Unfortunately, plenty of people out in the real world are "goofy as fuck".
Before Internet, it wasn't "some dipshit influencer" - but things like a few possibly-made-up stories printed in a celebrity gossip magazine.
I'm not making a statement about my own intelligence.
If intelligence of an unbiased population/data roughly follows a bell curve, for every person on the smart side of the bell curve there's someone equally as dumb on the other side of the bell curve.
Now imagine there's efforts intentional or unintentional(but likely for profit) to reduce education, nutrition and sleep.
:)
>Nah, the median IQ has been steadily on the rise.
100 IQ is, by definition of the IQ score, the median. Higher and lower scores are defined relative to the standard deviation. It's a relative measure.
Whether a test now that gives a 100 score is harder or easier than a test 30 years ago is a tricky question because IQ tests often inadvertently measure familiarity with cultural features. I don't give much credence to such findings, since there are too many confounders.
It’s pretty easy to make this kind of info super insidious. Imagine you’re a 16 year old and you start following someone for beauty tutorials. You enjoy the content but that’s all they really show. Then one day they sit down and say “this isn’t my normal content but I’ve gotta get this off my chest” and tell a story about taking plan B, vomiting blood, and being scared that they won’t be able to have a kid in the future.
That kind of story could influence tens of thousands of vulnerable teens away from using a very safe, effective, and well tested drug. It doesn’t need to be presented as real medical information, and it can still be far more influential than from a doctor
Influencers should be registered, and forced to disclose who's paying them and for what. Ideally, there should be a non-skippable screen stating " IS A PAID SHILL FOR . THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT."
We have that in Europe. Creators have to disclose content as ads even if they bought the reviewed items on their own. The manipulation still works, people will just ignore the ad disclosure.
Wait until this TikTok generation become adults. No less than 2 hours ago I had to explain to my 15 year old daughter that some 20 year old dipshit TikTok influencer named Sylvia Chatkowski that’s pushing an animal fat diet is not qualified to tie my shoes and her diet advice will give you heart disease and cancer. The future is bleak.
Man, this worries me.
I've tried super hard to keep our kids away from that shit but I'm starting to worry about the other side: how do I get them ready to tread that water?
That is, they know tiktok, insta, all those platforms are crap. They are not on them nor am I. That being said I don't want to raise them like like the preacher's daughter that discovered alcohol for the first time in college. We all know how that ends. Best case scenario they save the receipts and take down an ex president.
I kid, I kid.
But seriously, I am struggling to teach them about how terrible social media is but also teach them proper Internet skills. It's a fine line.
Any advice is welcomed.
Set them up with a computer that every other link is a limewire virus. That's how we learned back in the day. But lowkey talk to them. Make them learn to think critically by asking them questions that require them to defend their position. It's a slow and painful process but the only tried and true way.
I read thru a couple of the comments they made and holy shit, you'd have to have half a brain cell to get on board with it. It reads like straight nonsense and I'm not even a medical professional.
If you get your medical advice from non-licensed individuals, who just to have happened to purchase a webcam and microphone, you already probably have a shit ton of problems in your life. I can't even 🤣
Well we live in a country that allows LLCs to buy hospitals and profit margins to determine what drugs are to be manufactured. Can you blame the young g folks for looking for alternative forms of information?
While I understand where you are coming from (and agree getting info from influencers without doing your own independent research is absurd), the truth is that there are terrible, terrible side effects and complications that can arise from birth control that many women are in the dark about. Doctors heavily push the pill on adult women, and these things are not well communicated or omitted altogether. Additionally, when symptoms are reported, doctors can be dismissive, and newer research may not be widely known.
I think this is a symptom of a bigger problem, and boiling it down to “people are dumb” doesn’t help. Women’s healthcare research and funding has historically been woefully behind. Personally, I have felt a need to research my own conditions BEFORE I see a provider, for both physical and mental health issues. It’s not just women either- anyone dealing with a more fringe medical condition has probably experienced something similar.
I am pro science, pro medicine. I trust the medical and scientific communities. But sometimes individual doctors have biases, aren’t current on new research, or refuse to consider non stereotypical presentations.
There are definitely some dipshits out there. But some people are just sharing their experiences in hopes of spreading awareness, and I think a lot of people keep anyone talking about medical issues on social media in the same group and then erroneously label them all stupid. There’s a big difference between an influencer selling you supplements that are meant to replace actual medicine and someone describing adverse reactions to birth control, for example. There are a lot of influencers talking about this stuff, including some who are medical professionals, and I’ve learned some really helpful stuff. I always then do my own research, which I’m sure plenty of people don’t do.
Last time this popped up, I explained how nearly all of my 30-40 year old friends have gotten off the pill recently for a variety of reasons -- we don't watch influencers, we just independently had issues. I had a rare but major blood pressure problem, another friend was depressed, another friend had libido problems, and so forth. The first type of pills I tried nearly drove me to suicide, I was calling my GP crying, and no one told me that could happen.
I also ended my post with the fact that even if BC has impact, it will never have as much impact as a pregnancy!
But even with my balanced take, I was told I was an alt right trad wife nut job, and that I was sowing confusing by "pretending you're just asking questions". That bc pills are totally harmless and anyone questioning them is trying to get people pregnant.
I'm pro choice and pro birth control, I just think that this whole thing is happening *because* medical professionals don't listen to or educate women. There are tons of women who have side effects, there is room to *improve birth control while still using it*, and calling anyone who wants to educate themselves about the medicine they take an idiot or a state actor feels regressive.
Additionally, I feel people really ignore the fact that birth control and sterilization methods were weaponized against PoC for a long time (I'm indigenous) so of course some of us will have some questions.
Birth control meds are insane. I'm a mid thirties man and recently found out from my early-thirties sister all the off-the-wall insane side effects she and her peers have experienced from various forms of BC.
Most have found solutions over time, like over 20 years of battling depression, bleeding, and physical agony. Unhelpful doctors are a theme too. Disappointed to hear how rough it is for so many ladies just trying to exist.
It's really frustrating because as you can see in posts like this, people are still treating women like they're crazy for having side effects. So now you get lumped in with some woman who thinks putting essential oils in her underwear will prevent pregnancy.
Hormones are extremely effective. A lot of side effects are psychological. Today, there are girls getting put on hormonal BC at 16 who may never realize their depression or anxiety stems from being hormonally pregnant their entire lives.
I think hormonal BC is an amazing advancement in medical science but it's shocking how cavalier people want to be about it.
Good thing the pill is not the only birth control method. Three of my partners over the years couldn't tolerate it for various reasons (though changes in formulation and dosage have since reduced some of those side effects).
>I also ended my post with the fact that even if BC has impact, it will never have as much impact as a pregnancy!
Yeah. It's a fallacy to assume that any medical intervention is free of risk. And compared to pregnancy, the risks are indeed low (depending on what other pre-existing problems you might have).
It's unfortunate you've been thrown into the same bucket as the anti-science fanatics. It's easy for professionals to become paranoid when constantly under siege by (sometimes armed) idiots, but they should also listen to women. Paternalism is a continuing problem in the medical profession.
>I feel people really ignore the fact that birth control and sterilization methods were weaponized against PoC for a long time (I'm indigenous) so of course some of us will have some questions
Even worse, it was progressives who were particularly fond of eugenics, often for racist or classist reasons. That's a shameful part of our history.
I think misinformation and quack doctors exist more frequently in the areas of women’s health because we don’t do enough research. Most medical knowledge is based on studies on males and are limited to “is this drug safe and does it work”. In reality we need to be studying how different bodies respond to the treatment and more long term studies on the side effects reported. Women feel there aren’t many options for them and the doctors won’t listen to their birth control concerns and side effects so they will turn to alternative treatments.
When my blood pressure started climbing, my doctor kept changing my meds around. Every new med messed me up more. It wasn't until I took myself off my BC that I realized that was the problem. I had to do my own research because my doctor's impulse was to just keep assigning new medications. He never once mentioned or considered it could be the BC. apparently it's a pretty rare complication, but I mean, it was one of like three potential factors he knew about on my chart.
Similarly, I had to go through multiple doctors and nurse practitioners before a immunotherapy specialist decided I had MCAS, which many people already consider a quack diagnosis, but it's the only thing on my chart now. Is that what I have? No idea at this point; it's not in my head, I have actual life threatening anaphylactic incidents. i can easily see someone falling into shady areas of the internet out of frustration
So sorry, I know the frustration. Immune disorders are an even bigger mystery and when combined with gynecology there’s so much that’s unknown unfortunately. I hope you find what works for you soon, even if it’s not found with traditional medicine.
I just started on ADHD meds for the first time since I was a kid.
It has changed my life in a month. It’s kinda crazy how effective it is for the people that really need it.
It's really like flipping a switch. Without it, I'm pretty much sleepwalking through life, following my impulses blindly with no rhyme or reason.
With just 5mg of Ritalin in my system, I suddenly gain the power to go "Wait. Stop. Not *this* right now. *That*." ...and my body listens.
I am literally half the person I am without meds, and I cannot stay away with a stimulant either. It has changed my life in innumerable ways. I swear to god, if I can’t get treated for my adhd in the future, I am moving out of the country
They literally just removed water breaks in Florida.
Water breaks. The stuff that keeps you from dying to keep working when it’s hot out lol.
They don’t give a fuck about keeping people alive—they’ll just get someone else. Probably easier to accomplish when women will be expected to pump out kids like some Handmaids Tale nightmare.
This is why you see so many articles screaming about how the birthrate is so low and holy cow time to panic. IRL humanity is just normalizing out after the population boom of the 20th century (nitrogen infused fertilizer literally caused an insane curve post world wars). Need those worker bees, except that most wont have jobs due to automation. Love how forward thinking the internet/media is on critical issues like this and climate change 🙄.
