Here is a young lady who is definitely in a situation. She has been on the pill since she was 16 years old, she is now 35, and yes do the calculation that is 19 years. Every morning faithfully she has taken her birth control combo Ortho Tri- Cyclen, and has enjoyed the benefits that it has brought her. Now, at the age of 35 she is starting to think about ending this long lasting affair. Not because of any health problems that have developed, she is not even thinking about having children at this time. It is just for the simple fact that she is becoming more and more uncomfortable with the thought of the hormones that the pill produces and pumps into her body on a daily basis. As a woman we know that when you are on the pill your body does not have a natural menstrual cycle- that is 222 natural cycles that she never had.
She is very concerned as I would be also that having these hormones pumped into her body on a daily basis what kinds of changes her mind as well as body will go through if or when she decides to put an end to the pill. There are many issues that a woman must consider when thinking about going off a birth control pill after taking it for so long. There may be a high risk for cervical cancer, as well as a higher risk of breast cancer. To me these should have been stated when starting the pill. Going off the pill does not immediately fix these issues either – the longer you are on the pill the longer it will take to return to a normal risk level, at times this may take five to ten years. Also another issue that is stated when starting the pill is that it does put women at a higher risk level for blood clotting.
Now that we have covered the con’s of being on the pill, let’s cover the pro’s. Women who are taking the pill have less of a chance for ovarian cysts and endometriosis. It also states that the longer that a woman is taking the pill it helps protect against both ovarian and uterine cancers. Many may think that the pro’s outweigh the con’s (to me your trading in one form of cancer for another). Last let’s cover that monthly friend that visits, while you are on the pill and the blood cycle is not natural you may not or may just bleed a little. Going off the pill may change this flow dramatically. They may be heavier, for a longer period of time and not to mention you may have painful cramps that go along with them.
Now, we want to move onto the mental and emotional state that going off the pill may bring on. Going off the pill may be a crapshoot, meaning you may be ok and not even change but then again you may get real moody to the point where no one wants to be around you.
From my point of view it is every individual woman’s decision to start the pill, stay on the pill, or even go off the pill. The only thing a woman can do is get educated with the facts of what ever situation she is going for. Just as this young lady did.
From my own experience I was taking the pill when I was younger and personally did not like having to remember to take it every day at the same time. Well let’s just say I forgot most of the time. After my second child I chose to use the IUD which was in place for 10 years. When I had it removed, I chose to have a third child I knew I was not going to have anymore so I went with a permanent solution. Keep in mind that the reason I was using birth control was just that, birth control. Today birth control is used for many different reasons; it is the individuals that have to decide. This young lady states that she does not want to have children at this time, along with all these other questions she has – I think what type of birth control can she use that does not have all the hormonal effects that come with the pill.
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