Can taking the pill cause anxiety?

If you’re someone who’s considering taking hormonal birth control pills, you might be wondering about potential side effects. One of the most common questions people ask is whether these pills can cause anxiety. Unfortunately, there’s no straightforward answer to that question as different women react differently with birth control.

Nevertheless, don’t worry too much because below are in-depth insights into taking the pill and its correlation with causing anxiety.

Can Birth Control Cause Anxiety?

To better understand this topic, we need first to learn how hormonal medications affect our bodies. Hormonal contraceptives contain estrogen and progestin hormones which help prevent pregnancy by thickening cervical mucus so that sperm cannot reach an egg for fertilization during ovulation.

These hormones bind to receptors in our body and interact with various tissues along their way via blood circulation. When hormonal levels fluctuate due to contraception or terminating it after a prolonged period of use, individuals may experience hormone imbalances leading to undesirable effects such as mood disorders including but not limited to depression/irritability/anxiety.

While a little bit of hormone flux happens all throughout your menstrual cycle from follicular phase (follicles growing), luteal phase (corpus luteum releasing progesterone), up until menstruation itself(book ending). These fluctuations differ vastly from those caused by manipulation through synthetic means; they occur more gradually compared with abrupt changes resulting from staring/stopping medication wholly out-of-phase.

The Mechanism Behind It

When we take contraceptive pills(1), they alter the balance of natural hormones present within our body resulting in hormonal disbalance—pill-induced hormone imbalance results from preventing regular fertility/menstrual cycle-(2). So if there seems like any mismatch between actual/off synthetic cycles outside mimicking normal patterns/plotting​ Expect-nervousness-etc slip into symptom pool(so will anything else).

The Role of Progestin

While estrogen releases happy hormone “Serotonin,” progestin has the complete opposite effect. It prevents ovulation, yes but it also brings about edgy thoughts (3). A study from Harvard University has found that low doses of synthetic progesterone-like steroid hormones commonly used in birth control pills might lead to an increased risk for anxiety and depression(4). Nevertheless, there is more research necessary before drawing such a conclusion.

Individual Reactions

Like any medication, the individual experience would vary to quite some degree due to brain chemistry/ how someone’s body responds at different stages/processing times. Therefore mental state/body environment may respond differently regarding effectiveness in reducing pre-existing conditions/new onset adverse effects here listed-(5):

  • Mood Swings
  • Nausea
  • Migraines
  • Vaginal Infections

Connection Between Hormonal Contraception and Anxiety Disorders:

The use of hormonal contraception can sometimes trigger or exacerbate anxiety disorders on different levels with varying outcomes due to body composition/blood pressure/stress response variations(6).

In many cases, fluctuating hormone levels triggered by birth control use results in mood disruption leading up/downward spikes in anxious feelings.

Neurologically speaking since the mechanism behind Depressive disorder and anxiety are kindred spirits having been linked as possible causes for depressive states -it follows suit that such hormonal fluctuations cause mild–moderate disturbances manifesting as listlessness/nervousness etc.(7)

Research around this link is ongoing; however, one scientific article notes that severe PMS occurs frequently amongst women taking oral contraceptives(8), while another study claims there isn’t much difference between those who take these pills vs naturally cycling menstruators when looking at changes within their emotional context associated prior/(days leading up)/post-menstruation-(9)

What To Do About It?

It ought to be the utmost priority when undergoing hormonal changes through contraception- that we speak with a licensed medical professional regarding these matters.

If you’re already dealing with anxiety or any other mental health issues, you must consult your doctor and come up with an individualized plan of action. Some women may, for instance, undergo antidepressant or anti-anxiety medication alongside birth control to offset potential negative outcomes-(10) since the transition away from ovulating/ standard hormone releases tends to trigger emotional instability attempts at stabilizing emotional peaks are considered paramount.

Alternative Methods

The good thing is that hormonal contraceptives aren’t the only option for preventing pregnancy. You could try non-hormonal methods such as condoms/cervical caps/diaphragms/sponges/intrauterine devices (IUDs)/ spermicide instead! Consultation area advisors can help access availability/potential reactions well in advance of trying something new(11).

Conclusion:

Though anxiety might not exist outrightly as a side effect due to oral contraceptive use/manipulation via hormones-Different people have varying experiences. This question about whether or not it causes turbulence should always prompt one then towards expert advice before doing anything else certainly weigh-in based on experience structure coupled w/facts presented here today!

Safe sex prevention remains important regardless; there’s no denying it because nobody desires STIs nor does anyone desire unwanted pregnancies sticking around either.

Reference:

  1. Hormone addled: how testosterone is regulated
  2. New Guidance Help Clinicians Recognize Uncommon Side Effect
  3. COPD and emotion recognition
    4.Sex hormones affect everyone differently – this study looked at anxiety risks amongst three kinds.
    5.Why do I feel anxious for near periods?
    6.The Association Between Hormonal Contraceptive Use and Mood Disorders
    7.Glutamate Concentration in Special Areas of Brain Varies Diurnally In Healthy Volunteers And Is Altered In Major Depression
    8.The Relationship of Hormone Changes to Mood and Anxiety in First-Time Mothers
    9.Effects of Monophasic Combined Oral Contraceptives on the Psychological Status: A Randomized Controlled Trial—Part 2 Over an Eight-Week Treatment Period
    10.Antidepressants for depression treatment – Myths & Realities
    11.Different Methods for contraception

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