being on birth control than on that particular one. For me, I can't use any, even IUDs because of the risk of blood clots. Which isn't to say that I haven't had doctors prescribe them for me. Some are just not aware of some diagnoses that can increase that risk as the research is new. If you don't have those conditions, I'd say your fine, but check with your doctor if you have concerns.