Dr wants 15yo dd to consider going on contraceptive pill

[Flamingoose]

I'm uncomfortable about how normal it is for women to start taking a daily hormone adjustment in early teens and to continue with that for the rest of our fertile lives. Is it really a good idea?

Dd has horrendous menstrual cramps. It's only one day a month that is unbearable, but on that day she is barely able to get out of bed. She has missed a day of school every month for about 6 months, and on and off before that. She cries in pain. It's awful. She is not generally one to make a fuss, and she hates missing school.
She has been prescribed very strong painkillers (which have risks of their own, but at least it is only one or two days a month).
The doctor is keen for us to consider dd going on the pill. Dd wants a solution to the pain, but she's not keen to go on the pill.
I have absolutely no moral or silly objection to her going on the pill, but I hesitate to start messing around with her hormones already.
Any thoughts?

The pill will mask the problem.
Lifestyle and dietary factors can make a MASSIVE difference to PMS and pain. Avoiding caffeine, spiking sugar, excess salt, and ensuring good vitamin uptake through the cycle is really important. Exercise, enough sleep and hydration, etc.
Also evening primrose oil/ agnes castus.
Lots of good sources of info on youtube/insta. Will dig out links.

If she does try the pill you should both be alert to side effects and be prepared to try different types.
No, your DD shouldn't have to just put up with it or miss that much school. No the pill is not the only solution.

I went on the pill at 16 for the same reason and it made my life SO much better. Sorted out all the period pains straight away.

Previously my mum hadn't let me go on the pill despite the doctor advising it for terrible period cramps (since I was 14). I was given painkillers, etc, which didn't touch it and I ended up having time off school every month and feeling terrible. I had to have a horrible attack in the middle of a GCSE exam before my mum relented.

I think your concerns are unfounded. Her hormones are already messing her up, why not take a treatment that will sort it out? She may only need it for a few years.

My dd does this for period pain and I wish somebody had suggested this for me when I was a young teen. Period pain can be horrendous and so debilitating. It's also good to know exactly when you are due your period for school trips etc and then you can go straight onto the next packet if necessary. I do understand your reservation around it but I still think it's worth taking them.

Well done to you for looking to address this.
I was on the pill from a young age due to what doctors thought was PCOS. I did brilliantly on it, no side effects, only stopped to conceive. After having children it became apparent that I actually had severe endometriosis. At that point my period pains were like labour pains and kept me off work vomiting - I really feel for your DD going through similar.

I wonder if it helps to reframe things - the pill isn't "messing with her hormones" - the underlying condition is doing that. Taking the pill is a simple correction. It's not a one-way street either. If she doesn't get on with the pill, you could request a gynae referral to investigate further and suggest different treatments. But in the meantime this could potentially be an easy win.

The pill will treat the problem by stopping ovulation and incidentally it will vastly reduce her lifetime risk of ovarian cancer. Saying that it masks it is like saying that insulin masks diabetes, or an inhaled steroid masks asthma. All that you have suggested is good but for many it isn't enough.

The pill isn’t a cure for problematic periods, it just masks the problem. If that happens to be an issue that might impact fertility then You can be absolutely stuffed when it comes to having a baby. I highly recommend the “period repair manual” to see if there’s anything that might be causing her periods to be so heavy and painful - it contains a guide on how to talk to your doctor which might be useful too. Periods indicate general health so it’s good to get to the root cause rather than just bandaid the problem. Good luck and well done for questioning this and advocating for your daughter!

There is no cure for endometriosis. Even a hysterectomy doesn't cure it. As there is no cure for diabetes, asthma and a myriad of other diseases, all of which we treat, as endometriosis can be treated with the pill. Sorry but you're talking unevidenced nonsense here.

My 15 year old dd is on cerazette for similar reasons and it's suiting her great, no periods at all for several months now, no cramps and far less mood swings. As far as I can see it's all only been positive. She's not sexually active so isn't using it for contraception, purely for the benefits she's getting.

I have awful heavy and painful periods and have been on mefanemic acid for a couple of years but have recently got tranexamic acid as well and the two combined are great! Would anything like that be an option for your dd if you aren't keen on the pill?

My dd did and is really happy not having periods messing up her life any longer.

