AIBU to think that it's dangerous to stop your periods with bc?

[namechangedbcos]

An online acquaintance told me yesterday that she has not had her periods for several years, because she takes birth control every single day. She is on a combination pill of a synthetic oestrogen and progestogen, and she finds it liberating since she used to have terrible periods.

I told her that she ought not take birth control pills continously without a break, and women over 35 cannot use it without proper medical advice and she said I was being silly, says it's perfectly fine, because there is no reason to stop it after 21 days for your 'periods' to arrive, because it is really not the normal periods anyway.

We both met on a thyroid disorder forum, so yes, she already has hormonal problems. Aibu to think she is playing with fire just to free herself from Aunt flo?

It's not natural to have periods for so long like most of us do, we're meant to go from pregnancy to breastfeeding to a few periods to next pregnancy.

Historically the pill is taken for 21 days because the first doctor who developed was Catholic. He asked permission from the Vatican who allowed him to develop it as long as it preserved the menstruation cycle which was assumed to be more natural (they did change their mind on contraception later on). To my knowledge there is no evidence behind the practice.

Studies of isolated, indigenous tribes suggest that women have about 12 pregnancies during their lives, which, along with breastfeeding which suppresses menstruation, means they have very few periods. So the natural state seem so to be to be pregnant and breastfeeding, rather than to be menstruating regularly.

The pill was originally developed as a way to improve fertility, because it means you don’t use up all your eggs. So I wouldn’t worry about her ttc soon.

I got pregnant straight away after stopping the combined pill (when I was on that). With DD2 it was two months after but only as we were away from one another in month one.

I can apparently take the mini pill until I'm 55, it appears to have prevented me from getting any more endometriomas for the last three years and I haven't noticed any side effects. And no periods at all.

Thanks, everyone. I don't use birth control pills, so I admit I didn't know much about it in detail but I did know that women over 35 should not use it casually. That was my concern, really, that this 38 woman living in a third world country with no insurance and swallowing BC pills without a doctor's recommendation.

I did not give medical advice to her, in my original post I have said clearly that I am worried SHE was doing this without proper medical advice. She got recommended for it for an ovarian cyst, and never stopped taking them even after the cyst disappeared.

Shrimpi, thanks for the detailed response!

I have a family member who was one of the country's experts in gynae and obsetrics (retired now), who once told me the only reason to have a break and periods between pills is to check you're not pregnant. Otherwise there's no good reason at all, they're not a real period anyway, just withdrawl bleeding from the hormones.

There are some risks around blood pressure. My GP was hesitant to prescribe the continuous pill for PMDD, so he referred me to a gynaecologist who felt it was the best course of treatment

I didn’t have periods for about ten years due to pill and then the coil. I fell pregnant as soon as it was taken out.