MY BIRTH CONTROL STORY & RESOURCES

Feb 14

I share a lot about birth control on here & the issues with it but I’ve never written out my experience. I'm going to post my story & below are several resources for you to look into.

When I was 18 I started having “bad periods” as they say. I was having irregular cycles and acne and such. I didn’t know any better so I went to an obgyn and she immediately prescribed me the pill. I had never been to an obgyn at this point before and she didn’t do any type of exam or blood work. I remember the place exactly- I just sat in her office and talked to her and I didn’t know any better back then. The appointment was very short.

I was given the pill and sent on my way. Scroll over to see some of the warnings/notes from the package insert of the one I was given. 😳 I was not told about any of these at that time from that provider. I was also a senior in high school- I was not of the mind to ask any questions at such a young age or ask questions from a doctor- because they know everything, right? I then went on to take this pill for 10 years! 10! It makes me sick to think about it.

At first I thought- man this is awesome. I no longer have acne and I can control when I have my period. (At this point I thought the week off of the pills was causing a true period — if you didn’t know, that’s not the case. This is a withdrawal bleed from the pills, not a true period). I thought the pill had “fixed” me. I didn’t know then that those symptoms were my body’s way of screaming at me that there were some underlying issues going on that needed to be addressed.

Thank God I didn’t have any immediate adverse reactions. Some women aren’t so lucky. From age 18-25 I didn’t appear to have any issues. I remember right when I turned 25 some of these old symptoms started to surface again- mainly acne but also new migraines had surfaced. I was mortified because what 25 year old has acne?! I knew some of my friends had switched their pill so I thought maybe my body had just “gotten used to” the one I was one and I needed a new one. Seriously, I cringe at all of this now. So off to the obgyn I went. Looking back, I didn’t care for this doctor but the one good thing he did for me was tell me he wouldn’t write me another prescription if I had headaches. He sent me to a neurologist and I paid a stupid amount of $ to have all these tests done to see what was wrong with me. Nothing ever came back so I decided to go to a new obgyn because I truly wanted to get another pill THAT BAD. oof.

I went to a new doctor and I was thankful at the time that she gave me a new pill but this is what sent me spiraling. For the next year-ish I started getting debilitating migraines and brain fog and she put me on several different pills and even had me take one continuously so that I “wouldn’t have a period”. Y’all. I bled for an entire month! It was awful. I asked her if we should do some testing or something and she never did. She said to me “you’re probably just sensitive to the drop in progesterone before your period” That was it. She never did any type of testing. She just kept putting me on different pills and saying I would get used to it & I didn’t know any better then how to advocate for myself. It was around this time that I started learning more about holistic/natural health (out of pure desperation honestly) and I knew I needed to get off this medicine.

In October of 2017 I got off the pill after 10 years and let me tell you- it was NO picnic. I was very sick for a month straight. I’ll spare you the details but I had very intense post birth-control syndrome. It took me a very long time to heal my body and get my hormones back on track and fix nutrient deficiencies that I had caused for 10 years.

Phew- this was long but I hope this helps give an understanding of where I come from when I post about birth control. I am going to link several good sources on this topic as well for you to dig further below.

What was I not told about this drug? These are some snippets from the package insert.

