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Dear Aunt Vadge,
I’m on the patch for birth control and to help with cysts on my ovaries, and I’m worried because my period is two days late. I took a test and it was negative. I’m cramping with all the usual PMS stuff (upset stomach, mood swings).
Should I be worried? My boyfriend and I also use the pull-out method and he’s really good at it, so I guess we use two methods.
Very Worried
Age 20, South Africa
Hi Very Worried,
You can relax – between a correctly-worn patch and a negative test, the odds of pregnancy here are very, very low. What’s actually happening is reassuring once you see it.
The bleed you get on the patch isn’t a true period; it’s withdrawal bleeding, your body’s response to the hormone drop in your patch-free days, and those bleeds are famously variable – they can be light, late, or skip altogether, and none of that means pregnancy.
Two days ‘late’ is well within normal for a hormonal-contraception bleed.
Your PCOS makes that even more likely, because your underlying hormones are naturally less regular, so even on the patch the timing can wander. The artificial hormones override your own, but your natural systems keep ticking along underneath, so the odd surprise is normal.
One gentle note while we’re here: the pull-out method is a nice bonus, but it’s the weak link of the two, since withdrawal isn’t reliable on its own – happily, your patch is doing the real contraceptive work, so you’re well covered.
So trust your negative test. If your bleed still hasn’t come in a few more days, take one more for peace of mind and then believe it – a negative test plus a correctly-worn patch means this is hormonal timing, not a pregnancy. And if the skipping or irregular bleeds keep happening, mention it to the doctor managing your PCOS, but it’s nothing to be frightened of.
Warmest regards,
Aunt Vadge
This is general information, not a substitute for personalised medical advice.
