Option 1: Delay Your Period

Delaying your period has the lowest risk of spotting and is relatively straight forward:

1. Start pills 3 days before your departure date.
2. Continue on the pills for the entire duration of your trip.
3. Stop the pills on your return home.
4. Experience a period bleed 1-3 days after stopping your pills.

Option 2: Reset Your Cycle

Assuming there's enough lead time, this option is for those who would like to avoid taking medication during the event or trip and most effective if you have a predictable cycle length. (See “start date” below for lead time calculation.)

This method involves initiating a bleed before your travel, which means you won’t need medication while away. However, it's important to note that this does not fully guarantee that you won't experience any bleeding or spotting.

To figure out how to use pills to reset your cycle, you’ll need to know the following:

• Cycle Length (CL): This is the average time of the 1st-day of bleeding of your current cycle to the 1st-day of leading to the next cycle (Example: 28 days)
• Prescription Length (PL): The number of days to take the pills, given by the physician during your consult. (Example: 10 days)
• Bleeding Duration (BD): This is the average number of days you experience menstrual flow (Example: 5 days)
• Withdrawal Period (WP): This is the number of days you bleed after stopping the pills (Example: 3 days)
• Grace Period (GP): This is a few extra days in case your bleeding duration is longer than usual (Example: 2 days)
• Start Date (SD): This is the number of days prior to departing that you should take your pills. SD = PL + BD + WP + GP
• Expected Menses (EM): This is the expected date of your next period, based on your cycle length, assuming your cycles return to their regular pattern of bleeding.

Example:

Jenna wishes to leave for vacation on January 21. She has regular menstrual cycles that are 28 days long and bleeds on average for 5 days with each cycle. When should she start her pills if she is interested in avoiding pills while away?

• Cycle Length (CL): 28 days
• Prescription Length (PL): 10 days
• Bleeding Duration (BD): 5 days
• Withdrawal Period (WP): 3 days
• Grace Period (GP): 2 days
• Start Date (SD) = 10 + 5 + 3 + 2 = 20 days

Knowing start date needs to be 20 days prior, Jenna would need to start taking her pills on January 1.

• Departure Date: January 21
• Start Pills: January 21 - 20 days = January 1
• Stop Pills: January 11 [January 1 + PL]
• Bleeding Expected to Start: January 14 [January 11 + WP]
• Bleeding Expected to Stop: January 19 [January 14 + BD]
• Expected Date of Next Cycle: February 11 [January 14 + CL]

Which is Right for You?

NETA or MPA pills give you a workable way to keep your period from getting in the way of a trip or event. Which option you pick really comes down to personal preference. If you don't mind taking pills while away, delaying is the lower-risk choice for spotting. Either way, our physicians can write you the appropriate prescription so you can plan around it.

Disclaimer: This blog post is intended for educational purposes only and should not be taken as medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider for personal health concerns.