Quitting the Pill

Before anyone gets excited, Gabe and I are not "trying," and we have no definite plans for when we will start.

But I think I'm on my last pack of birth control pills.*

There's a lot of information out there about birth control. Many people condemn it as harmful or immoral, saying that it can leave you infertile or with a host of hormonal problems. Many people swear it's completely safe and has zero long-term effects.

I will be the first to tell you that I hate doing scientific research (exception: psychology). (That is one thing about myself that I have not even begun to tackle.) I'm not good at it and I find it really boring. Is birth control an assault on your body, or a perfectly healthy tool? Like every other scientific topic (creation, global warning, keto diet, ET CETERA), it depends on who you listen to. But here's what I've decided:

It can't possibly be BETTER to manipulate your hormones than not to. And if I'm going to deal with any sort of "withdrawal" symptoms, I'd rather just get them over with.

Doctors insist that birth control taken for a long period of time (like, 10+ years) does not adversely affect your chances of conceiving. Doctors insist that birth control does not "take a while to leave your system." However, countless regular people report otherwise, on both counts. If it's going to take me a while to get my cycle back, I don't want to find that out mid-trying. How sad and frustrating would that be?

If my skin is going to go crazy, let's work that out ASAP.

If I'm going to get withdrawal migraines, let's let that run its course ASAP.

If I'm going to gain a bunch of weight, let's develop a solution to that ASAP.

If I'm going to have crazy cramping at first, let's get that over with ASAP.

If my moods are going to be all over the place, let's deffffffffffinitely figure that out before I attempt to have a child.

I may have zero symptoms from going off birth control. (I had pretty much zero symptoms from going on it.) But, like I said, manipulating your hormones just can't be better than NOT manipulating them.

I think I'm kind of excited to let my body get back to doing its own thing. I'm definitely worried about all of the above possibilities, but I'm not going to take birth control forever; I have to stop sometime.

I'm making all these other changes. Why not quit the pill too? I've always been an all-or-nothing person, and lately it seems to be all.

~Stephanie

* I drafted this post mid-August. As you can see, it is now end-September. I've been off the pill this whole month. Maybe I'll do an update post soon?