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leafmeb t1_jdngzkf wrote

Women are damned if they use birth control and damned if they don’t. Ugh.

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mom_with_an_attitude t1_jdreuhv wrote

I am a 57 yo woman. Trends in birth control come and go. When I was a young woman, barrier methods were much more common. In the decades since, they have fallen out of fashion, as hormonal birth control was found to be more effective. But I have grave reservations about the long-term effects of hormonal birth control and it really bothers me that an entire generation of young women are now using it. There are many things we are still learning about the endocrine system; and I am concerned about what we are going to discover once this generation has been on hormonal BC for two or three decades.

There are good forms of BC that do not involve hormones. The diaphragm. The cervical cap (which used to be available in the US but is no longer. It is still available in Europe. It was my favorite form of BC and I am really pissed that it is no longer available here.) The female condom, which you don't see much at drug stores, but which is available on Amazon. (It should be available everywhere; and the fact that it isn't is another thing that pisses me off.) The Today sponge is another very awesome form of non-hormonal BC. It was on the market; then it was discontinued in the 90s; then it came back on the market (I bought some on Amazon a few years back) and now they are unavailable once again. There are good alternatives to hormonal birth control and THEY ARE BEING KEPT FROM US! This is not okay. We should be protesting about this, along with the repeal of Roe v. Wade.

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marilern1987 t1_jdqys4f wrote

No, they’re not. The risk lies mainly in someone’s genetic makeup. If you have breast or prostate cancer in your immediate family, you are most at risk. But with no family history, birth control is extremely unlikely to cause problems

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toss_it_out_tomorrow t1_jdr46p1 wrote

Not sure. there's nobody in my family with a genetic predisposition with breast cancer. But my mother had been on Premarin after an early hysterectomy at 29 and she was diagnosed with breast cancer at 57. The researchers at the university hospital where her surgeons are (University of Penn) had made the link from the premarin to her cancer.

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marilern1987 t1_jdr6a9o wrote

That’s why we have individualized care, versus the care other commenters on this thread want everyone to have

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angelicasinensis t1_jdp9cps wrote

I use fertility awareness, natural latex condoms and withdrawal- no babies, no stress and no hormones/chemicals. We even use natural lube made from Aloe Vera!

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toucanonporpoise t1_jdpmc2e wrote

While that may generally be a reasonable hormone free approach to birth control, there's also the implications of women using hormonal contraceptives for menstrual related issues (ex: endometriosis, PCOS, severe PMS, hormonal acne) etc. Seems it's just one more risk to weigh against the benefits and this is disappointing news for a lot of women.

Edit - typo

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angelicasinensis t1_jdpne9f wrote

A lot of those issues can be helped by lifestyle, diet and exercise. People want a pill to fix things, but sometimes it creates more issues, like cancer.

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supagirl277 t1_jdpucl4 wrote

Ew. That’s a very simplistic and wrong way to look at this issue. You don’t cure endometriosis or PCOS with a good diet and exercise. There is no cure, but hormonal contraception can make life more bearable and manageable. I honestly don’t know how you can come into this thread and make this claim when you clearly don’t know what you’re talking about

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xxScienceLuvva69xx t1_jdq3nb6 wrote

>when you clearly don’t know what you’re talking about

That's how, the confidence of ignorance.

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angelicasinensis t1_jdqthph wrote

Maybe it’s ignorance to think there is only one way of doing things.

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supagirl277 t1_jds839v wrote

There’s a clearly defined correct answer to something, but different ways of using that information. But if you won’t even agree that the right answer is even correct, based on co spinach theories and lies, then you’re going to get shat on for your stupidity and lack of even starting off the conversation on a productive note. People can’t even agree on what the problem is.

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marilern1987 t1_jdr3a59 wrote

Because they’re ignorant. They have never been sick before, so they just bunnyhop through life crediting their diet

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angelicasinensis t1_jdqtg5h wrote

I have lots of friends who manage their endo and PCOS with natural supplements and diet. There isn’t just one way of doing everything.

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IIZORGII t1_jdq415k wrote

Neither of these conditions mean you cannot lose weight.

Can they make it harder? Sure. That does not mean it's impossible or even necessarily hard.

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marilern1987 t1_jdr34zy wrote

That’s true, but they were not talking about weight loss.

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IIZORGII t1_jdr3mz3 wrote

They were though, the reply was stating women can use it to help regulate hormones for weight loss. Then this jaff came in and I replied to them.

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marilern1987 t1_jdr6oex wrote

No, they didn’t. you’re the first person to bring up weight loss. Yes, weight loss can help with the symptoms, but it won’t just get rid of the problem. That’s why we … prescribe meds

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supagirl277 t1_jds7md1 wrote

I said hormones for PCOS and endometriosis. Losing weight doesn’t have anything to do with my comments on managing these things. Weight doesn’t cause them either

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supagirl277 t1_jds7l33 wrote

When was weight at all ever a part of this conversation?

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Long_Procedure3135 t1_jdqu2pi wrote

I have a piece of copper stuck up my uterus that makes it angry and bleed like crazy

but I like it better than hormones at least….

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ERRNmomof2 t1_jdrbngk wrote

I have endometriosis. Without an IUD with hormones I would bleed, have vertigo, extreme migraines for 2+ weeks a month. The copper IUD would make that even worse. The newstory saddens me.

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marilern1987 t1_jdrcjy4 wrote

Don’t let it sadden you. You might not even have a high risk of breast cancer if you don’t have a family history of that, or prostate cancer (they have genetic links).

Birth control can also prevent endometrial cancer or ovarian cancer. So it’s not all doom and gloom - I am reading about how endometriosis is thought to slightly increase risk of ovarian cancer, so if that’s the case, the birth control could conceivably be benefitting you there.

I think what people need to understand, is that just because something is a carcinogen, doesn’t mean that ALL exposure is risky exposure. Birth control is an example of a carcinogen, that doesn’t necessarily place all people at risk

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ERRNmomof2 t1_jdrcxqi wrote

Oh I’m keeping that puppy in. I took it out for 6 months and I will never do that again until menopause. I’m almost 44 so it can’t be too far off. Maternal and paternal grandmothers had breast cancer, maternal died from it. Estrogen secreting so no one can use HRT.

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angelicasinensis t1_jdqxcvj wrote

I considered the copper IUD but I’m having such an easy time with withdrawal, condoms and fertility awareness.

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