What exactly is the pill? A realistic answer from a high school student with 5 years of experience taking it

...or so an AI will tell you in a few lines, using stiff language and generalities, if you search for the pill online.

But perhaps those who have arrived at this article are looking for something deeper than that, aren't they?

Because you are genuinely worried. Because you are anxious. Because you are concerned.

I understand those feelings very well.

Five years ago, I was just like you, confused by the "pill" and searching for it constantly on my smartphone.

In this article, I, who still take the pill every morning, would like to write about what the pill is really like based on my real experiences over these past five years.

The "truth" about the pill that you can't find in search results

Why can the pill suppress ovulation?

I'll start from the very basics.

The pill is a medication that suppresses ovulation, prevents the uterine lining from thickening, and eases symptoms like pain by creating a hormonal balance in the body similar to that during pregnancy.

You don't have periods when you're pregnant, right?

The mechanism of the pill is to maintain that state by taking one tablet every day, essentially saying, let's keep the state of not having a period for a long time!.

Taking the pill does not cause problems for your body

I say this because it is often misunderstood, but setting aside side effects, basically, taking the pill is not harmful to your body.

There is also no risk of problems occurring during future pregnancies or childbirth caused by having taken the pill in the past.

Earlier, I explained that the pill is a "medication that creates a fake pregnancy state." For a woman's body, pregnancy is an expected event, a normal thing. Therefore, the state of being on the pill is not abnormal for the body, but



rather something that is naturally accepted.

In fact, menstruation itself involves building up a lining in the uterus even when you aren't pregnant and then shedding it after a certain period, so this is actually more of a burden.

If you do nothing, it is said that you will have 400 to 450 periods in your lifetime. In other words, if you don't take the pill, you will continue to put that much strain on your body, feeling pain and suffering, and becoming more prone to anemia.

The cost of sanitary products you buy every month is also not negligible.

Since the pill reduces the number of periods just by taking it, it can be said to be gentle on the body and also gentle on the wallet. (The cost varies depending on the type of pill you take)

Since your body just returns to its original state once you stop taking it, personally, I think there are only positives to taking it, and not really any negatives.

Introduction to the pill I take

I take an ultra-low-dose pill called "Yaz Flex" ↓

The pink round things lined up on the bottom of the three sections are the pills.
You push them from the front and take them out from the back to swallow.

For those who are not used to taking medicine, some packs always include placebo pills (pills without hormones) in every sheet to help build a habit.

However, mine has all 28 days as active pills.

I hate forgetting to take them, so I make sure to swallow the pill with water as soon as I wake up in the morning.

Since it is recommended to take it at the same time every day, I wake up at the same time on holidays as I do on weekdays when I have school to take it.
Thanks to that, I've become a bit of an early riser 🌞

The thing in the middle is the instructions on how to take it.
As written, both methods have a pill-free interval set.

It seems that if you continue taking the pill without setting a pill-free interval, there is a high probability of trouble with bleeding at unexpected times occurring.

By periodically setting a pill-free interval, you can induce "withdrawal bleeding" (bleeding like a period that occurs during the pill-free interval while taking the pill), which can make life more comfortable.

Also, once 3 months have passed since starting, for most people, this withdrawal bleeding is less painful and has less bleeding, and the bleeding period is shorter than their original period. (That's how it feels to me, too)

Wait, what is an "ultra-low-dose pill"?

At the beginning of the previous sentence, I suddenly wrote "I take an ultra-low-dose pill," so I think some of you may have been confused.

I, Sakuneko, am just a liberal arts high school student and not a doctor or anything, so I cannot properly explain ultra-low-dose pills medically, but if my own original explanation is okay, it goes like this ↓

I wrote this in a very simplified way, but that's the overview.

By the way, when it was decided that I would be prescribed them, I took one pill and rested at the clinic to observe, but I didn't experience any side effects (nausea, headaches, thrombosis, etc.) at all.

3 good things about taking the pill

1. My stress has decreased!

Periods are a state different from usual, so you often feel discomfort or get irritable, right?

When I take the pill, those things happen less often in the first place, and since I can roughly tell when withdrawal bleeding will occur, my emotional fluctuations have become smaller.

I feel like I have better control over my body and mind, and my stress has decreased significantly.

2. My skin has become clearer!

This is a secondary effect, but it's also been a good thing.

I had been suffering from skin problems since I was in elementary school, so I still remember how moved I was when they disappeared.

