I Stopped Taking Birth Control…Here’s What Happened

I’ve been on birth control since a month before my 18th birthday, I’m 20 years old now. I was taking a combination-hormone bill and my doctors assured me it would not cause any side effects such as weight gain.  In the time span of 2 years I’ve gained about 80-90ls, have had terrible mood swings, and have acquired terrible anxiety. Sometimes I get so depressed I lay in bed all day and cry. After a break-up, I decided I should stop taking birth control all together. It’s been the first month and the first noticeable difference was my skin! I was breaking out terribly with hormonal acne; I assume it came from my hormones being imbalanced now. It was embarrassing, but and took weeks to get back to normal but left me with acne scars and hyperpigmentation. Next was my weight… I actually dropped a noticeable few pounds. Friends would ask if I had been in the gym recently, when the only change in my life was the discontinuation of birth control. Other changes include a bigger craving for sweet foods, some low moods but an overall more consistent mood pattern. Honestly, I will probably be back on birth control, but I will change the method. There are many other methods of that might suit me so it won’t end here for me. Know your body and make sure you catch changes before they become to serious.