When last I looked at the data, there is a slight increased risk of breast and cervical cancer. But also a reduction of up to 50% in rates of ovarian and endometrial cancer.

The relative risk increase in breast cancer is 1.24 i.e. 24% over the background risk. Background risk of getting breast cancer as a teen is pretty close to zero, and 24% of zero is still zero. There's no clear increase in cervical cancer as there are confounding factors to consider such as age of first SI. The vast reduction in ovarian cancer (over 50% at ten years use) outweighs the tiny increase in breast cancer for the vast majority of women - the only women for whom this isn't the case would be those with an inherited cancer gene, which is the reason I always ask about family history of breast/ovarian cancer when I prescribe the pill.

www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/causes-of-cancer/hormones-and-cancer/does-the-contraceptive-pill-increase-cancer-risk

"Overall, the protective effects outweigh the risks, but each person's risk will be different. Talk to your doctor if you're thinking about using the contraceptive pill"

I do wish people would stop scaremongering about the pill. It puts a lot of women off an effective treatment.

@orbitalcrisis

As it's her hormones that are the problem, she needs them messed with!

THIS!

I’d absolutely let her try it if she wants. I went on it when I was 16 due to PCOS and it really helped regulate my periods, stop them being so severe and also cleared up my teenage acne. I’ve had no ill effects whatsoever from starting at that age or taking it for such a long time.

I understand your reticence, as the pill causes so many problems for some women, and of course it is introducing hormones at a level which isn’t natural. On the other hand, some women get on really well with it and if she’s suffering as much as she is, she definitely needs a solution.

You could offer her a trial of the pill, on the understanding that it might work well and quickly, or she might need to go through a period of trial and error to find one that suits and solves her issue.

I’d be tempted to look at the bigger picture first, though, as other pps suggest. The pill won’t solve the underlying causes of her pain, though it may well provide temporary relief while she takes it. And if the pain is indicative of bigger issues that could affect fertility, it just kicks the can down the road, albeit she is young at the moment. Painful periods are common but NOT normal, despite what we are often told.

As well as the dietary changes pp mentioned, some women find that acupuncture can help enormously to balance and regulate hormones. Would that be of interest?

Ultimately, at 15, it needs to be her own choice, of course, with you helping her weigh up her options.

DD is on it for irregular periods it has been life changing. Started the same age as your daughter.

I went on the pill at 15 (I'm 26 now) and honestly, I regret doing so. I didn't have any medical reason to go on it, nor did I actually have many issues once I was on it.

However, now that I've been off it for about a year and a half, I can definitely see that it basically made me "numb" emotionally. I don't think I properly "felt" anything for those 10 years and now that I'm off it, I feel like a whole new person and like I actually have my personality back.

I read absolutely loads about the pill before deciding to come off it affects our bodies so much more than we realise, so I'd definitely advise your daughter to do some proper reading about it before making the decision. Yes, it could solve her current medical issue, but it could also have a hell of a lot of shitty side effects. Some fantastic podcasts out there as well.

This really is not true. The pill does not “introduce hormones at a level that is unnatural”. The amount of oestrogen in the pill is less than is circulating in a woman at ovulation. The hormones are also body-identical. Also, most period pain in teenagers doesn’t have an underlying problem - it is just pain associated with periods. As the pill stops your periods it does, in fact, solve the problem. Acupuncture may work but is far more expensive and high-maintenance for a teenager trying to get on with their life than the pill.

I am 37 I went on the pill at 15 to help with painful cramps and acne. I have been on it all that time just with time off for about 3 years at 29 to have my two DC. It cured my issues and I have had no side effects. I wouldn't have been without it as it made such a huge difference to my quality of life.

I'd recommend reading this book before deciding. And if your DD can be tempted to read it I'd encourage her to. I wish I'd read it as a teenager!

www.amazon.co.uk/How-Pill-Changes-Everything-Control-ebook/dp/B07QCPS2WV?ref_=d6k_applink_bb_dls

It's a bit science heavy at times but fascinating!

I would advise her to try the pill.

My Gp wouldn’t prescribe me the pill under 18 (this was 20 years ago). Went to Uni. First month. Horrendous period. College nurse was straight away, “go on the pill” and sent me off to gp. It change my life.

I was later diagnosed with endometriosis