Q for ladies

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ksmommy5
ksmommy5 Posts: 142 Member
edited February 2017 in Health and Weight Loss
Have you noticed if your form of birth control has caused a hindrance to your weight loss? One of the side affects of mine is weight gain and I'm worried it will prevent me from my progress.
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Replies

  • arobey11
    arobey11 Posts: 87 Member
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    I have a Mirena and one of the reported side effects is weight gain. I've lost 42 pounds so far. CI<CO is king.
  • BrunetteRunner87
    BrunetteRunner87 Posts: 591 Member
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    I've been on Yasmin for 12 years and I am always successful losing weight when I watch what I eat. Maybe I would be better off without it, but I don't know because I've been on it so long.
  • leejoyce31
    leejoyce31 Posts: 794 Member
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    The weight gain can be from increased appetite or fluid retention. My overall appetite hasn't increased, but I notice when I start the active pills, there is a day where I have awful cravings. I usually give in to them. It doesn't always happen. Some months, I'll do fine and not get them. Other months I will. It just depends.

    I have fluid retention each time I start the active pills and it lasts pretty much until it's time for menses. It's usually a pound or two. It drops around menses and stays down until I start the active pills again.
  • happysherri
    happysherri Posts: 1,360 Member
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    Not really, it actually has regulated my hormones and improved my mood. Definitely talk to your doctor with your concerns. When I was 20 something I took some birth control that made me nauseous and had to switch.
  • Timberla82
    Timberla82 Posts: 16 Member
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    If it's really affecting you, talk to your doctor and see if you can swap to a different one or a different dose. I tried a couple of types of the pill and they messed with me but the one I'm on now is fine (probably not much use telling you which one since everyone is affected by the pill so differently)
  • Raynne413
    Raynne413 Posts: 1,527 Member
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    I will say this. Last year, I started feeling like complete crap. Ton of issues with anxiety, depression, binging, COMPLETE lack of motivation to do anything (which is odd for me because I am VERY Type A). All I wanted to do was sleep. I'd sleep until 15 minutes before I needed to leave for work, and then come home and crash on the couch. I gained almost 40 lbs over the period of 6 months. Finally after trying multiple anti-depressants and anxiety pills and being tested for diabetes, thyroid issues, iron, and various genetic mutations, I realized that this all started around the same time I had my Mirena put in. Doctor said that it couldn't POSSIBLY be the Mirena. I told her TAKE IT OUT!!! Four months later, I'm back to two workouts a day, cleaning the entire house, I'm down almost 20lbs, no issues with binging, and I can actually stay up past 9:00 at night.

    So while the Mirena itself didn't cause me to gain the weight, it caused all of the issues that led up to the weight gain. I will NEVER use hormonal birth control again.
  • sweetpea813
    sweetpea813 Posts: 112 Member
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    I was on hormonal birth control for years. I changed to Paragard IUD in November and immediately lost about 3 pounds but my stress and anxiety disappeared also. The hormones messed with my mood and I was always on edge a week before my period.
  • Raynne413
    Raynne413 Posts: 1,527 Member
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    sweetpea813 wrote: »
    I was on hormonal birth control for years. I changed to Paragard IUD in November and immediately lost about 3 pounds but my stress and anxiety disappeared also. The hormones messed with my mood and I was always on edge a week before my period.

    I read that the Paraguard increases bleeding during periods and cramping, which is one reason why I haven't really looked into it. Has that been your experience?
  • cnbbnc
    cnbbnc Posts: 1,267 Member
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    I've been on the pill...had depo shots for two years...and have had mirena for four years. None affected my weight at all.
  • cordney
    cordney Posts: 73 Member
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    Raynne413 wrote: »
    sweetpea813 wrote: »
    I was on hormonal birth control for years. I changed to Paragard IUD in November and immediately lost about 3 pounds but my stress and anxiety disappeared also. The hormones messed with my mood and I was always on edge a week before my period.

    I read that the Paraguard increases bleeding during periods and cramping, which is one reason why I haven't really looked into it. Has that been your experience?

    For me it did at first, for a couple months. Now it's back to normal. It was worth it for me because I don't ever want to be pregnant again. Since they wouldn't rip out my reproductive organs like I wanted this was the next big thing.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
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    Some medicines cause you retain water, but I know of none that cause you gain fat and to continually gain. Even water weight is a finite increase, except in extreme medical cases of someone with heart or kidney failure, which is not you. Some medicines can cause an increase in appetite, but appetite doesn't FORCE you to overeat and gain weight.
  • sweetpea813
    sweetpea813 Posts: 112 Member
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    I read that the Paraguard increases bleeding during periods and cramping, which is one reason why I haven't really looked into it. Has that been your experience?[/quote]

