When having sex, if you are not looking for a pregnancy as a result of sexual intercourse, it is necessary to take precautionary measures, be it a condom, an IUD or resorting to other methods such as birth control pills, the preferred by many women.
If you are thinking of starting to take them but you don’t know how to use birth control pills, we are going to explain what you need about them. However, to begin with we can assure you that it is very easy, since you will only have to take one pill a day.
Types of birth control pills
To begin with, you should know that there are two types of contraceptive pills, which are the combined ones and those that only have progestin, the latter receiving the name of “minipills”.
Combined pills
Combination pills contain two hormones, progestin and estrogen. They are the most common among antibaby pills. By taking a pill every day you will have the protection you need against pregnancy, without having to take it at exactly the same time each day.
However, it is recommended to establish a daily hour so that it becomes a habit and is taken every day. It will always be advisable to have an alarm or a note that warns you that you should take it.
Progestin pills – mini pills
In this case, it is about pills that only have the progestin hormone, that is, they lack estrogen. These types of pills must be taken at the same three-hour interval each day to be effective against pregnancy.
This means that you have less margin in the event of forgetfulness, although they are also effective in dealing with a possible unwanted pregnancy, so that the chances of it occurring are minimal.
How to use birth control pills according to their type?
In a more detailed way, we are going to explain to you the way in which you should use birth control pills, depending on the type in question.
How to use combination pills?
As we have already indicated before, as long as you take a daily pill you will have protection against a possible pregnancy; And you don’t always need to take it at the same time.
These types of pills are usually sold in formats of 21 or 28 pills. As you may have doubts about their intake, we will explain how you should take them in each of the cases.
Packs of 21 pills
In the case of packages of 21 pills, one pill must be taken per day for 21 days, that is, three consecutive weeks. Then none of the pills are taken for a week. In that week that you do not take it will be when the menstruation goes down.
It is important that you take all the pills that are included in this package, since this type of format does not include placebo reminder pills, that is, without hormones.
Hormonal pills are the ones that protect you from pregnancy and you should keep in mind that, during the week of your period, even if you don’t take the pills, you will be protected against pregnancy.
You will have to start the next pack after not taking pills for 7 days. Remember that you must start taking them again one week after the last pill.
28 pill format
In the case of the 28-pill format, one pill must be taken per day for 28 consecutive days, starting a new pack on day 29. This is possible because the last pills in these packs are placebo, that is, reminders to that you continue with the routine of taking a daily pill and not lead to forgetfulness. In this way you will take each day the one that corresponds.
Depending on the manufacturer, the number of days of reminder pills varies, although in most cases it is seven days, which will be when the period drops. Sometimes these placebo pills include some supplements.
There are also formats with a greater number of pills so that it can serve you for several months, although these two that we have mentioned are the most common ones.
How to use the minipills (progestin only)?
In the event that you decide to opt for the minipills, that is, the pills that only have progestin, they have the particularity that you must take them daily in the same time slot, with an interval of three hours. In this way you can be properly protected against pregnancy.
In this case, there is less flexibility, which makes reminders and alarms more important so that you do not forget to take the pill and thus have the protection of this contraceptive medication.
In this case, the pills are sold only in boxes of 28 pills, all of them with hormones. To avoid pregnancy, all the pills in the package must be taken, since they do not have a week off as in the case of combined pills.
In this case, the period may come down during the fourth week, there may be intermittent bleeding in the form of spots or even your period may not come down.
What happens if you forget to take the pill?
Now that we have explained how to use birth control pills, we are going to answer a common question, which is what happens if you forget to take a pill. The preferable thing is that this does not happen and you take it every day at the same time, but if one day you forget you should go to its prospectus.
In the prospectus of the pills it will tell you how to proceed and, as a precautionary measure, even if you continue taking the pills, it will be recommended that you use a condom whenever you have sex until the next pack.
