Lets talk about Post Birth Control Syndrome, are you thinking of coming off birth control? You are probably nervous about the side effects that may come with it… or from the very first reason why you were put on them. Birth control is usually given to women at child barring ages to ‘fix’ symptoms and put a band aid on your concerns. Most likely, if you have suffered from acne, PMS, heavy periods, breast tenderness, Fibroids, PCOS, Endometriosis, irregular periods, severe cramps etc., your MD and gynaecologist have suggested for you go on the pill to mask those symptoms.
That’s okay, you didn’t know any better options at the time.
Those didn’t exactly fix your problems, but simply put a time stop on them – best case scenario. However, most likely, when you discontinue birth control, your body doesn’t properly restore the hormonal pathways, or it takes longer than expected. Worse case scenario is that you have it much worse than before, with the hormones playing a big toll on your body, skin, liver, thyroid, uterus and ovaries.
Maybe you have already made the move and got off your synthetic hormones!
Either way, Naturopathic Medicine can help you.
Symptoms of Post-birth control syndrome:
Your symptoms may vary based on your life before the pill, meaning, on the condition / hormonal imbalance that was diagnosed or undiagnosed before you went on the pill.
One of the most common ‘coming off the pill’ symptoms are due to androgen rebound – where your testosterone increases significantly while your body is relearning how to make the hormones you have been suppressing for so long with the pill. This causes oily skin, acne, irritability etc.
Dr. Tali offers a comprehensive hormonal test if needed, to assess your hormonal stage in order to understand the right support needed.
Your birth control pills are synthetic hormones that tell your body not to ovulate.
The period that you get is NOT a real period. You bleed just from discontinuing the hormones for those few days. How is this different from a regular period? With a regular period, you ovulate which results in a progesterone spike. Over the next 2 weeks, if you didn’t get pregnant, progesterone drops, the drop in progesterone results in your period.
Normally, it can take 3-6 months for your period to restore. Don’t panic if you just came off birth control, especially if you have been on them for a long time! Remember, your body has been told to do a different task for so long, it needs time to adjust. However, if you have a predisposed condition as mentioned above, such as PCOS, endometriosis, etc., you are more likely to experience post birth control syndrome. Let’s not wait until you get your acne, or your painful periods, Naturopathic Medicine is amazing at supporting a healthy hormonal balance naturally. It’s important to act preventatively and treat the underlined cause of why you were put on birth control in the first place, as well as fix post-birth control syndrome.
Taking birth control has been shown to deplete many necessary nutrients such as vitamins and minerals. The depletion of these nutrients can also be the reason to your symptoms of acne, anxiety and hormonal imbalances.
Life After ‘The Pill’ Support
First, it’s important to clarify, if you are planning on coming off birth control and still haven’t done so, it’s best if you contact Dr. Tali before you do so for her guidance, as her approach is always prevention. You will dive deep into questions about life before the pill and during the pill so that you are given individualized care to help support your body coming off birth control. Treatment will also involve focusing on minimizing the side effects that come with discontinuing taking the pill, such acne, hair loss, painful periods, loss of period etc.
If you already came off birth control, and need support – Dr. Tali`s treatment plan will include management of side effects from hormonal withdrawal, encouraging the liver to detoxify from the exogenous hormones (synthetic pill hormones). We will also focus on rebalancing hormones for a healthy period and help your body balance your hormones as part of pregnancy preparation support to ensure a healthy egg and uterus.
Depending on your case, Dr. Tali will work back and forth with your medical doctor if any diagnostic imaging is needed. She offers hormonal testing which is useful to get to the root of your underlined hormone imbalance. This is case by case basis and it’s best to discuss this with her.