Side effects of stopping the birth control pill...depression?

It's so interesting to me to read the varied responses around ending the pill. I'd been on the pill for most of the past 14 years (I'm now 32) and have had trouble finding a pill for the past couple of years. I'd been on Desogen for 9 months and was noticing severe anxiety right before my period and every single month had a major meltdown exactly 4 days before my period started. I also noticed that in general my moods swung too widely and I simply didn't feel good.

When realized that I felt my best during my period and went back to feeling lousy when I started a new pack of pills, I quit the pill. That's been about 6 weeks ago. Mentally, I'm so much better! Much more stable and just feeling better and more consistent than I have in several years. Physically, in general I'm better. Energy is much higher and more consistent. On the downside, I can tell a lot of difference with discharge and dryness...that seems to be fluctuating a lot and I'm hopeful that it will settle out.

If anyone knows of a site where I can read more about why some of us feel so much better off the pill while others feel so much worse, I'd love to hear about it!

-Dana

Oh my gosh I am so relieved to read the information on this forum, it's good to hear that it's not just ME. I recently stopped taking the pill after being on it for 25 years because of abnormal periods and constant spotting, etc. I felt extremely moody at first, which isn't fun for my fiance, but now it has went into a very sad, depressed feeling. I had no idea the pill could control moods, etc. so much. I am also experiencing a VERY heavy period with Extreme cramps, but I hope this will get better with time. If anyone else has experienced any of this let me know. Hopefully it will pass soon. We are planning our wedding and getting married next month so I'm sure the stress isn't helping things. but this is supposed to be a very happy time and it saddens me that I'm not feeling too happy right now.

i just got off the pill as well and am having heavy bleeding and bad cramps. worse than a normal period. i had been taking it for about 10 years (i think i stopped a few times in that time period). just wondering how long the bleeding and cramps will last? and when my body will get back to normal?

I took Yasmin for three months. It made me feel horrible; mostly I noticed decreased athletic performance, combined with depression, hunger, bloating, gas etc. I have been off the pill for about six weeks now. My first period was okay, but I am suffering from severe bloating, dizziness and fatigue. I have been juice cleansing and detoxing with foods and teas and this may be increasing my symptoms. My rings don't fit!!! My stomach is gassy and bloated, almost as bad as when I was on the pill. I hope it settles soon.
alli123 wrote:

cartoonlmc wrote:

First and foremost, my heart goes out to everyone suffering from "post-pill craziness". I too have gone off the pill, two months ago now, and feel like i'm going nuts. My face and back and breaking out like crazy and my mood swings are out of control. Oh, not to mention the 8 lb weight gain, most of which is water. My therapist has recommended an anti-depressant but I'm hesitant to start putting more chemicals in my body. Does anyone have any good remedies/suggestions for treating the symptoms? The bloating is the worst of it so I'd love any input.

The bloat is horrible! I've been off for only 2 weeks and I have gained 5 pounds which is no doubt water weight. I look exactly like I did when I was pregnant 9 years ago. My stomach is distended as if I were pregnant now (which I assure you I'm not) and my fingers/toes/legs are all swollen. I feel miserable. I'm also very crabby and moody as if I were VERY ppre-menstrual. Anybody else look newly pregnant? Do I have to look and feel like this for months while my body "adjusts?" Help!

oh my gosh - i thought i was going insane here by myself. i am really relieved to know that i'm not alone here. i just went off the pill having been on it for 11 years. i also struggled with a severe bout of depression a few years back, but have been off of antidepressants for almost 4 years now. since going off the pill 5 weeks ago, i've been anxious, depressed, bloated, dizzy and totally miserable!! at least i know that there's a solid reason for it, and that it's not because i'm losing my mind again after being so stable for so long. i know it'll be different for everyone, but in general, how long does it take to return to 'normal'? and what is a 'normal' period like?

