The Pill: What works, what doesn't, why you should care - with Alexandra Pope: The Body Image Revolution, #1

By Sandra Ross

The Pill is the great revolutioniser of women's fertility. Or is it? In this interview-style ebook, Alexandra Pope explores the positives and negatives of The Pill, how it affects our personality, our energy, and ironically, our sex lives!

Then she talks about the deep power of the female cycle and how understanding what's happening in your body affects every part of your life - and how that understanding can help you know yourself more and improve every part of your life, whether you're using the Pill or not.

A powerful interview every woman needs to read! BONUS: Download the audio version of the interview, link for all the details inside your copy.

Belinda says: "I can’t believe this information isn’t more readily available, especially to doctors – how do we get it out there? I had been on the pill since teen years for acne. I was put on 2 pills for endometriosis and soon after diagnosed with depression – for four years I suffered with no doctors recognising the link! It was horrendous! I think it is important to be much more aware about the side affects. "

Ann Seeton says: "I’ve been struggling for some time now and until your talk I hadn’t realized how far I had come away from being aware of my cycle. I remember in the past flowing with the cycle and letting my natural rhythm guide me. But in the day to day rush, all patterned after what works for men, there is no recognition of this natural female cycle."

Deanna says: "This information truly is revolutionary. I especially was touched by the comments about our menstrual cycles being empowering. All too often women are taught to be submissive and not to embrace our inner power. Thank you for acknowledging this so that women everywhere can accept themselves for who God intended us to be!"

Ellen says: Alexandra, I am post menopausal too, but your descriptions of the parts of the cycle brought the very feelings of calm and strength that you described. I do feel a little at a loss that I can’t go back and enjoy that now. I didn’t know that was possible back then."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sandra Ross
• Release date: Sep 25, 2013
• ISBN: 9781502291721

Book preview

Introduction

D:\~Sandy Sites\bodyimagerevolution\images\alexandrapope.jpg (Sandy) Hello this is Sandy Ross from the Body Image Revolution, today we’re speaking with Alexandra Pope.

With Jane Bennett, Alexandra wrote a bestseller called ‘The Pill – is it for you?’

Alexandra is a women’s leadership coach, facilitator and counsellor, and for the last 25 years, she’s pioneered a ground breaking approach to women’s physical, psychological and spiritual well being based on our cycle, and on the journey from puberty to menopause.

Apart from running many public workshops, she’s also given lectures on workshops at naturopathic colleges and universities and hospitals, and community health centres and counselling organisations – and she’s also spoken at many conferences. She’s also produced a 13-session self-guided course called ‘The Woman’s Quest’ – which is a yearlong guide helping women unfold the intelligence and power of their cycle, and by the way The Wild Genie and The Woman’s Quest have also been translated into Italian.

Alexandra you’ve been quite busy the last 25 years! Welcome to the Body Image Revolution.

(Alexandra) Thank you so much Sandy, I’m really delighted to be here, to have this opportunity to talk about this work.

The Pill and Personality

(Sandy) Well people might be wondering why we’re talking about our cycle and periods, and the Pill, when the series is about body image. I heard you Alexandra, being interviewed on Australian ABC Radio National a couple of years ago and that really got me thinking about my own experience with using the Pill. I went on the Pill when I was 19 in 1980, I never even thought about using anything other than the Pill. It was only after I heard you that I thought about how I’d changed after I went on the Pill, and I didn’t realise it until I heard you speaking that I immediately put on weight and I think I started dipping in and out of depression for like the next 15 years until I went off the Pill permanently. Of course I went off it to have babies, but it wasn’t until I went off it that I realised how much I had changed while I was on it. That’s a common story isn’t it?

(Alexandra) It is indeed Sandy. The Pill has a lot to answer for. Now it’s a loaded topic this, so I need to tread carefully because the first thing I have to acknowledge is that it’s really, really important for women to have reliable contraception. When a woman has reliable contraception she feels so much more confident in herself.

But I and my co-author Jane do not think the Pill is either safe or ultimately reliable, and of course I urge to go and read the book, and in the book we talk about alternatives, because it’s important to have that. So I just wanted to state that very clearly.

Our problem today, is that the Pill is synonymous with contraception and so when we say the Pill is bad, women panic and think oh I can’t go back to bad old days – and you shouldn’t. But there are alternatives and we unfold that, so it’s very important for any woman who is hearing this who is on the Pill.

So yes the Pill does a number of things, but the keys things that I’m concerned about, and particularly with reference to this call, is that