According to The New York Post and other sources, young women are walking away from hormonal birth control as research shows it can cause a variety of health issues. Between 2002 and 2017, oral contraceptive use dropped by 9%.
Hormonal birth control has been linked to an increased risk of depression and suicide, blood clots, heart attack, stroke, and certain cancers, as well as decreased bone density and infertility. The most common side effects — acne and weight gain — are also turning young women off to hormonal contraception.
In a video, one woman recently shared her personal story of why she chose to stop taking hormonal birth control. Turning Point USA contributor Isabel Brown shared the video with her own comments.
“So I as a woman, went to get my birth control refilled today,” said the woman. “Just something I do sometimes. And guess what happened. She was like, ‘Hey are you having headaches?’ And I was like, ‘Funny you should mention it. I’ve been getting migraines. Never got ’em before, I had three. I had three in the past six months.’ She was like, “Interesting because that means that this birth control is giving you an elevated risk of stroke.’ And I was like, ‘Oh really?'”
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The practitioner then asked her if she wanted to continue taking the birth control.
“And I was like, ‘No! No! Are you kidding me? Obviously a baby is better than a stroke!”
Brown commented, “When I was taking birth control pills (because like every Gen Z woman, every healthcare practitioner in my life INSISTED I needed them for my skin, my period, and anything else ‘wrong with me’ as a girl), I used to REGULARLY get debilitating migraines… to the point I couldn’t stand up, go to work, or would even throw up. I was even put on prescription strength migraine meds — and not ONCE would a doctor tell me this might have something to do with birth control. Not. Once.”
She asked her followers to share their own stories about hormonal birth control. One said, “Literally had a deep vein thrombosis and almost died.”
READ: Two dads whose daughters died from hormonal birth control are educating women on risks
Another said, “I quit and it caused me two years of ‘unexplained’ infertility. Also found out it’s a miracle I never died after 10 continuous years on it as I have homozygous MTHFR. My current provider told me I will never be allowed to be on it again under his care…. It’s THAT dangerous for me. Yet they’re just handing it out to teenagers everywhere without a single genetic or hormonal test.”
One shared her story of stroke, saying, “I just turned 40 and had a seizure and stroke in November due to blood clots in my brain caused by birth control.”
Another shared, “Yes!! This happened to me years ago on the Nuvaring! Migraines EVERY WEEK!! I’m so glad I stopped taking birth control all together after that!”
And still another explained, “My health neighbor had a stroke last year at the age of 36. The conclusion the doctors came to was her birth control caused it. She has been spreading awareness about it now.”
Research shows that up to 400 women a year die as a result of taking hormonal birth control. Pulmonary embolisms and strokes have been rare in young adults; however, as reported by The Federalist, once birth control hit the market, the number of young people experiencing cardiovascular problems such as pulmonary embolisms and strokes increased.
