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Babies on the Brain
aerotigergirl
member
Nightmares & Birth Control?
aerotigergirl
member
I might have a problem with chronic nightmares. I usually have them 2-3 times per week. Sometimes they're really awful and sometimes not so bad, but they're usually enough to wake me up in the middle of the night. Last night, I had a particularly upsetting one, which woke me up crying at 2AM.
So, I googled "chronic nightmares" and did a little reading to see if there's something I can do to not have them so much. One article did mention that it might be related to drugs that I'm taking. I'm only taking one medication currently, and that is a generic birth control pill. It sort of makes sense that this could be connected, since BC affects your hormones.
So, I ask: Have you noticed an increase in nightmares when you were on BC? If so, were you taking the regular pill, or a different kind of BC? Did the nightmares stop when you quit the BC? I know there's no one pill that is right for everyone, but I wonder if I switched to a different kind of hormonal BC maybe the nightmares would go away?
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Re: Nightmares & Birth Control?
My nightmares are usually related to stress. I would have weeks like yours for months... usually it was either zombies or my family dying in tragic circumstances.
I did it when I was pregnant too, so I could understand wondering if it was due to the hormonal birth control.
Don't be afraid to call your doc and express your fears, they may be able to put you on a different pill.
It is very possible that these nightmares are more related to stress, I guess. I have a stressful work situation (though it's gotten better since the first of the year) and things at home are stressful just because we currently live in a construction zone. I definitely could benefit from better stress-coping skills, I guess.
I did see a therapist for a while, several years ago when I was in the process of getting out of a very troubled relationship. I guess I figured I'd dealt with most of my issues that required a therapist... I figured my problems weren't any worse than most people's standard problems, so I haven't been to a therapist in a long time...
Definitely a good point. I wasn't clear before. I guess what I meant to say was that I figured I handled stress about as good as most people do, and therefore I wasn't in a situation where I needed help from a therapist currently.
But you're right. I will call my OB and ask if the nightmares could be related to the BC. If it's not a common side-effect (which it seems like it might not be, based on the responses I've gotten here), then I'll just try to keep track of when the nightmares happen and what my stress level is like at that time, etc. I wouldn't be opposed to individual therapy, if that would help me sleep better.