To think the Pill isn't the great invention it's made out to be?

[CailinDana]

Interesting article here about the side effects of the Pill.

I've never taken it because I believe taking artificial hormones every day for years on end must have some quite serious negative impact on your health. How could it not? I've heard the argument that in previous generations women would have been constantly pregnant and that the Pill is just mimicking that state. Now given how horrendous pregnancy makes me feel, I don't see how mimicking that state can be a good thing, and at the same time I think the fact that bfing tends to reduce the risk of pregnancy, mums in the past would have had at least a year between pregnancies, perhaps more if they bfed for longer.

I am fully aware of the great benefits that the Pill brings with it. I just think that it's often sold as a perfectly safe drug when in fact it seems that many women suffer quite badly when they're on it. I do wonder also if in years to come some of the fertility problems that seem to be so common these days (which are not age related) will be linked to the Pill.

AIBU to think we should push for more research into the effects of the Pill, and more honest reporting of its negative aspects?

I don't think there is any lack of honest reporting. I decided in conjunction with my quack that it wasn't at all a good idea for me. About 25 years ago.

Used condoms ever since.

Did you ever see the Ben Elton stand up routine on contraception for women? Worth a revisit even if the passage of time may have dated it a little.

But it was/is the only virtually 100% effective method of women guaranteeing that they weren't going to end up pregnant constantly.

Of course there are many problems with it, but some women will put up with those side effects to have control of their fertility.

Given I think that the pill was responsible for MH problems I had in my late teens/early twenties, I agree entirely.

It's been a great invention for me personally - been taking it since I was 16, and no pregnancies (or even pregnancy scares). Came off it, got pregnant within 3 months, now back on it.

Well I was on it for years and the side effects were;
No more headaches.
No more period pains.
Nice light periods.
Periods only lasting 3 days max!
Knowing exactly when I would get my period.
Not getting pregnant.
Not getting PMT.
Not getting thrush.
Yeah - think that's about it!!!

Every female with a brain knows that the pill can have side-effects, and that those side-effects vary from female to female. The possible side effects are on the leaflet in every single packet and freely available as information. It is not 'sold' as 'perfectly safe'. Nothing is perfectly safe, we are all terminally ill.

The article writer does not appear to have much of a brain. She chose her pill after reading a magazine article. Yes, the pill can be harmful to some.

I feel great on the pill, thank you, and have done for decades.

it's not compulsory, there are plenty of alternatives. And so there should be.

Phyllida Space the journalist strikes again.

It's helped my dd regulate awful awful periods and changed her life for the better.

It has its downsides for sure. Most things do. But whether those downsides outweigh the good will be a different story every time.

The pill helped me regulate periods and I even lost weight on it.

My side effect is the 3 year old I own Quite a big side effect tbh

Personally it always served me well. Controlled my moods (to some degree) and helped control my skin -which was a big factor in my self esteem hence mood. All of which have been a complete and utter nightmare since coming off it, and now in my first few months of pregnancy.

Obviously there are problems, and I think everyone should be provided with more information about the pros and cons of all drugs - at the moment this information is not accessible to the public, and rarely our GPs! and we are often left to rely on newspaper articles which present one view-

Often wonder-drugs/ cancer causing drugs are misreported based on the findings of one study.... then this is accepted as gospel.

YANBU because that's your opinion... and re not pushing it on anyone else.

So it clearly straightened out some hormonal problems you were already having hells. In effect for you it wasn't just contraception, it was medication for the range of conditions you listed, in which case it was a necessary thing for you, rather than something extra, IYSWIM. I can see that in cases like yours it has a very positive effect. I also know that for a lot of women there are no side effects at all.

I have been put under a lot of pressure from the GP down through the years to go on the Pill and they seem almost annoyed when I say I'd rather not. I do think it's pushed by the medical world as a normal, everyday, safe thing rather than the quite powerful medication that it actually is.

Mixed here, it helped calm my PCOS, however I did conceive on it.

I do think the side effects are often unreported and are pooh-poohed by many drs.

It did a great thing in liberating women from being almost constantly pregnant, but it certainly has its faults.

I tried it twice for 9 months each time. I couldn't tolerate it. It made me fat and depressed and gave me thrush. So I didn't ever take it or any other hormonal contraception again.

I think this is likely to be very contentious!

I happen to agree that hormonal contraceptives do not agree with me and haven't taken them for years.

