One can say that I am recovering from unnecessary medical intervention, while others might point out it as recovering from unfortunate side effects of medication that provide bodily autonomy. Either way, I am recovering from the aftermath of hormonal birth control that seemingly triggered something in my body.
Is hormonal birth control something to be afraid of?
No, definitely not. I do not aim to write about my experience to scare you; I am writing in hopes that it can give you some insight into what can go wrong if your body has a specific opinion about hormonal birth control use (the side effects that are listed as "rare" or "extra rare" in the instruction manual of any medication).
Despite having side effects that can be pinpointed to the use of a hormonal implant, specifically Nexplanon. I am still hopeful that I, together with doctors, will figure out how to get my body back to a "normal" baseline for me and that I will be able to use hormonal birth control (specifically NuvaRing) going forward.
What went wrong?
Let's preface this by stating - I still have no idea. I have a hypothesis, and I am still in recovery, waiting for next bloodwork to come back for more answers. However, all issues started roughly a year into hormonal implant "Nexplanon".
For clarity reasons - Nexplanon - was not the first hormonal birth control I had used; I switched to it from NuvaRing. I used NuvaRing for about 3 years prior to Nexplanon. During this time, I had no side effects, at least not the ones I was able to notice. However, after volunteering in Spain, where NuvaRing was an over-the-counter medication, and after forgetting a couple of times to remove it or put it in on the exact day I needed to, I started to look for more long-lasting alternatives.
I arrived at Nexplanon, despite it having multiple reports of negative experiences; I tried to rely on the fact that for NuvaRing I was in the "majority" group of users with no reported side effects. I hoped that my body would react similarly to Nexplanon as well, considering that it is even seen as less aggressive to some extent because it is a single-hormone birth control. Oh, boy! I was wrong on this assumption!
The Nexplanon use for me started with a honeymoon phase. I was worried about the implant insertion place healing and my body's initial reaction to it. It turned out to be more than amazing - fast healing, no reactions, I felt like myself and even better, as I had a genuine feeling as if I had won the lottery. This continued for roughly 9 months or so. Then slowly, really slowly and at first unnoticeably to me, my body said: "Enough of this!" And I started to get a whole array of side effects. Mind you, this list compounded over 1.5 years, but as any side effects started, they were persistent and only grew stronger:
- nausea while in moving transportation (train, bus, car),
- occasional heart palpitations and dizziness,
- bloating,
- headaches,
- brain fog, forgetfulness, difficulty concentrating,
- depressive mood, anxiety,
- fatigue and persistent tiredness,
- insomnia-like symptoms (difficulty falling asleep, difficulty staying asleep),
- overall body dryness (eyes, mouth, skin and vagina),
- persistent thirst even if drinking enough liquids, thirst woke up during the night too,
- no sweating regardless if its hot or I am doing something physical,
- hot flashes,
- difficulty with thermoregulation (at worst my husband and I had a 9-degree Celsius difference in how hot we felt the environment around us was. To put it simply - if thermometer showed + 20°C, my husband felt as if it is +20°C, then I felt as if it is +28°C or +29°C ), and heating up during sleep
- no libido and painful sex.
I think that by now you can see where it went wrong - the side effects are doing the convincing on their own. After a longer period of debating the "but I have spent money for nothing, if I remove it early" problem, I removed it 6 months prior to the actual removal date. The only thing I regret is that I didn't do it earlier with the first symptoms I felt in my body.
The aftermath and recovery
It is written in many information materials online that recovery from hormonal birth control (getting back regular cycle, healing side effects if any were present), typically takes 6 - 12 months after stopping hormonal birth control. I at first tried to go back to the version that had previously worked for me - NuvaRing, and while I felt better and saw some side effects disappearing, after 8 months on it, I still weren't closer to my before-Nexplanon-self.
Now I am 8 months off of any hormonal birth control, and am struggling with the aftermath of the side effects. While at this point it is unlikely the problems I am experiencing can fully be attributed to the Nexplanon only, it seems that the Nexplanon triggered changes in my body, specifically my hormonal system, that currently are continuing to malfunction on their own.
The list of problems I am dealing with has shrunk, but hasn't disappeared yet. Currently I am trying to find the cause for these:
- depressive mood, anxiety,
- fatigue and persistent tiredness,
- insomnia-like symptoms (difficulty falling asleep, difficulty staying asleep),
- no sweating regardless if its hot or I am doing something physical,
- difficulty with thermoregulation (the gap has reduced to some 4-5°C), and heating up during sleep,
- no libido and painful sex.
What's next?
I currently don't have a certain game plan. I have finished a course of DHAE (it was advised by my doctor as a 2-month-long use period), and now I am waiting for the correct cycle part to do my bloodwork again. It should answer some questions or at least lead to some hypotheses.
Until that, I am trying to find a livable balance with my current body, which includes figuring out a better diet, exercise, sleep routine and relaxation techniques that help to replenish the energy I still have, and I am bringing you with me on my recovery and overall health journey. I hope you enjoy this style of content!
Hero image Reproductive Health Supplies Coalition on Unsplash
