As a woman, the worst thing you can do to your body is go on the pill. That’s the message social media is sending us, anyway, and has been for some time now. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been bombarded with advertising for “natural contraceptives” or been served a video of a Z-list reality TV star evangelising how in tune they are with their body since they ditched hormonal contraception.
Search for “the pill” on TikTok, and you’ll find thousands of viral clips of young women sharing their respective horror stories. Some say that coming off it after a decade helped them realise their emotions were being numbed. Others claim they gained weight while being on it. Depression, anxiety, and mood swings are just a handful of the other purported side effects shared by women. And some simply share sets of teary selfies to illustrate how they looked while being on the pill.
