Tell me about your experience quitting hormonal BC

[y4m]

I am sick of this cycle of hopping myself up on hormones that make me not want to have sex in the name of freely having sex.  I can't remember the last time I was not on BC though.  Anyone else quit because of that (vs. to TTC).  Did you just use condoms instead?  Share experiences here please.

[Deleted]

I did. It was awesome. I feel so much better. My periods are actually shorter now that I'm off bc too, only 2 days!

[thatgirl2478]

Sorry - I quit to TTC.

The first month off I had a normal 27/28 day cycle, they got longer from there. One was 45 days long (which is really irritating when you're TTC). The biggest side effect I had was breaking out - luckily it was only on my back - but I had several massive zits for about 3 months.

[Deleted]

Idk what your new BC answer will be, but I will say I had nooo idea how much it was killing my sex drive until I went off it. I definitely recommend!

On the con's side, I have acne again. Oh well. Sex sex sex sex sex!

[purposelyvague]

I'm sick of it too. I haven't quit yet, but I'm planning to do Essure if I can't talk dh into the big snip this year. It's covered by my insurance.

[rubytue]

I quit about 8 years ago for similar reasons. I just was sick of using hormones to trick my body and not convinced it was the most healthy thing.

It took awhile to regulate, but my periods ended up longer, heavier, and I had cramps for the first time in my life. But, thanks to the hormones, I hadn't had a real period in years (like one box of OB tampons per year). I still don't regret it.

Our birth control method at that point was snip snip. So I have no personal idea about alternative. But I have lots of friends who swear by FAM and IUDs (the copper one).

[Deleted]

I took Ortho Tri-Cyclen for five years. I quit taking it because, like you, decreased sex drive. I just stopped taking it one month, after finishing a back. While my cycle decreased from 28 days to 26 days, I was regular right off the bat. My periods did get heaver after quitting the Pill, but not disastrously so.

In conclusion: good experience, no issues.

For the record, I quit the Pill about three years ago. At first we used condoms, then switched to the pull out method since then, with success (I know, not overly effective). Since being off the Pill, I pay close attention to my cycles and I can tell when I'm fertile and ovulating. I tend to abstain during that time frame.

[holly22]

Jan 7, 2014 11:45:25 GMT -5 swizz said:

I quit to TTC also, but it was AWESOME. I felt a ton better.

I have a Mirena now, and it's better than BCPs, but not as good as nothing. I just don't trust us to use condoms and SOOOOO not ready for an oops, so the Mirena it is.

We used condoms after DD. I had taken the mini pill for a month or two but since I couldn't remember to take it at the same time everyday it was pretty much useless…so we were using condoms. I stopped taking it and just used condoms.

After my DS I had Mirena inserted.  I had some spotting for a few weeks and so far so good now! 

I didn't have any decreased sex drive though (even back in the day when I used Nuva Ring)

[Deleted]

I quit and felt a ton better. It was giving me terrible headaches and mood swings. We use rubbers.

[noodleoo]

I went off after we got married. Just sick of being on it for like 10 years, although I never had any real issues with it. I honestly didn't feel any different off vs on BCP. My periods are a little heavier, but still pretty short (2-3 days). I do get cramps again, I kind of forgot about those. But only 1 day and ibuprofen knocks them out. I also get a few pimples every month, also sucks. It didn't really affect my sex drive either way. Oh, and we just use condoms, which never bothered us anyway. I like that I'm not taking any meds daily now, I figure it is probably better for me.

ETA: my H thinks I'm less cranky/moody than I was on the pill, but again, I didn't really notice the difference. 

[hamster]

We are getting H "fixed". I can't wait to go off!

[KaraOrNot]

I quit using hormonal BC over 8 years ago. My insurance stopped covering the patch and my new pill was making me depressed, so I quit. My periods are heavier (but also shorter), I have awful cramps, and I breakout more. Even w/ that, I haven't even considered going back.

Before TTC, we used condoms. Honestly, I never minded them that much. Much cleaner, lol.

