DON'T blame it on the birth control!

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mosertheninja
mosertheninja Posts: 92 Member
in Motivation and Support
When I first started this journey I had asked several people if it was possible to lose weight while on the Depo Vera birth control. I gt an OVERWHELMING amount of negative responses. So many woman said they gained weight due to use of birth control. Several others also claimed they couldn't lose any until they stopped! Well, I'm here to tell you that is NOT always the case. Although i may contribute my larger appetite to DV, tracking my calories and working out more made me drop the weight I had gained like crazy. AND FAST! I've lost nearly 30 lbs already. So remember, DON'T use your birth control as an excuse!

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Diet and Exercise by Khrystina the Ninja, on Flickr
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  • shreddin_mama
    shreddin_mama Posts: 1,076 Member
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    i lost 62 pounds on the shot as well! No more excuses ladies!
  • taramaureen
    taramaureen Posts: 569 Member
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    Great job losing! BUT don't discount other's experiences just because you had a "good" one. Some birth control can really wreak havoc on some women's bodies and it's not always easy to know how to correct it.
  • Jadesmommy2003
    Jadesmommy2003 Posts: 36 Member
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    You are absolutely right. On the same and I started at 260, had a kid, and am dropping just fine even with my lap band open. I am 173 now but got down to 147 one the shot. Has everything to do with you effort and activity level.
    BTW, awesome pictures.. you are definetly and idol for me..
  • SergeantSunshine_reused
    SergeantSunshine_reused Posts: 5,382 Member
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    You look AMAZING!!
  • Jessb1985
    Jessb1985 Posts: 264 Member
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    Great job!

    You're profile pic is so pretty too :)
  • wiglet23
    wiglet23 Posts: 887 Member
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    very nice results!! congrats to all your hard work!
  • supertracylynn
    supertracylynn Posts: 1,338 Member
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    According to the date stamps, you lost 27# in 6 weeks. That is almost 5# per week. Hm.
  • LPCoder
    LPCoder Posts: 404 Member
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    The problem is when estrogen becomes dominant in the body and overwhelms the progesterone. Estrogen dominance leads to lower metabolism, lumpy breasts and increased risk of cancer. It can send women into early menopause as well. This is one of the reasons to buy hormone free milk and meat products and to avoid using plastic storage containers.

    You look amazing and congratulations on your weight loss.
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
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    When I first started this journey I had asked several people if it was possible to lose weight while on the Depo Vera birth control. I gt an OVERWHELMING amount of negative responses. So many woman said they gained weight due to use of birth control. Several others also claimed they couldn't lose any until they stopped! Well, I'm here to tell you that is NOT always the case. Although i may contribute my larger appetite to DV, tracking my calories and working out more made me drop the weight I had gained like crazy. AND FAST! I've lost nearly 30 lbs already. So remember, DON'T use your birth control as an excuse!
    You are correct that it is not ALWAYS the case, but it often IS the case. I'm happy for you that you were able to lose with Depo (though the bone loss, breast lumps and early menopause -- among other horrors -- it can also cause are much worse side effects than weight gain ...), but I know a lot of people who couldn't lose with it no matter what they did.

    I have a Mirena IUD, which has the same hormone as Depo. I was on the pill before that. While on the pill, I managed to lose 34 pounds pretty effortlessly and kept it off for years. The MONTH I got the IUD, even though I continued exercising and eating healthy, I started gaining weight. I got serious about losing again and continued gaining and no matter what I do, no matter how much or little I eat, no matter how much or little I exercise, the weight I regained won't come off. And, no, I'm not at a healthy weight for my height.

    So thanks for the lecture.

    And, by the way, the Depo side effects happen to roughly 40% of Depo users, which means 60% don't have them. You are one of the lucky 60%. But 40% is a lot of people.

