Is birth control messing with my health?

August 17, 2015 11:56 AM

I’ve had a ton of health issues that so far have no cause. I’m wondering if birth control is contributing and what to do about it. I’m terrified of going no-birth control.

You are not my doctor, and I will be talking to my doctor about it asap.

I’ve had health issues for a long time now, and did get my gallbladder removed (I know BC can contribute to gallbladder problems.) You can see my past questions for more, but I get severe nausea, stomach pain, fatigue, weakness, dizziness, severe anxiety, and headaches. It has gotten to the point where I had to leave my job and am not functional.

I already planned to switch from my current birth control (Low Ogestrel) to the arm implant in a couple months. But now I’m wondering if I should try to go birth control free. I have been on this pill for 7 years. I’m 25.

Thoughts/Problems:

-I’ve noticed I get the most symptom free days at the tail end of my cycle or the first day I start my new pack of pills. I actually have energy, less anxiety, and can actually get out of the house. (I have no idea if this could be weird confirmation bias or a fluke.)
-I have been getting worsening nausea and cramping problems on the first two days of my menstrual cycle.
-I’m considering the implant (arm) but am concerned that I won’t know if that is causing issues also. (I don't want an IUD.)
-Prior to birth control my periods were even more horrific (heavy, long, severe cramping, I usually had to go home from school.)
-If I go birth control free, I HAVE to figure out something for my cycles from hell.
-I’ve considered ablation, but I’m young and I know a) people don’t want to do it when you're young and b) you may need it redone.
-Ideally I would just get rid of my uterus.
-In a couple months if all goes well I will not need to worry about pregnancy (yay!) I will NOT be reproducing.

So, could birth control be causing the issues? I feel I’m stuck between a few bad choices.
Did your cycles get better with age? Were you able to have ablation or a partial hysterectomy?

Should I give up birth control in a few months when I can and see how it goes? Maybe make a standing appointment for the implant?
What should I discuss with my doctor?

As an aside, I'm always 100% worried about pregnancy. My husband is getting snipped this week and they will run 2 followup labs in a couple months. Yet I'm still worried about pregnancy. How do I reset this worry if I go birth-control-free after?

posted by Crystalinne to Health & Fitness (21 answers total)

severe nausea, stomach pain, fatigue, weakness, dizziness, severe anxiety, and headaches

FWIW, when I was on a pill that wasn't right for me, I had basically all of these symptoms. Heavy on the fatigue, dizziness, anxiety, and headaches. So it's certainly my experience that birth control can cause these problems and it certainly seems possible that it's causing them in you.

My cycles got better when I switched to a pill that was right for me. I don't have any info on ablation or hysterectomy, but I'm sure someone else here will.

I'm still worried about pregnancy. How do I reset this worry if I go birth-control-free after?

I used to worry about this a lot (even though I've been on the pill continuously for almost a decade, and am a close-to-perfect pill user). It helped me to carefully study the likelihood of getting pregnant in a variety of situations, and to have a back-up plan in place. If your worries run really deep and are adding unnecessary stress to your life, perhaps a couple of visits to a good therapist would help?

Good luck and feel better soon.
posted by schroedingersgirl at 12:01 PM on August 17, 2015

There are definitely other options, such as Mirena, if this does prove to be the cause. (I can't take any oral BCP, but Mirena has been amazing.)
posted by wintersweet at 12:04 PM on August 17, 2015

Oh, you just reminded me. I've been on this pill for 7 years by these symptoms started in the past 2 to 3 years. If that's relevant at all.
posted by Crystalinne at 12:04 PM on August 17, 2015

IANAD but I would probably go with another pill or the Nuvaring instead of the implant so it'll be less of a fuss to stop if you get new or worse side effects.
posted by noxperpetua at 12:11 PM on August 17, 2015

(I went through this year's ago, so forgive my tone. I'm so angry at your doctor on your behalf. Sorry in advance!!)

You're 25 years old. This should be the healthiest and BEST time of your life.

Instead, you are taking a voluntary medication that has caused you pain, anxiety, and has caused you to lose your job. Therefore, your solution is to voluntarily implant another hormone medication in your body?

Nope. That's not acceptable.

Go off the hormones for 6 months. Get your life back. Try different (non-hormonal!) forms of birth control for a while.

I was put on hormonal birth control due to cysts. The depression, anxiety, life style disruptions, etc etc -- not worth it looking back. Nope. There was nothing going on with me medically that the pill "cured."

