It Was Never About Women's Rights
We live in the generation of “birth control band-aids”. And it’s no surprise that the global contraceptive market is projected to grow from 17.5 billion in 2022 to 28.8 billion by 2029.
Women are manipulated far more than men when it comes to health. We are convinced to avoid red meat, eat plant-based everything, restrict calories for weight loss, fast, use incredibly toxic cosmetics and skin care, and work stressful 9-5 jobs. We are then told to go on birth control to not only fix symptoms created by our environment but also because we are scared into the belief that we will get pregnant without it.
This is what you have probably heard your doctor tell you about birth control:
- It’s safe and effective.
- It will get rid of your hormonal imbalances.
- It will help fix your painful or irregular periods and PMS.
Well, Here is the Truth About What Birth Control Does
- Birth control severs the connection between us and the natural intuitions and rhythms of our bodies. It stops ovulation. Hormones are a symphony and when they are out of balance your whole health goes to crap. There is not one hormone birth control doesn’t interrupt or override.
- It is a huge stressor on the body’s detox pathways.
- Synthetic estrogen and progestin are carcinogens and increase your risk for breast cancer. Leading to cancer in women today.
- It depletes you of the essential nutrients and minerals your body needs for optimal thyroid function (hello stubborn weight, ongoing fatigue, headaches, depression, constipation) AND adrenal health (say goodbye to your resilience to stress).
- Even nonhormonal” birth control puts you at risk for iron overload and copper toxicity.
- It alters your gut microbiome and makes you susceptible to bacterial overgrowth and yeast leading to more deficiencies.
Birth control is not female empowerment. Real empowerment is tracking your cycle, getting in touch with your hormones, honoring your body, and listening to what your body needs for nutrition and movement in each hormonal phase.
If you are someone that has been using birth control to suppress uncomfortable symptoms, let’s talk about a few tips that can regulate your hormones, ease symptoms of PMS, and allow you to have a regular healthy cycle you can track for fertility (whether you want to get pregnant or not).
- Cut out synthetics like perfume, cookware, shampoo, fragrances, makeup, candles, tampons, and cleaning products.
- Get sunlight.
- Increase vitamins A, E, and K2. These are estrogen antagonists and help with symptoms of estrogen dominance.
- Increase magnesium and vitamin Bs.
- Increase collagen and glycine to help detox estrogen.
- Increase your progesterone. The happy, mood-boosting hormone that regulates your estrogen.
- Choose more stable saturated fats over polyunsaturated fats.
- Stop restricting calories, eat real food until full.
- Optimize your sleep.
- Switch to a fun workout instead of high intensity.
One thing that is never addressed by primary care doctors is that you need to give intentional support to your body if you decide to come off of your birth control! Because of the depletion, liver overload, and hormonal chaos birth control can cause you – please consider working with a functional medicine provider to make sure you get what your body needs.
We have had too many women come to us that have developed hypothyroidism, chronic illness, insulin resistance, and mental health decline because of the lack of support offered in conventional medicine especially surrounding birth control.
Inside our SHE Membership, we offer our clients functional medicine testing to determine your exact nutrient deficiencies, gut imbalances, and hormonal dysfunction and you have access to 1:1 support because every woman is different. Every client that we help come off of birth control needs different support during this time.
If you are considering getting off of birth control and looking for extra support, we would love to set up a free discovery call and see if we are a good fit to help guide you!