Birth control and intrusive thoughts

Just started birth control again after like 5+ years (stopped taking it so long ago precisely bc of ocd…) but I decided to give it a try since my cycle has been hella irregular recently. The first week is not even over and today felt excruciating bc of my intrusive thoughts. I’ve also been taking anxiety meds for a while now and have actually seen improvement w/ intrusive thoughts, but then today boom they hit me like a truck. I am terrified that I will have a flare up again like I literally cant afford it rn. I finally have a job that I like and Im about to pick up school again in a couple months. I guess my question is, should I keep giving the birth control a try? (Sorry for long post!)

Anonymous

Date posted: 29d ago

hey, is this a combined pill that you are taking? and have you tried other methods? I choose not to take BC because of my OCD. I was happy to come across the mini pill as this contains no estrogen therefore is not associated with mental changes. I didn't experience any issues, only reason i stopped was due to random spotting which was annoying for me cos I wasn't used to it. Some people report that their periods stop completely on this mini pill but unfortunately wasn't the case for me, although it could be for you. Have you spoken with a Gp? they may be able to suggest a low side effect med to regulate periods?

LiaExe28

Date posted: 29d ago

The second I got on birth control (patch then nexplanon) I got depressed and obsessive. It wasn’t as bad as when I first dealt with my intrusive thoughts but I still didn’t feel good or right and it felt like I was more in denial and numb etc etc. I’m honestly debating getting it out. I’m not as depressed at the moment but i still fell numb and foggy. It’s definitely impacted how I feel about my relationship

Andrea Wells

Date posted: 27d ago

I've heard some people say that hormones and hormonal changes can affect their OCD symptoms. Maybe it's a temporary thing while your body adjusts? How did you find relief from previous flare ups?

Bruce M

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 26d ago

I have no advice on birth control but I can tell you that the intrusive thoughts will continue to pop up until you learn to live with them and let them be there. Do not try to fight them or make them disappear. Let them be there. They are not dangerous, they are just annoying or scary. There are also lost of good tips on the Patrick McGrath Wednesday night webinar on the NOCD page on YouTube. Or really any NOCD webinar can be helpful. Go ahead and check out some of the videos. In addition you can contact NOCD for a free 15 minute call to discuss further. They can offer more detail than I can here. https://www.treatmyocd.com/about-us/contact-us

littlemiss.s...

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 25d ago

How long ago did you start taking birth control again? You could give it a try until it settles in your system, and if your intrusive thoughts persist or increase, maybe talk to your doctor about a different form of birth control that may work better for you. I have just started on Nexplanon and I'm worried about the same thing happening to me, so I understand how you feel!!

User type: Therapist

Date posted: 25d ago

Hi, your best bet is to discuss these concerns with your primary care doctor or GYN and your prescriber. Your therapist should be able to help you with the intrusive thoughts. If you are not seeing a therapist, you may consider working with one of us here at NOCD. We can also connect you prescribers psychiatrists and NPs who specialize in OCD. treatmyocd.com

nae nae

Date posted: 13w ago

I'm sorry. Just need to vent. :(

This might contain triggering content, but I'm also wondering if others have dealt with this similar thought, and if so, how to deal with it? Overall, I've been doing so well these past few days. I'm able to eat again, which I hadn't been able to do because of how much anxiety I'd been experiencing. I'm spending time around loved ones and not just rotting in my room, and I've been able to wake up without immediately being bombarded by intrusive thoughts. When things first got really bad, I'd wake my mom up every night for reassurance, but I haven't done that in a while either. I'm really proud of myself, but there's still this nagging thought in my mind... While looking through others posts on here, hoping to find advice that'd fit my situation, I ended up making things worse. Someone mentioned how they had a fear that they'd purposely search for illegal content (related to POCD). I panicked, and "what ifs" flooded my thoughts. "What if the intrusive thoughts affect who I am as a person, and I do that?" I'm terrified that I'll search for those things, which I know means I wouldn't do it. But then, another person on here said they'd actually looked for those things, and that freaked me out even more. Does that mean it's possible for that to happen to me? I don't want to do that, but I keep having intrusive thoughts surrounding it. I've been doing so well these past few days. I'm just... stuck. I don't know what to do. I've spoken with other people who have the same fears, but how do I manage this? It's not something I've even thought about before seeing those posts. I've been practicing accepting the uncertainty, but I'm really struggling with this one. I hate this. This morning, I woke up, and the intrusive thoughts were back. It's just disheartening.

Chels0212

Date posted: 9w ago

Intrusive thoughts

I struggle so bad with intrusive thoughts. They can be so bad that I'll cry because I KNOW that's not how I feel or want to do. (Too embarrassed to say what they're about) I'll constantly try to figure out why I have them, and constantly figure out what they mean, causing me to constantly circle around and around. I had to get on anxeity meds, which helped a little but the thoughts still happen. How do you help yourself with this? How do you know that you're just not some physcopath? 😅

Young adults with OCD

OCDNoThankYe

Date posted: 6w ago

Medication

Hey friends, I hope you all are well. I just wanted to check in and ask people's experiences about being on medication. I have had OCD pretty much my whole life, just got recently diagnosed 4 months ago and my therapist recommended that I get on meds for it so I have a psychiatrist appointment set up. I'm a little apprehensive about getting on them, but I've realized that I do have some sort of chemical imbalance in my brain that plays a part in my OCD and anxiety. I would love to hear anyones experiences or words of encouragement. Thank you, I hope you all are well.

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Birth control and intrusive thoughts

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