anxiety attacks after stopping birth control

Hi girlies,
I have a weird story. I was on the pill for 8 years and got pregnant while on the pill, stopped it fine for pregnancy, then when resumed it when I was 2 months post partum, that’s when sh*t hit the fan. I was a basket case, my husband was in the army and had to take emergency leave cause I could not get a grip. My doctors started me on a slew so psych meds over the next 4 years cause they said the birth control could never do this. Well, stopped the psych meds 16 months ago and then I stopped the birth control almost 9 months ago. I probably had a few manageable days on month 5 and things got WAY worse and during ovulation in month 8 I felt a little bit better too but I’m crashing again. I’ve had my hormones tested and know I’m low in progesterone and my once high cortisol is now really low(adrenal fatigue) and I’m just really struggling with anxiety, dpdr, depression, intrusive thoughts and I’m almost 9 months out. I’m starting to lose hope and thing this is just who I am. Can anyone offer some help or encouragement? I can’t handle life like this day in and day out :(

I just wanted to throw in a good news story here for anybody who might be struggling with the adjustment post-pill. I was on the pill for ten years and went off 16 months ago now. Going off the pill was the worst experience of my entire life and I had every symptom under the sun, including: severe heart palpitations, hot flashes, insomnia, anxiety, derealisation, intrusive thoughts, panic attacks, vertigo, new food intolerances, bloating and excessive belching, muscle twitches and more. My symptoms sent me to emergency one time and to a multitude of different specialists (none of whom could find any underlying issues but also none of whom confirmed the pill as being the reason for my symptoms). The first 8-10 months were horrific and I couldn’t even sit still without going into panic. I was so restless. Around month 10, my symptoms started to ease but then I experienced the ‘typical’ post-pill response of terrible acne on my jawline and back which really impacted my mental health. Since this time though, things have reaaaally improved. I don’t have any weird symptoms and my acne is minor and manageable. Trust me when I say there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I tried so many different things but I’d say the things that helped most were focusing on healthy eating and supplements. I take fish oil, zinc, evening primrose oil, curcumin, magnesium, complex B and iron. I also try to prioritise rest and do detoxing things like infrared sauna and sweating through exercise.

It’s hard to envision that there will be an end to these symptoms but there will be. Hang in there x x

Agreed. My story is very similar. I was on Tri Sprintec for 2 months and developed anxiety, depression, OCD-like symptoms, dizziness, insomnia, derealization, etc. literally the day after getting off. My first month off was awful, second was great, and then everything came back at the end of my third month. I am now approaching month 7 and doing better, but certainly not back to normal. I am currently just dealing with strong mood swings. On average, it takes about 6 months to stabilize, and then 1-2 years to feel totally back to normal. It is not an easy journey by any means, but you will get better.