A Little Too Much Secretion for His Liking: She Bled While They Experimented with a Massager

During an intimate moment, his girlfriend began lightly bleeding. She is on birth control, and both of them want to know how to stem this problem so it doesn’t happen again.

Case #: 1604

Concern：

My girlfriend is on birth control pills, and while we were having fun with a new massager, she experienced something strange – something that appeared to be menstrual flow. Does this happen a lot? This didn’t seem right because it has never happened before.

Concern：

Your question “does this happen a lot” is noteworthy because the answer is yes, many women on birth control experience vaginal bleeding. The condition plagues so many women that it has a name – breakthrough bleeding. When speaking among themselves, ladies often refer to this as spotting.

The short explanation as to why this happens is hormone disruption caused by birth control. Oral contraceptives contain artificial blends of estrogen and progesterone that interfere with those hormones produced naturally by the body. The reproductive cycle then gets thrown off balance until a woman takes action.

Some Information about Spotting

You already know what spotting is – unusual bleeding that resembles menstruation but somehow seems different. It can be light or heavy and arrives out of nowhere without warning or calculation. Some women even experience abdominal cramps as they spot, which again is much like menstruation.

These similarities exist because both events are closely linked. Menstruation is the body’s way of shedding its uterine lining. That lining grows as the result of estrogen and progesterone, both of which prompt blood to line the uterus to nourish an embryo if pregnancy occurs. When pregnancy does not occur, the lining gets expelled in the form of monthly bleeding.

The entire menstrual cycle depends on the body’s healthy levels of estrogen and progesterone. Progesterone builds the lining, while estrogen helps keep it in place until menstruation. The latter is therefore particularly important to prevent spotting. A deficiency of estrogen – caused by birth control pills –causes the lining to slough off prior to bleeding. Brown vaginal discharge and spotting are thus side effects of low estrogen levels.

The Female Body on Birth Control

A woman just starting birth control often experiences spotting. Doctors advise the bleeding will stop after a brief interval, but under certain circumstances it can continue to afflict some. This is why health care professionals suggest women take their pills every single day without skipping - and at the exact same time each day.

Women who smoke, forget to take their pills or take low-dose birth control are more susceptible to spotting. To avoid this side effect, some ladies must switch their pill brands or dosages. A natural alternative to birth control for those seeking to prevent pregnancy is the female condom. Couples can also use male condoms or diaphragms. These methods are beneficial because they don’t interfere with hormones and thus keep the female body more balanced.

Other Side Effects of Birth Control

Additional side effects of birth control include breast tenderness, acne, dizziness and headaches. Some women also experience weight gain, while others suffer low libido and/or the inability to orgasm. Again, these changes relate to the hormone disruptions caused by the pill.

Despite the catalogue of problems associated with birth control, many women are most troubled by – you guessed it - spotting. One can never guess when or if this will occur, and although wearing a panty liner helps protect undergarments, it does not protect against the embarrassment and/or discomfort often caused by spotting. The best way to manage this side effect is to therefore block it.

No More Spotting

We’ve already discussed how you and your girlfriend can explore other ways to prevent pregnancy. Your girlfriend can also stop spotting and heavy blood flow with the natural herb Shepherd’s Purse. Proven to constrict blood vessels, Shepherd’s Purse also balances progesterone levels. (TRY: Natural Herbal Formula for Menstrual Flow Regulation) It will put your girlfriend’s menstrual cycle back on track and allow her to enjoy life and sex without worry for untimely bleeding.