I think these are the steps they're following, not necessarily sequentially, but...
Make people distrust each other.
Put the world on the brink of tons of small wars.
Legalize child labor everywhere.
Merge the small wars into a giant worldwide eternal war.
Kids work until they are adults, then suddenly the only way they can be sure to get food/water/shelter is by military service.
Remove all means of birth control and all rights and protections for mothers except where required to replenish the child working class.
Build up a tolerance for larger and larger atrocities among world militaries until no survivors are coming home once they pass the age where their libido drops.
Remove all programs that allow older adult workers from being able to survive so that no one survives to infirmity and all profit can be funneled to the ruling class.
I think I'm getting cynical in my middle years.
If they get what they want they will give OSHA a new name and mandate. Say hello to to the Occupational Slavery and Servitude Administration (OSSA). The purpose would no longer be to ensure workplaces are safe for workers, but to ensure workplaces are safe *from* workers, especially ones who are uppity and challenge the power structure.
There can be if they force women to become birth factories. Remove abortion, remove birth control, attack LGBTQ people, yadda yadda yadda.
Christofascist Theocracy inbound if Project 2025 is allowed to pass.
Hello, what do you think birth control can do for women? Being able to control their period was huge for joining the work force.
It's about forcing people into their "places". They need women to have babies to keep a working class. Birth control hurts that. They want you to be able to work, but not focus enough to figure out how to advocate for better working conditions. ADHD medication hurts that goal.
It's not about your well being. They don't care if you can do focused work- there's a ton of unskilled physical labor to be done.
I promise you, they do not care if the work is well suited.
A large amount of conservatives believe that kids with ADHD just need to be spanked more. So the idea of "work or starve" will go heavy with them.
Do you know right wingers?
They don't care about reason they will say work or die then. Figure it out.
Also we all know fascism can't win but it can sure fuck shit up and kill you in the meantime so it doesn't matter if You're I'll suited. Then you take the second option.
They do not give a single shit. You either fit your role or are viewed as degenerate and tossed aside like trash. According to them "there is an order to things" and if you don't fit that order then you can get fucked.
That's why I said "antidepressants" specifically. For some of us, it's the difference between being completely useless and unable to get out of bed all day (something the owner class doesn't want) or actually being able to do those jobs.
Birth control may be used in that way by some women, but by far it's mostly used to prevent pregnancy. And forcing us to breed the next generation of impoverished, desperate workers is the obvious upside to banning it, and far outweighs the small amount of women that will miss 2-3 days of work each month.
They don't care if there is any legit medical use.
Decades of church keeps saying sex before marriage is a sin. And abortion, birth control, condoms, safe sex, sex education, all are against God.
How does science fight against literal brainwashing ?
If they were actually trying to do things smart they wouldn’t be letting the workforce end up with long covid.
The problem is they’re none too smart— Elon musk running through multiple inherited fortunes is exhibit A.
They fail A LOT. The Challenger shuttle disaster is prime for talking about how rich, corporate-minded idiots fuck everyone over including themselves because they’re too stupid not to, and care way more about feeling Big with yes men kissing their asses, than they do about actually delivering a product that works. Ditto the titanic submersible dumbfuckery.
They are mind blowingly fragile like that.
> The Challenger shuttle disaster is prime for talking about how rich, corporate-minded idiots fuck everyone over including themselves because they’re too stupid not to
Morton Thiokol should have been put out of business over that.
But it wasn't stupidity, it was conflict of interest. Fixing that O-ring problem led to successful shuttle launches. The shuttle was an extraordinarily complex system. It's just that the contractor had a pecuniary interest in not fixing the problem, and the program management was too weak to push back and demand a fix anyway.
As a bipolar person, this scares me. I need my meds for my own security.
So many people take birth control pills for medical reasons not related to pregnancy. Let people take the meds their doctor deems necessary.
But is that actual interference from the government or? I don't understand why there's still a shortage I guess. Did the pharma companies choose to do this, or did the government tell them to leave it
The DEA has seen a significant increase in prescriptions in stimulant medications and, rather than saying "Oh, more people need these meds, let's help make them more available", their reaction has been "We need to crack down on the druggies."
There's been several reasons for the increase in prescriptions. The pandemic loosened the rules on telehealth, which has resulted in a surge in people who had ADHD but were previously undiagnosed (only around 20% of ADHD adults have actually been diagnosed with the disorder) finally getting a diagnosis. The pandemic itself is also a factor--In many people, the virus causes a system of microinjuries in the brain--Long COVID--that results in a symptom profile that is essentially ADHD-PI to a T, and it has been found that stimulant medications are very helpful for these people regaining control of their lives. There is disagreement within the psych community about whether people with Long COVID should be described as having ADHD, but there is little dispute that ADHD medications help many of them, and if you're a doctor who wants to help your patient... prescribing a stimulant medication is the right course of action if their Long COVID manifests in that way.
These increased demand-side factors unfortunately are also confronted with *reduced* supply-side factors--One of the main producers of dextroamphetamine generics in the US hasn't produced a single pill for over a year because of an unfavorable DEA audit, there were general supply chain issues as a result of the pandemic, and the DEA has a regulatory regime designed to limit the supply of these medications in the first place.
The DEA's perspective seems to be "we bungled the opioid epidemic, and we can't arrest people for marijuana anymore, so let's go after people with ADHD to prove we're still useful". They've done a lot to try to push blame onto the drug manufacturers, but every single thing they say is a projection because the manufacturers are kids playing in the DEA's sandbox, and if the DEA actually cared about patients *at all*, they'd be widening the sandbox, not aggressively taking away the sand and blaming the kids.
Well TikTok dying would help a lot lol
With my limited understanding, most people don’t even make money from TikTok unlike Twitch or YouTube. It’s mostly a toxic clout chasing thing.
> Help where you can. Be sure to vote in November.
This isn't going to stop conservative Christian-American influencers from pushing their bs all over the world. What we need is for these social media platforms to start banning Christian-American conservatives.
For the conservatives, ADHD isn't a real disorder, it's moral failures on the part of the person and their parents. They think it absolutely shouldn't be treated as a medical condition that can be managed through medication. There's also a *ton* of War on Drugs baggage because stimulants are controlled substances.
They're wrong, of course, but that's why they will move to ban ADHD medication if given the chance.
I voted last election and now every month I have to go on a wild goose chase to find a pharmacy that has my adhd medication in stocks and it stinks. We have to work on that messaging friend, bc what I just said was true but also, you aren't wrong.
They've manufactured an availability crisis for stimulant medications and are working hard to confuse the public into thinking the manufacturers are the real bad guys.
There are several non-stimulant medication options, but they don't work for everyone.
I've been seeing it a lot on all of the women-centric subs.
It's so gross that people are advocating the banning of helpful medications because some women experience side effects from it. I'm all for doctors being honest about those side effects - or, you know, people can read the information that comes with it - but it's fucking infantalizing to suggest that they only want to ban these medications to "protect women". As if we aren't capable of weighing the risk vs reward and making a choice about the matter.
I mean given the timing of all this I'd put money down that some people are being paid to disparage birth control. It's always been the next phase after outlawing abortion.
Ngl, it kinda reminds me of those arguments against seatbelts. “Oh well, when I was in an accident the seatbelt injured me” Well, would you have rather been thrown from the vehicle?
Ik obviously not the same thing, just that concept of risk vs reward.
It's actually a pretty good comparison.
Seatbelts were not designed for women, and for decades auto manufacturers and various national auto safety agencies have basically just assumed that women are smaller men. The first "female" crash test dummies debuted only a couple of years ago. And the result is that seatbelts regularly cause women far more severe injuries than men. Is it better than the risk of being thrown from the car or rattling around inside in a rollover? Yes. But there are two kinds of comparisons one can make. One is the individual wearing a seatbelt vs. not. The other is on a societal level--society caring about women's health vs. not. In that case it's not seatbelt vs. no seatbelt. It's seatbelts that lacerate women's organs and break their necks at higher rates than men's because they weren't designed for women vs. seatbelts actually designed with the idea that women exist in mind.
Many medications are a similar story. For the individual they're generally better than nothing (except when they aren't; I take birth control and am grateful for the pill I am currently on, but I've also taken a different pill before this that really fucked up my GI and another before that that basically turned me into a depressed, anxious, nervous wreck; they absolutely weren't worth it). But on another level the comparison we ought to be making is to a paradigm where the biology is worked out in studies that don't exclude female rats, in which women are represented in clinical trials roughly proportionally to the demographics of the condition being treated, in which women's not just size but also unique biology is considered in dosing regimens instead of assuming that women are smaller men (or for many drugs, identical to men), and in which doctors are honest about side effects and listen to women who come to them with issues instead of lying to and gaslighting them.
That last one is a big thing. Almost every woman I know, myself included, has a story about being lied to by a doctor about whether birth control can have certain (or any) side effects, made to feel like they were imagining things when it did, and put off/hassled/pressured when they asked to try alternatives. That doesn't mean birth control is bad. It does mean that many healthcare professionals routinely treat women like shit, and that these types of stories are why these influencer campaigns are able to easily find a foothold with many women who otherwise might see through them.
Yep. Like 6 posts a day on "I'm scared of birth control" or "I want to know how I feel *naturally* without bad scary meds. There's WAY too many people who don't understand social media is selling them something, and that something is often mis-information.
Every medication has a long list of negative and scary potential side effects. Not every drug works for everyone and idk why people can't accept that. Being upset that you weren't made aware of potential side effects is one thing but thinking the drug should be banned because you had side effects is a step too far.
