May Guide: 25 of the best events happening this month
May Guide: 25 of the best events happening this month

Sarah Gill

‘It’s a game-changing addition to my cleaning arsenal’
‘It’s a game-changing addition to my cleaning arsenal’

Dominique McMullan

Social Pictures: A special preview screening of ‘The Fall Guy’
Social Pictures: A special preview screening of ‘The Fall Guy’

IMAGE

Caoilinn Hughes shares an extract from her new novel, ‘The Alternatives’
Caoilinn Hughes shares an extract from her new novel, ‘The Alternatives’

IMAGE

May 2024: All the best things to stream (or see in cinemas) this month
May 2024: All the best things to stream (or see in cinemas) this month

Sarah Finnan

We meet the makers, creators, producers and chefs who are the driving force behind Co Clare’s flourishing creative scene
We meet the makers, creators, producers and chefs who are the driving force behind Co...

Michelle Hanley

Striped trousers: Summer’s take on comfortable loungewear
Striped trousers: Summer’s take on comfortable loungewear

Sarah Finnan

Join our event ‘Future Proof: Health, Wealth and Fulfilment’ in Cork city
Join our event ‘Future Proof: Health, Wealth and Fulfilment’ in Cork city

IMAGE

Networking Event: ‘Future Proof: Health, Wealth and Fulfilment’ in Cork city
Networking Event: ‘Future Proof: Health, Wealth and Fulfilment’ in Cork city

IMAGE

Charlotte Tilbury’s new perfumes want you to feel good
Charlotte Tilbury’s new perfumes want you to feel good

Holly O'Neill

Image / Self / Health & Wellness
premium
SELF

Why I quit taking the contraceptive pill


by Lauren Heskin
05th Feb 2024

The pill

The pill

After 10 years of taking it religiously, I started to wonder exactly what it was that I was putting into my body every day.

I remember the first time I asked for the pill. The GP who attended to me – I avoided the family doctor out of teenage awkwardness – talked relentlessly about how women always complained about their boobs getting bigger when they were on the pill when really it was just water retention and it should subside after a few months. I hadn’t heard of this before and frankly, it wouldn’t have deterred my gangly 16-year-old...

You have reached a premium article.

For unlimited digital access to the stories worth paying for, subscribe now to IMAGE from just €4.99 a month
Subscribe