    And one more thing: You're 22. Wait 10 years and see if your body responds the same way.
  • _tiifyjo_
    _tiifyjo_ Posts: 118 Member
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    I think its fantastic that you lost all the weight while on depo. I gained all mine while on depo, even while counting calories and working out twice a day. Then I got off the depo and lost some of it while still counting calories and working out only once a day. I stayed off of birth control until after I was married. When I started the pill I ballooned out and hit my heaviest weight, having gained 32 pounds in 7 months. I started counting calories and working out every day and only losing about 2 pounds a month. Stopped the pill and started losing 1-2 pounds a week. So while you were able to be successful on it, not everyone is. Sometimes its not an excuse, just a hurdle.
  • evansproudmama
    evansproudmama Posts: 496
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    I initally gained weight with depo however I lost 50lbs while on it also sooo no its not an excuse in my experience!! Awesome pics such fast great results!!
  • vim_n_vigor
    vim_n_vigor Posts: 4,089 Member
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    Great job losing! BUT don't discount other's experiences just because you had a "good" one. Some birth control can really wreak havoc on some women's bodies and it's not always easy to know how to correct it.
    ^^This. I gained 40 pounds in one month on one pill. Please, tell me it wasn't the pill and I gained it by what I was eating! It took a very long time to get that weight back off. Some people have no problems, others have mild ones and others can't really take it. Excellent job on your weight loss.
  • sizzle92
    sizzle92 Posts: 1,015 Member
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    I am proud of you for the loss! Great job!

    I have been in the medical field for 15 years. Yes, birth control very much can cause weight gain. I have seen multiple women blow up gaining 10-30 pounds on Depo.
  • lizard053
    lizard053 Posts: 2,344 Member
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    Wowie!

    I'd like to add that gaining weight on a drug that commonly makes people gain is an excuse. It's harder to lose, but not impossible. You have to make the choice to not let it stop you!

    Oh, and having a thyroid problem is also any excuse. I lost weight before I was diagnosed, and continued to lose after!

    *Edit - I'm not saying they DON'T cause weight gain, but you can choose to minimize it by the choices you make. You are changing your body chemistry using them, you have to make changes to counteract that!
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
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    That's an amazing result, well done!

    I'm 44 and started losing weight on the combined pill, had a failed IUD insertion (ouch!) and then swapped to the mini Pill and I've steadily lost nearly 30lbs just by doing exactly what MFP tells me.
  • IamBrande
    IamBrande Posts: 237
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    Your photo's are awesome, great job!!!

    I could not take BC pills due to weight gain/ Blood pressure spikes..........

    Sooooooooooooo I just said screw it and had a tubal. :tongue:
    (of course I had my 3 chidlren and i knew i was done with having babies!)
  • ehg87
    ehg87 Posts: 430 Member
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    [/quote]
    You are correct that it is not ALWAYS the case, but it often IS the case. I'm happy for you that you were able to lose with Depo (though the bone loss, breast lumps and early menopause -- among other horrors -- it can also cause are much worse side effects than weight gain ...), but I know a lot of people who couldn't lose with it no matter what they did.

    I have a Mirena IUD, which has the same hormone as Depo. I was on the pill before that. While on the pill, I managed to lose 34 pounds pretty effortlessly and kept it off for years. The MONTH I got the IUD, even though I continued exercising and eating healthy, I started gaining weight. I got serious about losing again and continued gaining and no matter what I do, no matter how much or little I eat, no matter how much or little I exercise, the weight I regained won't come off. And, no, I'm not at a healthy weight for my height.

    ^^^^^ Same thing happened when I went on Mirena...NEVER had a weight problem in my whole life, and had never used bc before. it took a year, awful mood swings, an insatiable appetite and 20 pounds before I had it removed. Definitely didn't use bc s an excuse but it certainly messed up my body's metabolism.
  • Meaganandcheese
    Meaganandcheese Posts: 525 Member
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    Everyone has different reactions to different kinds of BC. For some people, weight gain is a very real side effect.

    My doctor recently switched me to a different pill and I gained 10# in 2 weeks. Switching again took it right back off. Hormones do crazy things. Sometimes the weight gain is temporary, but the truth is that everyone will have a different experience with it.

    Congrats on having a positive experience!
  • xdaysbingefree
    xdaysbingefree Posts: 98 Member
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    Thank you so much for posting this!

    If your birth control is actually making you gain weight (and its not just because youre eating more due to a bigger appetite) then you should talk to your doctor and switch
  • yesthistime
    yesthistime Posts: 2,051 Member
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    I am proud of you for the loss! Great job!

    I have been in the medical field for 15 years. Yes, birth control very much can cause weight gain. I have seen multiple women blow up gaining 10-30 pounds on Depo.

    This. I think your story can be a very inspirational IF packaged the right way. Weight gain on hormonal birth control is not an excuse, but a documented side effect that drug companies producing birth control admit and health care professionals prescribing birth control are informed of. Countless studies have shown the effect of birth control on weight (with Depo Provera having one of the most significant documented effects), making you the exception and not the rule.

    With that said, congratulations on your loss and I hope you consider retelling your story to motivate women who aspire to lose or maintain their weight while on birth control.
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