The Pill Schedule and Pregnancy
Q: My girlfriend is on the birth control pill and is now
about 4 days late on her period. She is really stressed out about not getting
it. The last week previous to us having intercourse, she was nervous about going
to college and took the pills at the wrong time of the day, every day. Now,
she is always stressed and worried about being pregnant and so am I. She really
wants her period and doesn't know what is wrong.
Dr. Donnica: I am sorry to hear about this stressful situation.
Ironically, stress itself can sometimes delay a period. However, you are
both right in fearing that altering the normal Pill-taking schedule can result
in an unintended pregnancy. The best thing for your girlfriend to do is
to take a home pregnancy urine test. If it is positive, she should see her doctor
as soon as possible to have the result confirmed by a blood test. If it's negative,
it could mean that she's either not pregnant or that it's too early for the
test to detect. She should repeat the test in 2 weeks if she still hasn't
gotten her period. In the meantime, please use a back-up method of contraception
(e.g. condoms) until she's back on the Pill on a normal schedule.
Good luck!
Donnica Moore MD
President, DrDonnica.com
Click here for more information on birth control.
Created: 8/31/2002 - Donnica Moore, M.D.