Your comment regarding breastfeeding isn't true though: I am EBF and having regular periods and have done both times, and most disappointingly have done immediately, so bf can't be relied upon in the same way as the pill can.

I think pseudo science is dangerous though, so proper peer reviewed research into the long term effects of continued use of hormonal contraceptives would be a good idea. On the subjec of pseudo science, I did read once that tap water contains high levels of hormones, likely due to the pill (and also low levels of Prozac) so we are exposed in more ways than we realise!

What often shocks me is when lack of libido is dismissed as an unimportant side effect of the Pill, as if women not wanting sex is nothing. Yet, condoms being a "turn off" is often spouted by men as a reason not to use them, because god forbid they might have any loss of libido!

I only hammer on about this because for years I didn't know why I was constantly aggressive and anxious. And the problem is that its very hard to link this drug I'd been taking for years with the problems I was having.

But when I came off it, within 2 months I was back to being the same person I was previously. It was fabulous.

Of course I then had period problems again, but when I flatly refused to take the pill (because it was destroying my life) the GP gave me anti-inflammatories which worked just as well.

ALL medication, even the lowly paracetamol is a powerful medication and we should all respect the fact that none of them are 100% safe and 100% guaranteed.

We should never become complacent that a little pill (of any kind and for any purpose) is a magic pill and that all have side effects, and even potential side effects we may not even be aware of. Everyone should be educated in this respect.

But then I grew up in a medical household, so perhaps this is something I have taken for granted that maybe others don't think of.

Just to clarify, I said bfing reduces the risk of pregnancy - it definitely isn't a reliable contraceptive no matter what totally uninformed doctors might say!!

I think some doctors can be very blinkered when it comes to the pill. This first pill I was put on made me very sick. When I went back to the gp he told it was definitely not the pill, no one had ever had that side effect from it and to carry on taking it. I ignored him and stopped and felt better the next day. When I went back to work the next day I mentioned this to my colleagues, unanimously every single female member of staff had suffered the same side effects on that particular pill.

I believe the pill is known to reduce ovarian and uterine cancer risks (as well as pregnancy and breastfeeding long term).

I don't use hormones though. I have a copper iud which is great.

have been put under a lot of pressure from the GP down through the years to go on the Pill and they seem almost annoyed when I say I'd rather not.

I think the issue is your GP isn't up to much, rather than the way the pill is "mis sold".

I came off 25 years ago. Nobody has ever tried to pressure me back on it, or get annoyed with me cos when asked if I need a birth control persription I say, no ta.

This has been various GPs Loquace, not just one. It could be because I've never tried the Pill at all. They seem surprised when I say we use condoms and go on and on about the Pill and other methods, all my responsibility rather than DH's of course, and how safe and reliable they are. They don't seem to believe me when I say condoms are fine.

it's not even a good contraceptive.. I got pregnant with DD on the cerazette pill. When i mentioned to the dr about being on the pill before finding out, he said "oh, well it's only 98% effective so 2 in 100 women taking it correctly will get pregnant each year". When put like that it really doesn't sound worth the side effects/health risks!

No one has ever tried to pressure me to go back onto it either, Loquace. It's been suggested a few times, but a firm no has moved the discussion on.

I've never seen the pill marketed or presented by a doc as a perfectly safe drug, if anything women who are on it are strongly encouraged to get their blood pressure checked (I know I had to have mine done before every repeat prescription) and many women are advised against taking it because they are already in a higher risk category.

Does it have other, sometimes surprising, side effects? Yes of course, it manipulates your hormones, why wouldn't it?! Not every version of it will suit everyone at any time.

I find the article really poorly written. It's an expression of a subjective, personal experience (nothing wrong with that) masquerading as science (very one sided appeals to studies, no mention of opposing evidence and no clarification between physiological risks and psychological risks of taking the pill).

As far as I know the latest thinking is that the pill mimicks more closely what would have been the body's natural state of affairs, i.e. repeated pregnancies and periods of low reproductive hormones due to extended breastfeeding, all of which help protect from ovarian and breast cancer.

Interesting timing. I've just come off it after 15 years. Not really sure why, I just wanted to see what my body was like without it. My mood and concentration have improved noticeably, but there are a few other things that could be down to.

I agree GPs do tend to see it as a default - when I started taking it the only question was which one would "suit" me rather than whether it would suit me at all. But then I was 19, so the prime aim was obviously to stop me getting pregnant! Maybe we need to prompt our doctors to assess us more frequently.