How My Birth Control Made me Suicidal

Birth control in America gives so many women various choices. We are bombarded with advertisements for the pill, or a patch, or shot and the list goes on. Some of us choose birth control for different reasons. When I began my freshman year in college, I noticed that my cycle started to change for the worse. I would have horrible pain at that time of the month and constant fatigue and hormone headaches. Additionally I was at a time in my life where I started to date and inevitably I would have to choose some form of birth control anyway.

Everyone I knew was on the pill, and I went to the doctor to find out more and see what my options were. The doctor explained to me that the easiest form of birth control would be the condom. Then I explained my horrible monthly experiences and he agreed that we should start on a birth control pill. The doctor started me on Alesse, a pill that is considered an estrogen pill and he was confident that it would be a great pill to start considering it just came on the market. I tried and for a week I noticed nothing. Then I noticed that my periods were certainly lighter, however, I also noticed that I became severely depressed. I never wanted to be around anyone and I shut myself in my dorm room only to come out for classes. I was even contemplating suicide thinking that my life was no longer worth anything. Thankfully I realized that all these symptoms came after I began Alesse. I contacted my doctor and he stated that during research there were no reports of depression or suicidal thoughts among the research participants. Basically his message was that he did not believe me and that I should stay on the pill to allow my body time to adjust. At this time I was only on the pill for a month but that's all the time it took for my whole being to change. While on Alesse, I sought out anti-depressants and another doctor put me on Paxil. I found Paxil to be ineffective because all I wanted to do was sleep! I didn't have the energy to eat or do homework or anything.

Eventually, my depression and suicidal thoughts worsened and one night I just sat in the corner of my dorm room and sobbed seriously thinking of taking my life. The next day I went to a clinic down the street from the hospital I originally went to and spoke with a woman who was outraged that my doctor (who was a college doctor on rotation) would not take me off Alesse. She suggested that we discontinue Alesse and begin with Ortho cyclen, a pill that had equal amounts of estrogen and progesterone. I began Ortho and felt much better, however, I gained weight uncontrollably and began feeling depressed yet again even though the depression was not nearly as bad as before. My mother asked me to evaluate my reasons for getting on the pill in the first place. While my pills did control my pain during my cycles it brought with it more burdens. Therefore, I discontinued the pill and found an alternate form of contraception; condoms.

This is not to say that either one of these drugs are bad for everyone. It is so important for women of all ages to thoroughly examine their options and reasons for picking a certain birth control option. If women do choose birth control, they should be aware of their mental state before and after beginning their chosen method. Talking to your doctor can be the best way to prevent problems or effectively manage them. If you don't like what your current doctor is saying to you, getting a second opinion can certainly help as well!

Sources:
www.mayoclinic.com/health/birth-control/BI99999/PAGE=BI00005
www.kidshealth.org/teen/sexual_health/contraception/contraception_birth.html
www.plannedparenthood.org/birth-control-pregnancy/birth-control/the-shot.htm
www.drugs.com/alesse.html
www.drugs.com/paxil.html
www.drugs.com/ortho_cyclen.html
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estrogen
www.healthywomen.org/healthtopics/progesterone