Expert: Lyndsay Mercier - 6/13/2008

Question
Dear Lyndsay Mercier   
Thank you for your attention in advance.
I am a 29 years old woman. I want to know about contraceptive pills consumption  while I have mild to moderate migraine headache attacks 1-2 times in a week  and "What would be the best method of birth control for me?" …!
And also want to know, how many days are these pills should be used before menses to prevent menstruation bleeding?
Thank you again and wait for your reply.


Answer
Taha,

Most hormonal birth control pills carry side effects such as headaches. I would say that perhaps a lower-dose birth control would be best, or maybe even a non-hormonal method would work best for you such as a diaphragm.

You never know though, side effects don't always effect everyone, so you might not have any issues with it at all. In regards to your other question, if you want to skip your period, then all you have to do is not take the placebo or "reminder" pills, and just continue on with the next pack. I've done this myself a few times when it would have been inconvenient for me to have my period, like while camping, and my doctor assured me it was safe. However, I have also heard that nobody really knows yet how safe it is, so I would suggest not to do this too often.

If you plan on preventing your periods this way on a regular basis, I would just suggest going on the Depo Provera shot because most of the time it causes your period to go away entirely. I was on the shot for three years and never had one period. I believe there are also now several types of Pills that can reduce the number of periods you have a year down to three, I believe, so maybe you would also like to look into those as well.

Hope I could help, and good luck finding a birth control that works best for your body!
Lyndsay