Hormonal birth control is a hot topic. I remember this to be my biggest stressor when I prepared for my wedding. Everything inside of me screamed that I did not want to go on any form of birth control, but all of society screamed that it is the only way to prevent it.
I distinctly remember sitting among my friends and hearing them complain about all of the horrible side effects they received from birth control. The consensus seemed to be chronic migraines. They asked what I planned to do, and I simply said that I might try a more natural route. With a history of hormonal migraines before my healing journey began, I knew that going on hormonal birth control would probably wreck me.
At that point I only knew the side effects, but had not actually known all of the long term impact it can have on some people.
Long story short one of my friends said that if I did natural family planning, I would have a honeymoon baby. I am so glad that this did not scare me, and that I did more research.
While I have many more posts discussing Fertility Awareness Method for birth control, today I want to provide you with information on the various hormonal birth control options.
I want to stress that I know that each individual must make their personal choices on the best birth control option for them. For some, their season of life simply means that hormonal birth control is the best option. In fact, some people absolutely love it.
I am NOT here to shame anyone who wants to be on hormonal birth control. The goal of this post is to give you the complete picture of what hormonal birth control does to your body, so that you can be fully informed instead of partially informed.
You get to be rooted in your choices, and the goal of today’s post is to provide you with the whole picture.
So let’s get started in breaking down the different hormonal birth control options and their pros and cons. First though, I am going to give you the general description of HOW birth control prevents pregnancy.
How Hormonal Birth Control Works to Prevent Pregnancy
Hormonal birth control prevents pregnancy because it is a synthetic hormone that is placed in the body. These synthetic hormones shut down the body’s natural hormone production in order to directly or indirectly prevent/suppress ovulation.
Ovulation occurs when the body’s ovaries release an egg that has the potential to be fertilized by sperm. Ovulation occurs one time per month, and it is during this time that it can become pregnant. Sperm can survive up to five days in a fertile environment, making the fertility window in the body 5 days leading up to ovulation, and a day after.
Back to hormonal birth control though, it in essence shuts down your body’s natural processes through hormone replacement. It is important to note that these synthetic hormones are not made of the same substances as natural hormones in the body.
They are a foreign object that goes directly against the innate wisdom of the human body.
What is the Problem with Suppressing Ovulation/Hormonal Birth Control?
Often when something makes an unnatural change in your body, it is not very good for overall wellness. Here are a couple reasons why suppressing ovulation is not good for the body:
- It prevents the production of progesterone, which can lead to estrogen dominance
- In some cases it suppresses bleeding, leading to issues with copper and iron in the body
- It is not always used to prevent pregnancy, but instead is used as a bandaid for underlying issues such as painful periods, acne, PCOS, etc.
- Causes digestive issues
- As briefly mentioned above, hormonal birth control is often prescribed as a way to manage symptoms that a young woman might be experiencing.
- However, the problem with this is that these symptoms are the body’s way of screaming, “Something is wrong! Help me!”
- Instead of solving what is wrong at a root cause level, however, these issues remain but are not experienced at the same level.
What are the Different Types of Hormonal Birth Control?
The Hormonal IUD
This releases small amounts of progestin, thinning the uterine lining in order to prevent implantation of a fertilized egg. This means that ovulation is not completely suppressed, but it also means that sperm can still fertilize the egg.
This is something to think about if you have any personal, moral, or religious beliefs about when life begins. It also thickens cervical mucus to limit sperm mobility. It can also lessen the amount of periods a woman gets in a year (or completely stop them) which can have issues with iron build up in the body.
It can last 3-10 years, and has an effectiveness rate of 99%, meaning that less than 1 out of 100 women in a year will become pregnant while using the IUD. One reported side effect of the hormonal IUD is depression.
The Vaginal Ring
This is a flexible ring that gets inserted into the vagina for 3 weeks at a time. The vaginal ring will contain estrogen plus progestin (two synthetic hormones). It directly suppresses ovulation and thickens cervical mucus. It has an effectiveness rate of 91%. It has a higher risk of blood clots than the pill.
The Pill
This is a synthetic progesterone (progestin) – only pill, taken once per day, that It directly suppresses ovulation and thickens cervical mucus.
