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No More Periods

Eliminating periods with continuous birth control may sound like a woman’s dream, but is it safe?

By Katherine Kam
WebMD Feature

Reviewed by Brunilda Nazario, MD

Karen Manser hated her periods. "I just had a horrible time. They made me miserable. Sometimes I would lay curled up like a little ball in the bed in pain." So she did something drastic: she stopped her periods cold. At 44, she hasn't menstruated in 10 years.

Now, women are quickly catching on to what Manser has known for a long time: Menstruation is becoming another lifestyle choice.

Manser, who lives in Washington, first opted out of periods with Depo-Provera, an injectable hormonal contraceptive. Then with her gynecologist's approval, she began taking birth control pills continuously, without the placebo break, to suppress periods.

"Life is more convenient," she says. "You can go on vacation and not worry about it. You can wear white clothes and not worry about it. It's just wonderful."

But is it a good thing to banish periods?

The Era of Optional Periods

In past decades, doctors have used birth control, sometimes in unorthodox ways, to help certain patients suppress periods. But the optional period entered a new era in 2003. That year, Barr Pharmaceuticals launched Seasonale, the first FDA-approved, extended-cycle birth control pill designed to give women only four periods a year. The company has also released Seasonique, a second-generation drug that also advertises four periods annually.

Women may soon be able to stop periods even longer. If the FDA approves, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals' Lybrel would be the first continuous birth control pill to stop periods for one year. The experimental low-dose contraceptive contains estrogen and progestin.

But menstrual suppression, as experts call it, is a hot-button issue. Manser says that women are often baffled and alarmed when they find out she's not menstruating. "They're kind of horrified. It's like, 'You have to have periods because you have to shed your lining. This is terrible for you.'"

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists takes no official position on menstrual suppression. But several doctors talked to WebMD about the pros and cons of eliminating periods.