anxiety attacks after stopping birth control

Thank you for sharing your story! It's encouraging to read and know that all these crazy symptoms will pass. It just takes time. Sending my thoughts and love from Texas.

I would love to email you and talk about what I'm going through because it's affecting my relationship and making me feel all types of crazy I can't comprehend and I need help because my mom doesn't understand where I'm coming from and neither do my friends

I have been off bc for 4 or 5 months. I noticed my anxiety has increased so much since then. I also have had a few thing in my marriage but all is well now and my anxiety wont go away. naturally the doctor says to go onto celexa which i have taken 5 mg 2 days in a row. but started to wonder if it because of my hormones. If so im getting back on the pill to see if it works. if it does i will switch to a low dose bc pill. i will update in a few days to let everyone know how progress is.

Hi,
How are you feeling now? I wanted to share my story/information in case it helps. I went off the pill after being on for about a year and a half. I was off two months and noticed an increase in anxiety but didn't think much of it since my job at the time was VERY stressful. I decided to get back on the pill to see if my anxiety improved; it did not. It was around this time I started really researching exactly what the pill does and all the negative effects it can have on your hormones/emotions. I also found this forum and others. I decided then to stop the pill all together. This was about 3 months ago; the first month was really rough. I've never had anxiety as bad as what it was then. I think the back and forth on and off the pill really messed up my hormones and my put a lot of stress on my adrenals from what my ND said. I also started a new job which was a good change but change nonetheless and I've always taken a while to adjust to changes and have a little anxiety even with positive changes. I took a very low dose of anxiety meds for a few weeks to get me through. I had terrible insomnia and of course this only makes anxiety even worse. I'm now taking supplements form the ND. It's been almost 3 months off BC for good and what a road! I'll never take the pill again. The positive aspects of all this is I'm taking much better care of myself now and much better informed about the BC effects. How long were you on the pill before stopping? You have to do what you think is best but keep in mind you'll likely have to deal with this at some point down the road whenever you stop the pill again. Sending love and support form Texas!

Hi, I am so overjoyed to have found this. I came off bc around 2 months ago. I have never suffered with Anxiety before and it has totally taken over my life and it seems to be getting worse with time. I honestly don't know what to do to help/ stop it. I just feel so paranoid that my life is coming to an end and I'm only 23! I have an appointment with the Drs tomorrow so I am hoping to get some answers but I don't hold out much hope as they don't seem to understand the seriousness of what I am feeling. Does this ever pass? I feel like I'm losing the plot and my mind and most importantly, my life. Please, any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks, Megan

Wow i had no idea that this is part of what can happen. I've been pill less for about 2 weeks and for the last two days i have been going through little panic attacks which i figured had to do with it but wasn't sure until i stopped here. Funny thing is until i related the search none of the other sites that post what can happen mention this as an issue. Alot of deep breathing & some relaxing music i guess... Thank you for sharing.

Hey Ladies. You aren't alone. This happens to many women (people just don't seem to put two and two together and talk about it!). The anxiety and depression or other sudden symptoms are likely from adrenal stress/hormonal imbalance from coming off the pill (can cause issues while on it as well). The best support group I have seen regarding this is a forum called Aphrodite Womens Health Forums under topics of "Contraception" or "Archived". The archived discussions are especially helpful. Would link it here but I don't think I can.

I went through this and was on Yasmin for one year. Start feeling bad out of nowhere (and for no reason, and nothing wrong in my life) gradually over the course of the year I was on it, stopped mid pack and felt REALLY bad when I stopped using it. Never had dealt with any kind of anxiety issues before in my life. Just now coming up on 6 months off and I am FINALLY starting to feel better, but still not great or back to myself. All I can say is to hang in there, rely on your loved ones and know this is temporary and will pass and get better after each natural period cycle. Ovulation (about midway through cycle) through period were the hardest times for me, and then I would have a couple good days before I felt bad again for the next cycle. I know it is the WORST thing to go through--its been the hardest experience in my life. I didn't take any medications to get me through it because I figured medication got me in this mess in the first place and I needed to fight through it knowing this was hormonally induced and would pass eventually. I have read countless stories, and have seen ranges of this taking 3 months-2 years to fully heal and get back to yourself. It just depends from person to person.

Doctors don't seem to understand what problems the BC can cause both while on it, and while coming off of it. Be your own advocate. Get the healthiest you have ever been. Light exercise, healthy eating, multivitamins including Vitamin B (important for serotonin levels which BC depletes...personally I like New Chapter Organics-Perfect Calm), SLEEP, water, and patience. Time is really all that helps. Trust me. And remember, that you will get back to yourself when everything evens back out.

Hang in there! I've had many moments/days of feeling the exact same and still do even 3 months down the road. My ND said she's seen this happen a lot with women coming off the pill. I did a lot of back and forth so that put even more stress on my adrenals/hormones trying to regulate. There are days when EVERYthing triggers anxiety. We're all different so it may take a few months to a year for your body to adjust and start feeling better. How did your appointment go with the drs.?

Hi
So wrapped I found this site
I was on the pill for 7 years and decided it was time to come off I started getting small panic attacks this we after 2 months of being off the pill - I was taking Levlon
I have never had any anxiety issues which made me worried when I had the first attack but after reading all your responses I feel confident this is what is causing this and glad to see I'm not the only one
I'll be taking on all your advice and happy to know its not permanent

How are you feeling now? I hope it went well with your Drs. appointment!

Does going back on the pill stop the anxiety

I can only speak for myself but it did not stop it for me, it got worse. I was on the pill for over a year, then off for two months (noticed slight anxiety increase) then got back on it for a month (bigger anxiety increase) so i decided to stop it for good which was when the anxiety really got bad. It's been a little over 3 months off now and a roller coaster. I think the on and off really messed up my hormones and adrenals, based off what my ND said. There have been many times I've thought about going back on the pill b/c the anxiety is still bad some days but the thought of it getting any worse or having to go through all this mess again when I stop the pill is enough for me to just ride this out. Every one is different, some women take a few months to start feeling better, some a year or more. Drink lots of water everyday, vitamins seem to help especially B ones since the pill depletes these. We're all here to talk and be supportive of each other. I will never take another birth control pill ever again. Hang in there!

Are you feeling any better?

I was recently on birth control for 4-5 months, and once I stopped it I started having feelings of nervousness/ anxiousness. I've asked around with people and they say that 4-5 months isnt enough for BC to mess up your hormones enough to cause anxiety. But the attacks got so bad I was afraid to leave my house and after having an attack in my dads car I developed a fear of getting back in because I was afraid I'd have another one. I got prescribed Xanax .25 pills and they help calm me down but the question still swings around in my mind. Could me stopping birth control all of a sudden cause this? Or is it just because I recently graduated highschool and i'm just stressing about going into the real world, or both? I'm 18 btw.

 

Oh and sorry I tried asking this, but didn't see this thread, so if anyone still reads into this thread I just wanna know how long it could take me to get a hold of myself.

I would think so, I've read on here and other forums that some girls were only on BC for a month or two and had the same anxiety/depression symptoms after stopping. We all have a unique body chemistry. I never had anxiety while on it but did have sadness/emotional the first few months when I started it. If you were all ready having some normal anxiety over the real world, it's entirely possible stopping the pill just increased it. The good news is you were on for a short period of time so it shouldn't take long for your hormones/body to balance out. Hope this helps!