Ashley Greene Says Doctors Gave Her Birth Control Instead Of Real Help

During a raw and honest conversation with Dr. Jolene Brighten on The Dr. Brighten Show , Greene opened up about the moment she realized the system that’s supposed to care for women doesn’t. "I was not concerned about my period or menstrual health in the slightest until I was in my 30s and got off hormonal birth control, " Greene shared. “And it was incredibly difficult because I then realized that, 'Oh, I have all of these symptoms that are being masked by birth control and now I have to figure out a way to fix them.'" Like so many women, Greene says she wasn’t given actual solutions, just pills . “When I go to my primary care doctor, no fault of their own, but like they don't know what to do with me and how to look at my body holistically.” Instead of being taken seriously, she says she was met with a laundry list of temporary fixes: “So I got, go on Accutane for your acne, go on SSRIs if you have mood swings or are feeling depressed one day.” It’s a story that’ll feel painfully familiar to anyone who’s ever been told to just “go on the pill” and stop complaining. Greene reached out to someone who would listen – Olivia, her Hummingway co-founder – and finally said what so many women don’t get to say out loud: “This is what's happening. Can we try and figure this out together because I'm frustrated and lost.” “I first said my biggest pain point is that my cramps are now starting to feel debilitating. So let's maybe figure out a way to treat those naturally.” This is exactly what she’s trying to do, not just for herself, but for the millions of women who’ve heard “everything looks normal” when their entire body is screaming that something’s off. Ashley Greene isn’t a gynecologist, nor is she a hormone specialist. She’s one of us – and she’s trying to make sense of a system that often doesn’t. The fact that doctors once handed her a stack of prescriptions without getting to the root of the problem is exactly why women are paying attention. Subscribe today to get unlimited access to all of Evie’s premium content.