RMD asked
My daughter is 36 days late with her period. She took Novembers pack of pills and went right into Decembers packet without taking Novembers brown/placebo week. She promises no sex has happened. But she is delayed at least a week. What's happening to her body right now?
Answer
Taking birth control pills inconsistently will almost always cause irregular menstrual cycles, breakthrough bleeding or spotting. In situations where multiple doses are taken to "make up" for missed doses, it is not uncommon to have delayed menses (i.e. period) or amenorrhea (i.e. absence of menses).
Taking Multiple Birth Control Pills At Once
In this particular situation, a large number of birth control pills were taken at one time, resulting in a very high dose of hormones. While taking extra pills to catch-up for missed doses is a common situation, if 3 or more pills are missed, it is recommended to throw out the rest of the pack and start a new one. In general, it is never recommended to take more than 2 birth control tablets at the same time due to the increased risk of adverse effects such as nausea, vomiting, GI upset, breakthrough bleeding, blood clots etc...
As mentioned, taking 5 birth control pills is exposing your body to a high dose of hormones. To put this dose in perspective, with some birth control products (e.g. Seasonique), taking 5 pills would be equal to the same dose of progestin that is contained in the first dose of the emergency contraceptive, Plan B (0.75 mg of levonorgestrel). While your specific birth control product may use a different progestin ingredient, it nevertheless would be considered a very high dose of hormones all at once.
It is a well-known effect that high doses of hormones can cause you to miss your period and it can be expected. The vast majority of times however, your next menstrual cycle should return to normal. If you miss your period two months in a row, please reach out to your doctor for further evaluation.
