T O P I C R E V I E W
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-22-2012 07:01 PM
Hi guys- I started a new bcp brand about a month ago, switched from Safyral (Version of Yaz) to Lo Loestrin Fe. I got my withdrawal bleed on it yesterday but it was very light and just spotting, and spotting today. Barely soiling any pads, just some brown blood when I wiped. Is it possible to get a withdrawal bleed and be pregnant? My withdrawal bleeds on Yaz were never like this- they were usually heavier and lasted about 3-4 days. This was pretty much just one and a half days of spotting so I'm concerned that it could be implantation or pregnancy related..
Robin Lee
Member # 90293
posted 01-22-2012 07:27 PM
since you are now taking a different pill, it's quite plausible that your body is reacting differently. Have you had recent sexual activity that you are concerned might have led to a pregnancy risk?
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-22-2012 07:43 PM
My partner and I don't engage in vaginal sex but we do have manual sex so I was just worried about some sort of risk occurring there. Other than that I am close to a perfect pill user, I've never skipped a pill and always take them within 30 mins of each other. Is it possible to be pregnant and still get a withdrawal bleed?
Robin Lee
Member # 90293
posted 01-22-2012 08:20 PM
My manual sex do you mean hands on each other genitals? If so, there is no need for you to be concerned about pregnancy, change in withdrawal bleeds or not. If you are concerned, and it would ease your mind, you can take a pregnancy test.
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-22-2012 10:18 PM
I'm just asking if it's possible to get a withdrawal bleed and still be pregnant. Can you help answer that for me?
KatWA
Member # 42505
posted 01-23-2012 03:12 AM
Nope, a withdrawal bleed means you are not pregnant.
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-23-2012 11:39 AM
Does it matter if the consistency of the withdrawal bleed is different? THe one I had is much much lighter than any other I've gotten before. I was only spotting for about two days (Saturday and Sunday) and now I feel like I have to go urinate very often. I took a pregnancy test Saturday morning, the morning my bleed came and it was negative. I don't have to worry about pregnancy, right?
Heather
Member # 3
posted 01-23-2012 11:43 AM
You've said you just started a new pill brand/type. That given, having differences with withdrawal bleeding or spotting would be pretty typical, especially in the first few cycles of use.
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-23-2012 12:32 PM
Thanks, Heather. One last question- does breakthrough bleeding mean that the pill is being less effective and not working the right way?
Heather
Member # 3
posted 01-23-2012 12:47 PM
Nope. Breakthrough bleeding is merely a common side effect, just like a bit of water weight gain or an increase in headaches can be.
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-23-2012 12:55 PM
So since I got some form of a withdrawal bleed on the inactive pills, I should not worry about pregnancy?
Heather
Member # 3
posted 01-23-2012 01:12 PM
You know, given the history of your posts here, I think it's clear that you ARE very worried and concerned about pregnancy. We could say "you shouldn't worry," but a) that wouldn't likely keep you from being worried and b) we're not in the business of telling people how to feel. Plus, when someone keeps being this worried, especially if and when they are doing all they can do to still be sexually active and protect themselves from unwanted pregnancy -- which would be using two reliable methods of contraception, like the pill and condoms -- that's usually something to pay attention to, not to ignore or try and make go away. feeling like that, as I think we've talked about with you before, tends to be a storing cue about things like sex simply not really being a choice someone feels good about, or best about yet, anxiety disorders, or a host of things important to address and evaluate.
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-26-2012 09:31 PM
I do understand what you mean and my boyfriend and I have cut down on most of our sexual activity. The only possible risk that I had that I could be worried about was on the 7th of jan- he was dry humping me, we were both wearing jeans and underwear and he ejaculated. His semen went through his Jeans onto mine. I touched the wet spot and could feel the semen. I got worried that something could happen so I went to the rest room to change. I ended up urinating and I'm worried that I could've wiped with the same hand that touched the wet spot on the jeans. I got some spotting like I said last Saturday and since then I've been urinatin every hour without consuming any more fluid. I also just had a dizzy spell. I don't know what could be wrong I've nver felt like this before. I've also been feeling pressure on my lower abdomen and my cervix feels soft. I took a pregnancy test just now, so on the 5th day since my spotty withdrawal bleed. It came back negative but I also took it with afternoon urine. I'm really worried about what could be wrong. Please I'll take any advice you've got.
Seashie Ray
Member # 49582
posted 01-27-2012 05:37 AM
To have a pregnancy risk, you always need direct penis-to-vulva touching or direct ejaculation to vulva touching - for example, he would have to have ejaculated on your vulva. You haven't had those things, so that test is right. Can you have a look at this: http://www.scarleteen.com/forum/ultimatebb.php?/ubb/get_topic/f/28/t/006958.html
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-27-2012 08:58 AM
I guess I'm just most worried about the second scenario- sperm coming in contact with vulva. My boyfriend stays at my house often and I know he masterbated on the toilet and sometimes the ejaculate gets on the seat. He usually wipes it off but I guess I'm just worried that what if he didn't one time and as I sat down I misjudged my angle and ended up sitting on his ejaculate. Is something like this possible? And even so, would my birth control have kept me protected? One more thing- ive also heard that if you switch birth control pill brands, you should use a backup method for the first 7 days even if you started your pill on the Sunday that you would've started your old pack. Is this true??
