“I used to think of birth control as a woman’s right, a gift from Big Pharma that exalted women to a place of equality with their male counterparts. That is, until I learned about the horrendous list of side effects — and what women were actually giving up as part of this exchange. When patients come to me with complaints of low libido, low or flat mood, weight gain, hair loss, and cloudy thinking, one of my first questions is, ‘Are you on the pill?’ And when they complain about premenstrual irritability, insomnia, tearfulness, bloating, and breast tenderness, requesting that I sanction a course of oral contraceptives combined with an antidepressant, I tell them there’s a better way.”