Like most girls, the moment I became sexually active my mother put me on birth control. No if ands or buts about it. I was 16. Not yet old enough to understand my body. I sat in the doctors office as we talked about which one would be best for me. We decided with the pill. Most girls have a hard time with finding the “right" pill. However, I got lucky. My pill was perfect for me. I never really had any side effects with it, and if I did, it was okay because it was better than being pregnant at a young age.

There are the common side effects that the doctors tell you when you start birth control, such as headaches, bloating, breast tenderness, discharge, and so on and so forth. Then they tell you about the less common but more serious side effects ; stroke, blood clot, and heart attack. But at 16 who cares. I'm not going to get pregnant and it will help with my acne, win-win.

I was on birth control for 5 years, the same pill, nothing ever changed. I remember one day I started feeling short of breath. I was taken back but figured that I had just been slacking at the gym and I needed to work out more. Days later, when it had only gotten worse I started to get worried. Just walking up a flight of steps in my house my heart rate would reach 150bmp and by the time I got to my room I would need fo sit down and catch my breath. Even though it was a little scary and I was a little taken back, I shook it off and figured it would go away. A week later when the symptoms would not go away or get better I went to the doctors. When I got to the doctors, they quickly realized that something was wrong. While at the doctors at rest, my heart rate went up to 170bpm (normal heart rate at rest is 60-90bpm.) This caused everyone to panic.

My physician took great interest in my birth control at this time, confused as to why, she explained I could be experiencing a pulmonary embolism. A pulmonary embolisms is a blood clot in a part of the lungs. An uncommon, yet possible side effect of birth control. She sent me to the radiologist to get a CT scan of my chest. The CT scan came back and showed that I had a saddle pulmonary embolism. A blood clot that is sitting right on top of my heart blocking blood and oxygen to my lungs. I am 20 years old, how do I have a huge health problem like this? The radiologist sent me to the hospital.

At the hospital, the doctors stoped my birth control and started me on blood thinners. The physician made it clear to me that if I would have waited another day or two to go to the doctors, I wouldn't be alive. I stayed in the hospital for 3 days and got many, many bags of blood thinners. To this day, I'm still on them. While in the hospital they tested me for many different factors that could have caused this huge blood clot. They couldn't find anything. Leaving them to tell me that all of this was caused by my birth control.

I believe birth control is a great drug if you medically need it. If someone had heavy periods, bad cramps, or horrible pain without it. Please, do what makes you feel better. But, if you're thinking of birth control because you do not want to get pregnant, look into other options. I never thought that I was going to be the one that was going to end up with a life threatening complication of birth control. Sit down with your doctor and make sure this is for you. And please, take your health seriously. You know your body better than anyone, if something isn't right let your doctor know.