Low Estrogen and Birth Control Questions

recovering · 04-02-2009, 12:30 PM

I have been on BCP for years. I recently went off because of some unpleasant side-effects I was having. I had my estrogen levels tested after being off of the pill for 2 months. Bad news - my levels were very low (32). I have a history of anorexia (on and off from the age of 12, am currently 26 yo), but have gotten to a pretty good weight (been around 90 lbs at 5 feet for about 6 months).
My obgyn wants me to go back on birth control because of the low estrogen levels. I don't want to go back on the pill at all (my mood has really improved in these last 2 months!), but I know that I need these estrogen levels up! I have read several conflicting studies about estrogen through BCP and bone health (some say it doesn't really help).
I guess my question is... have any of you had similar problems? Any advice would be much appreciated!

brasileira · 04-02-2009, 01:08 PM

I've been on BCP since Nov. 2006. I originally went on it because of irregular menstrual cycles (didn't get mine for about 8 months). Last summer I stopped for a couple months just because I thought it was really like unnatural and I wanted to see if my cycle would be back to normal. It did sort of come..but anyways my experience was kind of opposite from yours. I had headaches a few times a week, which I never had before. Once it was so bad I was dizzy and in bed all day and I couldn't eat either because I was nauseous. I'm not sure if it was because I went off the pill (withdrawal symptoms?) but I went back on and I'm fine now. What kind of unpleasant side effects were you having?

fitopia · 04-02-2009, 01:13 PM

BCPs work by suppressing your endocrine's production of it's own sex hormones, so when a lot of women come off them, it takes a while for their own hormones to kick back in, and levels of estrogen, progesterone and testosterone can turn out to be too low as a result. You should give your body time to get back into its own hormones.

In the meantime, you could try adding soy to your diet, and research saw palmetto as a possible aid.

recovering · 04-02-2009, 01:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by brasileira

What kind of unpleasant side effects were you having?

I was happy on seasonique for a while.. but then after about 1.5 yrs on it, I started getting a LOT of breakthrough bleeding and bad cramps! So I switched to Yaz, which made my mood terrible (and I'm a very happy person!). My doctor is thinking to try me on either Loestrine or Alesse (? I think this is the one?) as they are both very low dose.

Thanks for the help!

CATRACCOM · 04-02-2009, 01:58 PM

I found taking Vitex really helped me level out. I'm actually feeling pretty happy. It's an herb...not a hormone...but it helps you balance. It's not immediate, it takes a month or two.

brasileira · 04-02-2009, 02:20 PM

yea i get really bad cramps sometimes...i've never gave birth but i think it even feels like contractions and i feel like i cant even breathe..dont remember that happening before i went on BCP but anyways having cramps is better than having surprise babies or having terrible headaches imo. =) sorry i cant help you out more

recovering · 04-02-2009, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fitopia

In the meantime, you could try adding soy to your diet, and research saw palmetto as a possible aid.

I've never hear about using saw palmetto to increase estrogen. I'll definitely look into that.

Quote:

Originally Posted by CATRACCOM

I found taking Vitex really helped me level out. I'm actually feeling pretty happy. It's an herb...not a hormone...but it helps you balance. It's not immediate, it takes a month or two.

Will look into this also!

Quote:

Originally Posted by brasileira

yea i get really bad cramps sometimes...i've never gave birth but i think it even feels like contractions and i feel like i cant even breathe..dont remember that happening before i went on BCP but anyways having cramps is better than having surprise babies or having terrible headaches imo. =) sorry i cant help you out more

True! Thanks for all the help. Very appreciated

My doctor is concerned that since my body fat is so low. Do any of you have problems as a result of contest prep? Do bb normally keep body fat higher off season to keep estrogen levels normal? Thanks again everybody!!!

daviess · 04-03-2009, 02:26 AM

i say give it time and go from there. the body is usually pretty good a resetting itself.. after years of artificial hormones being pummped into you it will need time to recover... but the low bf% could hinder that. this may seem far fetched but i heard soy could help bring estrogen levels up?

mprior · 04-03-2009, 05:43 AM

In the past, every doctor's answer to a woman's hormone problems was to put her on the pill. However, nowadays there are endocrinologists who specialize in just this sort of thing. There's a new branch of therapy called "bio-identical hormones." Essentially, the physician determines *YOUR* ideal estrogen, progresterone, etc.. levels and a pill is customized with exactly the dosage you need. This is not a birth control pill, mind you, it is a way to restore your levels to a healthy normal. The problem with birth control pills: more than often they are an ultra-megadose of synthetic estrogen which can cause the severe side effects you mentioned. I would see if there is a bio-identical hormone specialist in your area. I can really attest to their worth-- one of my best friends suffered from SEVERE, chronic major depression for nearly 10 years while taking birth control prescribed by her doctor to "fix" her problems. Once she started the bio-identicals she got her life back and is symptom free!