Velivet

What is Velivet?

Velivet is a combined birth control pill that’s triphasic, meaning that the pills have different levels of hormones throughout the month. The hormone levels rise gradually in a 7-7-7 pattern, so every seven days you progress to a different hormone dosage. For some women, this is better at controlling menstrual symptoms because the hormone fluctuation matches their cycle.

With Velivet, you’re less likely to get light or infrequent periods, vaginal dryness, appetite increase, weight gain, leg cramps, mood changes, skin problems, and low sex drive.

Velivet comes in packs of 28 pills. 21 of these are active and 7 are inactive, and you should get your period (withdrawal bleed) when you’re taking the inactive ones. This means that there are no breaks, and it should be easier to follow the regimen since you need to take a pill every day. When used right with no mistakes, Velivet is 99% effective at preventing pregnancy. And it can also make your periods more regular and reduce your PMS symptoms.

Velivet is similar to Caziant, but there aren’t many other equivalents. Some monophasic pills containing the same hormones are Apri, Isibloom, and Viorele. So if you’ve used these before and had some minor side effects, Velivet could be a better option for you.

How does Velivet work?

The hormones in Velivet do three things: they stop you from ovulating, prevent a build-up of the uterine wall to keep an egg from implanting there, and make your cervical fluid thicker so sperm can’t get through. Altogether this makes pregnancy much less likely to occur and might also make periods lighter.

What doses of Velivet are there?

There’s only one version of Velivet, and it’s a 7-7-7 pill so each packet will come with three different doses. You can’t get Velivet in a higher or lower dose, but you can get monophasic pills with the same hormones as in Velivet. So if you’re getting side effects or menstrual symptoms and want to change the dose, you’ll need to switch to a different pill.

Velivet pills contain desogestrel and ethinyl estradiol. Seven tablets have 0.1mg and 0.025mg respectively, seven have 0.125mg and 0.025mg, seven have 0.15mg and 0.025, and the last seven are inactive and contain no hormones.

How to take Velivet

Taking your birth control correctly is really important. If you skip one or more pills, you lower the effectiveness of the medication, which might result in pregnancy. The clinician who prescribes Velivet to you will explain how you should take it, but there are a few general guidelines you can keep in mind too:

• You should take Velivet at the same time every day.
• The interval between pills should ideally never be more or less than 24 hours, to avoid losing efficacy. If you need a little help remembering, you can set an alarm on your phone to ring at the same time every day. Other methods such as using a pill organizer or syncing your pill-taking time with meal times aren’t ideal as you risk going over the 24-hour interval.
• When you first start taking birth control, you should wait for at least seven days before you have unprotected sex. You should use condoms or spermicide in the meantime.
• Take the pill with a glass of water; you don’t need to eat before or after taking the pill.

How long does it take Velivet to work?

It usually takes about a week for Velivet to give you the optimum level of protection. So you’ll need to continue using a barrier contraceptive method (such as a condom) for seven days after you start taking it, to give the hormones enough time to start working.

What should I do if I make a mistake when taking Velivet?

Read the leaflet that comes with the pack for advice on what to do next. If you miss a pill you should take it as soon as you remember, even if it means taking two on the same day. If you’ve missed more than one, you should just take the most recent one you missed and your next one at the normal time. Missing a pill might result in you being unprotected for the rest of the cycle, so to be safe you should use a condom until your next cycle starts. To avoid missing pills you should set an alarm on your phone to ring at the same time every day. If you accidentally take more Velivet than you’re supposed to, let your doctor know but don’t worry too much. There have been no reports of overdose on birth control pills. You might experience nausea and vaginal bleeding, but it shouldn’t be too serious. If you have persistent and severe symptoms you should seek emergency medical help.