But when you have sex with someone, dont you take a risk of getting an STD anyway? Regardless of use of contraception or not?

I'd rather have neither (I'm already a mom) at the moment, but I know that when I do have sex I take a risk of either or both happening. I take precautions to prevent it, but the risk, however small is still there. I get tested for every STD/STI every six months at my GYN check up.

As discussed on some other threads, not all women take every precaution they can.

Something about the IUD causes a greater % risk of getting the STD.

Example...you have sex with someone on time who has herpes...say you have a 40% chance of getting herpes without any contraceptive at all...when you have an IUD in, that % increases to 60% because of what the IUD does to your body. I'm not EXACTLY sure what it is...possible that the virus can "cling" to the IUD easier than it can skin...or maybe the way it's positioned.

I don't think this is entirely accurate. When a woman has an IUD inserted, there's a chance that vaginal bacteria can be pushed up into the uterus, causing an infection. In some cases, said infections can cause infertility or even death. If you're in a monogamous relationship, chances are slimmer that you actually have an infection that could be pushed up into your uterus.

If a woman hasn't already had a child, doctors are reluctant to insert an IUD for fear of causing infertility. It's similar to the reasoning behind doctors being reluctant to perform a tubal ligation on someone who hasn't yet had a baby. Why run the risk of never being able to have children?

Moreover, once a woman has had a baby, her uterus is slightly larger than it had been prior to her pregnancy. For some reason, IUDs stay in place better if the uterus is bigger. Hence, another reason to insert IUDs in women who have already had children. (And, statistically, these women are generally married. However, that statistic probably isn't as lopsided as it used to be.)

Doctors play the stats game. If your chances of having problems are greater for whatever reason (you're not in a monogamous relationship, you've never had a child, etc.), then the chances of doctors being supportive of inserting an IUD are diminished.

I want to cry a little on the inside. I'm moving abroad and the country I'm moving to doesn't have an extended cycle pill! I'm going to have to go back to having a period once a month. Not happy. And I don't think the boy is either.

The only American brand they carry at the pharmacy is Yasmin. There are a bunch of brands from the UK that I need to investigate. I'm kinda hoping if I go to the American Hospital OB/GYN department they might have different drugs than the pharmacy.

I'm on Yasmin and I love it!! My period used to be absolutely awful before...and since I got on Yasmin, its been soooooo much better! I still see me having the mood swings of PMS, but that's the only time. I still do notice how much stress has a factor on when I start.

Eventhough I've been on Yasmin for over a year...my b/f and I don't take any chances! We even take the extra precaution and use condoms with spermicide. What has freaked me out the most is that I've recently learned of some people having kids on the way...which made me stress out that I was pregnant, however I knew the chance of that was really small.

I'm on an extended cycle pill, too (Seasonique) and I LOVE it. It shocks the pants off me that more women aren't clamoring to try it.

DolphinChica, you know you can take regular (i.e., the type where you get a period once every month) pills back-to-back and get the same effect, right? That's what I did before Seasonale/Seasonique came out. Seasonale/Seasonique just has fancy packaging. It's exactly the same as taking 3 months' pills back-to-back.

When you see a doc over there for a prescription, you could tell them that your American doc suggested it (going 3 pill cycles without a period.) It does really help for girls who get killer cramps or have really heavy periods.

Good luck - I really hope you can work out something and keep your extended cycle streak going!

Switch. There are about a million different kinds of birth control pills out there, and one probably works well with your body. If you have side effects that bother you a lot, it's time to switch drugs.

I think nausea is caused by the hormones in the pill, so if you were OK with Yasmin you'll probably be OK on whatever your doc switches you to.

Talk to your doc - seriously, it's no big deal. I went through 9 pill types before I found one that didn't make my boobs sore, my cramps worse, or my moods more swingy.

AND BE SURE TO ASK IF THEY HAVE SAMPLES. Most OB/GYN offices have them and I don't know about you, but my birth control pills are EXPENSIVE. Getting a pack for free makes me feel like I beat the system. :)

I'm wondering if there's anyone on here who purposely do not take BC pills? I've read about the horrible things that it can do to you, I don't want that stuff anywhere near my body!

I have something called estrogen dominance, and they wanted me to take BC pills for it. BC is estrogen! It's estrogen in a milder and safer form, but it is still estrogen!

I've did a lot of research on ED, and I have it under control by avoiding caffiene, non-organic dairy products, takin zinc, and eating more veggies. If anyone has estrogen dominance (or its symptoms of heavy/long periods, bad PMS, sore boobs when you're not PMSing, mood swings), and you think BC pills make it worse (I heard of this happening), definately look into some alternatives!

I know a couple girls who feel that way. One of them is my mom.

Sure; like any medication, it has its pros and its cons. But hormonal birth control can be an absolute godsend to a woman with wickedly bad cramps, crazy PMS, or a bleeding disorder.

I've never heard of this. Interesting!

Dionysus:
Its a matter of finding what works for you. Talk with your dr.

My cramps are back to being the bane of my existence, so I may have to look at getting back on some BC to control them, but I am really bad at taking pills every day for longer than two weeks.

Have you tried setting your cell phone alarm? I don't know about you but my cell phone always with me. I set my alarm and then right when it goes off I stop what I'm doing and go take the pill. No putting it off for five minutes or until I finish what I'm doing.

Another idea - when I was in college and working, I was constantly exhausted and really scatterbrained. I kept missing pills. The ONE thing that worked was setting my alarm for the middle of the night. I'd set it for 4:30 AM and put a glass of water and my pills on the table next to my bed. The alarm would go off, I'd take the pill, roll over and go back to sleep. It was weird but it worked perfectly.

I never thought about that.. hmm. Thanks for that idea.

Yeah, I have my alarm set on my phone for when I take my pill, and it has really helped me keep on track!

Like I said, I know it's weird, but it worked. :) Sometimes the crazy solutions are the ones that stick.

The docs tell you to take the pill at "the same time every day" and to match it up with something like brushing your teeth. But that's too subtle for me. I need a blaring alarm to remind me to take my meds!

That reminded me. Another trick is to keep your pills in your purse. That way if you ever forget, the pills are right there with you. Otherwise if you take it in the morning and you forgot and went to work, being 20 minutes late turns into 8 hours late because you have to wait until you're done working to go home and take the damn thing. IF you remember by then!

My college roommate insisted on taking her pill in the morning. She told me because if she took it at night, and she forgot to take a pill, 8 hours of sleeping would go by before she could take the pill. Whereas if she took it during the morning, she had all day to realize she forgot her pill, and since she was awake she could take it.