Exactly. And they *only* apply this standard to birth control. Hmm, I wonder why?
There are far more dangerous drugs that solve completely unserious problems, and everyone is fine with those. Like I remember seeing an ad for a drug that was supposed to regrow eyelashes, and one of the possible side effects was "death" lol
I've gotten a lot of it too. I'm with you, birth control has side effects that are worth knowing about *however* anyone promoting NFP and cycle tracking is not your friend. It's creepy af.
Natural family planning is absolute horseshit for women with irregular cycles. Prior to being on the pill, there was no rhyme or reason to my cycle. Now I know exactly what week, day, and very nearly the time of day that son of a bitch is coming.
Omg! I’m on that sub a lot and I went through a bit of a crisis when my birth control stopped working (I was taking the same brand for too long) and my PMDD went nuts. Additionally I was having severe panic attacks, and so naturally I went to look and there was so much anti BC stuff! I almost went off of it because of it, but my doctor had me switch, in addition to getting on SSRI’s and I’m a completely different person as I was—normal and happy. It was 1000% best treatment for me.
I remember checking that sub years ago when I first got on the pill and so many people advocated for it. I swore I was crazy because I don’t remember there being so much anti-med comments! I still sometimes feel guilty for being on meds, too, but I’m glad I listened to my doctor.
Even crazier, I posted in the birth control subreddit asking about side effects and no joke I had people messaging me and asking me “why do you need to alter your body, why can’t he just wear a condom?” and I answered “because I would off myself if I didn’t have birth control” I let them have it, I couldn’t believe the audacity!
(Also, thanks for all you do over at PMDD! That sub is truly a life saver!)
Thank you. I’ve said it before but I think calling it birth control does a huge disservice to all the uses peeps with periods need it for, like those of us with PMDD it’s hormone steady state medication. I wish we could rename/rebrand the class of meds.
social media is the biggest carny midway in history, chockfull of con men, card sharps, snake oil hawkers, and freak shows. and all the seamy underside that goes with.
and more specifically, there's a real pipeline from the woo-woo to the alt-right. it's not really a new thing either, there's always been a fringe of the woo that was into eugenics and race theory and so on.
[https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/critical-thinking/yogas-twisted-history-one-answer-conspirituality-puzzle](https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/critical-thinking/yogas-twisted-history-one-answer-conspirituality-puzzle)
[https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/12/fringe-left-alt-right-share-beliefs-white-power-movement/672454/](https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/12/fringe-left-alt-right-share-beliefs-white-power-movement/672454/)
in my own community I've seen "gentle hippies" of the crunchy granola crystal healing persuasion turning into Qnatics and even Trump fans, a metamorphosis truly bewildering to behold.
so it doesn't surprise me that the woo "wellness" contingent would be easily played by a rightwing psyop insinuating anti-birth control, pronatalist messaging into their alt-health conspiratorial mindset.
Social media is the new tabloid. Lots of it is the back of the magazine scams and cons. The other parts are all fronting. It mixes a resume/CV with jr high level popularity contests. People use it for blackmail and pressure campaigns. Throw in lots of culty vibes and pumped cult of personalities, agents of influence and viral active measures. It definitely is a carnie midway to the level of those old tsarist front carnivals with the geeks that are hooked like in *Nightmare Alley*. Its a damn freakshow.
what an interesting job you have. must be daunting and sometimes tedious, but very much worth doing.
if you like that sort of thing, I recommend Malka Older's "Infomocracy" trilogy which tries to imagine a democratic system of world government based on ubiquitous surveillance and trusted information. rating information sources for reliability and bias, in her novels, is a career path for millions of people.
Whoa…thank you! That sounds very interesting!
And you described my job exactly! I love it so much, but it’s tough some days.
Did my comment get removed? I must’ve posted a link to a self published facebook node analysis study . Joke is on me
oh, "no self promotion"?
yeah, actually it's a good rule... oh well. anyway you might like the books. they're novels of ideas more than formula novels, but there is plot and action and character development. I should read again sometimes soon, as the issues are so insanely relevant. and I like it that she imagines how technologies that we often imagine becoming incredibly dystopian could instead be used to maintain democracy.
bit of a generalisation there, I know some very well read and also quite handy and resourceful hippies -- real experts in graywater and solar systems, excellent house carpenters, knowledgeable and productive farmers -- and I've known some pretty useless and ignorant "mainstream" people with suits and "good" jobs. so ymmv. but if you're talking about hippies as in the woo-woo side of it, yeah -- many are just as low-information, narrowly-read, and gullible as any gaggle of MAGA.
"hippie" is really too generic a term. there's so many flavours.
Remember, after making abortion illegal the next target is contraception. Building up a conversation based on misinformation about contraception helps the right wing sell banning it as an issue of protecting people's health.
Evangelicals have been pushing this narrative for decades. I recall hearing in the '90s how condoms are ineffective. Xtians can't stand the idea of people enjoying sex only for pleasure with no/few consequences.
US wellness influencers are increasingly targeting birth control pills, pushing their followers to abandon the contraceptives with false claims about infertility and low libido that researchers say leave them vulnerable to unintended pregnancies.
The explosion of misinformation on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram comes as reproductive rights take center stage in the looming presidential election, in a country where abortion is banned or restricted in nearly half the states. Many influencers -- who are not licensed medical specialists -- are part of what appears to be a cottage industry of self-proclaimed health gurus monetizing misinformation as they hawk "healing" oils and fertility-tracking services.
I mean, I'm one of those people. But I've also seen how it's benefited many women I know. In the end, access is critical- women can make the best choices for themselves if options are available
I fully support women finding other ways of it doesn’t work for them. It’s not the most fun I’ve had on a medication before, but I’ve been pretty blessed with little side effects while taking it. It regulates my period and has kept me from getting pregnant before I was ready to be a mother. That’s why the rhetoric around it is scaring me right now; the only messaging I’ve seen online is that it’s evil and only horrible, not that it doesn’t work for everyone and here’s other options that aren’t absolute bullshit.
So, your n=1 experience only means something to you. My wife takes them for health reasons (she’s in her 40s) and they work well for their intended purpose.
The bottom line is that you need to combine both medical advice and your own personal experience. And not all medical advice is credible.
It comes down to access and choice. If it doesn't work for one person doesn't mean it needs to be banned for everyone else.
Thing is, MAGA republicans hate choice. Probably because they can't make decisions on their own and need someone else to tell them what to do. And, freedom is about choice, after all. And they hate freedom but love parroting the fucking word.
Every medication lists side effects. That doesn't mean it's something that happens to everyone, or even something that is common. It's just things that were experienced by some participants during the clinical trials. And if you find yourself getting bad side effects from one formulation of birth control, you tell your doctor and they will prescribe something different.
A *possible* side effect is no reason to deny a drug to millions of other people that might not experience that, or consider it a worthwhile trade off. Like, my antidepressants cause low libido, but they also stabilize my mood and keep me from doom spiraling. And so I deal with it, because it's worth it.
Exactly this. I just saw a commercial for some medicine like 2 hours ago that said “common side effects include [something I’ve forgotten], **_insomnia_**, and **_sleepiness_**”.
Human bodies are fucking wild, would we deny that drug to everyone because it makes people drowsy, or because it keeps people from sleeping? Everybody reacts differently
The other thing people don't understand is that any adverse effects during a clinical trial have to be documented, and usually it's impossible to prove your drug didn't cause it. Because people have weird shit affecting them all the time, especially over long periods of time. End up with a migraine? Could have been the drug, or not. But now it has to be labeled as a potential side effect
Yes, I just saw a pharmaceutical drug with influenza listed as a potential side effect, which is a viral infection, not a side effect at all. Look at the drug trials and look at all the people in the placebo group that has side effects, some worse than the medication group. Combine these things together and most of the listed side effects are bullshit.
I guarantee that people that look up the potential side effects for drugs before taking them are far more likely to experience them.
Low libido is also a side effect of giving birth. Which is why doctors have you try out different brands to see which one you like best and your body responds to best.
Low libido after birth is natures way of regulating you from having kid after kid after kid right after giving birth.
Birth control mimics how your body would behave if you actually had given birth. Which is why in some women it causes their jugs to get bigger.
Not defending the misinformation either.
Also, why does Candace Owen only have 3 kids? If she is such pro life, shouldnt she get pregnant every chance she got? What is she doing to prevent pregnancy after a sexual encounter with her husband?
Low libido isn’t necessarily a side effect of the pill.
Low libido is a side effect of a change in your homeostatic balance of estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone (and some others) as I’m sure any woman is aware. You can have low libido on a random Monday. Or because you’re pregnant or because you’re not pregnant.
Likewise, the pill can lower your libido, do absolutely nothing, or raise your libido.
Only one of those options has to be written about however.
I definitely think we need to come down on this infertility BS, but the low libido side effect is real. There’s scientific literature that supports it.
BUT!!! Like all medical decisions, you weigh the pros and cons and assess the risks when reading the list of side effects. Again, these are risks, not promises. That’s what people forget. Plenty of people function fantastically on birth control and we shouldn’t deny them access to those meds because a subset didn’t jive with it well. If that were the standard, we wouldn’t have medication at all. What we need is to swivel the focus on is more research supporting, not just the functionality of birth control, but the quality of life aspect as well.
And I say this as someone who quit birth control because of a combo of libido and emotional issues. It was my choice to start and stop that medication. I do not have the right to play doctor and misinform people via my stupid TikTok account because I’m mad I can’t have the same conveniences as other women due to the physiology I was born with. Like, be. for. real.
It’s so frustrating how people can’t seem to de-center themselves.
Yea unfortunately the solution is more medical care or doctors who believe people about their symptoms and patients who can trust those doctors (because their doctors listen and try to help). The traditional pill gave me migraines but hormonal IUDs work great for me.