[kermit]

I quit to TTC. Really didn't feel any different except I got hormonal acne on jawline, shoulders and back (yippee). I was hoping my libido would improve but no such luck. I did have lots of spotting that was confirmed to be due to low progesterone.

[rbp]

Jan 7, 2014 12:04:10 GMT -5 kermit said:

I quit to TTC. Really didn't feel any different except I got hormonal acne on jawline, shoulders and back (yippee). I was hoping my libido would improve but no such luck.

This is where I am. I was very disappointed that I my sex drive didn't pick up. 

[Deleted]

I quit taking hormonal BC right after we got married 4 years ago. I had previously taken OTC Lo, Yaz and the Nuvaring.

In the time span of about a month, I felt completely different and lost 5lbs. I don't regret it at all. The only downside for me is that my skin breaks out on my chin right before my period now.

My H and I use condoms as BC. I thought we would both hate it but he likes that I have a sex drive now. Sometimes I will roll the dice and not use anything, but I never do that unless I'm fairly certain that I'm not ovulating.

[Susie]

I quit a couple years ago. I've since gone back on (a different one) but I was off for about a year in between, after 8 or 10 years on.

I initially quit because of low libido, and because despite taking 28 day pill courses in exactly the same way month after month, my period was shifting later and later in the cycle. So, when I first started I'd get my period on the 2nd or so sugar pill day, and eventually I wasn't getting it until the 5th or 6th sugar pill day. That seemed to me like something wasn't working the way it should. My period and my sugar pill days barely had any overlap at all. I had tried a couple -- in order, Ortho Cyclen was bad (cramping), Ortho Tri Cyclen was good, generics of OTC were bad (shifting, low libido), and one that started with a Z whose name is escaping me now was awful (terribly moodiness, reports of scary side effects).  I was tired of trying options, and I also wanted to know what my normal was.

Anyway, the going-off experience was pretty anti-climatic. I finished a pack and didn't re-start another one. It took 6 months or so for my cycles to even out, which for me is around 35 days. I had a little more acne at first, but my skin adjusted. My libido improved a little, but stress, etc. had a lot more to do with it.

I went back on (OTC Lo this time) because ovulation pain was a serious bitch for me. That was a rude surprise; I'm not sure I regularly ovulated as a teenage athlete before going on BCPs.  Plus it's nice for my racing that I am now on a schedule where I have Mon-Fri periods every 4 weeks, so I never have one on the weekend/on race day. I couldn't achieve that without hormonal BC. Training for months to do a half ironman and then having to stop 1-2x during the race to change a tampon would suck.

My doctor has also advised me that being on hormonal BCPs that prevent ovulation is correlated* with lower rates of ovarian cancer, just like being pregnant (and therefore not ovulating for maybe a year or so) before 30 is.  With a mom with ovarian cancer, that was a nice push in the direction of "let's try another pill and see if it works better."

* I know correlation =/= causation, but I will take what I can get.

[Deleted]

I tried to quit BC but the acne killed me, it was too much to deal with so I went back on it.

[savan]

I gave up hormonal bc many years ago at the suggestion of my neurologist. I found it was contributing to my migraines and killed my sex drive. There was such a huge difference that I vowed never to go back on them. We used condoms between kids and until DH got a vasectomy.

[Deleted]

I was off BC for several months in 2013 because I wasn't having sex. Hard to say what it did to my sex drive, I know I wanted to have sex very badly (haha) but it may have been just because it had been months

I've been back on for almost three cycles now and I have noticed that the week before my period I am a lot more anxious/sensitive. Or at least I assume that's the problem. I recall that being somewhat of an issue when I was on it before but it's much more obvious to me now that I took some time off.

I think I have more acne now that I'm back on BC, but I didn't realize the correlation until this thread. It could be unrelated since it sounds like most people find the opposite.

Being off BC my periods were a little longer/heavier and I had light cramping, but it wasn't bad and I felt a little better emotionally. Other than that, not much different than being on BC for me.

