It's Time for a Birth Control Revolution

What the pill teaches us about the failure - and future - of women's health care

- By Nicole Schmidt

ALI LYTLE STARTED on birth control when she was fifteen years old. As far as her gynecologist was concerned, teenagers had to avoid pregnancy at all costs.

The first contraceptive Lytle tried, an injection called Depo-Provera, gave her splitting headaches nearly every day. Then there was the weight gain. In just a year, she put on seventy pounds. She switched to a pill that was supposed to help manage the unwanted side effects, but her headaches became unbearable, often making her skull feel like it was about to crack open. Another pill with a smaller dose of estrogen seemed to be the best option: it made her feel low, sure, but at least the inside of her head felt less like a construction site. She was on it for ten years.

Over the course of that decade, Lytle was in and out of doctors' offices for a medley of health problems. She developed a condition called supraventricular tachycardia, or SVT, which caused her heart to beat abnormally fast. Some days, she would be sitting on the couch, doing nothing, when all of a sudden, she'd feel like she'd run a marathon in the sweltering July heat. By 2020, the frequency and intensity of her flareups were getting worse, and her migraines had returned with a vengeance. Her family was worried and insisted she get a second opinion. Eventually, she went to see a naturopath, who ordered a series of tests.

The blood work showed high inflammation markers and cortisol levels the main hormone responsible for stress. Certain medications, including some contraceptives, can cause the body to produce more cortisol than it needs, and since she wasn't taking any other prescription drugs at the time, the pill was the primary suspect. She stopped taking it soon after, opting for condoms and a fertility awareness method instead.