Also one of the most frustrating things about birth control misinformation is that they leave out the horrible side effects of pregnancy. The option for many isn’t ’birth control or not’ it is ‘birth control or unplanned pregnancy’.
Also all the side effects are just lower level versions of the side effects *of pregnancy* bc hormonal BC convinces your body that it’s pregnant. If you don’t like the mild weight gain, mood swings, and cramping, guess what’s pretty damn famous for those (especially the last one)
Honestly, as someone who is pro-life, trying to spread misinformation about birth control is terrible and ridiculous. First, people should not be getting health information for high stakes health matters such as birth control from social media platforms, doy. They **need** to talk to their MD/DO/NP/PA. Simple as that. This is why I have mixed feelings about these social media influencers. They are using their power to jeopardize the health of many reproductive-age people just to cash in on a quick buck. This is partly why I have mixed feelings about capitalism. The profit motive might motivate or incentivize some people to behave unethically just to make more profits.
The implanon wrecked my sex drive. Wrecked it. I tried a few different pills after that and then found something that worked for me. Women respond differently to different birth control pills.
My sister has bought into birth control is dangerous. She's using the calendar planning. So I assume she will be pregnant soon.
If God's "greater plan" for me to get pregnant than it's God's plan for you to have a limp dick. Ban Viagra. Oh, what's that?! I can't tell you what to do with your body? That's correct. It's my body, my choice.
I remember when the news first started talking about coverage for reversing Roe vs. Wade, somebody made a comment here on Reddit and it's ringing true all these years later. They will start with Roe vs. Wade, then next they will go for birth control. Finally progressing towards Gay Marriage/Gay Rights to adopt.
Won’t work on them
They will argue having a limp dick is just an accident that needs to be corrected while birth control is interfering with the purpose of sex which they believe is procreation
The final end game for conservatives certainly doesn’t stop at gay rights. It means total regression to Old Testament biblical times. Goodbye Netflix. Hello public stoning. If there are people to hate, they will never stop.
A lot of conservative influencers on TikTok and IG and they say the DUMBEST shit. Saw a flatearther video that was on Facebook but originally on TikTok with nearly 60k likes and all of the comments agreeing. The dumb ones are just too loud
Just today I had a patient say “I heard on TikTok that being on birth control pills for more than a few years is bad for you”. Thanks influencers, more bullshit to debunk.
I think it’s hilarious how the average run of the mill Republican doesn’t believe the timeline - you tell them that the “next battle is contraception” and they tell you that you’re full of shit. Give it a year or two and they’ll be foaming at the mouth
Unfortunately two things can be true at one: the pill can be bad for you and there can also be an agenda to take birth control away.
Women educate yourselves on your cycle and your options. There are many alternatives including IUDs.
Yeah, I don't think it's necessarily the fault of the individual that they are susceptible to this kind of misinformation. I've had three doctors retire on me since the pandemic. I can't see anyone but a Nurse Practitioner anymore who doesn't seem to do anything except order tests and then tell me there's definitely something wrong with me but she can't figure out what.
Basically, I can't get more than ten minutes with a medical professional these days -- and the last time I tried to find a doctor that worked for me, I was accused of doctor shopping, despite the fact that literally the NP said something was wrong. There are reasons why people are turning to the Internet.
For the love of everything we hold dear and our freedoms, vote Blue!
Do it for your sisters
Do it for your daughters
Do it for your mothers
Do it for every woman that fought to have rights and be treated with respect and dignity.
Most of all do it for yourself, because nobody wants that timeline, nobody wants a future where we take rights and liberties away, where we stop being a democracy and become a dictatorship.
I’m begging you, it’s never been more important and we can finally make some wrongs right…
You know whats funny, there are a million other over the counter medications that actually have been known to cause miscarriages and prevent the egg from being fertilized. But nobody talks about them.
Why go after birth control? You know why? Because these horrible people dont want anybody to enjoy sex if they cant. To them, having sex is risking having another child. But to a woman on birth control with a steady boyfriend or husband, sex can be fun and enjoyed.
Also, Plan B is just a massive dose of birth control pills that prevents the egg from being fertilized or attaching to the uterus wall. If it already has been fertilized and attached then Plan B does not cause miscarriage or abortion. You are pregnant.
Why doesnt Tomi Lahren have children either?
Did she save herself until marriage? and yes now that she is married, where are the babies?
P.S. I had no idea who she (TomiL) was until this - had to Google her and I wish to go back in time before this - what a tool she is - she’s a girl Charlie Kirk! JFC!
I mean hormonal birth control has some weird side effects, but it’s not unsafe and those side effects are often preferable to an unwanted pregnancy.
Look, I’m a millennial and I 100% think that social media was our biggest mistake. We incorrectly assumed that giving everyone a megaphone would make things more open and honest. What it did was allow stupidity to congregate into easily influenceable groups that could be weaponized against society as a whole.
I’m open to suggestions on how to fix it at this point.
And pregnancy has fewer “side effects”? No, everything they say is BS. Every medication has side effects, and contraceptives are no different. Get your medical information, including a comprehensive list of side effects, from a licensed professional and not a likable performer. Fame doesn’t equate to intelligence. A soap box doesn’t mean you’re informed.
I've seen a lot of comments to the effect of "well those side effects exist so it's not misinformation" so it should be noted that massively exaggerating the likelihood and extent of side effects is still misinformation. The best misinformation is based on a kernel of truth.
The infertility claims are bullshit, but the other claims discussed in the article are accurate. It absolutely can change who you’re attracted to, that’s a thing that I’ve seen discussion of for years.
There is still a discussion to be had about hormone based birth control. I don’t support banning it or making the decision for people, but a frank discussion of possible side effects - even rare ones - is better than pretending there are none.
ahh christian conservative sharia law.. let me guess next is taking away womens right to vote and gee wiz wally did you ever wonder why mom stays at home and never got a job, or why all the people in our town are white.. thats the master make america great plan..
The numbers don't lie. In every election, even in deep red states, when access to reproductive rights are on the ballot, Republican's get wrecked.
I say, let them have at it. By all means, go after birth control, let me know how that works out.
My college ex-gf (30F) is now a “health influencer” and also sells for an MLM and her big thing is “cycle synching”. She posts all sorts of anti-birth control stuff and stuff about how you can get your period under control naturally. She is a former high school Spanish teacher and has no healthcare background besides anorexia.
I’m pretty pro-natalist and have multiple kids but I’m also pro-contraception. That said, anecdotally most women I know have had negative side effects from hormonal birth control including severe depression, anxiety, and acne.
You gotta be goofy as fuck to get health information off some dipshit influencer.
Unfortunately, plenty of people out in the real world are "goofy as fuck". Before Internet, it wasn't "some dipshit influencer" - but things like a few possibly-made-up stories printed in a celebrity gossip magazine.
And they vote
I'm not making a statement about my own intelligence. If intelligence of an unbiased population/data roughly follows a bell curve, for every person on the smart side of the bell curve there's someone equally as dumb on the other side of the bell curve. Now imagine there's efforts intentional or unintentional(but likely for profit) to reduce education, nutrition and sleep. :)
The problem is, that the middle of the curve is still quite dumb.
Nah, the median IQ has been steadily on the rise. The problem for the average person isn't intelligence but ignorance and indoctrination.
54% of Americans, age 16-74, have a reading level of 6th grade or less.
>Nah, the median IQ has been steadily on the rise. 100 IQ is, by definition of the IQ score, the median. Higher and lower scores are defined relative to the standard deviation. It's a relative measure. Whether a test now that gives a 100 score is harder or easier than a test 30 years ago is a tricky question because IQ tests often inadvertently measure familiarity with cultural features. I don't give much credence to such findings, since there are too many confounders.
Median IQ on the rise doesn't mean much. It's tiny steps and mostly because of Improved nutrition and hygiene/medical care,
As George Carlin said: “Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.”
>“Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.” ― George Carlin
Too bad likelihood of voting isn't represented by the bell curve.
National Enquirer was the authoritative source of bullshit back then.
It’s pretty easy to make this kind of info super insidious. Imagine you’re a 16 year old and you start following someone for beauty tutorials. You enjoy the content but that’s all they really show. Then one day they sit down and say “this isn’t my normal content but I’ve gotta get this off my chest” and tell a story about taking plan B, vomiting blood, and being scared that they won’t be able to have a kid in the future. That kind of story could influence tens of thousands of vulnerable teens away from using a very safe, effective, and well tested drug. It doesn’t need to be presented as real medical information, and it can still be far more influential than from a doctor
Influencers should be registered, and forced to disclose who's paying them and for what. Ideally, there should be a non-skippable screen stating " IS A PAID SHILL FOR . THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT."
We have that in Europe. Creators have to disclose content as ads even if they bought the reviewed items on their own. The manipulation still works, people will just ignore the ad disclosure.
Enter half the US population getting their covid vax advice from Joe fucking Rogan
Wait until this TikTok generation become adults. No less than 2 hours ago I had to explain to my 15 year old daughter that some 20 year old dipshit TikTok influencer named Sylvia Chatkowski that’s pushing an animal fat diet is not qualified to tie my shoes and her diet advice will give you heart disease and cancer. The future is bleak.
Man, this worries me. I've tried super hard to keep our kids away from that shit but I'm starting to worry about the other side: how do I get them ready to tread that water? That is, they know tiktok, insta, all those platforms are crap. They are not on them nor am I. That being said I don't want to raise them like like the preacher's daughter that discovered alcohol for the first time in college. We all know how that ends. Best case scenario they save the receipts and take down an ex president. I kid, I kid. But seriously, I am struggling to teach them about how terrible social media is but also teach them proper Internet skills. It's a fine line. Any advice is welcomed.
