Quitting Birth Control?

[blas]

Lately I have been thinking of going off the Pill.

I've been on birth control since I was 17, both Depo Provera and now the Lybrel pill (both period inhibiting drugs). So, I haven't had a period in 7 years.

I enjoy not having a period and I don't have a huge issue with either of those drugs, it's just getting a little costly (the Pill is much cheaper because I don't have to go to the clinic to get it), and it would help to not have to pay $20 a month for it.

I have been thinking, though, that all along, perhaps my moderate to sometimes severe adult acne and my weight problems in recent years can be attributed to both birth controls.

I've also had some.....digestive issues lately, which neither drug notes diahrrea or stomach aches as part of their side effects (only nausea for the Pill, which I did experience a lot when I first started it), but I'm starting to wonder if I'd be more "regular" and less ill all the time if I wasn't on the Pill. It is a little tiring being constantly bloated or having gas pains when you're doing whatever you can to not be.

Has anyone here ever taken a form of BC that has stopped your period and then gone off of it? Has it came back with real vengeance? I know I'll be basically spending nearly $20 a month anyway on tampons/pads/Midol, so the money saving concept may be out the window.....but if it were to clear up my severely oily skin and acne, if going back to my own natural hormones helped in any way, it'd be more worth it.

[teh_blumchenkinder]

I've never taken birth control, but I do know about menstruation annoyances: make sure you have an excellent heat-source, like an electric pad or one of those bean/rice bags that you heat in the microwave, like a Bed Buddy. Also, taking pain medication just as you notice any pain may also help. This is what saves me on my days. I take way less naproxen (alieve) if I catch that I'm starting early enough. :\
EDIT: hell, sometimes it doesn't even work if I wait for an hour or two... and drink lots of water throughout the month. That helps too.

[Nyoibo]

One side effect to be aware of, the people you're attracted to may change, you may find you're no longer attracted to your partner, wierd but it happens.

[ArcticChicken]

As soon as I get a chance I'm switching from the pill to an IUD. Mostly because I'm absent minded, and while so far I've always caught the fact that I've forgotten to take the pill before the instructions say I should abstain, I'm making myself nervous.

Anyway, the point of this was that one of the other reasons I'm switching to an IUD is that I'm interested in having fewer hormones acting on my body, and my mom (who's a midwife and really ought to know this shit) says that since the IUD is right there it uses a lower dose of hormones.

[Micer]

I was doing Depo Provera as a form of BC for a little bit, and yeah, my period did come back with a vengeance when I swapped back to pill, ran for longer than my usual amount of days and was much heavier, but by the next cycle, things had kinda... reset themselves back to what was normal. So think it's expected, your insides have to catch up. =)

And another vote on the heating pads, <3 Icy/hot patches.

[teh_blumchenkinder]

Icy/Hot patches? ... lucky. I've nearly burnt myself with heating mechanisms... I hate taking pills-- I tend to forget things easily (god help me if I ever breed-- pregnancy apparently makes women forgetful! o_o ) and forgetting and taking too many pain medication pills is bad. I don't want liver disease. Or stomach bleeding. But I have to take the pain pills-- and I'd say 80 percent of the time, if I catch it (which is 95 percent of the time, thank you JESUS) I just need three little blue (off-brand) pills.

[Seshat]

I've had a copper-T IUD for the last nearly-ten years. I love it.

I do have heavy periods, but no heavier than before the IUD. It's almost certainly because of the PCOS.

I'm going to talk to the doctor about slash-and-burn sterilisation, and an ablation.

slash-and-burn - basically, cut the tubes, cauterise the ends.

ablation: by one method or other, remove the endometrium and scar the inner surface of the uterus so that it either can't grow endometrium, or grows very little. This vastly reduces, or removes, the period.
Ablations are never done for women who wish to have children, for obvious reasons. And I believe most doctors require you to be sterilised if you're having an ablation.

[shankyknitter]

1. you can still save money once you get your period after quitting birth control if you use a diva cup. I love mine, it's an inserted silicone cup that stays where it is for 12 hours, gets washed, and put back. It lasts for 18 months and is only about $30. $30 every year and a half is a hell of a lot better than $20 every month.

2. I just got a non-hormonal copper IUD yesterday. Too soon to say whether I love it or not since I'm still crampy from getting it but I think I will. Mine is rated for 12 years and it didn't cost me a penny (thanks planned parenthood!) I'd check with planned parenthood in your area if you're interested in one, they work on a sliding scale so it'll probably cost less than you think. And with copper there's no hormones to mess you up.

Feel free to PM me if anyone wants more info on the Diva cup and where to get one.

[42_42_42]

There are 2 kinds of IUDs. One uses hormones and the other doesn't. In either case, you can't use one if you haven't had kids yet. If you've ever had an ectopic pregnancy you can't use it, either.

[surreal20]

I take ortho tricycline/the generic equivlant. Have been since 17, I'm now 24.

It allows you a period a month, btw. But you can get for $9 with a package of 3 months worth of pills at Sams or walmart. So if you want to have the pill for just in case and it's getting costly...here ya go

And i have fluctuated weight and acne on this both ways, so i have found it doesn't do anything to contribute to it. It's all my doing.

[shankyknitter]

There are 2 kinds of IUDs. One uses hormones and the other doesn't. In either case, you can't use one if you haven't had kids yet. If you've ever had an ectopic pregnancy you can't use it, either.

you can in fact get either one if you haven't had kids yet. I've never had kids and I had the copper one put in yesterday. The woman who recommended it to me has never had children and she has one. IUDs (unlike some other long term options) do not mess with future fertility and you can get pregnant once they're removed. They're perfectly safe for women who have not had children but want them in the future. They just hurt a little more when you first get it in if you haven't had children yet as your uterus is smaller.

[42_42_42]

Just going on what my doc told me. Apparently they're more prone to falling out if you haven't had a kid.

[ArcticChicken]

Just going on what my doc told me. Apparently they're more prone to falling out if you haven't had a kid.

"More prone to falling out" and "Can't have one" are two very different things. When I was looking for a GYN one of my requirements was one who was willing to give me an IUD even though I've never been pregnant.

[Sapphire Silk]

Most docs don't like to give IUD's to women who've never been pregnant because the complications that can occur with IUDs can result in permanent infertility . . . the whole point of an IUD is to be able to get pregnant when you actually are ready for one.

That doesn't mean you can't find one willing to do it . . . but you might have to look.

And 42 is right: not having had a child means there's a slightly higher chance of it falling out.

Back to the OP's original question:

I took BC for awhile to correct hormonal imbalances. I took them for about a year, then quit because I was gaining weight. I didn't notice my period was any heavier, and it's been spot on every month since. But I only took them a year.

With you, your first few periods may be a bit heavier, but should gradually lighten to what most women experience. I'd consider seeing my doc first since you've been on them so long, he can probably advise you much better on what to expect.

[blas]

I would just like to say, I'd be over the moon if I was never able to get pregnant.

And I mean that.

But I don't want anything awful to contribute to that.