Hypothyroidism & Birth Control

monalissanne

In the past, I took Mircette for a couple of years after switching from either Lo-Ovral or Estrostep which gave me horrible migraines. Then I was reading reviews and came across one where someone *blamed* her hypothyroidism on Mircette, and it made me question whether that had something to do with my hypothyroidism (among other things I fear to be the culprit).

I don't remember gaining weight or having other bad side effects on Mircette, but at the time I was still in one of the more fit periods of my life re: diet and exercise, and that was pre-hypothyroidism.

Suggestions on what to take re: a brand of pill or depo shot?

(IUDs, sponges, and the like are not an option for me.)

Edited to add: "Seasonal" pills are not an option either. Last two times I tried that I had bleeding for 2 months non-stop each time.

Thanks!

aggiesrar05

I've tried Yasmin and while I never had a problem with gaining weight while on it (I actually lost pretty consistently), it made me crazy in the head. Seriously, my new gyn (since the old one thought I was just nuts) told me that Yasmin can also act as a mood stabilizer for PMS (or PMDD, whatever) but if you don't have mood swings with PMS then it can exacerbate the symptoms and make you paranoid and scared. (Seriously it was not fun... I was scared to drive my car because something *might* happen).

I switched to Ortho TriCyclen Lo which I have never had any problems with until very recently. While I could blame gaining weight on my OCP, I think it had more to do with eating horribly.. so I did gain some weight (to this day my gyn does not blame the birth control). Recently when I started upping my exercise and again when I drastically changed my diet it made my cycle come early even though I was on the pill. My gyn said this can be normal and it should work it self out. One of the downsides to Ortho TriCyclen Lo is that it's hella expensive... even with my insurance (and I have pretty darn good insurance) it was over $100 for 3 months. I am really looking forward to taking advantage of the no-copay birth control in the Affordable Care Act!!

I have heard bad things about the depo shot... but other than that i'm not so sure. Had also considered and IUD... still looking into it.

monalissanne

I've asked for an IUD before but was told I had to have had a baby before to have one. :noway: All the other sponges and such make me nervous of user-error. I read reviews of Depo shots, and it is scary.

Good to know about the Yasmin. I don't really need a mood stabilizer.

LittleButMightyOne

I googled the side effects of different kinds of birth control pills online and found that the Depo shot is one of the worst offenders when it comes to causing weight gain. But there are also forums you can look at where different women showcase their side effects on different pills or ask for advice. If anything, these forums only showed me that different pills affect different women in different ways.

I looked up Lo/Ovral on that forum, because I'm now taking it for my PCOS (for regulation). The side effects ranged from "It made my acne better and I lost weight" to "I maintained my normal schedule of watching what I eat and swimming a mile a day for my first month of taking it and gained 15 pounds". I see you took Lo/Ovral and it gave you migraines. And I'm now on it for 2 months and have had no side effects whatsoever.

So the best advice I can give you is to test drive BC brands yourself. Find the right BC for YOU, not another person who has very different genetics/hormone levels, etc. than you.

I know this isn't the answer you were looking for, but I hope it helps.

aggiesrar05

Totally agree about having to test drive them yourself. Because of the cost of the OrthoTriCyclen Lo decided that I wanted them to switch me to a generic which wasn't a Lo-dose. I was miserable and had the worst heartburn that I've ever had ever. Everyone is different.

As for the IUD, you don't have to have a baby first to get one. Most Gyn's here in the US recommend that because economically the IUD should be a longer term pregnancy prevention. Basically if you're planning on having a baby in the next 5 years the cost is outrageously expensive to have it placed and then removed. There have also been some anecdotal cases where if you haven't had child the IUD is more painful... but there haven't been any studies to show that. Interestingly enough in countries other than the US, and IUD is one of the more common forms and most efficacious forms of birth control.

monalissanne

So the best advice I can give you is to test drive BC brands yourself. Find the right BC for YOU, not another person who has very different genetics/hormone levels, etc. than you.

I know this isn't the answer you were looking for, but I hope it helps.

I'm mostly interested in finding out whether other hypothyroid people had side effects/interactions related to the condition and the thyroid meds.

fjrandol

I was on depo for about a year in college (and was active at the time) and gained a crap-ton of weight. While I personally don't have hypothyroidism, my sister does and she takes Yasmin without any issues.