A 30 Day Program to Balance Your Hormones, Reclaim Your Body, and Reverse the Dangerous Side Effects of the Birth Control Pill. Embark on a transformative journey with Jolene Brighten’s “Beyond the Pill”, a groundbreaking program that empowers women to reclaim their bodies and restore hormonal balance. This pivotal guide unveils the untold negative impacts of birth control pills and offers a beacon of hope for those seeking liberation from its grasp.
Ready to revolutionize your health and rewrite your hormonal story? Keep reading to discover how “Beyond the Pill” can be the catalyst for your wellness renaissance.
Table of Contents
Genres
Women’s Health, Self-Help, Non-Fiction, Medical, Wellness, Personal Development, Holistic Medicine, Nutrition, Endocrinology, Feminist Literature
“Beyond the Pill” presents a 30-day program designed to help women balance hormones, reclaim their bodies, and reverse the dangerous side effects of the birth control pill. Brighten, a renowned expert in women’s health, addresses the myriad of symptoms and conditions women face while on the pill, such as depression, autoimmune disease, and hormonal imbalances.
The book serves as a comprehensive guide to understanding the root causes of these hormonal issues and provides practical steps for recovery, whether one chooses to stay on the pill or not.
Review
Jolene Brighten’s “Beyond the Pill” is a must-read for any woman who has ever used birth control pills. Brighten’s expertise shines through as she meticulously details the risks associated with the pill and offers a holistic approach to women’s health.
Her 30-day program is not only informative but also empowering, providing readers with the tools to take charge of their hormonal health. The book is well-researched and written with a deep understanding and compassion for women’s health issues. It stands out as an authoritative resource in a sea of misinformation, making it a valuable addition to the conversation around birth control and women’s health.
Introduction: Take back control of your body
Beyond the Pill (2019) is a guide to navigating the variety of health issues caused by the birth control pill. Whether or not women continue to take the pill, they can gain insight into their mental and physical health, and take active steps to feel better.
The birth control pill is often viewed as something that’s empowering for women. The pill gives women control over their bodies and their fertility … right?
Well, the reality is a little more complicated.
The author, Dr. Jolene Brighten, is an expert in women’s health, and in particular something called Post-Birth Control Syndrome. She has met countless women struggling with a wide range of symptoms, even after they’ve stopped using the pill.
Loss of menstruation, low libido, gut issues, anxiety, depression… the list goes on. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, long-term use of the pill is associated with some even more serious health conditions.
But Brighten doesn’t just present the problems. She’s here to help women reclaim their health, offering actionable advice that intertwines medical expertise with holistic care. Whether or not you plan to keep using hormonal birth control, this Blink offers insights for any woman who values her health and well-being, in a world where these are all too often compromised.
We won’t be covering all the steps of Brighten’s 30-day program. But by the end of this Blink, you’ll be in a much better position to make an informed decision about your health.
It’s time to take back control.
The problem with the pill
When Angela decided to stop using birth control after over a decade, she faced a challenge that’s all too common, yet rarely talked about. A whole year passed without her period returning, which clouded her hopes of getting pregnant.
Angela’s story is far from unique. As a specialist in women’s health, the author Dr. Jolene Brighten meets patients like Angela all the time – women who are on the pill, or who used to be on the pill, struggling with side effects and symptoms their doctors never warned them about.
First, let’s clarify something. Brighten isn’t anti-pill. This popular form of hormonal birth control has given women unprecedented control over their fertility, symbolizing freedom and autonomy. But many women who are on the pill – about 60% – take it for reasons unrelated to contraception, such as painful periods. If you’re currently on the pill, regardless of the reason why you started in the first place, it’s worth asking yourself – are you sure you want to continue?
Just consider some of the pill’s broader effects on health. They can include infertility, reduced sex drive, digestive problems, fatigue, hair loss, and mental health struggles including depression and anxiety. On top of this, using the pill significantly increases the risk of serious health conditions such as blood clots, diabetes, heart attacks, autoimmune diseases, and breast, cervical and liver cancers. And as if that wasn’t enough… if you take the pill, your risk of developing Crohn’s disease increases by 300%.
