Babies on the Brain
aostrows
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Thinking of going off the pill... how did it go for you?
aostrows
member
I've been on the pill for about 10 years and my husband and I have been talking more and more lately about TTC. How did your body react when you went off the pill? I've read articles that said to wait a few months before TTC after stopping the pill to let your body get used to it.
Thanks for any thoughts! First time posting - exciting and scary 
Amanda
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Re: Thinking of going off the pill... how did it go for you?
I went off the pill with all thoughts that it would take some time to conceive.
I got pregnant 2-3 weeks later...
Make sure you are really ready before you stop taking it.
I gained a bit of weight when I came off BCP. Nothing too bad, but noticeable to me.
Other than that, my sex drive went through the roof, and I felt actually good for the first time since going on BCP almost ten years earlier.
GL!
TTC since June 2010.
DX hypothyroidism, pituitary hyperfunction, and PCOS.
On med/treatment break indefinitely. Not currently trying.
Lots of love to all of my Golden Girls!
The Vagtastic Voyage
I stopped the pill last October after 6 consecutive years of taking it (took it for 2 years a few years before that). The first 3 weeks or so (basically what would have been the 21 active pills in my next pack) were rough. I was pretty much the biggest b!tch in the world and H and I got in some HUGE fights. I "joke" to people IRL that we almost got divorced like 3 times, but the fights really were that bad.
Since then, I've been pretty normal and H and I are great.
The first day of my period is typically kind of crampy, but it's actually lighter and shorter than it was when I was on the pill. Not entirely sure why, as my period has always been around 5-6 days both on and off the pill. Now it's 3 days with spotting for 3+ days both before and after. Who knows!
Edited to make the "swear word" viewable.
I was on the pill for 15 years, ten of those years continuously (no periods at all) for endo. I just went off in February, had a regular withdrawal bleed, and then my first real period about two weeks later. 30 days after that, I got my second period, right on schedule.....so far so good. I know that for many women, it takes awhile to get periods once you stop taking the pill. However, these real periods are a totally different ball game than the little pill periods. Yikes!
My only side effects were a minor headache that didnt go away for about two weeks, and a definite increase in my sex drive. I was a bit bitchy, too. My doc did recommend waiting for two periods before TTC.
I was on for 10+ years before stopping. Part of the reason I started taking them in the first place was to regulate my periods and right after stopping I was very regular for a couple months before my cycle got super long and wonky again. I was also a horrid b!tch for several weeks and had tremendously bad headaches.
I went off the Pill in August, started charting in December and was pregnant in June on cycle 4. (I also got pregnant on cycle 3, but had a m/c.)
Ella born 12/21/11
I'm glad I wasn't the only one who was a terrible b!tch right off the pill!
BTW, your daughter is adorable. Congrats!
Edited to make the "swear word" viewable.
I stopped BCPs in early December, after 10+ years. For a few weeks after stopping them, I had quite a few weird symptoms going on - cramps, backache, headache, nausea, dizziness, etc. All of that died down after about 3 weeks. My first cycle was 48 days, second was 50, and now I'm on CD18, hoping that this one is shorter.
You can start TTC immediately after stopping BCPs, but if you are not quite ready yet, I would suggest stopping the BCPs anyways so that your hormones can start to regulate, etc.
Good luck!
This. I bled for a week, ovulated a couple weeks later, and had a BFP two weeks after that. My OB claims fertility can be increased right after going off the pill.