A couple of years ago, I took the Pill as a form of birth control and as a way of controlling my periods but it ended up being one of the worst decisions I ever made. While I’m not discouraging anyone from taking it, I think it’s important to spread awareness of what could happen if the artificial hormones don’t agree with your body. Unfortunately, that’s the case for a lot of women, including myself.
- It had a negative effect almost straight away. Within two days of taking it, I noticed some of the symptoms. I felt ill and lethargic but I was told to continue taking it for at least three months until my body got used to the hormones. I wish I had stopped taking it a lot sooner but the nurse advised me to not give up and I assumed that she was right. Now I trust my gut.
- I had extreme bloating that never went away. Unfortunately, bloating is a very common side effect of taking the birth control pill, but nobody prepared me for how bad it would become. It reached the point where I was so bloated that I could have been mistaken for being six months pregnant. I was uncomfortable all the time and it never seemed to go away, no matter what I did.
- I completely lost my appetite. As I was frequently bloated, I didn’t want to eat as much as I usually would. I suppose that’s why I lost my energy too. I’d heard of a lot of women putting on weight when they started taking birth control, but I’d never heard of anyone losing weight. It was an uncommon symptom that really should have been ringing alarm bells in my head.
- I was emotional all the time. I’m not joking when I say that I cried at absolutely everything. I cried at the smallest inconvenience. I cried watching a commercial. I cried when I went out for a meal. I cried when there was no reason to cry at all. I wasn’t in control of my emotions anymore and that was scary.
- I bled for over a month. When I first started taking the Pill, I assumed that I would experience some irregular bleeding. I didn’t know it would last for over a month, though. It’s something that nobody really prepares you for but I wish I had known then what I know now so I could have avoided it completely. I just don’t think it’s worth it.
- I started experiencing some really nasty symptoms. Despite the nurse trying to reassure me that this was all normal, it was anything but. The longer I took the Pill, the worse it became. I had uncontrollable gas and frequent problems going to the toilet. That’s not really something that any of us enjoys, is it? Trust me, it was awful. Never again.
- I felt like I was losing myself. One of the worst things about the experience is that I didn’t feel like I was in control of my body or my emotions anymore. I hated every second of it.
- I was worried about the long-term effects. If I was feeling this bad after just a short time, what would it do to my body in the long run? Of course, curiosity got the better of me, so I googled it. I know it’s never a good idea to google symptoms or side effects of medication because then it makes you spiral into a state of high anxiety and panic, but that’s exactly what happened to me. Although serious complications are rare, I didn’t want to put my health at risk any longer.
- I stopped taking the pill and I felt a huge relief. My body didn’t go back to normal straight away, in fact, it took a long time before I felt close to being ‘normal’ again. It’s worrying that the Pill can cause really serious health problems, yet very few nurses will inform you about the risks beforehand. I’d encourage anyone to really consider the risks before taking any form of birth control. Speak to people about their experiences too. That helped me a lot when making my decision.
- I prefer using non-hormonal contraception. I understand that some women take hormonal birth control for health reasons, such as PCOS and endometriosis and I would never discourage that. Some women see a massive improvement in their periods through taking The Pill and I think it’s great that it can improve so many lives. However, I’ve finally been able to manage my periods through natural methods and I feel so much better for it. I use non-hormonal contraception as a way of avoiding pregnancy, as I’m not ready for that just yet. I’m hoping there will be more options available soon for those who can’t tolerate artificial hormones, but until then I’m going to stick to what I know works best for me.
