I hate subscriptions and dark patterns and the like as much as anyone, but I am not sure putting a six-month pause on your subscription and getting billed in month 7 is “out of the blue.”
And it’s not the best customer service if you can’t cancel something that’s already shipping to you. But it’s also not outrageous. You could always chargeback if you don’t mind them backlisting you.
WTF? Why offer a "pause" on your subscription at all? The only reason to do that is to trick customers. If the company was honest, they'd get confirmation before resuming the subscription.
I hate that companies use sleazy practices like this all the time, and then people are like "well it's your fault for not reading the fine print".
Pausing unlocks bulk pricing for customers taking meds as-needed (ED pills etc.). I'm not sure about Hims pricing since they require a questionare/login, but similar sites offer a sizable discount for larger quantities, and then it's just pause/unpause as needed.