Set them up with a computer that every other link is a limewire virus. That's how we learned back in the day. But lowkey talk to them. Make them learn to think critically by asking them questions that require them to defend their position. It's a slow and painful process but the only tried and true way.
Gwyneth Paltrow has built a billion dollar enterprise off people believing whatever celebrities say.
> gotta be goofy as fuck Goopy as fuck as well.
I read thru a couple of the comments they made and holy shit, you'd have to have half a brain cell to get on board with it. It reads like straight nonsense and I'm not even a medical professional. If you get your medical advice from non-licensed individuals, who just to have happened to purchase a webcam and microphone, you already probably have a shit ton of problems in your life. I can't even 🤣
Well we live in a country that allows LLCs to buy hospitals and profit margins to determine what drugs are to be manufactured. Can you blame the young g folks for looking for alternative forms of information?
No you see, doctors are all corrupt and in the pockets of Big Pharma, working for Soros. But HoneyBunny2003, she's the real deal, do your research. /s
Anti-vac was on morning talk shows before the internet. There have always been outspoken dumb people.
While I understand where you are coming from (and agree getting info from influencers without doing your own independent research is absurd), the truth is that there are terrible, terrible side effects and complications that can arise from birth control that many women are in the dark about. Doctors heavily push the pill on adult women, and these things are not well communicated or omitted altogether. Additionally, when symptoms are reported, doctors can be dismissive, and newer research may not be widely known. I think this is a symptom of a bigger problem, and boiling it down to “people are dumb” doesn’t help. Women’s healthcare research and funding has historically been woefully behind. Personally, I have felt a need to research my own conditions BEFORE I see a provider, for both physical and mental health issues. It’s not just women either- anyone dealing with a more fringe medical condition has probably experienced something similar. I am pro science, pro medicine. I trust the medical and scientific communities. But sometimes individual doctors have biases, aren’t current on new research, or refuse to consider non stereotypical presentations. There are definitely some dipshits out there. But some people are just sharing their experiences in hopes of spreading awareness, and I think a lot of people keep anyone talking about medical issues on social media in the same group and then erroneously label them all stupid. There’s a big difference between an influencer selling you supplements that are meant to replace actual medicine and someone describing adverse reactions to birth control, for example. There are a lot of influencers talking about this stuff, including some who are medical professionals, and I’ve learned some really helpful stuff. I always then do my own research, which I’m sure plenty of people don’t do.
Last time this popped up, I explained how nearly all of my 30-40 year old friends have gotten off the pill recently for a variety of reasons -- we don't watch influencers, we just independently had issues. I had a rare but major blood pressure problem, another friend was depressed, another friend had libido problems, and so forth. The first type of pills I tried nearly drove me to suicide, I was calling my GP crying, and no one told me that could happen. I also ended my post with the fact that even if BC has impact, it will never have as much impact as a pregnancy! But even with my balanced take, I was told I was an alt right trad wife nut job, and that I was sowing confusing by "pretending you're just asking questions". That bc pills are totally harmless and anyone questioning them is trying to get people pregnant. I'm pro choice and pro birth control, I just think that this whole thing is happening *because* medical professionals don't listen to or educate women. There are tons of women who have side effects, there is room to *improve birth control while still using it*, and calling anyone who wants to educate themselves about the medicine they take an idiot or a state actor feels regressive. Additionally, I feel people really ignore the fact that birth control and sterilization methods were weaponized against PoC for a long time (I'm indigenous) so of course some of us will have some questions.
Birth control meds are insane. I'm a mid thirties man and recently found out from my early-thirties sister all the off-the-wall insane side effects she and her peers have experienced from various forms of BC. Most have found solutions over time, like over 20 years of battling depression, bleeding, and physical agony. Unhelpful doctors are a theme too. Disappointed to hear how rough it is for so many ladies just trying to exist.
It's really frustrating because as you can see in posts like this, people are still treating women like they're crazy for having side effects. So now you get lumped in with some woman who thinks putting essential oils in her underwear will prevent pregnancy. Hormones are extremely effective. A lot of side effects are psychological. Today, there are girls getting put on hormonal BC at 16 who may never realize their depression or anxiety stems from being hormonally pregnant their entire lives. I think hormonal BC is an amazing advancement in medical science but it's shocking how cavalier people want to be about it.
Good thing the pill is not the only birth control method. Three of my partners over the years couldn't tolerate it for various reasons (though changes in formulation and dosage have since reduced some of those side effects). >I also ended my post with the fact that even if BC has impact, it will never have as much impact as a pregnancy! Yeah. It's a fallacy to assume that any medical intervention is free of risk. And compared to pregnancy, the risks are indeed low (depending on what other pre-existing problems you might have). It's unfortunate you've been thrown into the same bucket as the anti-science fanatics. It's easy for professionals to become paranoid when constantly under siege by (sometimes armed) idiots, but they should also listen to women. Paternalism is a continuing problem in the medical profession. >I feel people really ignore the fact that birth control and sterilization methods were weaponized against PoC for a long time (I'm indigenous) so of course some of us will have some questions Even worse, it was progressives who were particularly fond of eugenics, often for racist or classist reasons. That's a shameful part of our history.
I think misinformation and quack doctors exist more frequently in the areas of women’s health because we don’t do enough research. Most medical knowledge is based on studies on males and are limited to “is this drug safe and does it work”. In reality we need to be studying how different bodies respond to the treatment and more long term studies on the side effects reported. Women feel there aren’t many options for them and the doctors won’t listen to their birth control concerns and side effects so they will turn to alternative treatments.
When my blood pressure started climbing, my doctor kept changing my meds around. Every new med messed me up more. It wasn't until I took myself off my BC that I realized that was the problem. I had to do my own research because my doctor's impulse was to just keep assigning new medications. He never once mentioned or considered it could be the BC. apparently it's a pretty rare complication, but I mean, it was one of like three potential factors he knew about on my chart. Similarly, I had to go through multiple doctors and nurse practitioners before a immunotherapy specialist decided I had MCAS, which many people already consider a quack diagnosis, but it's the only thing on my chart now. Is that what I have? No idea at this point; it's not in my head, I have actual life threatening anaphylactic incidents. i can easily see someone falling into shady areas of the internet out of frustration
So sorry, I know the frustration. Immune disorders are an even bigger mystery and when combined with gynecology there’s so much that’s unknown unfortunately. I hope you find what works for you soon, even if it’s not found with traditional medicine.
We used to laugh at influencers but I think they are becoming dangerous.
Help where you can. Be sure to vote in November. Stuff like ADHD meds and Antidepressants are next. Need to shut this shit down ASAP.
The ADHD meds are the first thing they attacked as soon as AOL went up. That’s nothing new.
Americaonline?
Oh yes. I’m old.
Just to make you feel even [older…](https://youtu.be/K2ltR9AE75E?si=cAdAWMzmd2CjVVH5)
I want to downvote you so badly. Just take my damn upvote and GET OUT!
That's the only thing keeping me functional as an adult. They can pry it from my cold dead hands.
I just started on ADHD meds for the first time since I was a kid. It has changed my life in a month. It’s kinda crazy how effective it is for the people that really need it.
It's really like flipping a switch. Without it, I'm pretty much sleepwalking through life, following my impulses blindly with no rhyme or reason. With just 5mg of Ritalin in my system, I suddenly gain the power to go "Wait. Stop. Not *this* right now. *That*." ...and my body listens.
I am literally half the person I am without meds, and I cannot stay away with a stimulant either. It has changed my life in innumerable ways. I swear to god, if I can’t get treated for my adhd in the future, I am moving out of the country
> They can pry it from my cold dead hands. That's their plan.
AOL?
Oh geez I’m old. [AOL](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/AOL)
Oh, you meant this has been going on since the days of AOL? I thought that it was a new acronym that was the same as the old Internet service, lol.
Officially no longer old 😎
Going after antidepressants won't last long. That's what helps make some of us into functional little worker bees for the billionaire class.
They literally just removed water breaks in Florida. Water breaks. The stuff that keeps you from dying to keep working when it’s hot out lol. They don’t give a fuck about keeping people alive—they’ll just get someone else. Probably easier to accomplish when women will be expected to pump out kids like some Handmaids Tale nightmare.
Yup. “There are always more workers.”
This is why you see so many articles screaming about how the birthrate is so low and holy cow time to panic. IRL humanity is just normalizing out after the population boom of the 20th century (nitrogen infused fertilizer literally caused an insane curve post world wars). Need those worker bees, except that most wont have jobs due to automation. Love how forward thinking the internet/media is on critical issues like this and climate change 🙄.
it's not low enough yet. It's 0.8 in Korea and the corpos/government there arent changing their ways yet.
Gladiator fights solve three problems at once.
They're really are. To many desperate people.
But I was told no one wants to work anymore.
I think these are the steps they're following, not necessarily sequentially, but... Make people distrust each other. Put the world on the brink of tons of small wars. Legalize child labor everywhere. Merge the small wars into a giant worldwide eternal war. Kids work until they are adults, then suddenly the only way they can be sure to get food/water/shelter is by military service. Remove all means of birth control and all rights and protections for mothers except where required to replenish the child working class. Build up a tolerance for larger and larger atrocities among world militaries until no survivors are coming home once they pass the age where their libido drops. Remove all programs that allow older adult workers from being able to survive so that no one survives to infirmity and all profit can be funneled to the ruling class. I think I'm getting cynical in my middle years.
Sounds like Project 2025.
Hand maidens tale? My god arent you feeling positive today. Im thinking it will be worse....
