Quitting birth control to help with weight loss?

If you don't want to get pregnant now it is imperative that you talk to your doctor & find a reliable method of birth control before you just drop the pill. I would ask about switching brands / types. Usually they will give you samples to try before you have to buy them, so you can avoid one that makes you crazy or makes you hungry all the time. I used to be on Depo (the shot) & lost weight on that, although many others said they gained on Depo. It really depends on your body chemistry. If the only reason you are quitting the pill is weight loss explore your options. I personally like Loestrin Fe. I found that taking it continuously (at my doctor's suggestion) helped me avoid the out of control hunger I used to have for the week before I took the placebo pills & the 4 days of placebo pills. Also no periods to deal with:)

Didn't work for me, but good luck!

It depends - is the possibility of getting pregnant more or less of a fear than not losing weight?

I quit the pill a week ago and i am losing a lot more weight...

A week ago, really and you have lost more weight??? Could just be normal weight loss. Don't think one week is long enough to really be able to tell what made the weight come off.

I am on the pill and have been for 5 years now, when I started it I didn't gain any weight. I gained this weight about 2 years after starting the pill. I am still on the pill and still losing weight.

I think that its all a myth honestly

I tend to agree with this. I DID gain a significant amount of weight around the same time I started taking the pill a little over 5 years ago, but a lot of other things also changed in my life - I got married, I was working 2 jobs, I was going to school full time, we didn't have a lot of money so we ate cheap (crappy food choices!) - thus I really think that's what caused me to gain all the weight.

I quit taking birth control toward the end of October, I think, and I have yet to see a significant weight loss due to not taking it. Even if you DO lose weight after quitting the pill, it's probably just water weight, anyway.

I quit my BCP last month and with that and my new diet I some how managed to drop 15pounds In one month. Idk If I can contribute to it all being on the pill but I feel sure that it did have at least a small part in it. I plan on getting a copper IUD for my next method of BC. They are a non hormonal form of contraseptive.

Everyone is different, and every type of birth control pill affects everyone different. I was on Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo for about 3 years, and gained a very significant amount of weight. Once I got off of the pill, I lost it all and then some with absolutely NO change in my diet or lifestyle. Was still working the same job, eating the same crappy foods and sodas nonstop...yet I magically was losing weight. Fast forward a few years and I entered into a serious relationship and we decided that I'd get back on the pill. New gynecologist recommended the same pills, and stupid me, I went back on them. Not fun. Same bad side effects (including weight gain due to increased appetite...only this time, I was eating healthier and had cut out soda almost entirely!)....for me, personally, the side effects are not worth it. I had no energy on the pill, was always moody and grumpy and felt upset/sad/angry (I wouldn't say habitually depressed, but never really happy or "myself"). I finally got off of the pill for good about 2 years ago. No significant weight loss (I am older now, plus I gained more weight the second go-round of them, haha), but I do have energy to exercise and no longer crave food 24/7. I'm no longer grumpy or easily angered or sad all the time, either, which to me is the best part. That's just my personal story, and as you can see, everyone else's is different. For me, it's not worth it to be on those pills, and the weight gain was the least of the bad side-effects for me.

There are horror stories for every form, it seems...the shot seems to be the most prevalent with women I know personally. Also, I get rather tired of hearing "Well just ask your doctor which one is best for you." I've had 3 doctors all tell me that Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo was the best for me, even when I tell them my side effects. They looked at me like I was insane when I told them I was always feeling tired yet getting adequate sleep, that I had no energy, had an increased appetite, and was moody constantly.

My (female) GP had a chat to me about weight and birth control at my last check up (very dangerous for me to get pregnant right now so she's a little hyper about it). Now as a doctor she says that birth control has no affect on your weight. As a woman she says that she has to avoid certain pills as she gets the need to EAT EVERYTHING!!!
Perhaps I've struck lucky with a doctor who is willing to let me try different forms of contraception in order to find one that best suits me but it is worth having a chat with yours to see what they suggest and THEN deciding if you want to quit / try something else.

If you're hoping that dropping the BC is a quick fix to help you loose weight are you prepared to stay on your chosen alternative long term (i.e. condoms) to keep the weight off? Or would you be going back to the one that makes you put on weight and yo-yo on and off birth control as the weight creeps back up?

Don't think about the short term goal of loosing weight here. Think about the long term aim of keeping yourself trim and the potential of ending up having to squeeze an unplanned 8lb bowling ball from between your legs.

ive had thesame issuse it dose something to your metabolic rate people whom are prone to carry more weight tend to do so whileon contraseptives were as people whom have a hard time keeping it on will llose more i whent on camprese lo its a three onthcycle and this is no longer the issuse

I quit hormonal birth control because the contraceptive poll gave me liver tumors. Since I stopped the pill that time of the month is harder than before in that I crave foods more and it's a difficult week. For me being off it didn't make things easier in that sense

That being said I feel I can now feel emotions better and I feel more balanced in general. I did nave a tough few months when first coming off, felt emotional... But then I had just had major liver surgery.

I now have the copper coil. The first 4/5 periods were not very nice at all, but once they were over and it has settled I have been fine. No hormones, and 5 years now of not having to worry about it. Expect a few ropey months if you go for it, but I reckon it's well worth it in the long run!

Zara x

I had the SAME thing happen to me when I first got on BCP when I got married. I gained 30 pounds in a very short period of time. I got off it, and while the weight didn't drop off, the gaining stopped immediately (without me making any other lifestyle changes). I didn't experience hair loss or any other negative consequences. We used other methods of preventing, and I didn't have a child until 4 years later. I haven't gone on BCP since, and it's been about 10 years now!

Well, just be careful. Getting pregnant certainly won't help with weight loss.

There are hundreds of OCP options. See a doc (got to PP if you can't find an affordable one to do something other than push diet pills).

Careful with that. I ditched my birth control because it had caused weight gain (though I had a Mirena IUD and not BCP), I got a new baby out of it! In my defense, I continued to lose weight through my first two trimesters and delivered him at less than I started.

But seriously, check with your Dr. Maybe try a different pill first?

Hi,

I've recently come off the pill. The doctor took me off it. In the time I've been on it, I've gained 50lbs (I was on a high dose, not pregnancy protection related). My eating hasn't been significantly different yet I gained lots of weight. I've been bad, but not to the extent of gaining.

I'm wondering if there is any hope for me, do hormone pills have a long 'half life'?