Skip...Period...Honeymoon

I noticed a lot of people who search for "How can I skip my period for my honeymoon" (or a variant of that) are directed here. Since I don't actually have an explicit post on how to skip your period during the honeymoon, I feel like I'm letting down all those poor brides-to-be. So, in the interest of smooth nuptials and honeymoons, here's a quick primer on how to skip the menstrual period.

Track Your Periods

First, get in the habit of tracking your periods so you can anticipate the start of your next period. Best to have at least 6 months of data to establish a pattern.

Plan In Advance

Second, if your period is scheduled to start during your honeymoon, the ideal time to start managing your period is at least 3 months in advance. The main reason to do this is in order to cut down/eliminate breakthrough bleeding and spotting.

Decide What Method To Use, And Use A Skip Period Regimen

Third, what you do next depends on the method of birth control you plan to use (or are already using).

Today, let's limit ourselves to women who already use birth control, a hormonal method, the Pill.

As you probably know, there are 6 methods in the hormonal group:

1. Pill (two-hormones and one-hormone)

2. Skin patch (Ortho Evra)

3. Vaginal Ring (NuvaRing)

4. Implant (Implants)

5. Shot (Injections/Shots [two-hormones and one-hormone])

6. IUD (Hormone-releasing Intrauterine Device (IUD))

For women who use a combination (two hormones) Pill brand:

Identify the type of Pill

You need to figure out what type of Pill you're taking: a 21-day, 28-day, or 84-day (Seasonale) brand.

Also, make sure it's a monophasic brand (all active pills--the pills that have hormones--in the pack have the same amount of hormones.)

TIP: An easy way to figure that out if your brand is monophasic--in a 21-day pack, all pills are the same color; in a 28-day pack, you only have two pill colors (21 pills are one color, and seven pills are a different color).

Change the way you take the Pill

You need to change the way you take the Pill. (Remember, it's best if you start this change at least three months before the planned event.)

You need to switch from a regular 21/7 regimen, to an extended regimen.

Let's use the 84/7 extended regimen as an example.

For the 21-day pack, when you finish the pack, don't wait for one week to start a new pack; start a new pack right away. Do this for four packs in a row (the fourth pack is the one you take during the actual honeymoon).

For the 28-day pack, you have 21 active pills (all have hormones, and all have the same color), and 7 inactive (or placebo, or "sugar") pills (these pills don't have any hormones, and they're all the same color, a different color than the active ones). Once you finish the 21 active pills, throw away the seven placebo pills; start a new pack right away. Do this for four packs in a row (fourth pack during the honeymoon).

For the 84-day pack (Seasonale), take the 84 pink pills.

That's it. Of course, this only scratches the surface of menstrual management and I do plan to have additional posts on this topic. (I just finished writing a book on this subject, and that wasn't enough. Now I'm blogging about it. Somebody stop me!) Like what is the difference between the real and the fake period (withdrawal bleeding). You have no idea how much confusion and misinformation surrounds this very basic concept!

Last, but not least, it goes without saying that you should never base health decisions on the postings of an anonymous blogger (no matter how lovely the blogger). Rather, use the information as a starting point for an in-depth, personalized discussion with your own Ob/Gyn.