Today I start a new program

Well, the period finally came. The break-through bleeding continued for a couple of days and then the heavy flow started. It only lasted a couple of days and the cramps were tolerable. I think it may have helped that I was mentally prepared for worse.

The bleeding naturally backed off yesterday and I take my first BCP on the new program tonight. It will be nice to actually NOT be bleeding or spotting in any way again. This has really put a damper on my ocean time and my intimacy time.

We'll see how this go 'round goes....

The bleeding continues....

I've been taking two pills a day since Tuesday (3 days) and I'm still bleeding. It's more than spotting and I just don't feel like this BCP thing is controlling my hormones. I have been experiencing little pangs and mini-cramps here and there. Thursday was actually more painful, like an endo day.

I faxed my OB/GYN yesterday that I am still break-through bleeding and expeirencing little pains here and there wonder if I should stop the BCP for a week to allow my body to experience a normal menstruation and resume continuous BCPs after the cycle. One plus note: my breasts are no longer tender as they have been on the LoEstering24FE.

He called me back this morning and said he thought it was a wise idea. He said to stop the BCP now, let my cycle come and start up with the BCP next Sunday night. (It really cracks me up how doctors are always pushing the Sunday start day.)

So I won't take a pill tonight and see what happens. I'm a little nervous as my last cycle was so intense and painful, but I am crossing my fingers that since I've been break-through bleeding for almost a month, that perhaps it won't come at me with a vengeance.

Fingers crossed.

Bleeding wouldn't stop - New prescription (or so I thought!)

The double dose (1 in the morning, 1 at night) did stop the break-through bleeding. However, within 5 days after going back to 1 pill a night, the break-through bleeding started again. I again doubled up the dosage for a few days and it stopped again.

Hmmmm...looks like this low dosage wonder drug is too low for me.

Since LoEsterin24FE is $56/pak, which is only 21 days for me as I am attempting continuous BCPs for my endometriosis, I checked around for which other BCPs have a slightly higher dosage and are cost reasonable. Boy, did I find prices all over the board! YAZ is like $78/pak whereas Alesse generic is $21/pak.

I contacted my OB/GYN and discussed the continual break-through bleeding and that doubling the dose is the only way to stop it. Clearly that is not cost-effective nor reasonable. He agreed to try me on a different BCP but didn't have any samples other than LoEsterin24FE so I would have to get a prescription filled. Fine. I have no insurance and had already checked Costco's pricing on various BCPs.

He suggested several brand name BCPs that have no generic and I knew they were cost-prohibitive for my budget. I suggested generic Junel FE as it's the generic equivalent for LoEsterin 1.5/30 and since he seemed so keen on LoEsterin....he agreed and said he would call in the prescription for me so I could pick it up this afternoon. Good. Finally.

Oh, he also suggested that I take two BCPs per day for two more days to stop the current break-through bleeding.

I stopped by the Costco pharmacy and they had me fill out a quick form to get their additional discount for people without drug coverage. My two paks were $35.72, and THAT pricing I can live with. I get in the car and arrive at my next errand and peeked into the pharmacy bag. I don't know why. Curiosity, I suppose.

I see two paks of AVIANE. Aviane? I asked for Junel and he told me Junel. WTF?! I pull out my notes from my internet research and Aviane is the EXACT same formula as LoEsterin24FE!!!!! WTF?!

So I call my OB/GYN's office immediately. It's 4pm, and I get the machine. Fortunately, since he delivers babies, his cell phone number is announced on the message. I call his cell number. I first apologize for calling him on his cell, but I just picked up my prescription and it is wrong and I have no pill to take for tonight. (After all the pain I have experienced with endo, and the amazing relief I have had with taking a BCP, not taking a pill is frightening.) He says to me that he knows they filled my prescription with Aviane because he and the pharmacist discussed the most cost-effective drug to give me and they deduced that Aviane was less expensive.

