I thought I was losing control – crying one minute, filled with rage the next and unable to leave my bed after that.

My recent PMS symptoms had gotten worse, and it took me months to make the connection. It was a relief to realise my emotions weren’t all me, but they might be because of something I was putting into my body every day: the pill.

It wasn’t until I did a recent poll on Instagram following my own experiences with the pill that I realised just how common it is to suffer negative mental health symptoms when taking this form of contraception. My DMs were flooded with women telling me how they were filled with rage, anxiety, and had uncontrollable mood swings.

The poll revealed that 82% of women who voted had negative side effects, and I thought it was time to do some of my own research.

My story

I started taking the pill when I was 16 years old, and in the 12 years I’ve taken it, I don’t remember the impact it would have on my mental health ever being explained to me. When I was a teenager, I put my unstable emotions down to being what I was – a teenager. But throughout my 20s, I wasn’t noticing an improvement in my emotions or behaviours. Over the years, I’ve noticed some symptoms that have become impossible to ignore:

• Anxiety and difficulty managing stress.
• Low mood to the point where I can’t leave my bed.
• Rage and irritability. Which if you know me, doesn’t match my personality at all.
• Rapidly changing mood swings, which causes me to feel totally unstable at times.

These symptoms massively impacted (and still impact) the way that I cope with stressful situations, like work, relationships and my perception of self. Sometimes things that would usually cause most people joy, like getting paid for example, would cause an unnecessary stress response as I frantically try to plan my finances and catastrophise whether I’m making the right choices for myself. Now I’m questioning, is all this stress really me?

Recently, I went to the doctor to get some help with these symptoms as they only felt like they were getting worse. To my surprise, the first thing the doctor suggested was putting me on anti-depressants every month during my PMS window. This felt like an extreme solution, so we settled on me continuously staying on my pill without a break to see if that settles my symptoms instead. For me, it felt frustrating that there wasn’t another, more helpful or holistic option the doctor wanted to explore with me.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. While we strive to present up-to-date, accurate content, the views and opinions shared are those of the author and the featured experts and do not necessarily reflect those of High Life North. We are not medical professionals, and readers should always consult with a qualified healthcare provider regarding any concerns or questions related to their health and well-being.