An increased risk of thromboembolic and thrombotic disease associated with the use of oral contraceptives is well established. — this is straight from the package insert.
Numerous epidemiological studies have been performed on the incidence of breast, endometrial, ovarian, and cervical cancer in women using oral contraceptives. Although the risk of breast cancer may be slightly increased among current users of oral contraceptives (RR = 1.24), this excess risk decreases over time after oral contraceptive discontinuation and by 10 years after cessation the increased risk disappears.
3. There have been clinical case reports of retinal thrombosis associated with the use of oral contraceptives that may lead to partial or complete loss of vision.
Oral contraceptives have been shown to cause glucose intolerance in a significant percentage of users. Oral contraceptives containing greater than 75 micrograms of estrogens cause hyperinsulinism, while lower doses of estrogen cause less glucose intolerance. Progestogens increase insulin secretion and create insulin resistance, this effect varying with different progestational agents. However, in the nondiabetic woman, oral contraceptives appear to have no effect on fasting blood glucose. Because of these demonstrated effects, prediabetic and diabetic women should be carefully observed while taking oral contraceptives.
The onset or exacerbation of migraine or development of headache with a new pattern which is recurrent, persistent, or severe requires discontinuation of oral contraceptives and evaluation of the cause
Some women may experience post-pill amenorrhea or oligomenorrhea (possibly with anovulation), especially when such a condition was preexistent.
Women with a history of depression should be carefully observed and the drug discontinued if depression recurs to a serious degree. Patients becoming significantly depressed while taking oral contraceptives should stop the medication and use an alternate method of contraception in an attempt to determine whether the symptom is drug related. Women with a history of depression should be carefully observed and the drug discontinued if depression recurs to a serious degree.
Small amounts of oral contraceptive steroids and/or metabolites have been identified in the milk of nursing mothers and a few adverse effects on the child have been reported, including jaundice and breast enlargement. In addition, combination oral contraceptives given in the postpartum period may interfere with lactation by decreasing the quantity and quality of breast milk. If possible, the nursing mother should be advised not to use combination oral contraceptives but to use other forms of contraception until she has completely weaned her child.
The most common adverse events reported by 2 - 6% of the 743 women using Loestrin 24 Fe were the following, in order of decreasing incidence: headache, vaginal candidiasis, upper respiratory infection, nausea, menstrual cramps, breast tenderness, sinusitis, vaginitis (bacterial), abnormal cervical smear, acne, urinary tract infection, mood swings, weight gain, vomiting, and metrorrhagia.
An increased risk of the following serious adverse reactions has been associated with the use of oral contraceptives (see WARNINGS section):

Thrombophlebitis
Arterial thromboembolism
Pulmonary embolism
Myocardial infarction
Cerebral hemorrhage
Cerebral thrombosis
Hypertension
Gallbladder disease
Hepatic adenomas or benign liver tumors
There is evidence of an association between the following conditions and the use of oral contraceptives:

Mesenteric thrombosis
Retinal thrombosis

The following adverse reactions have been reported in patients receiving oral contraceptives and are believed to be drug related:

Nausea
Vomiting
Gastrointestinal symptoms (such as abdominal pain, cramps and bloating)
Breakthrough bleeding
Spotting
Change in menstrual flow
Amenorrhea
Temporary infertility after discontinuation of treatment

Edema/fluid retention
Melasma/chloasma which may persist
Breast changes: tenderness, pain, enlargement, and secretion
Change in weight or appetite (increase or decrease)
Change in cervical ectropion and secretion
Possible diminution in lactation when given immediately postpartum
Cholestatic jaundice
Migraine headache
Rash (allergic)
Mood changes, including depression
Vaginitis, including candidiasis
Change in corneal curvature (steepening)
Intolerance to contact lenses
Decrease in serum folate levels
Exacerbation of systemic lupus erythematosus
Exacerbation of porphyria
Exacerbation of chorea
Aggravation of varicose veins
Anaphylactic/anaphylactoid reactions, including urticaria, angioedema, and
severe reactions with respiratory and circulatory symptoms

For the majority of women, oral contraceptives can be taken safely. But for some women oral contraceptive use is associated with certain serious medical problems that can be life-threatening or may cause temporary or permanent disability or death. The risks associated with taking oral contraceptives increase significantly if you:

Smoke
Have high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, or are obese
Have or have had clotting disorders, heart attack, stroke, angina pectoris
(severe chest pains), cancer of the breast or sex organs, jaundice, or malignant or benign liver tumors

RESOURCES

https://instagram.com/drjolenebrighten?utm_medium=copy_link

Dr. Jolene Brighten is probably the birth control expert. Check out her website, instagram and her book "Beyond the Pill".

Dr. Jolene Brighten - Root Cause Women's Medicine

PODCASTS

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-freely-rooted-podcast/id1558059416

INSTAGRAM PAGES

https://instagram.com/innatefunctionalnutrition?utm_medium=copy_link

Birth control highlight

https://instagram.com/korimeloy?utm_medium=copy_link

The pill highlight

https://instagram.com/hormonehealingrd?utm_medium=copy_link