BUT IT'S THE SAME DOSAGE AS WHAT I'VE BEEN TAKING AND I'M ALWAYS BLEEDING!!! He explains to me in a very calm and fatherly way that with this new drug it may work just fine because it's a different manufacturer and they have a different formulary and he has found that even though the medication may state the same dosage, the formulary is different and therefore may work. He also brought up again that the lowest dose is the best for effectively treating endometriosis and that if I take too high of a dose then the benefits may be less.

BULLSHIT I say.

So, I thanked him as graciously as I could and hung up the phone and then spewed all sorts of profanity at this asshole.

So, I will try this new drug with the same dosage as before and cross my fingers.

A quick call = A solution

Maybe.

I called my OB-GYN to let him know about my continuous break-through bleeding/spotting.

He said that even one pill delayed by 12 hours will cause the break-through bleeding even for 12 days. He said to double up on the Loesterin24Fe for two days and see if that stops it. He said to take a pill in the morning and then one at night, not two at a time.

Good to know.

I will take my normal pill tonight and then another in the morning and do the same tomorrow and the next day and see if it works.

Crossing my fingers.....

11 days of light period/spotting

It's been 11 days since I missed my pill and I'm still having a light flow. I call it spotting because it's probably not more than a tablespoon in 4-6 hours, but since there is red and brown, it's like a light period whereas spotting is usually just brown (for me at least).

I have been feeling pretty good overall. I have been focusing on the types of foods I eat and when. My acupuncturist suggested I look into digestive fire and perhaps my lack of digestive fire would explain much of my abdominal discomfort. Heck, at this point, I'll try anything. Remember, my only alternative is a laparoscopy to prove or disprove endo and I don't have insurance.

I ordered and received a copy of Healing with Whole Foods by Paul Pitchford. Funny how many of the foods that may not be best for my body type are the very foods I eat a lot of! Crazy!

My acupuncturist is always telling me my Kidney Yang is low or deficient when he takes my pulses. Also my energy tends to be low. Now after reading the book, I am picture perfect for cold (too much Yin) and some deficiency. Interestingly enough, many of the cooling foods, which I should avoid, are things like salads, raw veggies, cold foods, ice cream, beer. Those are all things I used to eat regularly. Other than the ice cream, which I ate sparingly anyway, and beer, which I used to indulge much more, all the other cooling foods are things we Americans eat to try to lose or maintain our weight. What I have noticed in the past is that when I eat a salad for dinner, I feel bloated the next morning as though it didn't digest overnight. Who would think that salad wouldn't digest easily?

It turns out, the digestive fires need to be stoked well in order to digest efficiently. If my digestive fire is/was all but out, perhaps no matter how much healthy food I try to eat, it won't digest and therefore not be healthy for me.

I have also been taking the Golden Book teapills, which is supposed to energize my system. It must be working. I do feel much better. I also am still taking the Tang Kwei Gin which is supposed to help do the same.

My appt is Wednesday morning and I am anxious to see if there has been a noticeable change.

Also, I have been walking more.

A week of spotting/light period

It's been over a week and I'm still spotting. A couple of days were like a very light period.
I ran out of tampons and am bummed. I might be able to get to the store later today. I normally buy the mega box at Costco, but I am not supposed to be having any more periods (in a perfect world) so I didn't buy a new box. Tampons are so darn expensive. So are pads. I just don't like pads. I feel unclean using them.
The light cramping stopped a few days ago, but not the brown gooey discharge.
I am exercising a little bit more. My calves are sore this morning. I suppose that's a good sign. They are sore, but not enough to prevent me from walking.
No, the only thing preventing me from walking is me.

Another day of spotting, and a little cramp

My fault! I know I am beating my self up over this, but it is my fault. Or at least I can't blame it on the Loestrin24Fe because I missed that damned pill a few days ago.
I am still spotting. I have felt a couple of twinges/cramps here and there. Nothing debilitating, thank God!
I should have walked this morning between rain showers. Instead, I browsed the internet. Now another shower is coming though.
No ocean time for me!
Damn I'm fat.
We may go to a matinee. If it's sunny later, we'll walk on the beach. I know I need the exercise!