It has an effectiveness rate of 91%, meaning that less than 9 out of 100 women in a year will become pregnant while using the pill.
A common misconception is that a person can still get their period on this pill. This is false. Instead, a woman might get withdrawal bleeds. These are different than periods, because a period only happens after ovulation.
The Mini Pill
This is a progestin (synthetic progesterone) only pill. It does not directly suppress ovulation, but indirectly does so through thinning out the uterine lining and impairing sperm from moving up to the uterus through a change in cervical mucus.
Some side effects include irregular cycles, ovarian cysts, mood disorders, headaches, low libido, etc.
The Combined Pill
This uses combined hormones of progestin and synthetic estrogen, taken once per day that It directly suppresses ovulation and thickens cervical mucus. It has an effectiveness rate of 91%.
The Contraceptive Patch
The patch is placed on the skin each week. It directly suppresses ovulation and thickens cervical mucus through synthetic forms of estrogen and progesterone. It has an effectiveness rate of 91%, meaning that that 9 out of 100 women in a year will become pregnant while using the patch.
It does have a risk of blood clots.
The Injection
A shot is given once every 3 months to a woman. It directly suppresses ovulation and prevents sperm from entering the uterus through thickening cervical mucus. It has an effectiveness rate of 93%, meaning that 6 out of 100 women in a year will become pregnant while using this.
This shot is an extremely high dose of synthetic progesterone (progestin). It completely suppresses the body’s reproductive communication, shutting off hormone production. Side effects can be intense with this one. These include headaches/migraines and weight gain, along with an increased risk of breast cancer.
Arm Implant
The implant is a small rod that gets placed under the skin and releases synthetic progesterone (progestin) into the body. This directly suppresses ovulation and prevents sperm from entering the uterus through thickening cervical mucus.
It has an effectiveness rate of 99%, meaning that less than 1 out of 100 women in a year will become pregnant while using the implant. It can last up to 3 years.
Some side effects include excessive weight gain, headaches, and heavy bleeding.
Benefits of Hormonal Birth Control
Now that I have explained how each hormonal birth control method works and some of their side effects, I will list a few benefits so that you can make a fully informed choice on what is right for you.
- It can truly help some women who experience endometriosis to live life without chronic pain. (Though some women can also manage endometriosis through lifestyle)
- It helps prevent pregnancy when a couple is not quite ready to start their family.
- There are some forms of cancer which can be reduced.
Negatives of Hormonal Birth Control
Those are some of the pros, and now I will also list some generic cons.
- Sometimes makes certain symptoms worse once a person comes off of birth control to prepare for pregnancy
- Increased iron accumulation if taking sugar pills or through irregular cycles
- Decreased size of the clitoris, decreased sexual pleasure/orgasm, lowered libido
- Increased risk of anxiety or depression
- Damages the microbiome
- It suppresses ovulation and prevents cycles
- It can deplete various vitamins and minerals in the body
- It messes with the body’s natural hormone production
- Certain increased cancer risks
- Increased risk of blood clots and strokes
- Potential fertility issues post-pill
Hormonal Birth Control Recap
As you can see, while there are pros, there are also many cons to taking hormonal birth control.
I believe that a lot of the side effects are truly not discussed with women, which is why I wanted to take the time to discuss them.
Again, this is not to say that you should not go on hormonal birth control, this is just giving you all of the information so that you can make the best decision for your own body and the season of life that you are in.
My hope is that you can walk away from reading this more informed on the risks and benefits of hormonal birth control, and that you have a greater understanding of how it all works.
Do you want to stay away from this pill or transition off of it? I absolutely have solutions for you! Check out my other posts about female fertility and do not hesitate to reach out to me for support!
Fertility Awareness Method: The Complete Guide with 4 Biomarkers
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Estrogen dominance puts great stress on the body and can lead to several long-term issues
It masks hormonal issues/acts as a bandaid for which the root cause could otherwise be discovered
It throws other systems out of whack through hormonal/mineralmalancmood disorders, hormonal disorders, libido issues, autoimmune issues, nutrient depletion, insulin resi
