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Ladies, Your Orgasms May Hurt Because Of Your Birth Control Pills
By
Jen Chung
Published May 8, 2013
Modified May 8, 2013
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By
Jen Chung
Published May 8, 2013
Modified May 8, 2013
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That "O-face" is actually an "Ow-face"? Some doctors at NYU Langone Medical Center have found some women on low-dose birth control pills may have more pelvic pain during orgasm than women on higher-dose pills.
Dr. Nirit Rosenblum, an assistant professor of urology, says that she and her colleagues see "a lot of this anecdotally," so they decided to research. From BlissTree:
For her study, Dr. Rosenblum considered low-dose birth control pills as ones that contain less than 20 micrograms (mcg) of synthetic estrogen. (Ones with 20 mcg or more are normal dose). Low dose pills include Alesse, Yaz, Yasmin, Loestrin, and others.
The study found that 27% of women on a low-dose pill had pelvic pain compared to 17.5% of women who were not on the pill. Those who were on standard-dose pills were less likely overall to have pelvic pain than women who were either on a low-dose pill or not on the pill at all. In terms of pain associated with sex, women on the low-dose pill were twice as likely to report pain during or after orgasm.
Dr. Christopher Payne, a professor of urology at Stanford University School of Medicine, said, "You can't say it's cause and effect," but "It's certainly something people should be knowledgeable about."
While some women who experience this kind of pain may want to consider switching to a higher-dose birth control pill, there are risks, like blood clots and strokes.
Tagged
birth control
low dose estrogen
orgasm
pelvic pain
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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