Seashie Ray
Member # 49582
posted 01-27-2012 10:07 AM
What we mean by direct vulva-to-ejaculate contact is that the ejaculate would have come out of the penis and onto your vulva straight away . It can't go onto a hand or a toilet seat or clothing and still be able to co-create a pregnancy with you by getting onto your vulva. The person who has the penis would have to ejaculate onto your vulva. Directly onto your vulva. This is because sperm cells can only travel around in their semen (Ejaculate is made up of both sperm cells and semen) and once that semen is exposed to air, temperature changes, semen drying a teeny bit - the sperm cells can't go anywhere, their tails break. So no, creating a pregnancy via a toilet seat isn't possible at all. Neither is creating a pregnancy via manual sex (with hands) or clothing. The ejaculate needs to be fresh. That's why it needs to be directly out on the penis and onto the vulva, with no stops or places it can be transfered by - the seconds it's out of a penis and onto something else like a toilet seat or a some underpants? It's useless at helping to create a pregnancy, it just can't. Does that help you see this a bit more clearly? To answer you other question about whether your birth control pills will prevent pregnancy anytime there is a genuine risk? Yes, for every risk they will be 98-99% effective at preventing pregnancy provding they're being used properly, which it sounds like they already are. About changing pill brands: no, a back-up method shouldn't be needed as long as you take the packs back-to-back so there's no time in between the switch. Finish your old pack of the old brand of pills and then, when you need a new pack, switch to your new brand. However, you are not at risk of pregnancy anyway, especially now you've decided to stop having intercourse. [ 01-27-2012, 11:11 AM: Message edited by: Seashie Ray ]
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-28-2012 11:37 AM
Thank you so much for all your help. I just have one last question which I have at the back of my mind. Can ectopic pregnancies be detected by HPTs one week after a missed period? Or are they only detected by blood tests? Also, what are the early signs and symptoms of ectopic pregnancies? Is it possible to start having pain one week after a missed period?
Robin Lee
Member # 90293
posted 01-28-2012 01:13 PM
Home pregnancy tests can't tell you if you have an ectopic pregnancy. They look for the hormone, which will be present no matter whether the embryo has implanted in the fallopian tube or in the uterus where it needs to be. Are you asking because you're having pain?
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-28-2012 02:26 PM
Yes I'm having pain on my lower right side. It's not excruciating and I already had a test done to rule out a uti. So are you saying that even if I did have an ectopic pregnancy, that a hpt a week later could detect that since it detects for the hormone? I've heard that with ectopic pregnancies, the hormone level can be too low for detection that's why they might not show up on an hpt. So I dont know if this info is correct or not.
Robin Lee
Member # 90293
posted 01-28-2012 04:47 PM
Reading back through the posts, I see that it's already been determined that you did not have a pregnancy risk, right? Therefore, it's not useful for you to worry about whether you might have a pregnancy that a home pregnancy test doesn't detect. Does that make sense? How long have you had this pain? Is it constant or intermittent? You were tested for a UTI. Does the doctor want to do other tests to find out what this pain is?
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-28-2012 05:52 PM
I know it doesn't make sense but I guess the signs are just pointing to it which is making me believe that it could be a possiblility. Sometimes my boyfriend does stay over and I'm just scared that he could've been masterbating on the toilet (which he tells me that he does) and could've ejaculated on the seat and not properly cleaned it up. The dr said that he wasn't sure what could be wrong but that he was going to order a liver function test and kidney function test. No I'm not having burning while urinating, just that I'm urinating frequently, I have a pain on the front right side right by the ovary, I had a really light withdrawal bleed, and I have had a soft cervix for the past week which I usually never have after a period- I've been checking it regularly for the past few months now, it's usually always low and like the tip of my nose. But for the past week (since I've been having this pregnancy scare) it's been high and soft can you please just verify that if it was an ectopic pregnancy that it would've shown up on a test by now? [ 01-28-2012, 05:53 PM: Message edited by: srk20 ]
Robin Lee
Member # 90293
posted 01-28-2012 06:01 PM
Ectopic pregnancy does sometimes slip under the radar of a home pregnancy test. I'm going to repeat that what you have just described does *not* pose a pregnancy risk. I understand that you're scared about the changes in your body. Have you mentioned to your doctor that you're worried about pregnancy?
srk20
Member # 59241
posted 01-28-2012 10:03 PM
Yes I did. He brushed it off and said if the urine test in the office was negative, it's fine. But when he palpated my stomach and I winced he said that something was wrong and ordered some blood tests which I'll get the result of tomorrow. At this point I'm just confused and worried about what to think. I keep reading about the types of pain I'm experiencing and the only thing that I'm finding is ectopic pregnancy. Is it possible to have low grade pain with ectopic pregnancy? Or is the onset of pain usually very sharp and bad like when the tube ruptures? Im also having back pain on that side but again no nausea or breast tenderness. Should I really not worry about pregnancy? I'm under my parents insurance and I live at home. At this point I'm so worried about anything happening to me which could be related to pregnancy because my family would disown me because of our religious background.
Robin Lee
Member # 90293
posted 01-28-2012 11:01 PM
No, you really really shouldn't worry about pregnancy. Unless you and your boyfriend are having the kinds of sex highlighted in our Pregnancy Scared? article as sex that could lead to pregnancy, which I understand from your previous posts you are no longer having, you don't need to worry about getting pregnant. At this point, it sounds to me like your research into what might be wrong with you is making you more anxious than reassured. What do you think about not doing that research anymore and waiting to see what the blood tests show? Also, would you like to talk more about this anxiety about getting pregnant, what you fear? Sometimes, as I think we've mentioned before, fears about one thing can be an indication of fears of another thing.