http://lupus.webmd.com/news/20090413/birth-control-pills-may-raise-lupus-risk?src=RSS_PUBLIC
Posting this because it is super important to me. Hormones play a huge role in AutoImmune Disease and most women may not know they have one until they take birth control pills and it triggers their condition!
I absolutely believe that the pill contributed to my body turning on itself around the time the scarring on my heart was starting (I know approximately when because it is when I started fainting all over Manhattan). Taking those pills was a big mistake and I can never be on them again.
I hope one day we can have some sort of screening process for women to see if they have an AI disease before we subject ourselves to seemingly harmless things (like the Pill) that could bring about major major health problems. Now that I am educated on the topic I cringe at the thought of messing around with my hormones. Ugh.
I completely agree! I have Sjogren’s syndrome and was diagnosed at the age of 30 but I think I had it before my first baby. I think the birth control pill was a trigger for me as well.My sister also took the pill and she has Addison’s. Do you have any studies that actually prove this so my daughter can show the doctors before they put her on them? Thanks.
Hi Betty
I do have some literature on it/ books that she can read although they are not concrete studies. I am going to email you directly if that’s alright? The email will be from savelaurensheart@gmail.com
Thanks for your response! It’s so important to share information like this because I noticed a very big change in my body both time I’ve been on bc in my life and both time it triggered a flare up.
L
I have Interstitial cystitis which is a ‘disease’ that flares up when hormone changes occur also…(Or so they say since nobody has found a cause) I did not know birth control had such a large effect on me until I started taking it and my pains came back full force. Immediately after going off the pill out of pure desperation to feel better, I felt all the effects of not being on BC. But weeks later I’m feeling the BC slowly kick out of my body & I’m finding myself having to rely on pain meds less and less. I knew BC had something to do with my flare ups because last summer I started a new birth control and the same thing happened… But a few weeks-months after I went off of it the problem seemed to disappear. I didn’t know BC had anything to do with it until it happened to me twice. And I can’t stress enough how these hormonal changes can really take a toll on AutoImmune Diseases.
Amen! And thank you for sharing because when I wrote this post it was so important for me to put this out there. So many women (at every age) do not realize what an impact BC has on the body since doctors prescribe them like candy. They are generally thought of as ‘harmless’. I definitely learned the hard way, and at a cost. It took me a while but once I did realize, like you, I could not believe the havoc those little pills brought on my system. I hope you are feeling better these days and thanks again for this.
PS.. don’t you think it would be a good idea to do some tests before BC’s are prescribed? Perhaps an ANA test? I think that’s pretty reasonable. I find it so scary that these are prescribed especially for girls at such young ages without making sure they have no underlying conditions…
I completely agree testing should be an ethical choice, but doctors don’t think that way. They look at the odds of those of us who do end up in pain, versus those who benefit from the birth control methods. On that same side, its a money pit. Insurance companies don’t want to pay for testing for something that could be there, but probably isn’t. And it isn’t fun to be on the flip side of this when all we do is suffer from these sorts of things, but at least we do know now that BC is a huge factor. Hopefully people will begin to see and reach out for help if they are suffering from similar things.
I also work with a girl who suffers from breast cancer because her birth control had too much estrogen. Now, given, everybody is different and some take hormones alot differently than others, but it is still NOT a chance I’m personally willing to take.
Theres alot of factors when it comes to BC and hopefully people start to realize what they are!!
Wow. I’m so happy we have a convo going about this because (and I’m sure you can relate to this), at first I thought it was in my head. Although, the more I thought about it I knew I had to trust my gut and stay away. You do have a point about the testing, it’s just unfortunate. I mean, I didn’t know how potentially dangerous too much estrogen can be to your system. It’s just sad that so many diseases and illnesses spring from this seemingly harmless choice…
Hi, I have Vasculitis on my skin, which is an autoimmune diease, would taking the pill make my conditions worse or even do anything at all?