Contraception

Combined contraceptive pills are not specific treatments for acne.

However, some doctors will prescribe a combined contraceptive pill to women who suffer from hormonal acne, as there does seem to be a beneficial effect.

This is only the case with combined contraceptive pills, not progestogen-only mini-pills.

It can take around 2-3 months of taking the pill before you may notice any effect on your acne.

Combined pills like this one are often prescribed to help you manage other conditions as well as provide a reliable method of contraception.

As this treatment affects your hormones, it can have a positive effect on several other medical conditions, including:

• Acne
• Heavy periods
• Irregular periods
• Period pain
• PMS (premenstrual syndrome)
• Symptoms of endometriosis

Yes, you can access a new form of contraception through this service. After your consultation, the prescriber will review your details and consider your preference, but it depends on whether your preferred contraceptive is right for you.

Yes, certain antibiotics and other prescription medicines can reduce the effectiveness of your contraceptive pill, putting you at a higher risk of becoming pregnant.

Always tell your doctor or pharmacist if you’re taking the contraceptive pill when you’re prescribed new medication.

If your pill is affected, use a barrier method of contraception like a condom until your medication has stopped

If you're under 54, live in England and are eligible for NHS services, you can access the contraceptive pill for free through us at Chemist4U. Simply click ‘Start Contraception Consultation’ to get started.

After you’ve completed the consultation, one of our prescribers will review your details and give you a phone call to discuss this further. Once you're both happy, we'll post out your prescription. As always, the packaging will be discreet.

Yes, if you live in England and qualify for free NHS prescriptions, the contraceptives provided will be free of charge. If not, you can still access this service, but it will come with a fee.

The NHS has introduced a new service that allows individuals to access their regular oral contraception directly from pharmacies without needing to see their GP. Even better, this service is available through both online and in-store pharmacies.

The NHS Pharmacy Contraceptive Service aims to increase contraceptive access while reducing demand for primary care and sexual health clinics.

If you're under 54, live in England, and use one of these contraceptives, you may be eligible to receive your regular contraceptive pill free of charge without needing to see your GP or nurse practitioner.

The service is designed for those who already use oral contraceptives and need easy access to ongoing prescriptions. However, those looking to start oral contraception can also access this service, too.

The NHS Pharmacy Contraceptive Service offers all types of oral contraceptives (combined and progestogen-only). If the pill you need is available through the NHS, you can access it through this service.

Using a combined contraceptive pill can increase your risk of developing a blood clot.

Whilst still rare, the risk is highest during the first year of taking the pill, and you should be aware of the symptoms.

Seek emergency medical attention if you experience any of the following symptoms: 

• Throbbing or cramping pain, swelling, redness and warmth in your leg or arm
• Sudden breathlessness, sharp chest pain and a cough or coughing up blood

For further information on the link between the combined contraceptive pill and blood clots, as well as more symptoms to look out for, refer to the patient information leaflet. 

If you’ve just had a baby then you might be able to start taking the combined contraceptive pill again as soon as 21 days after you gave birth.

However, this will depend on your personal circumstances, so you should always speak to your doctor before starting the pill after pregnancy.

If they give you the all-clear to start taking the pill and start taking them on day 21 then you will be protected from pregnancy right away.

If you start taking the pill after the 21st day then you should use a condom or other method of additional contraception for the next 7 days to make sure that you don’t become pregnant again.

The biggest difference between the mini-pill and the combined pill is that the mini-pill only contains progestogen, whereas the combined pill contains both oestrogen and progestogen.

The standard method of taking the combined pill is taking the pill every day for 21 days before having a break from the pill for 7 days, which will allow a bleed, like a period.

With the mini-pill, you take the pill every day without a break.

Both the mini pill and the combined pill are over 99% effective when taken correctly.

Whichever contraceptive pill you choose, it is important to take the pill around the same time every day.

If you vomit or have diarrhoea, this may reduce the effectiveness of the pill, so it is important to use another form of contraception.

If you’re less than 24 hours late in taking a pill, your protection from pregnancy won’t be reduced.

If you’re more than 24 hours late, you will have to use a barrier method of contraception.

The more pills you miss, the greater your risk of becoming pregnant.

Take the forgotten tablet as soon as you remember, even if that means you have to take two at the same time, and use an extra method of contraception for the next 7 days.

If you are sick or have severe diarrhoea within 3-4 hours of taking the pill, your body may not have absorbed the active substances in the pill.

If you can’t manage to take a spare pill within 24 hours of vomiting or having severe diarrhoea, you should follow the instructions on what to do in the event of a missed pill.

Breast cancer has been found slightly more often in women who take a contraceptive pill compared to women who don’t.

Once you stop taking the pill, the risk gradually decreases and 10 years after stopping the pill the risk will be the same as someone who has never taken a contraceptive pill.

Breast cancer is still rare for anyone under the age of 40, even in women who take the pill.

There are many reasons why transgender people may need to use a contraceptive pill, whether this is for birth control or for one of the other benefits that hormonal contraception may offer.

For example, transgender people who have periods may need to use the pill to manage heavy or irregular periods.

However, it is important to be aware that people who were assigned male at birth and therefore can not menstruate should not take this medication.

If you are a transgender person and are unsure whether you should use the contraceptive pill, we’d recommend speaking to your doctor, transgender specialist, or healthcare team.

They’ll be able to take your specific circumstances into account and prescribe hormonal contraception if it’s the right treatment for you.

Some people who take the contraceptive pill and other hormonal contraceptives find that they experience mood changes, especially depressive symptoms.

If you suffer from depression you should tell your doctor about this during your initial consultation so they will be able to help you make the best possible decision about your contraceptive needs.

If you are taking the pill and find that you start to experience depression, especially serious depressive symptoms such as suicidal thoughts, you should speak to your doctor and ask for their advice.

Hormonal contraceptives may not be right for you and your doctor will be able to discuss other options with you.

The most obvious benefit of using the contraceptive pill is the very effective protection from pregnancy.

If you take the pills correctly your protection will be up to 99% effective and you’ll only have to take one pill a day, making this method convenient as well as effective.

Another benefit is how quick and easy it is to reverse the effects of this pill if you decide that you do want to get pregnant. You can simply stop taking Yasmin at any time and wait for your next period before trying to get pregnant.

However, we’d recommend speaking to your doctor before you stop taking this product or any other medication, just to be sure that you’re doing so safely.

Another benefit of taking birth control pills is that they can regulate irregular periods, help to reduce heavy periods, and can help to ease symptoms of PMS, such as painful cramps.

If you suffer from endometriosis, you may also find that the combined pill can help to ease your condition, although this should only be done under the supervision of your doctor.