3. I've developed a habit of taking care of my own health!

I feel like this is the biggest one.

Until then, I lived a very unhealthy lifestyle using my youth as an excuse, but since I started taking the pill, I realized that the more I take care of myself, the better my condition improves, so I've become more attentive to changes in my body and mind.

I think it's a huge benefit that I've been able to take actions to be health-conscious from a young age (like eating a balanced diet and exercising).

To begin with, why does Sakuneko take the pill?

The reasons why I ended up taking the pill are explained in detail in the following two articles, so I'd like those who are interested to read them. (Sorry if this sounds like an advertisement)

Article 2 also contains a more detailed explanation of the pill that I received from my doctor.

I left it out because it would be too long, but I think it will be useful for people who have the same worries or for those who want to know more about periods and the pill.

The price of the pill you're curious about

In my case, my mother buys Yaz Flex for me at the hospital every month.

It seems to be 2300 yen per sheet.When I asked, I was told that since it's for treatment purposes in my case, it's covered by insurance, so the price I pay is

only 30% of the total costapparently.

However, if it's not covered by insurance, it's very possible that it could be more expensive than this.

Also, the hospital where I get my medicine prescribed just happens to set the price at 2300 yen, so I think the price might be higher or lower elsewhere, even for prescriptions for treatment purposes.

This is just my case, so the price might change for other types of pills.

Q&A about the pill

Q1. I heard that taking the pill makes your skin clearer, is that true?

A1. Well, it's true.

Although there are individual differences, my skin cleared up about three months after I started taking it.

That's because the pill balanced my hormones.

My doctor also told me that it has that effect.

However, in my case, I didn't start taking it to clear up my skin,it felt more like my skin improved as a bonus while undergoing treatment, so I don't think you should expect too much.

Also, please be aware that if you let your diet go completely haywire, lead an irregular lifestyle, or fail to keep your skin clean just because you're on the pill, you will still get acne like anyone else.

Q2. Do you really stop bleeding when you take the pill?

A2. Partially, yes.

When I first started taking it, I hadbleeding like a periodfor about three days.

It seems to be common, and since you're not supposed to stop taking it for the first 24 days, I just kept taking it at that time 💊

Since then, I haven't had any unexpected bleeding, so I thinkif you take the pill properly, the bleeding will really stopentirely.

However, since Yaz Flex contains a lower amount of hormones, if you interrupt your intake by forgetting to take it, you will start bleeding about two days later even if you rush to resume taking it.

Q3. Can you delay or speed up your period with the pill?

A3. You can if you adjust how you take it. (I don't recommend it)

I have a past experience where I had to stop taking it early to induce withdrawal bleeding for a few days and then resume it to prevent my period from overlapping with a school event.

But shifting your period isn't the original purpose of ultra-low-dose pills, andusually this is done using medium-dose or low-dose pillsapparently.

So, I don't really recommend it.

Q4. They say you gain weight when you take the pill, is that true?

A4. You don't gain weight because of the pill.

For some reason, the word "gain weight" appears in the search bar when you look up the pill.

This isnot a general rule at all, so please don't believe it.

It might be that taking the pill changes your hormonal balance, which leads to an increased appetite, which leads to eating more than usual, which leads to weight gain.

However, this doesn't happen to everyone, so I don't think it's right to state it as a general rule.

Please be careful not to be misled by incorrect information.

If you want to improve your QOL, the pill is recommended

My life has only moved in a positive direction thanks to the pill, so I really want you all to experience it too. (I am not a shill for a pharmaceutical company)

If you feel guilty or embarrassed about taking the pill, you can justkeep it to yourself and tell no one.

Unless the other person is a pharmacist—no, even if they aren't—no one will notice unless you tell them who is taking what kind of pill and what effects that pill has.

It's fine to take it for contraception.
It's also fine to take it to calm PMS or to treat illnesses like endometriosis.

There isno need to disclose such purposes to others at all.

So, why not consider taking the pill asa charm to protect your own heart and body?

For me, with 5 years of experience taking the pill, it isa highly recommended itemfor women who want to improve their quality of life 👍

Thank you for reading until the end!
I would be very happy if you could click the like or follow button at the end 😊💕
I am also looking forward to your comments ✨

Next, as previously announced, I plan to write about my favorite books and why I have come to love reading so much.

Please take a look at that as well if you'd like 😌
See you next time!