Pretty concerning, right? When you start to think about the long-term effects hormonal contraceptives can have, you might consider switching to something else.
But stopping the pill doesn’t necessarily mean these problems immediately go away. Many women, like Angela, experience Post-Birth Control Syndrome, or PBCS – a set of lingering symptoms after stopping the pill. PBCS can include loss of menstruation, infertility, gut issues, and hypothyroidism, which means an underactive thyroid. All of this points to a disruption in how the body regulates itself. And it’s not all that surprising, when you think about how the pill works – by cutting off communication between the brain and the ovaries.
But luckily, despite all these issues, there are things you can do to take back control of your body. Even if, for whatever reason, you choose to stay on the pill. The message is this: You can heal yourself.
The author Brighten is a leading expert in PBCS, and has designed a program to help women. To give just one example, it worked for Angela. After following Brighten’s program, Angela’s period returned, and she then got pregnant.
Let’s find out more about this program.
Hormones and gut health
To understand the effect birth control has on the body, we need to understand what the pill contains – synthetic hormones.
When you take the pill, you’re flooding your body with synthetic hormones, disrupting the natural hormones. Imagine these hormones as notes in a symphony. If even one instrument is out of tune, it can ruin the whole piece. So, even a slight shift in your hormonal balance can significantly impact your overall health.
Now, let’s zoom in on a specific area impacted by the pill: the gut. It might surprise you, but your gut health is closely tied to your hormonal balance.
Hippocrates, the ancient Greek physician, once said, “All disease begins in the gut.” And guess what? He was onto something. Our gut plays a crucial role in absorbing nutrients, which then affect our hormones – both in making the ones we need, and getting rid of the ones we don’t. So when we talk about the gut, we’re talking about a key player in keeping our hormonal balance in check.
Now, being on the pill can lead to all kinds of gut-related symptoms like bloating, constipation, and diarrhea.
Take Ava’s story, for example. Ava, another one of Brighten’s patients, struggled with severe constipation. She was also diagnosed with Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) and significant gut inflammation, all while on the pill. Initially, Ava was reluctant to stop taking the pill, so she worked with Brighten on reducing inflammation and improving gut function.
This is the good news: Even if you choose to stay on the pill, there are ways to counteract its negative effects. Simple steps like upping your fiber intake, adding a probiotic to your diet, drinking plenty of water, and trying a daily ginger supplement can make a huge difference in managing gut symptoms.
And remember, gut imbalances are also associated with more serious conditions like autoimmune disease. So whether or not you continue taking the pill, you should definitely consider making some dietary changes to protect your health.
Mood
When it comes to the pill, it’s not just your physical health you need to think about. It can also wreak havoc with your mood.
Let’s go back to Ava for a moment, whose gut issues were just part of the problem. While she was on the pill, Ava also suffered from irritability, anxiety, and even panic attacks, followed by depression.
Then there’s Samantha, another one of Brighten’s patients. Samantha had recently stopped taking the pill. But ever since she’d started taking it, four years earlier, she felt as though she’d “fallen out of love with life.” She found herself crying often, and struggling with feelings of hopelessness.
Understandably, Samantha was confused as to why she was still feeling this way, even though she was no longer on birth control. Maybe her depression had nothing to do with the pill? But as we’ve seen, Post-Birth Control Syndrome exists, and women like Ava and Samantha are far from being alone.
Scientific research also backs these women’s personal experiences. A long-term study of 1 million women showed that those who used the pill – specifically the combination pill, containing both estrogen and progestin – were 23% more likely to be prescribed an antidepressant. And it’s even worse for teenagers. According to the study, teenagers taking the combination pill were 80% more likely to develop depression. On top of that, hormonal contraceptives are also associated with a higher risk of suicide.
So, the link between the pill and mood is undeniable. And it’s no wonder, given that the pill depletes nutrients that are essential for brain health, amongst other things. But again, and luckily, there are simple steps you can take to look after yourself.
