Nordette

What is Nordette?

Nordette is a birth control pill that offers over 99% protection from pregnancy . It’s a combined contraceptive pill, which means it contains two active ingredients, an oestrogen and a progesterone hormone. These work by stopping you from ovulating and altering your menstrual cycle. Some women find it also helps them have more regular and lighter periods.

The same dose and hormone formulation in Nordette is used in other pills too, like Microgynon 30 and Evelyn. So if you’ve used these pills before and they worked well for you, it’s likely Nordette will work well too.

Even though Nordette is very effective if you use it exactly right, it’s slightly less effective if you make a mistake while taking it. So it’s best to follow the instructions with it to help make sure it’s as effective as possible.

Is there more than one dosage of the Nordette pill?

Nordette is only available in one dosage which is 30/150. You can get other pills that are the same but with a slightly higher level of oestrogen in phases, like Logynon or Triphasal-28. So if you take Nordette but find that it doesn’t quite sit right with your cycle, you might be recommended one of these pills instead.

How does Nordette work?

The contraceptive pill works in three ways to make pregnancy less likely.

The main way is by stopping your body from ovulating. If you don’t ovulate, then you don’t produce an egg to be fertilised by sperm. Something else the pill does is stops your uterine lining from layering up, so it can’t harbour an egg when it has been fertilised. Also, the hormones in the pill make your cervical fluid thicker, and this makes it much more difficult for sperm to swim through.

How to take Nordette

The instructions for Nordette are easy to follow and should become second nature after a while. Each strip of Nordette pills is marked with the days of the week to help you keep track of what you’ve taken. You should take Nordette at the same time each day to get the most out of it.

• There are 21 pills in each pack.
• You’ll take one a day for 21 days.
• This is followed by a seven day break.
• You’ll then move on to the next pack.
• Each tablet should be swallowed whole, preferably with water.
• It’s recommended that you take it alongside something you do at the same time every day, such as just before bed or with breakfast.

When to start Nordette

How long Nordette takes to work depends on when you start taking it. If you haven’t taken a hormonal contraceptive the day before, you should start the course on the first day of your period. This will provide you with immediate protection against pregnancy.

Starting Nordette on any other day of your cycle will require you to use a barrier contraceptive for seven days. At the end of the strip of 21 pills, you’ll then take a seven day break before starting the next strip.

If you’ve taken a different combined contraceptive up until the first day of switching to Nordette tablets, you should start and complete the strip of 21 pills and then take the seven day break, even if this means extending the time without the seven day break. You can then carry on taking Nordette as normal.

What to do about a missed pill on Nordette

It’s ideal to take Nordette at the same time each day, but Nordette can be taken up to 12 hours after your usual time and you will still be more than 99% protected against pregnancy. After 12 hours, it counts as a missed pill, and you will need to take extra contraceptive measures such as using a condom for seven days.

Take your most recent forgotten pill as soon as you remember, and then the next one at the normal time, even if it means taking two pills on the same day. If your Nordette missed pill is towards the end of your cycle, you may be advised to skip your seven day break and start your next strip right after your current one.