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Razhie. Advicenators Member Since: June 13, 2005. Answers: 5077. Visitors: 211514.
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The Question
ok so i guess the title is pretty self explanatory, however i'll give some background; I'm 17 f and my boyfriend and i are thinking of having sex, i thought it would probably be a good idea to go on the pill for obvious reasons. however i have always had trouble with my weight and the way i see my self. i know its mainly down to personal insecurity and my boyfriend says I'm beautiful no matter what i look like. but I'm still worried for my own vanity that i will notice a physical difference in my appearance. i want to find an effective method of birth control but i also want to feel secure about my body.
The Answer
The answer is yes and no.
Yes, a small minority of women do experience weight gain when they take oral contraceptives. Some studies put it as low as 10%, with even the vast majority of those women not experiencing more than 5-7 lbs of weight gain.
So it's not entirely untrue, but it's uncommon, and not significant. The idea that is always happens, and it a big deal, is a myth. Most women wont experience it, and of those who do, some wont even notice.
Here's the thing tho, a much larger number of women FEEL they have gained weight when they really haven't, because they have heard this myth and associate any bad feelings they have about their weight with the pill.
Pick a birth control that works for you. Talk to your doctor about it. Don't let yourself dwell and fuss about your weight. That probably has nothing to do with the birth control, and everything to do with your state of mind.
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