Does contraception effect my fertility?

Hi everyone,

I always see rumours about this, and I hate the scaremongering kind of content but does anyone have any reliable resources that actually talk about this? Definitely more research needs to be done into women’s health!

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Following this thread too as I’m interested to hear anyones thoughts! :two_hearts:

Hey, my wife has spoken a bit about this and I can’t remember exactly but I think it might be covered in a book called ‘Your Brain on the Pill’ and also a book ‘Period Repair Manual’. The latter is by Lara Briden who has a great blog that covers lots of these topics with reference to a lot of peer-reviewed research etc. I couldn’t find anything just now but if you had a regular cycle before going on the pill here is what she says.

Chances are, you’re going to be fine. You might experience some mild acne or anxiety as you withdraw from synthetic estrogen but it shouldn’t be too bad, and it shouldn’t last longer than three months.

Your goal is to ovulate regularly so you can to make hormones and have a regular period. If you don’t ovulate after three months, then consider an ovulation-stimulating herb such as Vitex You might also want to talk to your doctor about blood tests for hormones such as FSH, LH, prolactin, and androgens. For details about testing, please see Chapter 7 of Period Repair manual

:point_right: Tip: When it comes to period health, it’s all about ovulation, because ovulation is how you make your beneficial hormones estrogen and progesterone.

She seems to be leading the way in terms of women’s health research and if you check her out I’ve found you get opened up to a lot of other interesting (and maybe more related) research. Sorry, i couldn’t find anything more specific! My wife has found her stuff life changing and it’s led to us just sticking with Hanx condom products instead of using hormonal contraceptives.

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Hey @Jen_C

Thanks so much for bringing this up.

@Harry has hit the nail on the head, and the quote above is spot on. Thanks Harry for sharing :pray:t3:

The contraceptive pills and other hormonal contraceptives include synthetic hormones to stop ovulation (the ovary releasing an egg), as well as thickening the mucus at the neck of the womb (so sperm can’t easily access the reproductive trace to fertilise an egg). Once you stop taking these synthetic hormones, your body’s natural reproductive hormones will start managing your natural cycle again.

It’s very likely after 3 months of stopping your pill, your cycle will be back to ‘normal’ - meaning normal for you pre taking the pill. Therefore taking the pill won’t have an effect on future fertility. That being said, some women take the contraceptive pill for a very long time and by the time they stop, their natural fertility has decreased rapidly, so it’s always worth considering your age and want to start a family.

If your period does not continue as normal, or you’re having negative side effects after stopping the pill, see your GP to discuss things further and possibly for hormone tests (as above).

Like you say Jen- more research is needed into women’s health as a whole. Any other pioneering studies/ research we are all ears!

Sarah x

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It’d be really interesting to start a thread with links and summaries to some of the research out there too. Will have to try setting aside some time to skim through the books and find links/references! I know you guys share a few things like this already but not sure if there is a kind of central ‘hub’ or not?

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@Harry thanks so much for sharing all these resources it’s so helpful! I will definitely post any other recommendations I get here. It’s always so nerve-wracking to start tackling these things but knowledge is power! Thank you for sharing your wife’s resources, and giving so much detail. I hope these are as helpful for other people too :heart:

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Great idea, Harry! We’ll definitely create a central thread for it and link back here.

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Thank you so much everyone for sharing, especially for all those resources @Harry. Would love to stay tuned for any more tips/insight!

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Thank you so much @Harry and @HANX for your input! A central thread would be great. Glad they are helpful for you too @VanessaW :slightly_smiling_face:

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