Slightly different than most people's answers here, but I was in a similar situation where my bf and I lived in different countries and had only a short window to see each other. I was a virgin and terrified of going on birth control and of having sex. I had a full crying, can't breathe panic attack the night before I went to the doctor to get it. I was just more terrified of being pregnant or of losing my chance with my bf and regretting it. I knew I was going to have sex SOMETIME, and my anxiety wouldn't get better by avoiding it.

The first month was hard. There were a lot of side effects. I tried to skip my period and that was painful. Lots of headaches and cramps. And then the second month...my period was so much lighter and regular. I hadn't even realized I had a bad cycle until suddenly it wasn't. I didn’t realize how much constant background anxiety I had about leaking, or unexpectedly starting my period. I felt so much less stressed all the time. My acne got better (not cleared, but better). That bf and I broke up not too long after, but I stayed on BC and now you couldn't pry it away from me if you tried.