Imho, hormonal birth control is bad for you. If there's a more localized or chemical-free way of treating your problems (ie: heat packs or working out) that's the best. If I may add what I know...For starts, it thickens the blood which increases your blood pressure and your risk for strokes. This can be found on the insert.Your body also is incapable of utilizing all of the chemicals and you will pass any residual of it through your urine. Supposedly, those hormones are at traceable levels in urban/suburban areas and polluting natural water supplies which is wreaking havoc on the balance of male and female fish and amphibians.Of course, lol, I'm female too and I understand sometimes "heat packs and jogging" can't cure irregular and painful periods. Or symptoms of being post-menopausal. . I had terrible cramps which caused me to have diarrhea and vomiting. There comes a point though where you must weigh the good against the bad. Is your quality of life affected enough that this is necessitated? Are there any alternatives? If so have you tried them and given them enough time to work?I took the pill for about three years. It helped. My body needed time to adjust and now, at 24, I'm mostly regular and the bad cramps are only occasional. I wasn't happy to take the pill but it got me through. Now I exercise and avoid cold anything before and during my period. That helped me.Someone mentioned an IUD. Those would be safer than the pill in that they're not systemic but they have a nasty tendency to end up where they don't belong over time. Like in colons or bladders, etc. This only happens if one dosn't check in regularly with one's healthcare provider though and usually after years of it being there. Bodily tissues (except bone) react to pressure/irritation by breaking down. Blisters are a prime example or bedsores as well. This is what an IUD is, an object that irritates the uterus. That's how they end up elsewhere in the body. Otherwise they're relatively safe. But it's my understanding that they can actually exacerbate cramps and cause heavier menstrual bleeding.Lol, I'm no doctor but there's my perspective. I wish I could give you a more solid answer but this is all I know. Best wishes!
updated by @κύριε-ελέησόν: 07/22/15 11:57:24AM
Opinions on Birth Control Pills?
... they all sucked. It left my periods much worse after I stopped taking them. I believe there are much safer and less invasive ways to control birth. My best advice is to never use the nuva ring, or patch. The consistent release of hormones gives you a higher chance of developing fatal blood clots. Have you ever heard of The Pearly or The Lady Comp? It is a device that takes your basal temp everyday so you know if you are ovulating or not. I haven't used it, but I have only read good reviews on it everywhere! Apparently it is 99.3% effective. It's mighty expensive, but so are babies. Do some research on it, and tell me what you think.
Meijka said:
I have experimented with many hormonal birth controls and
I went off of the pill BC and tried Natural Family Planning (NFP). With NFP you chart your cycles, observe changes in cervical mucus, and check your basal body temp so you know when you are ovulating and either don't have sex around that time or use a barrier method. The book "Taking Charge of Your Fertility" is a very thorough book on it. It's also helpful to know your cycles, so getting pregnant is easier when you want to because you know your body and when you ovulate.Right now i have a paragard iud which does not have hormones. I have an iud now because my husband won't use a condom and we do not want another child yet. I check the string every month and have had no problems with it.
Sorry, I do have to disagree on this point. it is very dangerous to not have regular cycles. If the endometriallining is not shed at least every few months that can lead to precancerous cells.
I have PCOS and for many years had very erratic cycles. The doctors willrecommend BC to regulate but I feel that I taking BC as a teen is what in fact started my hormonal imbalance. We were created exactly how we were supposed to be and when we tamper problems will arise.
Quitting smokingcigarettes and going vegetarian (and eventually vegan) is what regulated my cycles. I now have a 35 day cycle. This isn't your text book 28 day cycle but still in a normal range.
If we are conscious of what we put in our bodies then they will respond properly. Why create problems by ingesting harmful chemicals and hormones then in turn add more chemicals and hormones to fix it???
soaring eagle said:
theres nothing wrong with insanely iregular but if the cramps are severe there are healthy herbs that will help
i cat imagine trhe ones that make u only gt your period 4 times a year are any good for you at all
Everybody's different. When I took birth control (I used Loestrin 24Fe) I never had any noticeable problems, I used it for 2 1/2 years it helped a whole lot with the terrible physical agonizing pain and sickness I get when I start my period which was the reason I decided to go on birth control in the first place, because seriously any kind of obligations I had school, work, whatever was not happening during that misery which was a problem, and you know I didn't have to worry about getting pregnant. And that's what I loved about birth control, it cured me of that pain and illness but I was always always always so paranoid about fucking my system up if I missed a day or didn't take it at the exact same time every single day which I did a lot and that's no good. Vaginas are so touchy and those lil doses of hormones change so much it's scary and can cause hidden minor issues that will later become known and severe if you don't regulate it properly. So being off of birth control (it's been 4-5months) I like that I am no longer paranoid about those things everything feels the way it should be- natural and I notice my sexual drive is going back up, downer side that evil pain is back and I worry about getting pregnant. Will I go back on birth control? Yes I want to, I'd still be on it if I had insurance to pay for it, however not being on it I see clearly how it has affected me and what has changed.
My mother fell ill with breast cancer in her twenties, with no history of it in the family and she was otherwise perfectly healthy. Her and her friend were taking the same BC pill in the 1980's/90's and they both became ill for no reason with illnesses caused by an imbalance of hormones. My mother died and her friend filed investigation after investigation with many other women who had taken the same pill and also fallen ill, but the drug companies and GP's all dismissed it as a coincidence. I believe that although not all BC pills have as strong an effect as this one, they all cause an imbalance of hormones that cause disease over time no matter what the authorities say. I would stay away from them. I have a copper coil, and although it was painful for the first few days and made my periods heavier for a few months, it has no hormones and can stay in for five years. It's also the most reliable contraceptive.
All research I have read on the matter shows that birth control increases breast cancer risk by a very large amount. Some countries, Japan specifically, didn't have legalized birth control pills until relatively recently. Breast cancer incidence surged once it was legalized.Birth control also indirectly increases cervical cancer risk.Of course, it is not very acceptable to attack birth control in feminist western nations so it's generally dismissed as insufficient evidence and women are kept uninformed of just how dangerous the pill really is.
Just to update everyone, I did stop taking my birth control. I had a hard time taking it at the same time of day every day anyways, and I ended up skipping four days in a row without even meaning to. It was fate!
Hearing all these negative stories about BC are very scary, but I'm not surprised that they continue to sell these products knowing the potentially negative side effects. It's amazing what they continue to sell to society knowing what sort of things are in them. And breast cancer runs in my family, so anything that contributes to the likelihood of me getting breast cancer one day is definitely something I'm going to avoid.
I've never heard of the copper thing, I'm definitely checking that out for a effective method of preventing pregnancy. Nobody likes using condoms. D:
