We haven't gotten to the reproductive system in A&P, and my Human Sexuality textbook really only gives a general overview of the function of oral contraceptives, so this is more informed guesswork than anything else.
My understanding of the timing of homonal contraceptives is that the reason you are supposed to start them on the first day of your period is because the dose of hormones in the early forms of The Pill varied depending on what stage of your cycle you were in, and the entire thing was designed to tweak your existing hormone levels to make your body think it had already ovulated when it actually hadn't. The amount of hormone in pills has decreased since the early days, but the tri-cyclic forms of pills still follow this approach, or so I am given to understand.
But the mini-pill is different, because it's just a single, low-level progesterone dose rather than a dose that varies as the month goes on. So I'm not sure it's as important to time it with your cycle. Starting from the first day of the month is mainly a safeguard procedure with these non-tricyclic forms of The Pill, because if you start on the first day of your cycle, you can know you haven't already ovulated and therefore won't go around thinking you are protected when you actually are not.
However--this period you are experiencing may be the result of the mini-pill itself. Speaking from personal experience, my cycle went WAY out of whack just about the month I started on the mini-pill at the age of 21, and it took me the better part of 8 years to get back on something resembling a 28-day cycle (I spent about 6 years spotting for 4-5 days, bleeding for 3-4 days, and then spotting for another week, even long after I had quit the mini-pill and despite having tried a number of other pill formulas--that was a real joy.) So the period you think might be due to your having ovulated may actually be because you started on those pills. I really don't know how common it is for the mini-pill to cause irregular bleeding, maybe my case was unusual and doesn't apply here. But it's something to consider.
There is a strong argument to be made in favor of the low-dose mini-pill, because loading excess amounts of hormones into your system if they aren't needed really isn't the best of ideas. But if this irregular bleeding is a side-effect of the pill, then that's not exactly an optimal situation, either.
So what is my recommendation? If it's important for you to be on the Pill NOW, then I would start a new pack and eat the cost if insurance decides to be bitchy about it (or perhaps your doctor might provide a sample pack) because I think that keeping the cycle of the pills as attuned to your natural cycle as possible really is the best option. But...if your present period is the result of the first week of being in the mini-pill rather than because you ovulated, then that isn't really fixing anything.
You may wish to test exactly what your body is doing naturally first by quitting your current pack and just waiting for your next period to begin a new one, which would not only prevent the hassel of arguing with your insurance company, it would give you an idea of whether or not the bleeding you are now having is actually a result of your cycle, or possibly a result of the pill.
Either way, talk to your doctor tomorrow (yeah, I know, duh!)
no subject
We haven't gotten to the reproductive system in A&P, and my Human Sexuality textbook really only gives a general overview of the function of oral contraceptives, so this is more informed guesswork than anything else.
My understanding of the timing of homonal contraceptives is that the reason you are supposed to start them on the first day of your period is because the dose of hormones in the early forms of The Pill varied depending on what stage of your cycle you were in, and the entire thing was designed to tweak your existing hormone levels to make your body think it had already ovulated when it actually hadn't. The amount of hormone in pills has decreased since the early days, but the tri-cyclic forms of pills still follow this approach, or so I am given to understand.
But the mini-pill is different, because it's just a single, low-level progesterone dose rather than a dose that varies as the month goes on. So I'm not sure it's as important to time it with your cycle. Starting from the first day of the month is mainly a safeguard procedure with these non-tricyclic forms of The Pill, because if you start on the first day of your cycle, you can know you haven't already ovulated and therefore won't go around thinking you are protected when you actually are not.
However--this period you are experiencing may be the result of the mini-pill itself. Speaking from personal experience, my cycle went WAY out of whack just about the month I started on the mini-pill at the age of 21, and it took me the better part of 8 years to get back on something resembling a 28-day cycle (I spent about 6 years spotting for 4-5 days, bleeding for 3-4 days, and then spotting for another week, even long after I had quit the mini-pill and despite having tried a number of other pill formulas--that was a real joy.) So the period you think might be due to your having ovulated may actually be because you started on those pills. I really don't know how common it is for the mini-pill to cause irregular bleeding, maybe my case was unusual and doesn't apply here. But it's something to consider.
There is a strong argument to be made in favor of the low-dose mini-pill, because loading excess amounts of hormones into your system if they aren't needed really isn't the best of ideas. But if this irregular bleeding is a side-effect of the pill, then that's not exactly an optimal situation, either.
So what is my recommendation? If it's important for you to be on the Pill NOW, then I would start a new pack and eat the cost if insurance decides to be bitchy about it (or perhaps your doctor might provide a sample pack) because I think that keeping the cycle of the pills as attuned to your natural cycle as possible really is the best option. But...if your present period is the result of the first week of being in the mini-pill rather than because you ovulated, then that isn't really fixing anything.
You may wish to test exactly what your body is doing naturally first by quitting your current pack and just waiting for your next period to begin a new one, which would not only prevent the hassel of arguing with your insurance company, it would give you an idea of whether or not the bleeding you are now having is actually a result of your cycle, or possibly a result of the pill.
Either way, talk to your doctor tomorrow (yeah, I know, duh!)