How Hormonal Contraceptives Impact Mood, Stress, and Depression

Hormonal contraceptives influence various bodily functions beyond reproduction. They regulate stress, control hormone cycles, and potentially affect mood and depression risk. While the majority of users do not experience negative mood changes, research continues to identify factors that contribute to different responses among individuals.

Michigan, Jun 25 (The Conversation) — Hormonal cycles are tightly controlled by the hormones themselves. When progesterone levels rise, they activate cellular processes to halt further production, known as a negative feedback loop.

Contraceptives like daily pills, implants, or vaginal rings introduce estrogen and progesterone to the body, reducing these hormone levels to those found outside the fertile window. This disruption affects the hormonal cycles crucial for ovulation, menstruation, and pregnancy.

Effects on the brain extend beyond the ovaries and uterus. The hypothalamus orchestrates ovarian hormone levels, and estrogen and progesterone receptors are widespread in the brain, influencing neurons and cellular processes related to memory formation and emotion regulation. Hormonal contraceptives thus modulate mood, potentially for better or worse.

Estrogen and progesterone also regulate the stress response. The main stress hormone, cortisol, mobilizes energy from fat during stress. Hormonal contraceptives tend to suppress the cortisol response to stress, impacting mood and stress interplay. Although they don't directly cause depression, they alter the risk for mood changes following stress. Genetic factors and past stress exposures contribute to individual responses.

Contraceptives are prescribed through trial and error, leading to inefficiencies. Identifying specific factors that increase depression risk and clearly communicating the broader benefits of hormonal contraceptives can help patients make informed decisions.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)