Self-Care Books
47 Simple Wellness Tips for the Body, Mind, and Soul- Kendra Pennington
When I said goodbye to my birth control I was very unaware of what acne-prone hell awaited me. It started with Kundalini ( that is a common phrase now, in a good way!). I became so awake, like a veil had been pulled off and I could finally see the reality I was creating. I wanted a life that was mine, a life that was ME, and being on toxic birth control was one of the things I held onto so tightly. Why was that?
Let us take a look back at my childhood. When I was 15 my moon cycle was severely "off", the doctor's "treatment"? Just put her on birth control. No holistic measures were taken to see why my hormones might be imbalanced, let's just mask it with a pill....a pill that has side effects like DEATH. No problem. Fast forward a few years to high school. I wanted to get off birth control, I wasn't sexually active and I wanted to not be on them anymore because I wanted to be more natural. My mom said okay let's see what happens. Acne. That's what happened. Braces and acne at my age were not the golden ticket to being "liked" ( hello limiting belief systems). So, of course, I thought, I will go to the health food store, get some pills. Then I will head over to Merelle Norman ( hello more toxic substances) so I can get a good coverage foundation for the acne. Without any relief my mom took me to the dermatologist who gave me a medicated wash and cream, yes that bleached my clothes, towels, and bedsheets, and recommended I should tan in a tanning bed or lay out in the sun ( which yes laying in the sun IS good for you, just in short amounts of time ), oh okay yes, let us do that * me right now rolling eyes in disbelief*...but all of this was the price I was a willing to pay to be accepted by society and my mom went along with it because I was in high school and I begged and pleaded to just be accepted and was in absolute dismay. Without any relief still, I got back on birth control and all was well again with my skin.
Fast forward to me now, the non-toxic, sustainable, holistic, beautiful human that practices Kundalini and all sorts of mystical/esoteric things. My friend said, well since you're "all-natural" , why are you still on birth control? She had a blood clot due to birth control so she was definitely not for it. It was my ultimate fear. All of the memories, and emotions of the past just boiled back up( hello limiting belief systems, we meet again, now I will prune you!). Since I was sexually active at this point in my life, that was my excuse. She said, well what about other birth control methods, like a condom? My excuse then was, "To have to use a condom every time with my boyfriend would be so annoying plus guys don't really like them."*roll eyes again * Side note: Yes I practice safe sex and think you should as well. I stopped taking birth control. Let me tell you! It was like a zombie curse was lifted from my body! I smelled things differently, I tasted things differently, my eyes got clearer ( literally), and I felt better! When my periods came, which yes it took about a year for them to get with the cycle of the moon ( yes, that's why they call it a moon cycle), I could FEEL my body. All of the hormone changes, all of the aches and pains, I was having normal discharges and fluctuations of energy, I was feeling what my period should have always felt like for years, but I didn't have any of this wonderful experience because I was zombified by birth control. Visit Dr. Jolene Brighten's website to learn more about how to recover from birth control and even give her supplements a go, click here to visit here website.
Let's get back to the non-hormonal birth control methods. When I went and told the doctors I wanted to be fitted for a diaphragm they were in shock, confusion struck, and they tried to talk me into another form of hormone-altering birth control. The newer doctors hadn't even fitted/prescribed one for a person before in their actual practice. There is a reason though, the effectiveness isn't great and it is a pain in the ass honestly. I didn't like it. So I went back after researching, I wanted a copper IUD. Again the doctors tried to talk me into a hormone-altering IUD ( worse than a fucking salesman I will tell you!).* Just as a note to people who have power in a situation especially medically, it is very hard to get off birth control especially seeing as I was traumatized as a child and by not wanting to be on hormone-altering birth control I was going against society in a way, PLUS being in a medical facility where I don't feel safe at all....this all compiled WITH a person trying to convince me my choices were incorrect and I needed to do what they said. That is scary and not fun, but I stood my ground.
After a few months, I realized I didn't want anything foreign in my body, so out that came ( FYI it Fn hurt worse than when it was put in!). Then I decided, this is my body and I choose condoms as my birth control method. During all of this, my skin broke out. So. Bad. By this time though, I had already committed to only wearing make-up when I went out to a special event or on a date. I was all natural in that area because I was tired of the literal mask. So I started cleansing more and more. Doing juice fasts, alkaline eating, even a 10-day grape cleanse. All of this to purge my body. No relief as far as acne went. I tried this and that natural product. My skin is so sensitive that nothing was working. I just decided it was my life and I would have to deal with it and still love who I was. Because I am not the acne, I love who I am and accept myself.I even went to Hawaii and wore a bikini, and had to really talk myself up to not cover up my back* really great side note here, the ocean was fabulous for my skin and I loved Hawaii! Then one day I was scrolling through Pinterest and saw an over-the-counter 10% Benzoyl Peroxide acne wash. Of course, I read the labels and I wasn't really digging the ingredients in this one. But that sparked me. I read for a few days and found Humane, click here. Yes, I realize this is not the holistic, "I am going to grind herbs from the wildlands of New Zealand and make a wash for you " soap but it is the most Humane one out there ( pardon the pun). I bought the wash, a body brush and a face brush...and really wanted it to work. I haven't gone through a whole bottle yet, I use it twice a day just as instructed and today is the first day in over a year I haven't had a whitehead on my body ( I almost cried when I realized this!). I stopped using it when I realized I did not need to anymore, because yes, the peroxide in this can cause health issues.
This is why I am writing this post. In the course of a year, I have looked society in the face and redefined what they thought was acceptable to do with MY body and said hey there I am beautiful inside and out. I am living proof that hormone-altering birth control is not the "answer" and there are other options. I honored myself by truly loving and accepting who I was. What can you do for yourself today? How can you love yourself more? Tell yourself you accept who you are, the True person in the mirror.
UPDATE: I have since been able to use less of the product Humane as I have got my hormones under control using supplements from Dr. Jolene Brighten's line ( there is a link above). I switch off using Humane with a mild face wash and then follow up with a nighttime lotioning of my back ( in the daytime too if it is dry feeling), these two products are from the company called Drunk Elephant, click here. Their products really are good for you and the lotion has a very light scent that goes away instantly which is really nice for those of us who are sensitive. Also, if you continue to have acne I would say find a person who does biofeedback and get a session done. Click here for information on Rejuva Wellness to get a biofeedback session done in Midland, Texas. Implement the changes needed to heal your body.
For those of you who would like to take products that would help with PMS, cramps, etc. here are a few I have found that work/worked well for me such as De Lune and Elix, and Dr. Jolene Brighten's website is listed above.
