The combination of abruptly stopping your birth control pills on September 7th, combined with two doses of emergency contraception, can change your "bleeding pattern" (basically, can cause your cycle to be shorter or longer; your periods to be shorter or longer). This change can be experienced for a cycle, maybe two cycles.
EC does not typically cause excessively longer periods (18 days is a long time), but you mentioned that you usually have long periods, anyways. So, this may be how your body reacted to a sudden stopping of hormones, then a sudden double-dose surge of "mega dose" hormones from the EC. Please know...none of this is harmful to your body; birth control pills are very safe, even when stopped and started again. The side effect is just not knowing exactly when your period is going to start, and having some breakthrough bleeding.
When women say they have been bleeding consecutively for more than 7 days, I have suggested that they call their doctor. Your normal periods are longer than this, and I'm wondering if you have talked with your doctor about bleeding for 9-10 days as your normal period?
It would not hurt to call your doctor, and let him/her know that you have been bleeding for 18 days (although it has not been consecutively). You may not need to be seen, and you can tell the nurse or doctor you have no other symptoms, you are just wondering if they think you should be seen, or just wait until next month to see if your cycle regulates itself.
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The combination of abruptly stopping your birth control pills on September 7th, combined with two doses of emergency contraception, can change your "bleeding pattern" (basically, can cause your cycle to be shorter or longer; your periods to be shorter or longer). This change can be experienced for a cycle, maybe two cycles.
EC does not typically cause excessively longer periods (18 days is a long time), but you mentioned that you usually have long periods, anyways. So, this may be how your body reacted to a sudden stopping of hormones, then a sudden double-dose surge of "mega dose" hormones from the EC. Please know...none of this is harmful to your body; birth control pills are very safe, even when stopped and started again. The side effect is just not knowing exactly when your period is going to start, and having some breakthrough bleeding.
When women say they have been bleeding consecutively for more than 7 days, I have suggested that they call their doctor. Your normal periods are longer than this, and I'm wondering if you have talked with your doctor about bleeding for 9-10 days as your normal period?
It would not hurt to call your doctor, and let him/her know that you have been bleeding for 18 days (although it has not been consecutively). You may not need to be seen, and you can tell the nurse or doctor you have no other symptoms, you are just wondering if they think you should be seen, or just wait until next month to see if your cycle regulates itself.
Does this help?
October 24, 2010 - 8:54pmThis Comment
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