I've gotta say, I've found online forums the most comforting thing these last few months. I've successfully gotten off of 2 medications that had incredibly tough withdrawal symptoms (Depakote for migraine, Effexor XR for anxiety). My husband and I want to start trying to get pregnant, and I've been tapering off of all drugs for about 7 months now. I just stopped taking my birth control pills about 10 days ago, and the first 3 days were great. Higher sex drive, happy, very motivated. and then the fatigue hit. I've been taking BC since I was 18 (30 now), and recently had been taking seasonique, the 3 month pill. It really helped my menstrual migraine while I was on it. But now that I've stopped taking it, I feel like a zombie. I can't sleep at night, until the wee hours of the morning, (5:30 am, like the last 3 nights), but I'm exhausted most of the time as well. It's not like I'm bouncing off the walls all night, but I can't sleep. But all day, I feel like I could just stay in bed. It feels like nothing could make me get out of my chair, bed, house, etc. And I was insanely emotional all weekend, over something that should have been a normal conversation. This is nothing like getting off the other meds, but I was hoping for an easier transition with this one. My symptoms from the harder core Effexor were much worse than this, and it only took about 6 weeks to kick that and be functional again.

Here's hoping, and fingers crossed to all of us trying to conceive!

Hi, I’ve been on the pill for 15 years and only just stopped taking it about 3 weeks ago. What I’ve found out since is amazing!
1, The pill works by stopping you from releasing an egg each month (ovulating).
2. When you come off the pill your body needs time to get back into its natural rhythm (from what I’ve read this can take anywhere between 1 month to 1 year). During this time you may experience mood fluctuations, cramps, bloating, etc but this is normal while your body is readjusting (of course always consult a doctor if you’re not sure).
3. You should wait at least 3 months (personally I would wait at least 6) before trying for a baby (using other methods of contraception) while your body readjusts to the following: your own hormones need time to get back into sink; your ovaries need to work again to release the egg; and the lining of your uterus needs to rebuild to be suitable to hold a baby.
4. During this time you should keep active - go walking, swimming, yoga etc.
5. The following info has been invaluable to me as a women and I can’t believe I’ve waited until now to explore this!... There is a natural method of birth control where you can track when you’re ovulating (and most likely to get pregnant). During the time of ovulation (which is about 7 days to be safe) you can use another method of contraception (such as a condom) or refrain from sex until your not ovulating. This only requires tracking morning temperature and cervical fluid. When you track these things you learn about your body. You can also use this method if you are trying to get pregnant (you just reverse it) and you learn about your body and health too!
I wanted to share this information with everybody because since looking at websites such as these I have found that many people do not know about this method (just as I didn’t)! Here’s some websites that I’ve found really useful.

One last piece of information that I just found out…Before synthetic lighting and contraceptive hormones women used to have their periods on the full moon!!

Aloha, Zoe


**edited by moderator ** web addresses not allowed**

I was only on bcp for 2 months.. and then i had to get off of them to switch to a lower hormone level pill ive been off for almost 2 weeks (well since my last active pill) and the past 3 days have been horrible ive never cried so much for no reason in my life! i have been feeling just absolutly out of my eliment.. im not myself my husband is getting worried im constantly stressed anxious depressed and occasionally i experince dizzy spells im going back to the doc tomorrow so i can get back on the pill but a lower hormone level one.. do you think i will feel better once i start taking it again?? i cant take this anymore!!!

Hi Ladies,

I wrote previously about stopping the pill after being on in for 12 years as I was experiencing dizzy spells, anxiety etc

It has been 4 months now and I am alot better, I still suffer with the anxiety and I must try and avoid all stressful situations as I think my nervous system is shot.. I have to allow it time to repair after the anxiety attacks and panicking because I was too scared to go anywhere in case I had a fainting spell.

My mother is a naturopath and she has helped me immensely, I have been on a good multivitamin, magnesium (good for heart palpitations), fish oil plus various herbs for anxiety and my nervous system. Plus a couple of homeopathic remedies, one which has rebalanced my hormones (my periods are now regular).

My doctor did acknowledge that these effects can happen when coming off the pill, and my gyno wanted me to see a psychologist to prescribe antidepressants, however I am hopeful that I will slowly recover and become stronger. But it does take time, please remember this! I know how hard it is and I just wanted to come back here to try and help anyone that is going through this. Please try and repair your bodies naturally before jumping onto antidepressants (which is all doctors are prescribing!) there are alternatives!

I know that I will never touch the pill again, and I am disgusted that no doctors warn women of the effects this drug does to our bodies.

Stay strong ladies!

