Anyone think being on BCP for a long time contributed to IF?

patchen30 · January 2010

I know there's no scientific evidence...but I went on BCP in 2001 and my AFs were 5 days long and heavy, with no spotting in between. 7 years later when I came off my AFs were 1-2 days long with 7 days of spotting per cycle. I also started having a lot of spotting on BCP the last couple years, which obgyn said was breakthrough bleeding.

I guess my cycles just changed during the 7 years I was on BCP...but I can't help but wonder if it had anything to do with anything?

catery18 · January 2010

well for me it masked all my PCOS symptoms...little did I know, stopping it would lead to not only my dx but hair loss, fatty mcfatty weight gain and no periods..

i don't think bcp caused it for me but I have def. had no clue what would result when I came off!!!

Mrs.Johns · January 2010

I think your cycles do change as you get older and that might have had something to do with it. I often wonder if being on BCP from age 16 was the best thing for me fertility wise. I really do think it can contribute to the issues some of us are facing.

NYC1216 · January 2010

100%!!

Years ago women did not have problems getting pregnant. Our grandmothers and mothers generation never had so much infertility. Infertility really began to rise in the 80's and I think BCP have 100% contributed to it. I have been on since I was 15, which is 13 years.

I will never go back on them!

ashlyrose · January 2010

I have thought about this many times. I wish I never went on BCP. Since age 15-16 & taking them or 10years & being used to 'not' getting pregnant now all of a sudden my body is trying too. I wonder if it did cause of PCOS & blood clotting issue. There is a recent ad on TV saying if you took yaz or yasmin & have blood clotting disorder/heart issues to contact a lawyer.

LuvWIfootball · January 2010

I haven't had any testing yet to know if I have IF issues, but I do worry the Depo Provera could have caused problems.

When I first started, at age 18, the Dr never mentioned fertility issues as side effects, only weight gain and loss of bone density. I stopped after 2 yrs and got AF the first month, with no fertility issues afterward. The second time I used Depo it was for 3 yrs. Since I had been warned of the side effects the first time (or so I thought), the Dr just gave it to me, no mention of fertility issues again. I stopped in 2008, but it took almost 5 months to get AF and I had yo-yo cycles afterward. It was during this time that I did some research and heard all the horror stories. I crossed my fingers that I'd come off it like the first time, but that wasn't the case. I'm finally back to a "normal" cycle (though they aren't as they used to be), but it's always in the back of my mind that Depo could have caused problems that I'm not aware of yet.

KraneRN · January 2010

Sometimes I really wish I could blame all of IF on the fact that I was using BCP/Nuvaring for so long...in reality, I think it was just masking the fact that my cycles were changing.

KraneRN · January 2010

"Years ago women did not have problems getting pregnant. Our grandmothers and mothers generation never had so much infertility. Infertility really began to rise in the 80's and I think BCP have 100% contributed to it. I have been on since I was 15, which is 13 years."

I do think that part of why IF has become more common is b/c women are choosing to start families later in life then previous generations had done.

kthappy76 · January 2010

I don't personally think that BCP cause infertility. I was on them for ten years (all my 20s) and before I had all kinds of issues (skipped/heavy periods, bad skin, etc.). On them, I was happy as a clam, I only went off when my sister nearly died of a pulmonary embolism, likely caused by her long term use of BCP. They say that after you go off, you go back to the way you were before, but after I stopped my periods were super regular (like a German train, I like to say) and my hormones are definitely more in balance. But still no baby...

mvp12 · January 2010

I do believe that Birth Control causes IF. I was put on BC to control my cramps associated with suspected Endo at 16. I'm got off Bc when I was 26. I have Endo as well, but both my RE and OB do not think the Endo is causing problems getting pg because it is not in significant areas. I actually asked this question on SAIf last week and you can find the question when you look in my profile.

I do know couples that had multiple failed IVF's IUI and went on to get pg with no medical intervention. One couple had 2 children and they attribute the break cycle BFP to being off bc control longer.

I know there is no scientific evidence that says that BC cause IF, and I know there probably with never be any studies done.

I do believe this is the case for some people depending on IF DX. BCP didn't cause my Endo, it helped it, but I do wonder if that is the main reason I can't get pg.

mvp12 · January 2010

KraneRN:

"Years ago women did not have problems getting pregnant. Our grandmothers and mothers generation never had so much infertility. Infertility really began to rise in the 80's and I think BCP have 100% contributed to it. I have been on since I was 15, which is 13 years."

I do think that part of why IF has become more common is b/c women are choosing to start families later in life then previous generations had done.

I actually I think there was a lot of IF back then, people just didn't talk about it as much or get treatment for it. I know several eldery couples who are childless and I couldn't imagine it being by choice in most of them.

kthappy76 · January 2010

KraneRN:

"Years ago women did not have problems getting pregnant. Our grandmothers and mothers generation never had so much infertility. Infertility really began to rise in the 80's and I think BCP have 100% contributed to it. I have been on since I was 15, which is 13 years."

I do think that part of why IF has become more common is b/c women are choosing to start families later in life then previous generations had done.

The PP is just false and I agree that the reply is a factor in any potential rise in IF. The BCP just covers up any issues you may have and lulls you into thinking that as soon as you go off, you'll get pregnant, that you have total control of your fertility. Many women of previous generations were childless (not by choice) and there have been adoptions going far back in time. Today, we have more options to deal with IF. I would think that if there had been a significant spike in infertility after the BCP went on the market in the 60's that could be tied back to its use, that they would have figured it out by now.

bride526 · January 2010

I wonder this sometimes, especially since I'm unexplained. I was on BCP for ten years.

baloneydisc · January 2010

I don't think BCP has anything to do with my issues, but I've got PCOS & have had the symptoms since I was about 14. I would love to blame my IF on being on BC for 12 years (8 on BCP & 4 with an IUD), but the reality of it for me is it's probably my PCOS.

SunMoon&Stars · January 2010

Yep. BCP not only masks PCOS symptoms, it masks DOR symptoms too.

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