Hormonal pills for women

No. Hormonal drugs are drugs obtained synthetically. They act like natural hormones produced in our body. There are many organs in the human body that secrete hormones: female and male reproductive organs, endocrine glands, central nervous system and others. Accordingly, hormonal drugs can be different, and they are prescribed for a wide variety of diseases.

Female hormonal drugs (containing female sex hormones) may or may not have a contraceptive effect. Sometimes, on the contrary, they normalize hormones and promote pregnancy. Preparations containing male sex hormones are prescribed to men with a decrease in the quality of ejaculate (that is, sperm motility), with hypofunction, and a decrease in the level of male sex hormones.

Myth 2: Hormones are prescribed only for very serious illnesses.

No. There are a number of minor illnesses in which hormonal drugs are also prescribed. For example, decreased thyroid function (hypofunction). Doctors often prescribe hormones in this case, for example, thyroxine or eutirox.

Myth 3: If you do not take a hormonal pill in time, then nothing terrible will happen.

No. Hormonal drugs must be taken strictly by the hour. For example, the hormonal contraceptive pill works for 24 hours. Accordingly, it is imperative to drink it once a day. There are drugs that need to be drunk 2 times a day. These are some male sex hormones, as well as corticosteroids (for example, dexamethasone). Moreover, it is recommended to take hormones at the same time of the day. If you drink hormones irregularly, or forget to drink altogether, the level of the necessary hormone can drop dramatically.

For example, if a woman forgot to take a hormonal contraceptive pill, the next day she should drink the forgotten evening pill in the morning, and another pill in the evening of the same day. If the interval between doses was more than a day (recall: the hormonal contraceptive pill works for 24 hours), then the level of hormones in the blood will decrease very much. In response to this, minor bleeding will surely appear. In such cases, you can continue to take the contraceptive pill, but additionally protect yourself for the next week. If more than 3 days have passed, you must stop taking hormones, use other means of contraception, wait for the onset of menstruation and additionally consult a doctor.

Myth 4: When hormones are taken, they build up in the body.

No. When a hormone enters the body, it immediately breaks down into chemical compounds, which are then excreted from the body. For example, the contraceptive pill breaks down and “leaves” the body within 24 hours: that’s why you need to drink it every XNUMX hours.

Need to know: the mechanism of prolonged action of hormones is not associated with their accumulation in the body. This is simply the principle of action of these drugs: “work” through other structures of the body.

However, hormonal drugs continue to “work” after they have stopped taking. But they act indirectly. For example, a woman drinks hormonal pills for several months, then stops taking them, and in the future she has no problems with the cycle.

Why is this happening? Hormonal drugs act on different target organs. For example, female contraceptive pills affect the ovaries, uterus, mammary glands, and parts of the brain. When the pill is “gone” from the body, the mechanism that it triggered continues to work.

Myth 5: Hormones are not prescribed during pregnancy.

They write out. If a woman had hormonal disorders before pregnancy, then during gestation she needs drug support so that the production of female and male hormones is normal, and the child develops normally.

Or another situation. Before pregnancy, the woman was doing fine, but with her onset something suddenly went wrong. For example, she suddenly notices that intense hair growth has begun from the navel down and around the nipples. In this case, it is imperative to consult a doctor who can prescribe a hormonal examination, and, if necessary, prescribe hormones. Not necessarily female genital – it can be, for example, adrenal hormones.

Myth 6: Hormonal drugs have many side effects, primarily weight gain.

There are practically no medications without side effects at all. But you need to distinguish between side effects that do not require discontinuation of the drug. For example, swelling of the mammary glands when taking birth control hormones is considered normal. Scanty spotting in the first or second months of admission in the intermenstrual period also has the right to be. Headache, dizziness, fluctuations in weight (plus or minus 2 kg) – all this is not a pathology or a sign of a disease. Hormonal drugs are prescribed for a fairly long period. By the end of the first month, the body adapts, and everything returns to normal.

But, so that there are no really serious problems associated, say, with blood vessels, it is imperative to be examined and tested before prescribing the medication and during its administration. And only a doctor can prescribe you a specific hormonal drug that will not harm your health.

Myth 7: There is always an alternative to hormones.

Not always. There are situations when hormonal drugs are indispensable. Let’s say a woman under 50 has had her ovaries removed. As a result, she very quickly begins to age and lose health. In this case, her body up to 55-60 years old must be supported by hormone therapy. Of course, provided that her underlying disease (due to which the ovaries were removed) has no contraindications to such an appointment.

Moreover, in some diseases, female sex hormones can be strictly recommended even by a neuropsychiatrist. For example, with depression.