My Struggles with Birth Control

[First and foremost I would like to add a disclaimer that this is not in anyway medical advise. This is purely a blog post about my journey, and to let women know that they are not alone. If you have any questions at all regarding birth control please ask your doctor.]

Well, this is a quite the story. Anyone who is close to me well knows how passionate I am about education when it comes to female health. I'm sure so many of you can relate to the struggle and a lot of the women I have spoken to have had very similar experiences with birth control. However, I think everyone I have spoken to has been amazed about how patient I have been with my journey, and I'm about to tell you why.

When I was 19 I started taking the pill, I had read online that the pill could ease up cramps and help with PMS (I used to get quite depressed around the time of my period) and so I went to my doctor and got prescribed with the pill. My cramps have always been really bad, I used to have to go home from school to lie down for a while but when I was in university I couldn't just skip class every month because of the pain. The pill was working well for me until the price increased, then increased again and again. As a student it was getting to the point that I just couldn't afford it and my medical aid wasn't covering it.

So back to the doctor I went and asked about the injection as this was an option that was mostly paid for by the government (you had to pay a nominal fee to the clinic). She figured that there wasn't much risk involved since I had very mild side effects with the pill. The injection is a hormonal injection that stops you from releasing eggs and increases your cervical mucus. The injection I used lasted for three months but you can get some that last up to six. This seemed like a great option for me as I was really bad at taking the pill at the exact same time every evening and it was budget friendly for a student. However, for some reason I had really bad spotting that lasted the entire three months. I told my doctor this and had to do blood tests to see what was going on. Because women bleed every month, we are more susceptible to becoming anemic, which unfortunately became the case for me. In fact, my anaemia was so bad after bleeding everyday for three months I was rushed to my doctors office on a Sunday to be put on an iron IV drip because I had literally next to no iron in my system and could collapse at any moment. Needless to say I stopped using the injection and went back onto the pill.

I was on the pill for about two years after that but then I decided I wanted to do yachting in Europe. After realising it was pretty difficult (as in, impossible) to get the pill I was prescribed in South Africa while I was overseas and having a job where you aren’t always in the same country let alone near the same pharmacy, I figured the best solution for me would be an IUD. The IUD I opted for was the copper T. This is a hormone free option, which I thought would be better for me since I had been using hormones for so long. The copper T works by stopping the sperm and egg meeting and changes the lining of the uterus/womb.

I have been fairly lucky with my experiences with doctors, most of them have been lovely. Unfortunately this time has to take top prize for being one of the worst experiences I have ever had in a doctors office. After seeing my GP (who is amazing) about getting an IUD she helped me book and appointment with a gynaecologist who would do the insertion. Now going to the gynaecologist is scary on a good day. It's invasive and daunting and it's always pretty cold for some reason. Add on also having a IUD inserted and it would leave some people running for the hills. Not me however, because I had no idea what I was getting myself into. Supposedly before you actually have the insertion you are supposed to have a counselling appointment where the gynae explains how the procedure works. She assesses whether or not the IUD would be the right option for you, she measures your uterus to see if it will actually fit and she tells you to come back for the insertion on another day with someone to drive you home and tells you to take painkillers before you arrive. Now all this sounds wonderful but I did not have said counselling appointment and I was leaving for work a few days later. So I did not take pain meds or have a nice human to drive me home after. What I did get was a rude gynaecologist basically getting angry with me because her receptionist failed to tell me these things. Not a great way to start the appointment, now I was scared, upset and cold. Thankfully for me she did go ahead with the procedure, we had a mini counselling session beforehand then jumped right in.

I had read online that the insertion could hurt but oh my days, nothing prepared me for that. I had had my fair share of pap smears before (for reasons I will get to in another post) so I knew that it would be uncomfortable for sure. Let me tell you, this is no smear test. First the gynaecologist has to measure the size and position of your uterus, she will then clean your cervix with antiseptic then insert the IUD. The procedure feels different for everyone but for me it was so painful I got very dizzy, very shaky and it felt like the whole thing took about four hours (it was about 5 minutes) and I had to sit in her office for a little while after the insertion so I could drive myself home again. In retrospect, I was in such pain that I should have found someone to pick me up. I had cramps for two days after but nothing more than mild period cramps. Then after that it was fine. I was really happy to not be taking pills every day again and being hormone free for the first time since I was 19.

Until I discovered that I would be having two week periods every month. I knew this was a side effect, but of course we all know that with any new birth control you have to give it at least three months for your system to settle down again. I was at work anyway and thought I would give it at least a year until my next gynaecologist appointment.

So a year later nothing had improved so I went back to my GP and explained what was happening, she didn't want me to get it removed just yet so she suggested I tried the patch to regulate my period. The patch looks like a square plaster that slowly releases hormones into your bloodstream. Like the pill, you have three weeks of wearing the patch (you put a fresh one on every week) and one week of no patch at all. You've read this far and you know that nothing is ever simple with me, so of course I had side effects! This time they were vomiting and nausea and a skin irritation wherever the patch was placed. Again, I tried this for three months with no luck regulating my period but also having all these side effects.

When I explained my qualms to a gynaecologist I found in Europe, she suggested I have the IUD removed especially with my history with anemia. So out it came. I had to do more blood tests to make sure my iron was okay which thankfully it was. However, here I was back at square one again. I told her I tried using the patch which she said is normally a great option, however it is a very low dosage of hormones and since nothing else was working I needed the strong stuff. So back on the pill I went to regulate my period. And for the first time ever, it worked. Finally I had found something that regulated my period and didn't make me feel sick! Thank goodness.

I was on this pill for just less than a year when I had started to notice that I was gaining weight quicker than I ever had before, I was getting really irritable and had no sex drive. I told this entire story to a friend of mine who told me she stopped using birth control completely. Which really got me thinking, I had been through the battlefield and back with no luck. I had been torturing myself with all these side effects for years for what? So I don't have anxiety over a missed period? So I don't skip a few hours of work while my painkillers kick in? No. Suddenly it all seemed so ridiculous. I was done, I made the choice with my gynaecologist to stop using birth control completely. I also made a choice to not worry if my periods became irregular, that's a small price to pay after butchering my system for so many years. But it's been three months now and it's so far so good and I'm hoping it will stay that way.

With a lot of hard work I am managing to lose the weight I gained from the pill, my period is still regular and I am so much happier. The best way I can explain it is it felt like when I was on the pill that everything was cloudy but now I'm off it it feels like I can see clearly again. Which sounds so cheesy but I mean this in the most literal sense.

Now I know that my journey is not going to be the same as anyone else's. We are all so uniquely different but I wanted to write this to encourage you. You are not alone, finding the right birth control for you can be such a struggle but you know your body better than anyone and if you think something isn't working for you, don't be afraid to ask your doctor. They are there to help you figure out what the best option will be for you. There are so many options out there you just have to figure out which one is best for you. Remember, what works for someone might not necessarily work for you. Don't settle for something and don't ever give up.