hi everyone...

i called my doc this afternoon but he has not returned my call yet. i'm driving myself crazy googling everything so i just thought to register here and ask my questions, at least to get peace of mind so i can sleep tonight. you all seem like sensible people so...

i began taking birth control (ortho tri-cyclen lo) for the first time ever last tuesday (08/19/08). it was the first day of my cycle, so i opted for the day 1 start. i understand from my pamphlet that i am protected immediately from pregnancy. i know some sites and whatnot say to wait a full month, but that's mainly for insurance purposes, as women are getting used to taking the pill habitually. i have taken my pill every signal night at 10:15 pm, just before bed. i have not been late at all. i have an alarm set on my cellular phone that buzzes me as i'm doing my nightly routine. i believe one time i took the pill at 10:20 pm, but that's inconsequential, i'm sure.

anyways, it is now monday night. i have been sick with a virus and have thrown up a few times. i know this is kinda gross so, i apologize in advance. i took my pill thursday night at 10:15 pm. i threw up friday around 5:00 pm. i took my next pill friday night at 10:15. i threw up again on saturday at around 6:00 pm. i took my pill for saturday at 10:15 as usual. i did not throw up at all sunday and was sure i was over the bug. i ate some soup for dinner and had a light breakfast this morning. not a good idea! i threw up today at 4pm and am waiting to take my 10:15 pill in about an hour. my question is, is my effectiveness compromised at all with this stomach bug? i'm nervous because i just started the pill. i realize the vomiting has only been once instance, over the course of a few days, a good 15-20 hours after my pill was taken, and most sites (as well as my pamphlet) say that you're safe after about 2 hours, but i just want to double-check. also, my boyfriend comes in from out of town on monday. we would like to be intimate (haha this sounds so silly) and i am wondering if i should use back-up, like condoms or some vcfs that i have? would that be wise? be brutally honest with me girls, i'm quite the hypochondriac!!!!

hannah*

Problem with your question is that you provided your own answer.

So anyone replying will say the same.

YES...

haha.

It is necessary to use a Condom if you have been throwing up as you will not be as protected even if the pill has worked it's marriage it's an iffy thing.

Just use a Condom until you have your next period and then you'll be safe again not to.

CW

Yes, use condoms. It will spare you freaking out for the next month about whether you did the right thing by not using them. Believe me, I know how much using condoms sucks when you went on hbc specifically to avoid using them, but it's better than getting pregnant!

thanks, guys.

i'm a little confused. my doctor called me back today and said that as long as my vomiting was more than four hours after my pill ingestion, i was still fully protected. i explained to him that, in total, i have vomited three times on three separate, each instance being 13-15 hours after my pill. he said he understood my concern and, if i was that worried, to use condoms just for peace of mind, but that i would be covered.

now what?! i was thinking of calling my general practitioner for a second opinion, since he's just the ob/gyn at the clinic i go to.

hannah*

I think i understand what you are getting at, do you think that your vomiting could be a result of the birth control? I had that problem before i switched..... it's just a though and talk to your GP. best of luck
cheers

hi withered... thanks for the reply. initially, i thought my sickness was bc-related. i am on ortho tri-cyclen lo and again, i just started for the first time ever on oral contraceptives at the beginning of last week. i noticed the first thirty minutes after taking the pill, i'd feel a bit nauseated, however, thursday night, the sick feeling stuck around. friday at work, three people were out with the flu and i went home early (after throwing up). i called my doctor to ask if i could take some anti-nausea since i was on the pill and just starting it, not wanting to decrease any effectiveness, and he recommended dramamine. i was taking that, and i think that was the only way i was able to hold off puking as long as i did. i think i've shaken the sickness now. it'll take a little longer on the pill to see if any of this is caused by the pill, but for right now, it looks to be just the virus.

my main concern was if any effectiveness was in question, even though the closest i vomited compared to when i took my last pill was 13 hours, which is well past the 2-4 hour window i'm reading about and that my doc told me about. he said i should still be fully protected and wouldn't need back-up. i guess just to be safe i'm gonna call my gp tomorrow to get a second opinion. feel free to contribute anything else. i appreciate this board!!!

Like I said before, if you want peace of mind, just use condoms. You'd probably be fine otherwise as your doctor indicated. But there's no point in stressing out about this if you can just use condoms to ease your mind.

i talked to my gp this afternoon and did some more internet research (told ya, i was a giant hypochondriac!)... my gp said that as long as my vomit was more than two hours after each episode, i am still fully protected. the internet said the same thing. i think the longest window of time where there would be cause for concern that i've read thus far was 5 hours. my shortest instance was around 15 hours so i think i've overkilled the point successfully!! i picked up some VCFs at walgreens tonight and i'm just gonna use those for the next seven days, just to be safe. my b/f can't wear condoms. sound like a good plan?

thanks guys for all your help.

hannah*