Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 2: With the contraceptive pill and hormones
• Method 2 of 2: Take precautions
• Warnings

Sometimes there is a reason to want to delay your period. Maybe there's a special event coming up, or you're in a sports competition that doesn't make you want to worry about your period. Most women can delay their period without any problems, but always check with your doctor first, especially since the easiest and best way to delay your period is by taking the contraceptive pill or other medications.

To step

Method 1 of 2: With the contraceptive pill and hormones

1. Indicate on the calendar when you do not want to have your period, and see if you expect your period. Women on a regular cycle, or women who are already on the pill, know quite accurately when to have their periods.
   • You can then determine whether or not you will have your period on those days. If it doesn't work out, it's okay, because you can delay your period as long as you plan it in advance!
   • Note that women with an irregular cycle never know for sure when they will have their period.
2. Use the contraceptive pill to delay your period. Most pills contain 21 active pills (with hormones in them), and possibly seven more placebos, without active substances. The pills with placebos are designed to help you maintain your routine while you can expect a withdrawal bleed in those last seven days. If your strip only contains 21 pills, you have to keep an eye on when the gap week is over. It is intended to repeat this cycle every month; 21 days an active pill, then seven days nothing, or inactive pills. However, if an important event is coming up, you can choose to delay your period with the help of the pill. Here's how to do that:
   • You don't necessarily have to stop taking active pills for seven days. Actually, the number 21 is just out of the blue. It's meant to mimic a woman's natural cycle, which is about 28 days, but that doesn't mean you should always follow that exactly.
3. Take the "active pills" for longer than 21 days. As long as you take active pills, you will not get a period. That's fine for most women. But don't count on it to be 100% effective, because sometimes your body can't handle such a sudden change well.
   • If you only decide at the last minute that you want to delay your period, you can keep taking the active pills until the event is over. Then stop taking the active pills for seven days or continue with the placebos so that you have a withdrawal bleed.
   • If you do this, most doctors recommend that you throw away the rest of the opened pack of pills. Then you will not lose count if you continue after seven days. The way the pills are packaged is important for most women to keep track of when to start and stop taking the active pills.
4. Start shifting your period earlier. A "surer" way to delay your period is to shift your routine earlier - a few months before the event when you don't feel like having your period. If you start shifting earlier (by taking more active pills in earlier months and then resuming a 28-day cycle), your body can get used to the adjustment better.
   • To do this you have to check the calendar early on. For example, if you know that you would like your period 10 days later in four months, you can shy away from your current cycle for 10 days, instead of the month you want to skip your period.
   • Then stop for a week or take the seven inactive pills.
   • Making this adjustment a few months in advance (athletes do this before an important competition, for example) gives your body a chance to adjust so you don't have to worry on the important day.
5. Try a birth control pill that allows for a longer cycle. If you want to delay your period for more than a week or month, there are certain birth control pills that allow for a longer cycle. Most people only get their period once every three months, instead of every month. This method is called swallowing the pill or an extended cycle.
   • You can use the pill for several weeks in a row with an extended cycle. With most brands you can swallow for 12 weeks in a row.
   • Because this changes your hormone balance (because you only have your period once every three months instead of every month), you should ask your doctor if this is a healthy option for you. In general, it won't hurt if you've already started taking the pill.
6. Ask your doctor to prescribe norethisterone. If you are unable or unwilling to take the pill, you can ask your doctor to prescribe a hormone pill called norethisterone for you. You take norethisterone three times a day, in the days before your next period.
   • Norethisterone contains progesterone. Progesterone levels drop just before your period, causing the endometrium to detach, causing your period. Keeping these levels elevated right before your period will delay or stop it.
   • Side effects can include bloating, stomach discomfort, sore breasts and less sex drive.
7. Consider getting a progestin IUD. If you know long in advance that you will want to delay your period at some point, you can ask your doctor for an IUD. The doctor inserts the IUD - a small plastic object shaped like a "T" - into the uterus. The IUD releases a progestogen, causing your periods to lighten or stop altogether.
   • An IUD works for five to seven years.

Method 2 of 2: Take precautions

1. Discuss lifestyle changes with your doctor. If you are going to change your birth control plan or exercise schedule, it is good to discuss this with your doctor. It usually doesn't hurt to delay your period on the pill. But do ask your doctor first whether it will affect your health, given your medical history.
2. Make sure you are protected against pregnancy. Delaying your period does not automatically mean that you are protected against pregnancy. Unless you are on the pill or on an IUD, you are not protected against pregnancy if you have delayed your period. Use condoms and know the first signs of pregnancy.
   • If you have delayed or missed your period, it can be more difficult to know if you are pregnant, as the absence of periods is usually the first sign. Pregnancy can also be characterized by sore breasts, nausea and fatigue. Watch for these signs and take a pregnancy test if you notice them.
3. Protect yourself against STDs. If you skip the inactive pills and go on to the next pack, your birth control pill will be no less effective. But the pill does not protect you against STIs, so if you and / or your partner have not both been tested, you should still use condoms.

Warnings

• Always consult your doctor before changing your lifestyle or the way you take your medication.