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What Your Doctor Didn't Tell You About The Hormonal Birth Control Pill

birth control hormonal birth control pbcs

I was prescribed the hormonal birth control pill for the terrible cystic acne I got after being vegan. I was told it would help “regulate” my hormones, fix my acne, was completely “safe” and that stopping would be a breeze.

Of course, this isn’t how it went at all. Having been off the pill for almost 3 yrs now I can say I definitely didn’t feel like myself. I developed candida and an autoimmune skin condition. I got painful cracks on the sides of my mouth and my soft nails were useless. My hands and feet were always cold. My HbA1c was high and I was borderline prediabetic.

My acne came back and I thought, why the heck am I still taking this? Then I started doing research...and I was floored. Turns out, I never really understood how hormonal birth control works. Did my doctor ever tell me it can actually cause acne? That I was completely shutting off my reproductive system? That infertility is one of the potential side effects? That it causes neurological changes? That it depletes vitamins and minerals? No.


These are just a handful of issues hormonal birth control can cause. Suppressing your body’s primary biological function will have repercussions. So I got off it. But then...my acne came back 10X worse, my hair started falling out, I lost my period...it’s like hormonal birth control was masking my acne and giving me more problems...wasn’t this supposed to be easy?! This was post-birth control syndrome (#PBCS), coined by Dr. Jolene Brighten and defined as “a constellation of symptoms women experience when they discontinue hormonal birth control.”

I consulted my primary care physician, my OBGYN and my dermatologist. They told me to get back on hormonal birth control or to take Spironolactone, another hormone-suppressor. Conventional medicine couldn’t offer me what I was looking for, so I took things into my own hands.


I overhauled my diet and lifestyle, and worked on replenishing what was lost. With PATIENCE and CONSISTENCY, not only did I start ovulating again, clear up my acne and stop my hair loss, I healed my life-long asthma in the process as well!

This post isn’t anti-hormonal birth control, but it’s most definitely pro-informed consent. And it’s also meant to show that IT IS possible to heal after birth control. So chin up, you’ve got this ladies!

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This is not medical advice. Always consult your healthcare professional before pursuing any changes to your personal healthcare regime.

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References

Brighten, J. (2019). Beyond the Pill. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers.

Thompson, K.M.J. (2013). A Brief History of Birth Control in the U.S. Retrieved from: https://www.ourbodiesourselves.org/book-excerpts/health-article/a-brief-history-of-birth-control/.

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Remember: this post is for informational purposes only and may not be the best fit for you and your personal situation. It shall not be construed as medical advice. The information and education provided here is not intended or implied to supplement or replace professional medical treatment, advice, and/or diagnosis. Always check with your own physician or medical professional before trying or implementing any information read here. While the owner of this website tries to keep the information up to date, there may be things that are out-of-date and out of their control.