Sudden weight gain after stopping birth control?!

Me too!!! I look like I'm carrying 6 babies. Been off of them a month. I'm so aggravated.

Amazing story, please tell me what the "proper treatment" was

I too am experiencing this frustration. I stopped Yasmin/Ocella/Seyeda after almost 20 years. I started when I was 17, and after the doctors found some benign liver tumors on a CT scan (for other abdominal issues) they recommended I stop taking it. I had lost 35 lbs from the previous year and was down to 104, eating super clean (for IBS reasons) and exercising. After going off the pill I have gained 5-6 lbs even eating at a constant deficit. I also haven't had a menstrual cycle yet since stopping 3 months ago and recently had my hormones tested indicating low estrogen/estradiol, and high testosterone (huh?). I ordered my wedding dress at my low weight and now it doesn't fit, this is driving me mad. I am seriously considering re-starting the pill against doctors orders.

I have lost my pregnancy weight round about 35 lbs with the help of drinking mummy magic weight loss tea. After two months, I was back to my pre-baby body shape.

I am experiencing the EXACT same thing, and I've started a more exhaustive gym routine. It is so frustrating because I can go without eating for a full day (save for some water and protein shakes) and look huge. This happened to me before when I missed the pill similar reason as yours. Few days after I got back on it, and I looked back to normal. Hope you're better now.

I came off Lo loestrin fe in June and had Skyla IUD inserted. Loved it at first but had bloating a lot. I suddenly gained 10 lbs within next two months. Had many tests run (thyroid etc as it runs in family) but all normal. Initially after stopping the pill, I was sleeping only 2 hours a night and ended up in a sleep study under the care of a sleep Doctor. After seeing my endocrinologist for thyroid and all other tests, she determined that coming off bc hormones is the cause for all of this. My body essentially thought it was in menopause which led to sleepless nights and weight gain only in the stomach area. (I am natural very thin so the weight gain was very obvious and specific to my belly enough for people to think I was pregnant.) I had the IUD pulled out two days ago (after 5 months) and started with the Nuvaring today. So far just cramping which is probably a combo of starting hormones again and having had the IUD removed. My endo believes that I need to be on a low dose hormone to not gain weight. I never gained weight on bc and I took it for over 10 years. I believe many of you women experienced the same as me...a temporary "fake" menopause as the body adjusts to the lack of hormone. My dr assured me that it doesn't affect fertility. It's just the body being confused. Wish me luck with the Nuvaring. Hope this helps other women.

Hi. I've experienced the exact same. After a lot of research I've found a correlation between bp and poor gut bacteria, or a lack of probiotics in your gut. Apparently gut bacteria influences your weight. And the pill kills this good bacteria. Worth looking into? I'm gonna get my hands on some probiotic supplements ASAP.

Good luck!

I'm so glad I found this. I'm 44 yrs old and was taking the pill since I was in high school. In 2013, my OBGYN recommended that I go on an IUD because my blood pressure was in the pre-hypertension range. After reviewing the IUD, I did not want to do it, so she kept me off all birth control. Within 2 months, I had my first emotional episode; depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, etc. I had no clue it was from stopping the pill.

These episodes lasted for 9 months. I finally pieced it together and went to see another doctor. I thought I had PMDD and so did she. She put me on a low dose pill; progesterone only, i think and we just couldn't get it right. I bled for a month straight and the emotional roller coaster got worse. I remember one day where I was in the fetal position in my back yard. I almost called 9-1-1 to have myself committed. It was horrific.

So, I researched all these natural remedies and stopped the pill completely. I took Vitex, DIMM, a million different supplements. The mood swings got better, but my periods were still horrific (the whole reason why I got on the pill in high school).

All through this, I was noticing that I was gaining weight (I run 25 miles a week, walk a ton at work, and was doing Crossfit here and there.... I shouldn't have been gaining weight). I was even eating clean and limiting my calories to 1200 a day. The weight kept coming. When I look in the mirror, it is all in my butt, mid section, and lower back. My legs still look like runner's legs.

It's now been almost 3 years. I have a new doctor that tested my thyroid (it was low). I take a small dosage of Cytomel and she put me on progesterone to control the bleeding/clots of my period.

The progesterone has worked, but I am still gaining weight.

I have to show her 2 negative pregnancy tests in the next month. I'm going back on Seasonale.

These last 3 years have been a nightmare. Thankfully, I have a very understanding man in my life, who didn't leave when I damn well would have.

Good luck to all of you. I will let you know at the end of January if I dropped any weight. I'm crossing my fingers because I don't want to shop for new clothes!

Just wanted to update. I saw my naturopath and even had a second opinion in Seattle. They both stayed it can take 3-6 months for the body to regulate itself again. I did get my period on the 3rd month off but now it looks like I am missing it again. My mood fluctuates but is somewhat more stable since starting Sam-e. The anxiety and ocd symptoms are still there and I hope I will still have a wedding if my fiancé can be patient with me. I also started some probiotics and my docs recommended 1-2 cups of soy daily. I don't think I have gained anymore but I am refraining from weighing myself too. Guess I will give it some more time.

New update- I gave it almost 4 months. Despite my period coming back my weight continues to crawl upwards despite an increase in overall activity and eating at a deficit. This month brought on breakouts and some kind of acne that results in red bumps that keep re-occurring in the same spot. The mood swings are unbearable and it is affecting my work. I am planning on re-starting my Yasmin again after I start my period again (if I do...). I am hoping this will help regulate my hormones, improve the mood swings, fix the acne and allow me to start losing again. I guess some of us who have been on BC since teen years are better off staying on it through menopause. I am seriously wondering if hormonal fluctuations are more responsible for mental health than doctors know.

What a relief. I have been looking for answers EVERYWHERE. I came off diane in September 2015 and at first de-bloated/lost weight rapidly. I then went back on it for contraceptive purposes in March 2016. I came off it again in May 2016 because I was no longer seeing anyone and put on 8kg's in a matter of months. No matter what I ate or how much I moved the weight just wouldn't budge. I have had digestive issues, severe depression, irregular periods, cellulite, hair growth in my face etc. It's been 9 months since I've been off it and nothing has changed. I used to lose weight easily on the pill with tweaks to my diet and exercise but nothing has worked. I am going to go back on the pill.

Hormonal weight gain is something that needs to be talked about more. I actually had my levels tested a couple months after going off and my estrogen was super low and testosterone really high. Now my big challenge is to find a good OBGYN that will continue prescribing my preference and help monitor levels.

Dear you are probably retaining water, drink lots of water with lemon, -and do cardio to sweat out the toxins,

If you're only eating 1000 calories a day , your body is in starvation mode, this will cause your body to hold fat, eat muscle and pause other bodily functions that aren't necessary, like growing hair or nails or menstruating. If you look up consequences of disordered eating eg, bulimia anorexia, it will give you more details on this.

Similar exp. I decided to quit birth control all together (was on it about 10 years). Within 2 months I gained 10 pounds, particularly in the midsection. At first I didn't connect the dots and started a straight vegetarian meal prep diet and worked out 4-6 times a week. My weight steadily kept going up until I gained about 30 lbs in 6 months, again mostly in my belly. It's been over a year and still no end in sight. My period have slowly been getting back to normal (on loestrin for 5 years and it completely shut down my periods)