Anyone try/take Lybrel?

J9827 · 07-18-2007, 09:09 PM

Anyone know anything or have experience with Lybrel?

JosieFB · 07-19-2007, 10:19 PM

I don't, but I have seen it advertised. It is one of those that limits your periods to not very often (or never).

miss-jelly · 07-20-2007, 03:28 PM

Apparently it's not yet available everywhere I think....(I saw the advert for it in a magazine this week)..

I googled it and apparently will be available late this year in USA and Canada : ) Sounds good though!

x

doonia · 09-27-2007, 01:06 AM

i was recently diagnosed with pcos so my doc told me to start taking lybrel.... he just told me it was a birth control pill.... so i called my pharmacist today so that they could fill my prescription....apparently i mispelled it - lybrOl - because she didn't know what it was and anyways it was too late to call the doc (5:30pm) so i decided to do my research, and found out that lybrel stops you from ovulating, thus from having a menstrual cycle....

now please explain to me, how in the world this pill is going to help me, as i haven't had an AF since the end of july (monday marked my 2nd month without periods)??????? wouldn't not ovulating increase the level of androgens in my body, or decrease any type of female hormone???

does this make sense to anyone?? if it does, PLEASE explain this to me because I got really upset after doing my research.... thanks!!

Navi · 09-27-2007, 09:39 AM

As far as I know, any kind of BCP, Lybrel included, usually won't cause more issues from just stopping your ovulation. The benefit is that if you're not ovulating, there's no real reason to worry about AF.

Generally doctors will at least prescribe something like Provera first to induce AF, to sort of clear out your uterine lining before you use BCP. If it's only your second month without AF, I guess there's no need to, that isn't a very long time to go without.

doonia · 09-27-2007, 03:19 PM

"Lybrel is a brand new combination birth control pill that is the first extended-cycle oral contraceptive designed to supply an active dose of hormones every day. This pill will completely stop a woman's period for a full year. It contains 365 90 microgram levonorgestrel/20 microgram ethinyl estradiol tablets and is classified as a low dose, continuous, non-cyclic combination oral contarceptive."

"Lybrel will work just like other combination birth control pills by preventing ovulation from occuring. The difference is that it will supply a steady low dose of ethinyl estradiol and levonorgestrel to be taken 365 days of the year without a pill-free interval or placebo period. Lybrel will prevent menstruation as long as the pill is taken daily."

Now, since I'm not ovulating, why would my doctor give me a pill that STOPS me from ovulating? Please explain to me where my logic has gone wrong

I will be calling him as soon as I have my official break at work

Navi · 09-27-2007, 07:19 PM

The question is, are you actively looking to ovulate?

Obviously it would be silly to put you on BCPs if you're TTC. If you want to ovulate anyway, that's of course your personal choice and I'm not trying to tell you you're wrong or anything!

Doctors like to use BCPs for PCOS because, as I said in my previous post, when you stop ovulation, you stop a lot of the problems associated with AF. Most notably the problem of the uterine lining building up from not having AF, and risking cervical dysplasia. BCPs stop ovulation to the extent that there is no uterine lining...so no AF, no big deal. I'm not sure how but this generally helps your hormones even out as well. It's not a big deal to not ovulate if the BCP is what's causing it.

If it really bothers you, you can always request a different BCP, or even something like Provera or Met instead.

doonia · 09-27-2007, 09:36 PM

It just got me confused, I guess I have a traditional mentality (personally I'm against BCP -bad experiences - but since it helps women then I can't really judge it, especially now that my doc wants me to go back on it, hah!) so now this no-ovulating-because-of-a-pill way of thinking is kind of new to me.... but I don't mind trying new things so I guess I'll give Lybrel a shot, it might not be as scary as I think it is

Navi · 09-28-2007, 11:52 AM

Yeah, I definitely felt that way for a while (been on BCPs for 5 years already) and still occasionally have my own freak-out moments about it, but I've done a massive amount of reading and learning that's made me feel much better.

On a side note, I was told by a doctor once that BCPs were originally developed without the sugar pill week, but it made women nervous because they never could tell if they were pregnant or not. Things like Seasonale and Lybrel are not new concepts...I think it's just the age of modern conveniences that makes women a little more blasé about not having AF while on BCPs.

doonia · 09-30-2007, 05:44 AM

hahahaha that's quite interesting, I'll definitely look into that

so i was supposed to start taking lybrel on saturday.... and I get back home and find out that my AF started.... after 2 months of waiting, the same day my biggest work project yet has ended.... hmmmm could it really just have been stress?

anyways so i thought i didn't have to take lybrel until the end of my AF.... but according to my 2-min research it seems like i was supposed to start taking the pill on friday.... oops.... and i won't be able to get a hold of my doc till monday.....

i think that all of this is getting to me, i don't understand why i'm making such a big deal out of all of this....

DahliaGrl · 04-03-2008, 08:38 AM

Hi, I am currently on Lybrel...been on it about a month and a half. I had the same questions about AF since I hadn't had one in over a year. I am not trying to get preggers so for me BCP is a double good. With the lybrel and metformin it is supposed to regulate and help reduce the amount of cysts I have and the pain involved.
As for AF - well during the first week on Lybrel I had no spotting or anything which they say is common on this pill to start with. I had explained to my DR the PCOS situation and how long I had been without AF - he said that once the hormones started to regulate my body might throw me into menstration even with the BCP because it had been so long, kind of a cleaning out process. It took about 2 weeks, but boy did it work! I had a full cycle of about 7 days and since it had been so long it was heavy and a little scary...but after it was over I am feeling much better. I am not having so many of my PCOS symptoms and the abdominal pains I had regularly.
I guess I will stay on this for a while and see how I do - but hopefully that helped answer some of the questions for the gals who were wondering about the Lybrel.

Good luck,
Dahlia