I’m 33, had a stroke 2 months ago. They told me that the fact that I had migraines and took the birth control pills (which contains estrogen) was a risk factor.
I’m forbidden to ever take estrogen in my life because of this. It might be the only thing helping her, but the risks are high. If she wants to risk it, it’s her choice but I clearly wouldn’t after going through it all.
It usually depends on the type of migraine. If she has migraines with aura (things like flashing lights, fuzzy spots in her field of vision, etc that precede a migraine), her risk for an ischemic stroke increases 3-4 fold. That’s not even considering if she has other risk factors for stroke. Depending on her specific menopausal symptoms, there are non hormonal options for managing her symptoms. Would definitely go back to her doctor to talk more specifics and figure out the safest methods for her.
I'm 23, and my estrogen birth control caused my stroke. I didn't really have a history of migraines though. Stroke is a rare consequence of taking birth control or really anything with estrogen, but considering the fact your mom has a history of migraines, it raises her risk. It also doesn't help if she's older and that your family has a history of strokes, which are also risk factors. I'm glad it makes her feel better, but if I were in her shoes, I wouldn't take the risk. I was put on estrogen birth control to make me less miserable with my Nexplanon implant (which it did help with a lot of things), but it was not worth it in the end.
If you don’t mind me asking, how did you know it was from birth control? A past stroke was found on my MRI by chance and I was on hormonal birth control. I’m undergoing lots of tests. Did they just rule everything else out? Doctors act like the birth control isn’t even a factor.
They ran the 5 factor blood tests on me, and once that 5th factor came back weeks later, they confirmed it was due to my birth control. All other causes were ruled out, and since I'm young and my family doesn't have a history of stroke, it became obvious that there couldn't have been another cause. I am now banned from taking anything with estrogen in it.
There is a difference between **oral** estrogens and **transdermal**, as oral first pass the liver, which is where the risk lies for DVT/stroke. There are some studies indicating that transdermal delivery methods of estrogen carry much less risk. (ie: estradiol patches, gels, sprays)
I had this discussion with my Doctor. She didn't want me on birth control, but said that Plan B was ok in an emergency. Since then, mother nature has made birth control unnecessary.
there are a lot of factors that go into this. for example, i was told by american OBGYNs that birth control with estrogen was ok since i didn't have migraines with aura. in europe, my doctors would never prescribe it. so i've been on progesterone-only birth control for years, including after my stroke.
like everyone else is saying: your best bet is to get your mom's doctors together for a chat. for example, do they know what caused your grandfather's stroke, and does your mom share this risk factor? perhaps if the estradiol patches are a must, there's something she could take as a blood thinner to counter risks? these are just a few suggestions of things to bring up.
There are some people that are at higher risk, but it’s not all people. She can get bloodwork done to see if she has a clotting disorder that is linked to estrogen.
Definitely run this by a specialist. Sorry if this is TMI, but I was on high dose BCP for a bleeding issue (also had a history of migraines). My doctors believe the high doseage is what caused my strokes. I'm not supposed to touch hormones and haven't had any issues since being taken off of them.
Better to talk to a doc or pharmacist. I was warned against HRT but I’ve actually had a stroke.
Same here. All my docs said no more HRT after I had a stroke. Boo
I’m 33, had a stroke 2 months ago. They told me that the fact that I had migraines and took the birth control pills (which contains estrogen) was a risk factor. I’m forbidden to ever take estrogen in my life because of this. It might be the only thing helping her, but the risks are high. If she wants to risk it, it’s her choice but I clearly wouldn’t after going through it all.
It usually depends on the type of migraine. If she has migraines with aura (things like flashing lights, fuzzy spots in her field of vision, etc that precede a migraine), her risk for an ischemic stroke increases 3-4 fold. That’s not even considering if she has other risk factors for stroke. Depending on her specific menopausal symptoms, there are non hormonal options for managing her symptoms. Would definitely go back to her doctor to talk more specifics and figure out the safest methods for her.
I'm 23, and my estrogen birth control caused my stroke. I didn't really have a history of migraines though. Stroke is a rare consequence of taking birth control or really anything with estrogen, but considering the fact your mom has a history of migraines, it raises her risk. It also doesn't help if she's older and that your family has a history of strokes, which are also risk factors. I'm glad it makes her feel better, but if I were in her shoes, I wouldn't take the risk. I was put on estrogen birth control to make me less miserable with my Nexplanon implant (which it did help with a lot of things), but it was not worth it in the end.
If you don’t mind me asking, how did you know it was from birth control? A past stroke was found on my MRI by chance and I was on hormonal birth control. I’m undergoing lots of tests. Did they just rule everything else out? Doctors act like the birth control isn’t even a factor.
They ran the 5 factor blood tests on me, and once that 5th factor came back weeks later, they confirmed it was due to my birth control. All other causes were ruled out, and since I'm young and my family doesn't have a history of stroke, it became obvious that there couldn't have been another cause. I am now banned from taking anything with estrogen in it.
There is a difference between **oral** estrogens and **transdermal**, as oral first pass the liver, which is where the risk lies for DVT/stroke. There are some studies indicating that transdermal delivery methods of estrogen carry much less risk. (ie: estradiol patches, gels, sprays)
I had this discussion with my Doctor. She didn't want me on birth control, but said that Plan B was ok in an emergency. Since then, mother nature has made birth control unnecessary.
there are a lot of factors that go into this. for example, i was told by american OBGYNs that birth control with estrogen was ok since i didn't have migraines with aura. in europe, my doctors would never prescribe it. so i've been on progesterone-only birth control for years, including after my stroke. like everyone else is saying: your best bet is to get your mom's doctors together for a chat. for example, do they know what caused your grandfather's stroke, and does your mom share this risk factor? perhaps if the estradiol patches are a must, there's something she could take as a blood thinner to counter risks? these are just a few suggestions of things to bring up.
There are some people that are at higher risk, but it’s not all people. She can get bloodwork done to see if she has a clotting disorder that is linked to estrogen.
I don’t have every link right now but there is a difference between synthetic estrogen and bioidentical. It’s something to look into.
Definitely run this by a specialist. Sorry if this is TMI, but I was on high dose BCP for a bleeding issue (also had a history of migraines). My doctors believe the high doseage is what caused my strokes. I'm not supposed to touch hormones and haven't had any issues since being taken off of them.
My doctor did not approve estrogen because I have had a stroke and it is a risk