If you weren't reporting such awful debilitating side effects I would not be admonishing you to cease hormone medication. You are reporting unacceptable and debilitating symptoms. No amount of tweaking your dose will benefit you as much as giving your body a break from this treatment. Please. Get your life back together.

And get a new doctor for fuck's sake. You lost your job over a prescribed medication. That's not OK and the licensed professional who allowed matters to get that far out of hand should no longer be trusted by you.
posted by jbenben at 12:29 PM on August 17, 2015

I was on various low-dose BCPs in my late teens and early 20s, and I had bad side effects on all of them. I had some of the ones you mentioned (fatigue, weakness, anxiety), plus crazy mood swings. I never found a pill that was right for me, and IUDs weren't feasible in my case either (uterus too small), so I eventually said "fuck it" and went off the pill altogether. I've been using condoms as my sole birth control method for the past 7 years -- and have been in steady relationships for that entire length of time -- with no issues or pregnancy scares to speak of. Plus I feel so, so much better. Personally, I think hormonal birth control is way overprescribed in this country, it just isn't for everyone, you and me included.

Obviously, my body is not your body, talk to your doctor, and all that other stuff you already know, but I just wanted to chip in with some anecdata.
posted by darkchocolatepyramid at 12:33 PM on August 17, 2015

my cycle has gotten worse with age, not better (and it has always been awful). it's still far preferable to how i was on the pill - which includes some of the symptoms you're listing.
posted by nadawi at 12:38 PM on August 17, 2015

It's worth trying out a period of time off the hormones, especially if you don't need them for birth control. (And realistically, you don't if your partner has had a vasectomy.).

I had terrible cycles in teens/early twenties and it got much, much better as I got older. Anectdatally, that doesn't seem to be an outlier. There are also ways to deal with those symptoms without hormones - its really not the only option.
posted by sputzie at 12:39 PM on August 17, 2015

Can you go off the meds as a test and just not have PIV sex for a few weeks? It should answer your questions without having to get the blessings of any doctors.
posted by zug at 12:41 PM on August 17, 2015

Quick update. Since my husband is getting the big V this week, I want to stick it out on the pill till he's got the all clear in a couple months. Ideally I would like much lighter or no periods if I do choose another birth control option or a medical option like ablation if they're bad again.
posted by Crystalinne at 12:47 PM on August 17, 2015

I know your husband's getting the vasectomy is a big sacrifice on his part for the reproductive health of the relationship, but you've been making one for years. Consider discussing a couple months of condom use with him, referring to your list of issues that are seemingly linked to HBC. I suspect he'll understand.

As for the terrible period symptoms, those may have lessened as you've gotten further out from puberty. No matter what you decide, I wouldn't immediately jump to another hormonal option, just to see whether those symptoms have become manageable without it. It certainly can't get much worse.
posted by hollyholly at 1:05 PM on August 17, 2015

You've been on the same pill for 7 years but only started these symptoms in the past few years? I wouldn't blame the pill for that honestly. It sounds like your cycle is changing and giving you new monthly symptoms.

I would see a gynecologist or an endocrinologist about this because 25 is a bit young for this to be happening. A pill that worked for you for 4+ years may not be doing the trick anymore - you should switch.
posted by chainsofreedom at 1:13 PM on August 17, 2015

Try switching. My gyno told me that pills with estrogen-alikes can start causing issues in some women, though generally it starts when they're older (30s-40s). Still. The things you list sound a lot like they're blood-pressure-related, which those pills affect.

There are other types of pills. For instance, my gyno changed me to one often given to women with endometriosis (which I have), which contains medrogestone. It changed my life. I no longer get dizzy or ill, nor do I even bloat! And my period disappeared! I go a week without taking the pill and have no period! It's like heaven.

Everyone is different, though. Definitely check with your gyno.
posted by MarionnetteFilleDeChaussette at 1:26 PM on August 17, 2015

My ex got a vasectomy when I finally figured out my headaches, nausea, etc were due to the pill. We used condoms for months until he got the all clear. And it took longer than normal. The doctors were beginning to wonder if he had an extra tube they had missed or something.