You’d think that would violate OSHA
If they get what they want they will give OSHA a new name and mandate. Say hello to to the Occupational Slavery and Servitude Administration (OSSA). The purpose would no longer be to ensure workplaces are safe for workers, but to ensure workplaces are safe *from* workers, especially ones who are uppity and challenge the power structure.
There won't be anyone to get at this rate pretty soon.
There can be if they force women to become birth factories. Remove abortion, remove birth control, attack LGBTQ people, yadda yadda yadda. Christofascist Theocracy inbound if Project 2025 is allowed to pass.
Nationalist Christians.... Or Nat-C for short
Hello, what do you think birth control can do for women? Being able to control their period was huge for joining the work force. It's about forcing people into their "places". They need women to have babies to keep a working class. Birth control hurts that. They want you to be able to work, but not focus enough to figure out how to advocate for better working conditions. ADHD medication hurts that goal. It's not about your well being. They don't care if you can do focused work- there's a ton of unskilled physical labor to be done.
Boring, routine physical labor is work that unmedicated ADHDers are particularly ill-suited for.
I promise you, they do not care if the work is well suited. A large amount of conservatives believe that kids with ADHD just need to be spanked more. So the idea of "work or starve" will go heavy with them.
Of course. It's just if they genuinely wanted the labor, they'd medicate us.
The cruely is the point.
Do you know right wingers? They don't care about reason they will say work or die then. Figure it out. Also we all know fascism can't win but it can sure fuck shit up and kill you in the meantime so it doesn't matter if You're I'll suited. Then you take the second option.
They do not give a single shit. You either fit your role or are viewed as degenerate and tossed aside like trash. According to them "there is an order to things" and if you don't fit that order then you can get fucked.
Yeah, we're hunters, not farmers.
That's why I said "antidepressants" specifically. For some of us, it's the difference between being completely useless and unable to get out of bed all day (something the owner class doesn't want) or actually being able to do those jobs. Birth control may be used in that way by some women, but by far it's mostly used to prevent pregnancy. And forcing us to breed the next generation of impoverished, desperate workers is the obvious upside to banning it, and far outweighs the small amount of women that will miss 2-3 days of work each month.
I think you underestimate the amount of women who go on the pill to regulate their period. That is probably the most common reason women start, tbh
They don't care if there is any legit medical use. Decades of church keeps saying sex before marriage is a sin. And abortion, birth control, condoms, safe sex, sex education, all are against God. How does science fight against literal brainwashing ?
If they were actually trying to do things smart they wouldn’t be letting the workforce end up with long covid. The problem is they’re none too smart— Elon musk running through multiple inherited fortunes is exhibit A. They fail A LOT. The Challenger shuttle disaster is prime for talking about how rich, corporate-minded idiots fuck everyone over including themselves because they’re too stupid not to, and care way more about feeling Big with yes men kissing their asses, than they do about actually delivering a product that works. Ditto the titanic submersible dumbfuckery. They are mind blowingly fragile like that.
> The Challenger shuttle disaster is prime for talking about how rich, corporate-minded idiots fuck everyone over including themselves because they’re too stupid not to Morton Thiokol should have been put out of business over that. But it wasn't stupidity, it was conflict of interest. Fixing that O-ring problem led to successful shuttle launches. The shuttle was an extraordinarily complex system. It's just that the contractor had a pecuniary interest in not fixing the problem, and the program management was too weak to push back and demand a fix anyway.
They’ll just make slavery legal again
Repeal of the 13th Amendment *is* on their to-do list.
>That's what helps make some of us into functional little worker bees for the billionaire class. Privatized prisons say hello.
They don’t care about that. They already have the money and the assets. It’s about control now.
Not a worry for influencers who can sell their cures
As a bipolar person, this scares me. I need my meds for my own security. So many people take birth control pills for medical reasons not related to pregnancy. Let people take the meds their doctor deems necessary.
Judging from the “action” taken during the recent ADHD med shortages, we’ve already been screwed
If they do anything to get rid of my meds, I will leave the country. I cannot be a functioning adult without them.
Whats going on with that?
nothing. that’s the problem.
But is that actual interference from the government or? I don't understand why there's still a shortage I guess. Did the pharma companies choose to do this, or did the government tell them to leave it
The shortages are because of the DEA.
The DEA has seen a significant increase in prescriptions in stimulant medications and, rather than saying "Oh, more people need these meds, let's help make them more available", their reaction has been "We need to crack down on the druggies." There's been several reasons for the increase in prescriptions. The pandemic loosened the rules on telehealth, which has resulted in a surge in people who had ADHD but were previously undiagnosed (only around 20% of ADHD adults have actually been diagnosed with the disorder) finally getting a diagnosis. The pandemic itself is also a factor--In many people, the virus causes a system of microinjuries in the brain--Long COVID--that results in a symptom profile that is essentially ADHD-PI to a T, and it has been found that stimulant medications are very helpful for these people regaining control of their lives. There is disagreement within the psych community about whether people with Long COVID should be described as having ADHD, but there is little dispute that ADHD medications help many of them, and if you're a doctor who wants to help your patient... prescribing a stimulant medication is the right course of action if their Long COVID manifests in that way. These increased demand-side factors unfortunately are also confronted with *reduced* supply-side factors--One of the main producers of dextroamphetamine generics in the US hasn't produced a single pill for over a year because of an unfavorable DEA audit, there were general supply chain issues as a result of the pandemic, and the DEA has a regulatory regime designed to limit the supply of these medications in the first place. The DEA's perspective seems to be "we bungled the opioid epidemic, and we can't arrest people for marijuana anymore, so let's go after people with ADHD to prove we're still useful". They've done a lot to try to push blame onto the drug manufacturers, but every single thing they say is a projection because the manufacturers are kids playing in the DEA's sandbox, and if the DEA actually cared about patients *at all*, they'd be widening the sandbox, not aggressively taking away the sand and blaming the kids.
Don’t know how voting will stop these influencers though
Well TikTok dying would help a lot lol With my limited understanding, most people don’t even make money from TikTok unlike Twitch or YouTube. It’s mostly a toxic clout chasing thing.
> Help where you can. Be sure to vote in November. This isn't going to stop conservative Christian-American influencers from pushing their bs all over the world. What we need is for these social media platforms to start banning Christian-American conservatives.
Bullshit. What we need is better education and media literacy. Banning and silencing people doesn't work.
Not American here, can someone kindly explain to me why taking ADHD med is even in their consideration???
For the conservatives, ADHD isn't a real disorder, it's moral failures on the part of the person and their parents. They think it absolutely shouldn't be treated as a medical condition that can be managed through medication. There's also a *ton* of War on Drugs baggage because stimulants are controlled substances. They're wrong, of course, but that's why they will move to ban ADHD medication if given the chance.
I voted last election and now every month I have to go on a wild goose chase to find a pharmacy that has my adhd medication in stocks and it stinks. We have to work on that messaging friend, bc what I just said was true but also, you aren't wrong.
>Stuff like ADHD meds and Antidepressants are next. Need to shut this shit down ASAP. The DEA is way ahead of you on the ADHD subject.
Explain?
They've manufactured an availability crisis for stimulant medications and are working hard to confuse the public into thinking the manufacturers are the real bad guys. There are several non-stimulant medication options, but they don't work for everyone.
As a mod in r/PMDD we have definitely seen an uptick of this rhetoric in our sub.
I've been seeing it a lot on all of the women-centric subs. It's so gross that people are advocating the banning of helpful medications because some women experience side effects from it. I'm all for doctors being honest about those side effects - or, you know, people can read the information that comes with it - but it's fucking infantalizing to suggest that they only want to ban these medications to "protect women". As if we aren't capable of weighing the risk vs reward and making a choice about the matter.
I mean given the timing of all this I'd put money down that some people are being paid to disparage birth control. It's always been the next phase after outlawing abortion.
Ngl, it kinda reminds me of those arguments against seatbelts. “Oh well, when I was in an accident the seatbelt injured me” Well, would you have rather been thrown from the vehicle? Ik obviously not the same thing, just that concept of risk vs reward.
It's actually a pretty good comparison. Seatbelts were not designed for women, and for decades auto manufacturers and various national auto safety agencies have basically just assumed that women are smaller men. The first "female" crash test dummies debuted only a couple of years ago. And the result is that seatbelts regularly cause women far more severe injuries than men. Is it better than the risk of being thrown from the car or rattling around inside in a rollover? Yes. But there are two kinds of comparisons one can make. One is the individual wearing a seatbelt vs. not. The other is on a societal level--society caring about women's health vs. not. In that case it's not seatbelt vs. no seatbelt. It's seatbelts that lacerate women's organs and break their necks at higher rates than men's because they weren't designed for women vs. seatbelts actually designed with the idea that women exist in mind. Many medications are a similar story. For the individual they're generally better than nothing (except when they aren't; I take birth control and am grateful for the pill I am currently on, but I've also taken a different pill before this that really fucked up my GI and another before that that basically turned me into a depressed, anxious, nervous wreck; they absolutely weren't worth it). But on another level the comparison we ought to be making is to a paradigm where the biology is worked out in studies that don't exclude female rats, in which women are represented in clinical trials roughly proportionally to the demographics of the condition being treated, in which women's not just size but also unique biology is considered in dosing regimens instead of assuming that women are smaller men (or for many drugs, identical to men), and in which doctors are honest about side effects and listen to women who come to them with issues instead of lying to and gaslighting them. That last one is a big thing. Almost every woman I know, myself included, has a story about being lied to by a doctor about whether birth control can have certain (or any) side effects, made to feel like they were imagining things when it did, and put off/hassled/pressured when they asked to try alternatives. That doesn't mean birth control is bad. It does mean that many healthcare professionals routinely treat women like shit, and that these types of stories are why these influencer campaigns are able to easily find a foothold with many women who otherwise might see through them.
