What Does the Pill Do to Your Body?

For many women, the contraceptive pill is part of their daily routine. A small white pill every day gives us control over our fertility. But what exactly does that little pill do to your body? This article explains how the pill works.

Before we go any further, we want to make one thing clear: it's an effective way to prevent pregnancy and offers many benefits. However, sometimes people resort to the pill too quickly—for example, as a teenager, right after their first period, anyone?

Doctors often prescribe the pill for menstrual problems, but hormonal fluctuations are a normal part of growing up. Teenagers' bodies need time to establish a regular cycle.

And if that doesn't happen, it's wise to look at the root cause of the problems, rather than taking the pill. In such a case, it's simply treating the symptoms, not the solution. Okay, on to how the pill actually works!

How does the pill work?

The contraceptive pill contains artificial (synthetic) hormones, usually estrogen and progesterone (the minipill contains only progesterone). These are two important hormones that regulate your fertility.

Ovulation is triggered by a series of hormones rising and falling in succession (and simultaneously). It's a beautiful dance—think of it as a series of dominoes tapping each other. Ultimately, these hormonal fluctuations cause an egg to mature, be released, and descend into the uterus, ready for possible fertilization.

With the synthetic hormones in the pill, however, this "dance" doesn't happen—the dominoes aren't touched—no dominoes are tapped. Your hormone levels remain stable, and without these fluctuations, ovulation doesn't occur. This means no mature egg is released that can be fertilized.

Natural cycle versus cycle with the pill

In a natural cycle, just like your body regulates every month, this dance consists of four phases:

1. Menstrual phase: the unfertilized egg and the built-up uterine lining are broken down and shed. This is your period.
2. Follicular phase : The FSH hormone (follicle-stimulating hormone) causes the follicles (eggs) in the ovaries to mature, and your estrogen level rises.
3. Ovulation (ovulation) : About 14 days after the start of your period, your estrogen peaks, causing an egg to be released.
4. Luteal phase (premenstrual phase) : The egg is in the uterus, awaiting fertilization. The corpus luteum produces progesterone to build the uterine lining for possible fertilization.

With the pill, this process is different. The constant supply of hormones suppresses the natural fluctuations of estrogen and progesterone:

1. Your body receives a constant stream of hormones , making it think it's constantly in the luteal phase. There's no estrogen peak, and therefore, ovulation doesn't occur.
2. Your eggs don't mature : due to the artificial hormones, your egg won't develop properly. The egg won't be released from the ovary either.
3. Artificial menstruation : During the week off (or when using a placebo pill), your hormone levels drop, resulting in a withdrawal bleed. This isn't a true period, but the shedding of a thinner uterine lining than in a natural cycle.

When you take the pill continuously (i.e. do not have a week off), the uterine lining remains minimally built up due to the continuous hormone intake.

Why is a natural cycle so valuable?

So your hormones control your fertility, but there's so much more to it. Your hormones are responsible for many processes in your body, including how you feel—suddenly feeling irritated, angry, or sad sometimes, sound familiar?

For example, recent research shows that teenage girls have an increased risk of depression when using the pill. Girls who use the pill have a 130% higher risk of depression, meaning their risk more than doubles. You might not be a teenager anymore when you read this, but that doesn't mean there aren't risks—it's definitely something to keep in mind when using the pill.

What happens to your eggs when you take the pill?

Eggs will mature, but they will never fully develop because the pill prevents this process (by maintaining constant estrogen levels). The eggs are not released and die. Your body absorbs these eggs. So you're not creating a "stock" of eggs—no, the eggs that are maturing will die and be broken down.

What happens to your cycle when you have PCOS?

With PCOS (polycystic ovary syndrome), hormonal imbalance occurs. This results in irregular or even absent ovulation. PCOS is often associated with elevated estrogen and androgen levels (male hormones), but without an estrogen peak, ovulation doesn't occur.

Without ovulation, your body doesn't produce progesterone, causing the uterine lining to thicken. Your cycle becomes disrupted, with a "stuck" follicular phase. Eggs partially develop but aren't released and remain as cysts in the ovaries.

Conclusion

• The pill suppresses ovulation by releasing artificial versions of estrogen and progesterone.
• This means you don't have a natural cycle. Your hormones are stable, and you don't experience any natural fluctuations (which are important, such as ovulation).
• Your eggs are maturing, but not completely. They're not released, but absorbed by your body.