I would quit now and tell hubby to buy condoms.
posted by Michele in California at 2:02 PM on August 17, 2015

I went off BC about five months ago after being on it since I was 18 (I'm 32 now). Let me tell you, I feel like a different person, in the best way possible! I'm happier, less bloated on a regular basis, my IBS symptoms have severely abated, I actually have a sex drive, and my random headaches and bouts of paranoia are 95% gone. And the best part is that I went on BC in the first place all those years ago because I was having terrible periods -heavy, long, cramps so bad I'd pass out and I'd miss school every month. About two years ago my periods started getting like that again and after switching brands multiple times and gaining 15+ pounds from it, I finally went off entirely. And now my periods are light and regular, my cramps are light to non-existent, and my appetite is regular again too! Obviously I'm just one case but I'd quit taking them now.
posted by skycrashesdown at 4:13 PM on August 17, 2015

And as far as pregnancy concerns, we're using condoms and have started the vasectomy conversation. But the number one thing that reassures me whenever I worry about is that I know I have a very supportive partner who will love and support me if the worst does happen.
posted by skycrashesdown at 4:15 PM on August 17, 2015

I couldn't take any birth control pills. I had a spectacular array of problems on every one I tried (including some of the ones you mentioned). Mirena was a life saver for me.
posted by frumiousb at 4:32 PM on August 17, 2015

You've got two separate issues, and you should consider what to do about them separately. I feel like it's a little unfair to be angry at the OP's doctor when it's absolutely unclear that the symptoms being described are definitely due to birth control or not. (Disclaimer, I'm a doctor and so of course I tend to be sympathetic to doctors!)

1. You have a bunch of nonspecific symptoms (headaches, anxiety, dizziness, stomach pain, nausea) which may or may not be related to hormonal birth control. Your current hormonal birth control has both estrogen and progesterone type hormonal components. If it were me and I really wanted to stay on hormonal BC for other reasons, which you do, I'd absolutely proceed with your initial plan to try a progesterone only option and then try going without hormones completely. You don't need to get an implant - there is a progesterone only pill you can try to see how it affects your symptoms before going with the Implanon or Mirena. If you go off hormones completely and you still have these symptoms, you will need to revisit the issue with your current or another primary care physician to determine what further testing or treatment might be useful.

2. You have very heavy periods with a lot of cramping when you're not on hormones. For this problem you'd like to consider permanent options such as uterine ablation. I would wait until you go off the hormones and give it at least 2 cycles, if you find that your symptoms are much improved and you need to stay off hormones, then you'll have a great justification to argue for insurance coverage of further treatment of your menorrhagia (heavy periods) and cramps. That would be the time to get into that discussion with your OB/GYN. Forget major abdominal surgery for now. Don't rush into any permanent decision that big when there are multiple other less risky options to try first.

A final thought since you asked a bonus question: you mentioned having significant anxiety multiple times in your post. Are you getting treated for that? That may be a separate or related issue to the other somatic/physical symptoms you're having, but it could be as simple as getting treated appropriately for anxiety that would allow you to get past phobias like getting pregnant despite using surgical birth control options.
posted by treehorn+bunny at 6:31 PM on August 17, 2015

FWIW, when my SO went on hormonal birth control around 15 years ago the primary reason was to deal with her dysmenorrhea (aka periods from hell). She went off a couple of years ago, and found that while they are still worse than what other people seem to have, her periods are not as debilitating as they once were.

Whether that is just due to age or has something to do with her long stint on the pill nobody knows. Point is that it is possible that the original problem may not be as bad now, so it is worth giving it a couple of months off, especially given the side effects you may be having. (I say may only because it is not yet known whether your current symptoms are side effects of the birth control or not)

Even if you feel the need to stay on hormonal birth control of some sort, do try different types. There is definitely a wide variation in side effects between the different formulations.
posted by wierdo at 9:46 PM on August 17, 2015

-If I go birth control free, I HAVE to figure out something for my cycles from hell.

Join one of those period tracking websites and start a food journal. I cleared up my horrifying cramps in my twenties by eating cleaner. When I would party for some reason and stop eating so carefully, my cramps would come back. My lifelong anemically thin and irregular when not on the pill periods became healthy and very regular at about age 40 after several years of treating a different medical condition. This can change. I mean, nothing is guaranteed and it took me years to get it resolved, but there was steady progress along the way, so, no, I did not have to wait years to get some relief and have it be more bearable.
posted by Michele in California at 10:03 AM on August 18, 2015

Thanks everyone. I think I've decided to finish this pill pack and just not start the next one. I have an appointment the week after this pill pack is empty in mid-Sept. with an OBGYN to discuss options. (Worst case I could restart my pill the following week as I have 2 more packs here.) Also, my husband is a wonderfully supportive person and when I mentioned stopping to him he said "Eh, we can just use condoms till I'm cleared." Honestly, he'd be supportive if I even said no sex for 2 months. Now I hope his appointment this week goes well! Feel free to give me any more advice or message me.
posted by Crystalinne at 2:12 PM on August 18, 2015