Hello! I am 21 and was on acctuane from January to June and was made to take birth control while I was on the accutane. I'd never been on accutane, and was not and am not sexually active, but I had no issues being on the birth control, but didn't feel a need to stay on it. I stopped taking it, and now i've been having the WORST periods of my life. Normally, my periods last 3 days, 4 days max...I was lucky. I had cramps the day before I started and most of the time, I didn't need to take anything for them. Now, I am nearly crippled the first two days and normally I run about 5 days now, and I hate it. Because it's heavy and painful all the way up to the last day, and then it just stops. It doesn't get lighter or anything, just stops. On the first day, or the day before now, I feel like I am getting or have a very serious bladder infection, like I have to pee all the time and its just a very painful pressure. I bought a heating pad because it's all that seems to help. I was just wondering if anyone else has had this happen?...I haven't gained weight, I've actually lost weight, which is good for me...lol But Its just awful! I'm thinking about going back on it...I don't know if this was the cause though?!

Thanks, Jessica

I have been on the pill for 13 years and the last 5+ years I have been on Kariva. I discontinued Kariva in January and quickly plunged into a deep and horrible depression within a month. For whatever reason, I didn't connect the depression with going off the pill right away. I thought I was just getting older (I am 34) and dealing with more of life's stresses. I have never felt so helpless in my entire life and I have dealt with real drama (nothing seemed to trigger the depression -- it was just so seemingly random!). My husband and I wanted to get pregnant, but with the depression so bad, I decided to get back on the pill to avoid getting pregnant considering my feelings of helplessness and anxiety. Low and behold, two weeks later I was suddenly happy again. That's when I realized 7 months of misery was related to going off the pill. Now, I don't know what to do. Never get pregnant and stay on the pill or go off the pill, plunge into darkness, and bring a child into my hormonally unhappy world? There has to be a way to regain balance without artificial hormones, right? I plan to see my doctor and ask for a referral to an endocrinologist. Any tips for getting my body and my head back in synch?

I feel like I just hit the jackpot. I was on the bcp for eight years, and I decided two months ago to try au-natural. I have been severley depressed, put on weight, and lost all motivation. I am relieved to have figured out why this is happenning to me. Even though it won't cure the depression, the knowledge makes me feel less insane! I just can't wait for it to pass, because my sex-drive has definately increased, but nobody wants to sleep with debbie downer!

Hi Ashley,

I know its just awful! I to didnt link up going off the pill with the depression that has crept up on me. I have never felt so helpless before.

I wrote earlier about my mother being a naturopath who has been helping me, and I am a ton better! Some moments are better than others but at least I am able to function normally again and feel confident to leave the house.

What I am on (per day) is 3 tablets of omega 3, 1 good womens multivitamin, high strength magnesium (which helps greatly). I am also on a couple of homeopathic remedies, one was especially good to rebalance my hormones, it is called Hormocrine (only available from a naturopath or alike) plus something to calm my anxiety called Vata Tone which I also feel has contributed to my ability to function normally. Since the depression got quite bad and I wanted to avoid going on antidepressants (another drug) I am also on something called SAMe (google it) which is like a 'natural' version, it is mainly made up of amino acids.

This may also seem like alot, but going back on the pill was not an option for me (trying to get pregnant!) and I will never touch that thing again! And going on another dependent drug was a last resort, so if you are like how I was, all of this is definitely worth it!

Any questions please ask as I will check back here regularly, and I do advise you to see a well established Naturopath who would probably recommend something similar to what I am on.

Take care and stay strong!

Geri

I totally agree with you. I was on the same generic brand of BCP. So my doctor switched it to Orthro-tricyclen lo. I stopped taking the bcp on Sept. 22, 2007. I did not have a period non in october and it finally came on November 1st. Since I have been off i've felt dizzyand anxious. I even thought i was pregnant but the test was negative. My fiance and I are trying but I wanted to know how long does it take? Also i have been spotting.

Words cannot explain how happy I am to have found this site. I have read just about everyone's posting and I've found each of them very helpful. I have been on the pill for 5.5 years now and I am 23 years old. I initially got on the pill due to SEVERE cramping and I am afraid I may experience this again. I am not trying to get pregnant but I am trying to go natural and not depend on any pills. I am on my last pack and it will be done by next weekend. I must say, I am very nervous. I had never heard of symptoms of depression or anxiety attacks after discontinuing the pill. I didn't know what to expect. All I had read was that I may experience irregular periods. I am a moody person anyway, so I'm wondering how this will take effect on me. I want to try to go about this in a spiritual way. Maybe do some meditation, write in a daily journal and practice a healthy diet. Thanks again ladies! o.O