Anxiety after stopping birth control pill?

Question

Has anybody experienced anxiety after coming off the birth control pill? I’ve never been someone who’s struggled with anxiety until I started taking the pill and I stopped taking it for that reason but it’s been 9 months off the pill and I’m still experiencing worsening anxiety... is this normal? Any advice? (I recently began going to counseling so hopefully that helps)

Answer

I also had to stop the pill due to anxiety, panic attacks, manic depression, etc. I’ve been off of it since August 12th and it has slowly improved with each period I have with my own hormones taking over. The synthetic estrogen in the bc pill has a tendency to eventually mess with the ratio of serotonin to dopamine in the brain, which is why so many women experience anxiety/depression on the pill. I am currently on medication temporarily to help make the transition easier and it definitely has. If you didn’t have anxiety before the pill, then it won’t be there forever afterwards. It can take 6 months to a year for your body to fully recover from bc. Just know that this is isn’t permanent! I’m going through it too and it does get better, I promise. It’s great that you’ve found some good counseling. I also see a psychiatrist and a therapist and it has helped tremendously. Making sure I sweat daily and eat well has also been a really good help to my hormones.