What about using the Pill for health reasons?

It's a question I've heard dozens of times, and I always give the same answer: The Pill doesn't treat the medical problem; it masks the symptoms.  If the symptoms appear to be gone, I think there's no problem.  But the real medical issue can get worse, as I happily live my life, only later to be confronted by  the news that things are much worse.  It's a story that's played out so many times to so many unsuspecting women.  

But there is another way!

I was delighted to read this testimony on 1Flesh.org:

The OB-GYN told me I had PCOS—Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, one of the more common reproductive problems women face.  She proceeded to give me a list of the consequences of this: you may struggle with infertility, excess facial hair, irregular cycles, and cysts.  This list was followed by a list of different birth control medications which ‘regulate’ my cycle and ‘help the problem.’ I asked to have my hormone levels tested, to which she responded, “We don’t do that testing for this because it’s fairly easy to diagnose…” and I asked about charting, to which she responded, “That doesn’t work for irregular cycles like yours.”

Holding back tears I listened to her sincere concern for treating my excess facial hair (chock full of ways to use insurance to get it paid for) while I silently wondered if I’d ever be able to have children.  I kept quiet until she finished her spiel and told her I’d like “not to treat” at this time. “And the bicornuate uterus?”

“Yes…it’s more like a birth defect and nothing can really be done for it.  Women who have them have higher risks of miscarriage, of baby in the breech position, and of infertility.  Women who have it are almost always automatically considered high-risk pregnancies.”

Needless to say I left the office and cried in my car before continuing through my day.  I was shocked at how it was handled: the difference in reaction between the ultra sound tech and the ob-gyn; the lack of further testing available; the lack of treatment; the concern for my appearance-level symptoms over the proper functioning of one of my body’s organ systems. 

For all the hype about being ‘pro-choice’ and ‘pro-woman’, I felt pretty degraded as a woman and completely out of choices after interacting with our current healthcare providers and system.

The whole encounter sent me on a search to find some real medical options and knowledge about my health.

Read it all here.

And look up pro-Natural Family Planning doctors here.  They do exist, and they are far better for women's health than a doctor who nonchalantly prescribes the Pill because it's the easy thing to do.