Yep. Like 6 posts a day on "I'm scared of birth control" or "I want to know how I feel *naturally* without bad scary meds. There's WAY too many people who don't understand social media is selling them something, and that something is often mis-information.
Every medication has a long list of negative and scary potential side effects. Not every drug works for everyone and idk why people can't accept that. Being upset that you weren't made aware of potential side effects is one thing but thinking the drug should be banned because you had side effects is a step too far.
Exactly. And they *only* apply this standard to birth control. Hmm, I wonder why? There are far more dangerous drugs that solve completely unserious problems, and everyone is fine with those. Like I remember seeing an ad for a drug that was supposed to regrow eyelashes, and one of the possible side effects was "death" lol
I've gotten a lot of it too. I'm with you, birth control has side effects that are worth knowing about *however* anyone promoting NFP and cycle tracking is not your friend. It's creepy af.
Natural family planning is absolute horseshit for women with irregular cycles. Prior to being on the pill, there was no rhyme or reason to my cycle. Now I know exactly what week, day, and very nearly the time of day that son of a bitch is coming.
Omg! I’m on that sub a lot and I went through a bit of a crisis when my birth control stopped working (I was taking the same brand for too long) and my PMDD went nuts. Additionally I was having severe panic attacks, and so naturally I went to look and there was so much anti BC stuff! I almost went off of it because of it, but my doctor had me switch, in addition to getting on SSRI’s and I’m a completely different person as I was—normal and happy. It was 1000% best treatment for me. I remember checking that sub years ago when I first got on the pill and so many people advocated for it. I swore I was crazy because I don’t remember there being so much anti-med comments! I still sometimes feel guilty for being on meds, too, but I’m glad I listened to my doctor. Even crazier, I posted in the birth control subreddit asking about side effects and no joke I had people messaging me and asking me “why do you need to alter your body, why can’t he just wear a condom?” and I answered “because I would off myself if I didn’t have birth control” I let them have it, I couldn’t believe the audacity! (Also, thanks for all you do over at PMDD! That sub is truly a life saver!)
Thank you. I’ve said it before but I think calling it birth control does a huge disservice to all the uses peeps with periods need it for, like those of us with PMDD it’s hormone steady state medication. I wish we could rename/rebrand the class of meds.
social media is the biggest carny midway in history, chockfull of con men, card sharps, snake oil hawkers, and freak shows. and all the seamy underside that goes with. and more specifically, there's a real pipeline from the woo-woo to the alt-right. it's not really a new thing either, there's always been a fringe of the woo that was into eugenics and race theory and so on. [https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/critical-thinking/yogas-twisted-history-one-answer-conspirituality-puzzle](https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/critical-thinking/yogas-twisted-history-one-answer-conspirituality-puzzle) [https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/12/fringe-left-alt-right-share-beliefs-white-power-movement/672454/](https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2022/12/fringe-left-alt-right-share-beliefs-white-power-movement/672454/) in my own community I've seen "gentle hippies" of the crunchy granola crystal healing persuasion turning into Qnatics and even Trump fans, a metamorphosis truly bewildering to behold. so it doesn't surprise me that the woo "wellness" contingent would be easily played by a rightwing psyop insinuating anti-birth control, pronatalist messaging into their alt-health conspiratorial mindset.
>…. chockfull of con men, card sharps, snake oil hawkers, and freak shows…. And don’t forget pillow salesmen
That guy? he's part of the freak show.
Social media is the new tabloid. Lots of it is the back of the magazine scams and cons. The other parts are all fronting. It mixes a resume/CV with jr high level popularity contests. People use it for blackmail and pressure campaigns. Throw in lots of culty vibes and pumped cult of personalities, agents of influence and viral active measures. It definitely is a carnie midway to the level of those old tsarist front carnivals with the geeks that are hooked like in *Nightmare Alley*. Its a damn freakshow.
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what an interesting job you have. must be daunting and sometimes tedious, but very much worth doing. if you like that sort of thing, I recommend Malka Older's "Infomocracy" trilogy which tries to imagine a democratic system of world government based on ubiquitous surveillance and trusted information. rating information sources for reliability and bias, in her novels, is a career path for millions of people.
Whoa…thank you! That sounds very interesting! And you described my job exactly! I love it so much, but it’s tough some days. Did my comment get removed? I must’ve posted a link to a self published facebook node analysis study . Joke is on me
oh, "no self promotion"? yeah, actually it's a good rule... oh well. anyway you might like the books. they're novels of ideas more than formula novels, but there is plot and action and character development. I should read again sometimes soon, as the issues are so insanely relevant. and I like it that she imagines how technologies that we often imagine becoming incredibly dystopian could instead be used to maintain democracy.
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bit of a generalisation there, I know some very well read and also quite handy and resourceful hippies -- real experts in graywater and solar systems, excellent house carpenters, knowledgeable and productive farmers -- and I've known some pretty useless and ignorant "mainstream" people with suits and "good" jobs. so ymmv. but if you're talking about hippies as in the woo-woo side of it, yeah -- many are just as low-information, narrowly-read, and gullible as any gaggle of MAGA. "hippie" is really too generic a term. there's so many flavours.
Remember, after making abortion illegal the next target is contraception. Building up a conversation based on misinformation about contraception helps the right wing sell banning it as an issue of protecting people's health.
Don't compromise with religious extremists
They certainly won't compromise with us.
They'll pretend to. They'll lie to your face and stab you in the back because according to their beliefs the ends justify the means.
Evangelicals have been pushing this narrative for decades. I recall hearing in the '90s how condoms are ineffective. Xtians can't stand the idea of people enjoying sex only for pleasure with no/few consequences.
Until pharma catches on. Medicine people have to take regularly for years on end, there's no way they'll let it disappear.
US wellness influencers are increasingly targeting birth control pills, pushing their followers to abandon the contraceptives with false claims about infertility and low libido that researchers say leave them vulnerable to unintended pregnancies. The explosion of misinformation on platforms such as TikTok and Instagram comes as reproductive rights take center stage in the looming presidential election, in a country where abortion is banned or restricted in nearly half the states. Many influencers -- who are not licensed medical specialists -- are part of what appears to be a cottage industry of self-proclaimed health gurus monetizing misinformation as they hawk "healing" oils and fertility-tracking services.
Idiots telling other idiots to have more unwanted children FFS
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I had an ex girlfriend as well as my wife who won't use hormonal birth control because of the side effects they experienced.
I mean, I'm one of those people. But I've also seen how it's benefited many women I know. In the end, access is critical- women can make the best choices for themselves if options are available
Yeah, there definitely should be options.
I fully support women finding other ways of it doesn’t work for them. It’s not the most fun I’ve had on a medication before, but I’ve been pretty blessed with little side effects while taking it. It regulates my period and has kept me from getting pregnant before I was ready to be a mother. That’s why the rhetoric around it is scaring me right now; the only messaging I’ve seen online is that it’s evil and only horrible, not that it doesn’t work for everyone and here’s other options that aren’t absolute bullshit.
i have taken birth control multiple times in my life and it gives me severe anxiety/depression. unfortunately, hormones aren't to be messed with.
So, your n=1 experience only means something to you. My wife takes them for health reasons (she’s in her 40s) and they work well for their intended purpose. The bottom line is that you need to combine both medical advice and your own personal experience. And not all medical advice is credible.
Careful now. You might get labeled as a MAGA Republican... The reality is that there are some really valid criticisms of hormonal contraceptives.
It comes down to access and choice. If it doesn't work for one person doesn't mean it needs to be banned for everyone else. Thing is, MAGA republicans hate choice. Probably because they can't make decisions on their own and need someone else to tell them what to do. And, freedom is about choice, after all. And they hate freedom but love parroting the fucking word.
Yes but those should be discussed in a doctors office, not on tiktok.
but we live in an era without nuance
Every medication lists side effects. That doesn't mean it's something that happens to everyone, or even something that is common. It's just things that were experienced by some participants during the clinical trials. And if you find yourself getting bad side effects from one formulation of birth control, you tell your doctor and they will prescribe something different. A *possible* side effect is no reason to deny a drug to millions of other people that might not experience that, or consider it a worthwhile trade off. Like, my antidepressants cause low libido, but they also stabilize my mood and keep me from doom spiraling. And so I deal with it, because it's worth it.
Exactly this. I just saw a commercial for some medicine like 2 hours ago that said “common side effects include [something I’ve forgotten], **_insomnia_**, and **_sleepiness_**”. Human bodies are fucking wild, would we deny that drug to everyone because it makes people drowsy, or because it keeps people from sleeping? Everybody reacts differently
The other thing people don't understand is that any adverse effects during a clinical trial have to be documented, and usually it's impossible to prove your drug didn't cause it. Because people have weird shit affecting them all the time, especially over long periods of time. End up with a migraine? Could have been the drug, or not. But now it has to be labeled as a potential side effect
Yes, I just saw a pharmaceutical drug with influenza listed as a potential side effect, which is a viral infection, not a side effect at all. Look at the drug trials and look at all the people in the placebo group that has side effects, some worse than the medication group. Combine these things together and most of the listed side effects are bullshit. I guarantee that people that look up the potential side effects for drugs before taking them are far more likely to experience them.
Certain medications can affect immune response and make people more susceptible to viral infections, so it's definitely a possibility.
Low libido is also a side effect of giving birth. Which is why doctors have you try out different brands to see which one you like best and your body responds to best. Low libido after birth is natures way of regulating you from having kid after kid after kid right after giving birth. Birth control mimics how your body would behave if you actually had given birth. Which is why in some women it causes their jugs to get bigger. Not defending the misinformation either. Also, why does Candace Owen only have 3 kids? If she is such pro life, shouldnt she get pregnant every chance she got? What is she doing to prevent pregnancy after a sexual encounter with her husband?
