My Story

To be honest, if I told my past self that my period no longer interfered with my life, she probably would have laughed in my face and thought I was lying.

My journey started 10 years ago, when I was prescribed the hormonal birth control pill at the age of 12.

Menarche for me was, as it seems to be for many young girls, annoying and inconvenient. I grew up with an older brother, and was often surrounded by boys who I had always been able to keep up with. I was always able to hold my own and compete with them in sports and other neighborhood games, and I was always treated as an equal.

Getting my period felt like a disadvantage. It felt like the first thing that separated me from so many of my childhood friends, and I saw it as something that made me weak. Looking back, I understand why I felt that way. It is what we’ve always been conditioned to believe, isn’t it?

I was originally handed the pill after a 5 minute appointment as a quick fix for bad cramps and some acne - and it felt like a miracle pill at the time. All I had to do was take a tiny pill every morning and my cramps and acne would go away, and I wouldn’t get the annoying period that prevented me from keeping up with my peers?? I was sold.

But I’m sure you’ve figured out that it wasn’t quite that simple. I was never told what the pill was actually doing to my body over time, and most importantly what would happen when I decided to go off of it.

After a decade of not having a real period or cycle, I finally felt called to stop suppressing my hormones and regain my natural cycle. 

Coming off the pill wreaked havoc on my entire body.

I was experiencing crippling pain every single period, and would often end up curled in fetal position in my bed for the majority of the week. I remember vividly one time in college, my boyfriend had to drive me home in my own car because I was in too much pain to sit upright and drive the 3 minutes from his apartment to my house.

I was also dealing with cystic hormonal acne, IBS, complete shutdown of my immune system, and intense mood swings, just to name a few. It felt like every cell in my body was working against me to make me as miserable as possible. That might sound dramatic but it sucked!!!!

Now I don’t say any of this to incite fear around going off of the birth control pill. If I knew then what I know now, I would’ve had a much less turbulent adjustment. But I didn’t know what I didn’t know, because no one ever told me.

2 years after stopping the pill and still feeling miserable, I pushed to get answers from a naturopath doctor that finally listened to me and worked with me to heal what was happening at the root, instead of giving me another pill to use as a bandaid for my symptoms. Together we addressed my hormone health and gut health, which I learned was driving 99% of my symptoms.

I also dove into learning about my cycle and how to care for my body in the 4 phases of my menstrual cycle.

I leaned into nervous system regulation for the first time in my life, began to finally process the emotions that I had bottled up for years, and shifted the way I spoke about my body and about myself.

I began to see positive change almost immediately, and I almost couldn’t believe it. 

Learning how my cyclical body works and what it needs to thrive changed every part of my life. I couldn’t believe that I had never been taught how to take care of myself as a person with a menstrual cycle, or that what my body needed was SO different from my male counterparts that I had grown up constantly trying to be like. 

I no longer feel like I am constantly fighting against my body every single month. I have easy, pain free periods, my skin has cleared up, I am emotionally stable (for the most part LOL), and I rarely get sick. I feel strong, happy, and healthy the majority of the time. 

However, I do feel enraged that women are not taught how their own bodies work. I feel like my life’s purpose is to teach as many women as I possibly can that their cyclical nature is a gift, not a curse. It is not inconvenient, it is a superpower when you learn how to harness it. We are literally superheroes. We are life forces. 

My experience being dismissed and gaslit in healthcare drove me to get certified as a women’s hormone health practitioner, so I can help other women learn the ins and outs of their own cycle and heal their own hormone health. I can confidently say the work that I do gives women their power back and autonomy over their health.

If you feel the pull to come back to your body and take your power back, schedule a free 15 minute clarity call. I would love to be there every step of the way.

All my love, 
Morganne <3