Peace out, pills!

I haven't posted about it yet (let's be honest, I haven't posted at all lately), but I'm off the pill. I took my last one on May 14. I started the prenatals on May 16 (I was scared to start them for some reason, like it meant we were actually trying or something).

I was scared. I've heard stories. Stories of breakouts and terrible cramps. What if I had crazy mood swings or something? What if I suddenly stopped liking K? (I have a friend who once read a study about how the pill can make us choose partners we wouldn't normally choose. She was worried being on the pill influenced her choice in husband. In her case, it makes sense, seeing as how nobody else is crazy about the guy.)

Messing with hormones makes me very nervous. I had a bad experience when I was about 20 and my doctor switched me to a different kind of pill. It took me several months (4, maybe?) of being in a really crappy mood before my boyfriend asked if it might have something to do with the switch. (It did. When I switched back to my original kind, the world was good again.)

Obviously I did not want to go through something like that again. But considering I'd been on the pill for almost 10 years, it was time to give my body a break.

So far (knock on wood), it's a good thing. A really good thing, actually. I haven't noticed any changes with my skin. I'll find out about the cramping thing in a few days. I'm a little nervous about that, but I'll have to deal with it no matter what.

As for K? I actually like him even more. It's been a great few weeks for us. (wink wink)

My mood as a whole has been awesome. I remember when I was in high school and early college, I was always really happy. Like, really happy. In psychology class, we learned about serotonin (from Wikipedia: "a well-known contributor to feelings of well-being; therefore it is also known as a 'happiness hormone,' despite not being a hormone"), and I decided I might just have higher levels than most people. Feeling elated was a common thing for me. It was awesome.

I hadn't felt that way in a while, and I decided it was just something that had faded with my youth. Sad, but part of life. I would still get that feeling from time to time, but it generally happened around events I was really excited about -- walking around OU with ER for homecoming, getting our closest friends together for our wedding ... Normal, I know, but a change for me.

Lately, though, I feel back to my giddy self. Take today, for example: I'm in a good mood at work. That's huge for me at this place! I'm being more productive, which adds to the good feelings.

I'm hoping that these changes are attributed to letting my body's natural hormones take control. I've wondered if maybe they slip something into the prenatal vitamins to make you feel a little more giddy and lovey, which leads to activities that make you glad you took the vitamins, but frankly? I don't think that's why they're in business.

I know it's still early with this whole pill-free thing, but so far, it's freakin' awesome!