    I have heavier bleeding but not cramping. I don't mind the heavier bleeding because all of those crappy emotions are gone from the hormonal birth control. I exercise quite a bit so maybe that's why I don't have much cramping but when I don't exercise, I have more cramps.
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,134 Member
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    No.
  • Beverly2Hansen
    Beverly2Hansen Posts: 378 Member
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    Switch BC, different women DO gain weight from different birth control. I used Depo for years maintaining a 135lb weight but then tried the arm implant and shot up to 175lbs I felt like I was starving to death 24/7 it was hormonal. When I went back to Depo I started a weightloss plan to drop that and am now about 10lbs away. It's harder to lose than pack on so witch if you're worried.
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
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    No pill actually causes fat gain, they can cause fluid retention and increase in appetite though.
  • ksmommy5
    ksmommy5 Posts: 142 Member
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    Beverly2Hansen wrote: »
    Switch BC, different women DO gain weight from different birth control. I used Depo for years maintaining a 135lb weight but then tried the arm implant and shot up to 175lbs I felt like I was starving to death 24/7 it was hormonal. When I went back to Depo I started a weightloss plan to drop that and am now about 10lbs away. It's harder to lose than pack on so witch if you're worried.

    I am on depo currently. I love it. Was just worried it may hinder my weight loss.
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,136 Member
    edited February 2017
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    I switched from the pill to a non-hormone coil in 2015 and I did find it made a massive difference in both good and bad ways:
    • Decreased appetite for the rest of my cycle (outwith my period) compared to being on the pill
    • Worse PMS (unbearable the first couple of months) appetite increase and bloatiness the week before, cramps first couple of days of period. However these have started to settled down, I now take Evening Primrose Oil, up my water intake just before my period and the first couple of days of it and continue exercising through it. This helps reduce water retention and eases the cramps.
    • If I took a break from the pill and went back I'd go up a cup size in bras every time. I don't have that issue with the coil.

    I don't think the pill on it's own was the reason for any weight increase, sure it upped my appetite, but I should have done more exercise to account for the increase in food I was eating. If you are counting calories in and out, it shouldn't have too much impact on your progress.
  • Madwife2009
    Madwife2009 Posts: 1,369 Member
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    Raynne413 wrote: »
    I will say this. Last year, I started feeling like complete crap. Ton of issues with anxiety, depression, binging, COMPLETE lack of motivation to do anything (which is odd for me because I am VERY Type A). All I wanted to do was sleep. I'd sleep until 15 minutes before I needed to leave for work, and then come home and crash on the couch. I gained almost 40 lbs over the period of 6 months. Finally after trying multiple anti-depressants and anxiety pills and being tested for diabetes, thyroid issues, iron, and various genetic mutations, I realized that this all started around the same time I had my Mirena put in. Doctor said that it couldn't POSSIBLY be the Mirena. I told her TAKE IT OUT!!! Four months later, I'm back to two workouts a day, cleaning the entire house, I'm down almost 20lbs, no issues with binging, and I can actually stay up past 9:00 at night.

    So while the Mirena itself didn't cause me to gain the weight, it caused all of the issues that led up to the weight gain. I will NEVER use hormonal birth control again.

    I also had major problems with the Mirena; it triggered my auto-immune disease that was in remission, I was in terrible pain with all my joints and muscles, exhausted, weak, poor memory/foggy thinking, night sweats, intolerant to temperature changes and strong smells (perfume etc), tingling hands, headaches, generalised pain, dry mouth/eyes, skin problems, sleep disorders, tinnitus, eating problems (mainly not wanting to eat). I was intolerant of medicines. I was also depressed and seriously contemplating suicide - to a point of actually planning it.

    My mother pointed out to me that the problems I was experiencing all started within a couple of weeks of having the Mirena fitted. Once I realised that she was right, I researched my symptoms and found that they were due to the Mirena (silicone poisoning) and I removed it immediately, three months after it was fitted.

    My doctor also said that it couldn't possibly be due to the Mirena. However, most of my symptoms stopped with the removal of it. I felt better almost instantly from many of the symptoms although the auto-immune issue continues to be a bit problematic. Interestingly enough, my auto-immune consultant said that they were aware that the Mirena can cause issues but cannot advise women of this as there's no evidence-based research to support this advice.

    I would urge anyone considering having the Mirena fitted to do their research very carefully - there are thousands of women complaining about it and although i realise that it's all anecdoctal and not researched in the scientific sense, it means something.

    It's all so annoying as I'd been put on a medication that meant I had to avoid getting pregnant and I'd actually asked to be sterilised. My doctor recommended the Mirena as a better option - less invasive and my periods would hopefully cease. Guess what - I'm now seeing a gynaecologist about sterilisation later this month. I'll never use a hormonal birth control again (my doctor tried to convince me to have the implant or depo - ha, no chance).

    But, as to the original question, I didn't actually gain any weight with it but I didn't lose any either. So maybe I did gain? Who knows. It held up my weight loss for a while; if I hadn't had it then I believe that I'd probably be at goal weight now. But never mind, it'll come right in the end :)
  • prettigirl01
    prettigirl01 Posts: 548 Member
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    best thing I ever did was get off birth control all together. it had no benefits for me and I gained so much weight I thought I was going to explode. it didn't make me gain weight alone but it increased my appetite and I had no control over it. bc was the devil for me

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