A British author whose personal experience with the dangerous birth control pill, Yasmin, has written a new book outlining the physical risks and calling the pill “a tool of a capitalist patriarchy intent on altering and suppressing femininity.”
The book, Sweetening the Pill: Or How We Got Hooked on Hormonal Birth Control, was written by Holly Grigg-Spall, a woman’s health writer from Canterbury, England.
“The book is part a personal journey, part investigative journalism and part a social study,” Grigg-Spall said in an interview with InQuire. “The upshot of it is that we should be more honest and critical about hormonal birth control because a lot of women suffer unnecessary side effects and don’t realize what is causing them.”
Her research led her to conclude that in addition to its health risks, women are being controlled by their contraception in a variety of ways.
For instance, studies have found that the pill affects a woman’s memory in significant ways. In a 2011 study, researchers found that women on the pill who were told a story about an accident and shown photos of the scene tended to remember the emotional aspects of the story – such as how the boy was hurt – while women who were not on the pill were better able to recall the details of the scene. If memory contextualizes our past experiences, and acts as a touchstone for future behavior and our perception of reality, the author contends, a drug that alters this ability in even the slightest way has the potential of having far-reaching consequences.
The pill also changes testosterone levels in a woman’s body which affect how she chooses a mate – another seemingly “subtle” change that can have a life-altering impact on a woman.
These and many other studies are documented in the book which she says came about as a result of her own bad experience on the pill.
“On a pill brand called Yasmin I suffered bad depression, mood swings, anxiety and feelings such as paranoia and jealousy,” she told InQuire. “I was vulnerable and out of control, and when I wasn’t in this severity of emotion I felt numb, detached and unable to be excited or interested about anything. This inevitably affected my relationships and caused arguments, and also impacted on my work as I found it difficult to concentrate or think clearly. I switched between different types of pill for ten years, but came to the realization that they are all powerful and all have similar effects, although my worst experience was on Yasmin. This forced me to think about why I took the pill and I decided to come off it completely.”
Dozens of women have reportedly died from blood clots and other complications after taking Yasmin, a hormonal contraceptive that contains a newer progestin called drospirenone. Studies done prior to FDA approval indicate that drospirenone has more dangerous side effects that other progestins. Specifically, drospirenone causes an increase in potassium levels in the blood which can lead to a condition known as hyperkalemia if the potassium levels become too high. Hyperkalemia can cause heart rhythm disturbances which can be fatal if left untreated.
Grigg-Spall decided to start a blog documenting her withdrawal from the pill and her research into the different methods and health risks, which later morphed into the new book.
She is now encouraging women to consider natural methods and chastises the medical community for failing to present women with options other than hormonal contraceptives.
“At the moment money spent on contraception is funneled into hormonal options whilst other non-hormonal options are ignored – it is up to health providers to provide access to the whole range that is out there. At the moment it is just a succession of women being given one pill after another, or given longer term forms of hormonal contraception, with little explanation of the whole body impact of these drugs. This does not let women make an informed choice and is a patronizing way of treating them.”
Her goal is get this information into the hands of women because no one else is doing so and the media just won’t cover it.
“There are lots of lies, myths and ancient truths still circulating about the pill, such as that it is a way of regulating your periods and so on; this effectively makes women feel like they have control, but really, the drug has control. This is not right.”
The book will be available in the U.S. beginning on September 7.
© All Rights Reserved, Living His Life Abundantly®/Women of Grace® http://www.womenofgrace.com
Click here for an alarming expose of the dangers of hormonal contraceptives.
