u/Empty-Specific9929

I think I might just be paranoid, but I could use some outside perspective.

I take my birth control pills continuously, so I don’t normally get a period. Around August 5–6, I started having breakthrough bleeding, which happens to me occasionally. My OBGYN has previously told me that when this happens, I can stop taking my pills temporarily and allow myself to bleed.

I followed those instructions and stopped my pills. While I was off them, I had intercourse a few times using the pull-out method. A few days later, I restarted my normal birth control pills.

Since restarting them, I’ve had pretty severe bloating, some light cramping, headaches, and just generally weird symptoms. I’m wondering whether these could be side effects from stopping and restarting the pill/hormonal changes, or whether pregnancy is realistically a possibility. The only thing that made me think it could potentially be pregnancy is that I've never experienced side effects from the pill before.

I know it’s still too early for a pregnancy test to tell me anything about the intercourse that happened while I was off the pill. The previous time I had intercourse was about three weeks ago, and I’ve tested negative for pregnancy from those dates.

I could absolutely be getting in my head about this, especially because whenever I’ve mentioned these symptoms to doctors, one of the first things they ask is whether I’ve taken a pregnancy test. But wouldn’t it also be extremely early to already have pregnancy symptoms from intercourse that happened around August 5–6?

Has anyone experienced similar symptoms after stopping and restarting their birth control pills?

I’m 22F, generally healthy and fit. For the past week, I’ve suddenly been extremely bloated, to the point that my stomach feels painfully distended. I haven’t changed anything about my diet, exercise routine, or lifestyle that I can think of.

Along with the bloating, I’ve been having:
- Abdominal cramping/pain
- A lot of gas
- Nausea
- Headaches
- A general feeling that something is off

I went to a clinic, but they basically just confirmed that I was bloated, said they could hear movement in my stomach, and recommended Tums. They didn’t really ask me any questions about my menstrual cycle, birth control, bowel movements, etc., which left me feeling like it wasn’t really investigated.

I’m on birth control and normally don’t get a period. I did have some breakthrough bleeding recently. I took a home pregnancy test, and it was negative, so I don’t think I’m pregnant.

The bloating is the biggest concern because it’s much more severe than normal and actually hurts. It's been going on for about a week with no obvious explanation.

Has anyone experienced something similar? I’m not looking for a diagnosis from Reddit, but I’d especially appreciate hearing what ended up causing it for you or what kind of doctor/tests helped you figure it out.