09-10-2006, 02:22 AM
Peace.....
Dan after speaking with my wife I have to apologize to you...you were correct about the pill. She tells me if a woman is on the pill less than a year, she should have a quick return to fertility. More than a year, it could be longer.
It seems the issue is over the hormonal interference that contraceptives cause. However there are non-hormonal forms of birth control besides the rythym method (withdrawing) and condoms which include: diaphrams and cervical caps, these must be placed 30minutes to 1hour prior to intercourse so some spontanity is lost. However she generally tells patients to just place them each night prior to bed or something like that. Also they must be left in for 6 hours after sexual activity. Another non hormonal choice is the Paraguard IUD also known as the Copper T this IUD is good for 10 years but you may remove it at anytime and you can become pregnant immediately without difficulty. The drawback to this particular IUD is that it can cause irregular menstrual bleeding for the first 12 wks. after placement and your normal cycle will be slightly heavier with cramps. Once you do decide to have a baby you can use LAM also called lactation ammenorrhea this protects you from pregnancy up to six months after having a baby if you breastfeed completely NO BOTTLE SUPPLEMENTATION!
Now hormonal methods include pills of which you can choose progesterone only or combination therapy meaning estrogen and progesterone. What the difference? Well Progesterone pills must be taken at the same time each day and if you miss more than two your cycle will start again and you must start over. These pills do not carry a risk of delayed return to fertility because for all intensive purposes you are protecting yourself each day. Now the combination pills do carry the risk of slow return to fertility however this is seen more so in long term use of the pill at least a year. Both pills are effective!
There is also the patch which you apply to the skin (looks like nicotine patches) every 7 days, also very effective. The draw back is that the adhesive is so strong is leaves a mark on the skin and women can develope a rash. Also you must be careful when you apply it because if you touch the medication part it may not be as effective that week or it may not stick so you will have to throw it out which force you to buy a new box to make it through the month. Return to fertility can be slow.
There is the Mirena IUD also known as the Levonorgestrel IUD this IUD is good for 5 years and contains a hormone, it can be removed at anytime and return to fertility is rapid. However just like the other IUD there can be irregular bleeding up to 6 months, only the mestrual tends to become light after 3-6 months and may stop altogether or be very short 1-3 days.
There is also the Lunelle combination injection this is a shot given each month DO NOT CONFUSE THIS WITH THE DEPO PROVERA INJECTION GIVEN EVERY 12 WKS THAT HAS A VERY SLOW RETURN TO FERTILITY. In contrast this injection prevents pregnancy month to month with a quick return to fertility.
Last but not least the Nuva ring is inserted vaginally once every 21 days, removed for 1 week and a new one place for another 21 days so on and so furth return to fertility is immediate.
My wife recommeds for your situation that you consider a non-hormonal method first but she also recognizes that in everyday life the non hormonal methods are inconvient with exception of the IUD. So for convience really consider the NuevaRing or the Mirena.
Last but not least my wife says that hormonal contraceptives are individualized to the user. She also wants you to know the name of the book she obtained all this information from is called "Contraceptive Technology" by Hatcher.....in case you wanted to look this up for yourself. Be sure you get the lasted edition.
Well since she took over my post with this information, I'll end it here.
Shamms