61 | Birth control, the IUD and hormonal imbalances with Dr Kelly Culwell

Dr. Kelly Culwell a.k.a. “Dr. Lady Doctor” is a fellowship-trained OB/GYN who is passionate about women’s health care. She’s here to dispel any shame or misconceptions women have about their beautiful! With 17+ years of experience in women’s reproductive health, Dr. Lady Doctor has worked with a wide breadth of organizations, including as a Medical Officer for World Health Organization, in Geneva and as a Senior Medical Advisor for the International Planned Parenthood Federation, in London. “My ultimate goal is to bridge the gap between women and their healthcare providers; empowering them to speak openly about their bodies and ask the right questions.” When Dr. Lady Doctor isn’t educating the masses, she is the Chief Medical Officer of Evofem Biosciences, a company committed to improving the health of women throughout the world.

I like to include a lot of diverse perspectives on the show – from the woo woo, to naturopathic and integrative health, all the way to conventional medicine. At the end of the episode, since we’re talking a lot about conventional medicine here, I’m giving my own integrative health take on some of the topics we touched on today (but remember, I’m not a doctor!), like this:

Hormonal birth control is like an artificial period – it isn’t going to fix hormonal imbalances that were occurring before you went on birth control. There is a REASON you were having hormonal imbalances in the first place and until you find the root cause of those imbalances, putting a bandaid on the problem with birth control isn’t going to fix it. There are of course some medical conditions and symptoms where introducing hormones via birth control will be very helpful and i’m not discounting those, but we need to get to the root cause of the problem in both cases.

In today’s episode, we discuss:

Top 5 questions you NEED to ask your OB/GYN
Birth control and hormonal imbalances: different types of birth control and how doctors decide which ones to prescribe
Pills that make you skip your cycle (or have it very infrequently) – are there any negative or long-term side effects?
Hormonal vs. Copper IUD and hormonal imbalances: how they work, the differences between them, pros and cons, and long-term side effects
Nutritional implications of the copper IUD
The importance of using natural personal care products – does it really matter that much?
Natural and conventional remedies for UTI’s, yeast infections and BV

Resources mentioned:

Taking Charge of your Fertility, Tony Weschler
Dr. Kelly Culwell at www.drladydoctor.com

Disclaimer: the information provided in this podcast is not to be used as substitute for the advice, recommendations, diagnoses, or treatment from your medical or mental health professional.