Getting pregnant isn’t as simple as just having sex.
A lot has to line up for pregnancy to occur, and there’s no way to predict how soon you’ll conceive after you start trying.
Even if pregnancy seems like a distant idea for you, you might want to think about your birth control now.
Using hormonal birth control (HBC), but want to try for a baby in the next couple years? You might need all that time to regulate your body and get it ready for pregnancy!
The short story is: Get off HBC early so you can start trying as soon as you’re ready. Here’s why.
5 Reasons to Ditch Birth Control Long Before Trying to Conceive:
It could take a while for ovulation to return.
If you’ve been on HBC for a long time, it could take months (and in some cases, years) for your natural cycles to return. Ovulation is when you release an egg. If the egg gets fertilized by sperm, it could develop into a fetus.
HBC often shuts down ovulation. No ovulation, no pregnancy.
Many people start ovulating again within 3-6 months of getting off HBC. However, it’s common to have to wait longer than that— especially if you’ve been on HBC for many years. Those months can make you super impatient if you’re really, really ready to become pregnant!
Even if you’ve only been on HBC for a few months, it might take time to get back to your natural, ovulating cycle. The only sure way to find out how long it’ll take is to get off HBC.
HBC may be covering up fertility challenges or hormonal imbalances.
Did you start HBC to cover up symptoms (like acne, PCOS or irregular periods)?Chances are you had a hormonal imbalance back then. But listen— HBC isn’t a cure for anything; it simply delays a return to those same symptoms.
In other words, if you come off HBC, you might be horrified to find the acne, PCOS, irregular periods or other symptoms come right back.
To become pregnant, you need to ovulate. If you have irregular periods, you are also ovulating irregularly. Irregular ovulation can make pregnancy much more difficult to achieve.
Get off birth control now to see if you have any fertility or hormonal challenges. Then, you’ll have time to fix your cycle by addressing the root of the issue, so when you’re ready to conceive, you can get to it!
It’s possible to develop hormonal issues while you’re on HBC.
Even if you had a healthy cycle before starting HBC, you could have developed new issues that your birth control is covering up.
After coming off HBC, you may discover that you’re having issues with your adrenals, liver, or thyroid. Chronic stress can throw a big wrench in your plans!
When you quit HBC in advance, you’ll figure out what’s going on in your natural state and what needs to improve before conception. Your period is a vital sign that can give you valuable clues into your health.
You want to build up your body’s health post-HBC.
Sorry to break it to ya, but HBC can leave you deficient in some nutrients.
HBC depletes B vitamins, magnesium, selenium, zinc and folate (one of the nutrients in prenatal vitamins). These are important!!!
Get your body back to baseline, then figure out what vitamins and minerals you need as your cycles normalize. Plus, you can start taking a prenatal multivitamin whenever you feel like it.
You can enjoy some time to get to know your own, natural, beautiful body!
Many people say that they feel more like themselves when they come off HBC— even if they didn’t realize they felt different while on it. (Kinda like when you’re a kid and get glasses, and are stunned to see the individual leaves on a tree.)
Before pregnancy, take plenty of time to reconnect to your body, mind and soul so you can get in tune with yourself as much as possible.
Life will be different with a baby, and you’ll be happy to have built up your inner confidence and vitality in advance. Taking some time for just yourself may make you enjoy pregnancy and labor more, too!
Wondering what you’d do in the meantime without HBC?
Y’all know I recommend learning fertility awareness for birth control.
FAM teaches you to identify your “fertile window,” which are the days when you can possibly get pregnant.
Using that data, you decide what you want to do during your fertile window, like using barrier methods (e.g. condoms, caps and diaphragms) or abstaining from sex on fertile days.
Outside of your fertile window, it’s impossible to get pregnant. So, you can have unprotected sex those days.
FAM for birth control is 99.6% effective when used correctly (which is why I recommend working with an instructor for top efficacy).
Use FAM for birth control as you get ready to conceive, and then…
When you’re ready to conceive, fertility awareness will help with that, too!
Since FAM teaches you to identify when you’re fertile, you’ll know how to time sex to up your baby-makin’ chances. No need to call the stork.
Curious about FAM? Join the Spring 2021 group course waitlist:
P.S.: It’s normal for most couples under 35 to take up to a year to try to conceive before seeking extra help. If it takes longer than that, having the data you collect by using FAM can help speed up the process when working with fertility doctors.
So tell me: How far in the future are you thinking about having kids? What do you want to know about your cycle or health in order to prepare?