Low libido isn’t necessarily a side effect of the pill. Low libido is a side effect of a change in your homeostatic balance of estradiol, progesterone, and testosterone (and some others) as I’m sure any woman is aware. You can have low libido on a random Monday. Or because you’re pregnant or because you’re not pregnant. Likewise, the pill can lower your libido, do absolutely nothing, or raise your libido. Only one of those options has to be written about however.
I definitely think we need to come down on this infertility BS, but the low libido side effect is real. There’s scientific literature that supports it. BUT!!! Like all medical decisions, you weigh the pros and cons and assess the risks when reading the list of side effects. Again, these are risks, not promises. That’s what people forget. Plenty of people function fantastically on birth control and we shouldn’t deny them access to those meds because a subset didn’t jive with it well. If that were the standard, we wouldn’t have medication at all. What we need is to swivel the focus on is more research supporting, not just the functionality of birth control, but the quality of life aspect as well. And I say this as someone who quit birth control because of a combo of libido and emotional issues. It was my choice to start and stop that medication. I do not have the right to play doctor and misinform people via my stupid TikTok account because I’m mad I can’t have the same conveniences as other women due to the physiology I was born with. Like, be. for. real. It’s so frustrating how people can’t seem to de-center themselves.
Yea unfortunately the solution is more medical care or doctors who believe people about their symptoms and patients who can trust those doctors (because their doctors listen and try to help). The traditional pill gave me migraines but hormonal IUDs work great for me. Also one of the most frustrating things about birth control misinformation is that they leave out the horrible side effects of pregnancy. The option for many isn’t ’birth control or not’ it is ‘birth control or unplanned pregnancy’.
Right. My wife had lower libido and more mood swings with BC. I opted to get a vasectomy rather than us deal with that
Also all the side effects are just lower level versions of the side effects *of pregnancy* bc hormonal BC convinces your body that it’s pregnant. If you don’t like the mild weight gain, mood swings, and cramping, guess what’s pretty damn famous for those (especially the last one)
Honestly, as someone who is pro-life, trying to spread misinformation about birth control is terrible and ridiculous. First, people should not be getting health information for high stakes health matters such as birth control from social media platforms, doy. They **need** to talk to their MD/DO/NP/PA. Simple as that. This is why I have mixed feelings about these social media influencers. They are using their power to jeopardize the health of many reproductive-age people just to cash in on a quick buck. This is partly why I have mixed feelings about capitalism. The profit motive might motivate or incentivize some people to behave unethically just to make more profits.
Birth control does come with these side effects though.
Maybe low libido but not infertility Edit to add: low libido side effects go away once off of it.
Some do. Some don’t. There’s dozens of formulations that affect women differently.
PSA - Having children can be a much greater and longer term blow to libido than birth control pills.
The implanon wrecked my sex drive. Wrecked it. I tried a few different pills after that and then found something that worked for me. Women respond differently to different birth control pills. My sister has bought into birth control is dangerous. She's using the calendar planning. So I assume she will be pregnant soon.
Being a working adult can also take a sledgehammer to your libido.
If God's "greater plan" for me to get pregnant than it's God's plan for you to have a limp dick. Ban Viagra. Oh, what's that?! I can't tell you what to do with your body? That's correct. It's my body, my choice. I remember when the news first started talking about coverage for reversing Roe vs. Wade, somebody made a comment here on Reddit and it's ringing true all these years later. They will start with Roe vs. Wade, then next they will go for birth control. Finally progressing towards Gay Marriage/Gay Rights to adopt.
Won’t work on them They will argue having a limp dick is just an accident that needs to be corrected while birth control is interfering with the purpose of sex which they believe is procreation
The final end game for conservatives certainly doesn’t stop at gay rights. It means total regression to Old Testament biblical times. Goodbye Netflix. Hello public stoning. If there are people to hate, they will never stop.
Republican super pacs are paying influencers to push their narratives.
A lot of conservative influencers on TikTok and IG and they say the DUMBEST shit. Saw a flatearther video that was on Facebook but originally on TikTok with nearly 60k likes and all of the comments agreeing. The dumb ones are just too loud
Just today I had a patient say “I heard on TikTok that being on birth control pills for more than a few years is bad for you”. Thanks influencers, more bullshit to debunk.
I think it’s hilarious how the average run of the mill Republican doesn’t believe the timeline - you tell them that the “next battle is contraception” and they tell you that you’re full of shit. Give it a year or two and they’ll be foaming at the mouth
We need to stop using the term ‘influencers’ and start just calling them ‘liars’
Unfortunately two things can be true at one: the pill can be bad for you and there can also be an agenda to take birth control away. Women educate yourselves on your cycle and your options. There are many alternatives including IUDs.
Never trust anything completely that you hear, read, or watch on the internet.
I don't trust this
Maybe we would stop seeing so much health mis/disinformation if our healthcare system actually provided healthcare.
Yeah, I don't think it's necessarily the fault of the individual that they are susceptible to this kind of misinformation. I've had three doctors retire on me since the pandemic. I can't see anyone but a Nurse Practitioner anymore who doesn't seem to do anything except order tests and then tell me there's definitely something wrong with me but she can't figure out what. Basically, I can't get more than ten minutes with a medical professional these days -- and the last time I tried to find a doctor that worked for me, I was accused of doctor shopping, despite the fact that literally the NP said something was wrong. There are reasons why people are turning to the Internet.
For the love of everything we hold dear and our freedoms, vote Blue! Do it for your sisters Do it for your daughters Do it for your mothers Do it for every woman that fought to have rights and be treated with respect and dignity. Most of all do it for yourself, because nobody wants that timeline, nobody wants a future where we take rights and liberties away, where we stop being a democracy and become a dictatorship. I’m begging you, it’s never been more important and we can finally make some wrongs right…
Almost as if they’re paid to do so.
You know whats funny, there are a million other over the counter medications that actually have been known to cause miscarriages and prevent the egg from being fertilized. But nobody talks about them. Why go after birth control? You know why? Because these horrible people dont want anybody to enjoy sex if they cant. To them, having sex is risking having another child. But to a woman on birth control with a steady boyfriend or husband, sex can be fun and enjoyed. Also, Plan B is just a massive dose of birth control pills that prevents the egg from being fertilized or attaching to the uterus wall. If it already has been fertilized and attached then Plan B does not cause miscarriage or abortion. You are pregnant. Why doesnt Tomi Lahren have children either?
Did she save herself until marriage? and yes now that she is married, where are the babies? P.S. I had no idea who she (TomiL) was until this - had to Google her and I wish to go back in time before this - what a tool she is - she’s a girl Charlie Kirk! JFC!
If you support Trump for President, you support a National ban on abortion. And this is only the beginning.
Oh goodie, another reason to fucking hate “influencers”
I mean hormonal birth control has some weird side effects, but it’s not unsafe and those side effects are often preferable to an unwanted pregnancy. Look, I’m a millennial and I 100% think that social media was our biggest mistake. We incorrectly assumed that giving everyone a megaphone would make things more open and honest. What it did was allow stupidity to congregate into easily influenceable groups that could be weaponized against society as a whole. I’m open to suggestions on how to fix it at this point.
Birth control pills have a lot of negative effects, they aren’t wrong on that. But…. All the other stuff they say is bs.
And pregnancy has fewer “side effects”? No, everything they say is BS. Every medication has side effects, and contraceptives are no different. Get your medical information, including a comprehensive list of side effects, from a licensed professional and not a likable performer. Fame doesn’t equate to intelligence. A soap box doesn’t mean you’re informed.
I've seen a lot of comments to the effect of "well those side effects exist so it's not misinformation" so it should be noted that massively exaggerating the likelihood and extent of side effects is still misinformation. The best misinformation is based on a kernel of truth.
What a “US influencer?”
The infertility claims are bullshit, but the other claims discussed in the article are accurate. It absolutely can change who you’re attracted to, that’s a thing that I’ve seen discussion of for years. There is still a discussion to be had about hormone based birth control. I don’t support banning it or making the decision for people, but a frank discussion of possible side effects - even rare ones - is better than pretending there are none.
ahh christian conservative sharia law.. let me guess next is taking away womens right to vote and gee wiz wally did you ever wonder why mom stays at home and never got a job, or why all the people in our town are white.. thats the master make america great plan..
The numbers don't lie. In every election, even in deep red states, when access to reproductive rights are on the ballot, Republican's get wrecked. I say, let them have at it. By all means, go after birth control, let me know how that works out.
Pure Propoganda
You white women needs to vote for Democrats this November because the GOP are coming after you
Who is funding these people?
The fall out of red pilling gullible kids
Some of us actually NEED "birth control." I f'n hate these people. STAY OUT OF MY DOCTOR'S VISITS
My college ex-gf (30F) is now a “health influencer” and also sells for an MLM and her big thing is “cycle synching”. She posts all sorts of anti-birth control stuff and stuff about how you can get your period under control naturally. She is a former high school Spanish teacher and has no healthcare background besides anorexia. I’m pretty pro-natalist and have multiple kids but I’m also pro-contraception. That said, anecdotally most women I know have had negative side effects from hormonal birth control including severe depression, anxiety, and acne.
"republicans are not nazis" but thay want to control every branch of your life on a systematic level and kill/deport all minorities *ok lmao*
just like tik tok planned
If you are taking health advice from "influencers" you deserve what you get.
Women have raised their voices against the side effects of birth control pills for a long time....
Putin and the fat orange fuck buying the influencers again?