I hate condoms so I don't think I could just use them as a long term solution. They are such an interruption and I wouldn't trust myself to use them as my only form of BC.

[mellie35]

I quit a few years ago because I was a hormonal mess and had no sex drive. I was not ready to get pregnant so we used FAM pretty much. It was such a great decision. I never realized how much the pill affected me and what I put up with. I will never do hormonal birth control again.

[mbcdefg]

What brand of BCPs are helping you guys with skin issues? Because I take Ortho Tri-Cyclen and my skin looks fucking terrible.

[karinothing]

I quit to TTC and won't go back on till we are done having kids. It did nothing to help my sex drive. It did cause me to gain weight. Bah.

[lillaguma]

I was on the nuvaring for 5 years or so and like someone else said, felt like it was screwing me up, bleeding was starting later and later after I removed it each month, etc.

After going off of it we went to condoms, which are fine but not either of our favorites. Sometimes we just do the pull out method, but I always feel a little nervous (baby right now would not be good timing) but I don't know why - I can tell very easily when I'm ovulating. Of course, when I'm ovulating is usually when I really want sex all the time....anyone else that way?

[doctorsbaby]

I went off to TTC and my sex drive seriously jumped, as in went from maybe being interested once a month to 4-5 times a week. I didn't go back on after I had DD and we just use condoms plus I try to be aware of my cycle. I feel so much better and my drive has stayed improved (after DD 1st year...).

[y4m]

Jan 7, 2014 13:04:06 GMT -5 lillaguma said:

Of course, when I'm ovulating is usually when I really want sex all the time....anyone else that way?

I want sex the day I take the nuvaring out.  

And then my period starts.  

[hbomdiggity]

I had my mirena taken out in April. I had it for five years and befor that was taking BC straight through so no periods. Surprisingly I've been fairly regular. The period craps came back after a few months but aren't as bad as they were before (which is why i was skipping periods).

The weird thing is that I have gained at 10-15lbs since this time last year (about 10%). There are a couple other variables (like not exercising, but I haven't always exercised regularly and didn't gain weight) but after weighing the same amount for nearly 10 years
while on some form of BC, I have to wonder how the hormone change plays a role.

My libido has improved, but not exponentially. I do feel better, except for feeling fat.

[elcjet]

I was on the pill for 6 years and started feeling feverish 24/7.....I was tested for everything and nobody could figure it out.  One hippy dippy PA suggested stopping the pill, so I did....and I haven't looked back.  Mood lifted, body temperature regulated....everything has been great.

I chart so that I know where in my cycle I am, and I rarely use a thermometer.  I just track how many days are in my cycle and CM to see when I'm likely ovulating.  And we use condoms.  If I'm feeling particularly confident in my cycle and that I've ovulated, we might use nothing the few days before my period....  It's not too bad.  Looking forward to DH realizing that a V would be better for us all, though!

[holly116]

I was on generic ortho-tricyclen for almost 10 years with little break. If you would have asked me while I was on it how I felt I would have said great! It took going off of it to realize I was in a sort of fog. I feel MUCH better and will never do hormonal BC again for a variety of reasons.

That being said, DH and I are pretty ridiculously fertile together so we'll have to figure something out. We're pretty catholic and I really like what NFP does for our marriage but I cannot continue to have a c/s every 18-19 months and I can't just not have sex with my DH. We've used pull and pray lately but hopefully now that I've gotten my PP back I can really chart to avoid.

[ellipsis]

Went off almost exactly a year ago, and my periods are just now back to normal (at first it was 60+ day cycles and slowly came down to 30ish days). Didn't change my sex drive unfortunately. I get bad cramps the 1st day and have an overall lighter and shorter flow. The week before I still want to eat ALL THE THINGS, but no longer feel like I will start bawling at the drop of a hat.

[MadamePresident]

I read a book called Taking Charge of your Fertility, where you watch your body's signs of when you are fertile. During that timeframe you either abstain or use some type of barrier. There was software you used and my husband was in charge of entering the information. It was only fair since men are fertile every day...