Brighten recommends taking nutrients to support your brain. For example, berries, fish oil, magnesium and turmeric are all good for brain health. Also, consider taking supplements for the nutrients that pill depletes. Vitamin B12, for instance, as well as vitamin C and zinc. Basically, the key is to aim for a nutrient-dense diet, along with the right supplements.
This is what Samantha did. She followed Brighten’s 30-day program and worked on restoring her gut microbiome, partly through the use of probiotics. She also worked with a mental health specialist. Luckily, Samantha’s mood soon improved, and within 10 months, it was hard to believe she’d ever experienced depression. She was joyful and full of energy.
So, what can we learn from Samantha’s story?
First, if you’re on the pill and experiencing mood symptoms, pay attention. Don’t let anyone tell you it’s “all in your head”. Depression is a sign of imbalance – it’s your body’s way of telling you something’s not right. So investigate those symptoms, then take action. As a starting point, make the necessary changes to your diet.
Also, if you have a history of depression, or a close family member with depression, Brighten strongly recommends considering an alternative form of contraception.
We’ll look at that next – what you can try instead of the pill.
Alternatives to the pill
When you’re looking at birth control, you’re faced with a whole range of options, each with its pros and cons.
If you’re trying to steer clear of hormones, you might be considering condoms or the copper IUD. But even these options aren’t perfect for everyone, which really highlights how personal and varied the quest for the right birth control method can be.
Brighten recommends the Fertility Awareness Method, or FAM for short. It’s gaining attention not just for being a hormone-free way to prevent pregnancy, but also as a tool for women to get to know their bodies and hormonal cycles better.
FAM is based on the understanding that there’s only a short window in each menstrual cycle where pregnancy is possible. This fertile window lasts for about 8 days, so by tracking it, you can avoid pregnancy by either skipping sex during those days, or by using another form of protection.
The Standard Days Method is the easiest version of FAM. Basically, you avoid unprotected sex from the 8th to the 19th day of your cycle. This works best if your cycle is like clockwork. If it’s irregular, FAM is less reliable, so not recommended. It’s essential to know your cycle well before going this route.
As for how effective FAM is, it’s right up there with many hormonal options if done right, boasting a 95-99% success rate. That’s pretty close to the pill’s effectiveness. And unlike the pill, FAM doesn’t flood your body with hormones. So, it’s definitely worth considering.
Brighten recommends working with a FAM educator who can teach you the method in detail, so you get maximum effectiveness. And if you’re into using tech to make life easier, there are apps for that. One app Brighten recommends is Natural Cycles. It uses your body temperature to figure out your fertile days, and is 99% effective when used correctly. It’s also been approved by the FDA as a method of contraception. If you go for a different app, just make sure you do your research first as unfortunately, the apps are not all equally reliable.
Choosing your birth control is so personal, and it depends on a lot of things — your health, your lifestyle, and where you see yourself down the line. Getting to that decision involves weighing your options, doing your homework, and chatting with your doctor to see what’s best for you. The key is to choose something that fits your body and your life. Remember: The best choice is one that’s informed, and true to what you want and need.
Conclusion
While hormonal birth control has been helpful for many women, the pill is not without its downsides. Dr. Jolene Brighten, a specialist in women’s health, is concerned by the broader impacts of the pill, which can affect everything from gut function to mental health. Use of the pill is also associated with a higher risk of serious conditions like blood clots, autoimmune diseases, and even certain cancers.
Brighten advocates for a holistic approach to healing and managing these effects, offering solutions such as dietary changes, supplements, and alternative contraception methods like the Fertility Awareness Method. Many women have improved their health and well-being by following Brighten’s advice. Whether or not you’re currently taking the pill, it’s possible to regain control over your body.
Dr. Jolene Brighten is a naturopathic endocrinologist specializing in women’s hormones and Post-Birth Control Syndrome. She’s also the author of Healing Your Body Naturally After Childbirth and Is This Normal?