The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) states that over 80 percent of women in the United States have used a form of hormonal birth control, such as pills, intrauterine devices (IUDs), patches, vaginal rings, implants and injections. But birth control does more than prevent pregnancy: it can also help with your period. Depending on the type of birth control you choose, you can change when your period comes, reduce pain connected to menstruation and have lighter periods; birth control that does not contain hormones, like copper IUDs and female condoms, does not provide these benefits.
Changing When Your Period Occurs
One of the benefits of birth control is the regulation of your period. The hormones in your birth control method, either a combination of estrogen and progesterone or only progesterone, control when your uterine lining breaks down, which results in menstruation. Epigee.org notes that if you use birth control pills, you can also change when in the month you have your period. Most birth control packs contain three weeks of hormone pills and one week of non-hormone pills; you menstruate when you take the non-hormone pills. If you take a week of hormone pills instead of the non-hormone pills, you can postpone your menstruation. Another option is continuous birth control pills, which have only hormone pills or only non-hormone pills every three months; as a result, you can have a period four times a year or not at all.
Reducing Dysmenorrhea
Another effect birth control has on your period is reducing dysmenorrhea, or severe menstrual pain and cramping. The ACOG states that up to 90 percent of women experience dysmenorrhea, which can be debilitating. The hormones in the birth control can also reduce migraines that occur during menstruation.
Treating Menorrhagia
Hormonal birth control can also help with menorrhagia, which is excessive menstrual bleeding. The ACOG notes that if menorrhagia is left untreated, it can result in anemia. If you suffer from menorrhagia, you saturate a menstrual pad or tampon within an hour, according to the Mayo Clinic. If you do not have menorrhagia, birth control can also result in a lighter period.
