Apri birth control pill

I am almost into my 2nd week of taking Apri.  It was prescribed to me for cysts on my ovaries and painful periods.  I haven't been on birth control for like10 years.  Since I have started taking Apri I have been very emotional and very moody.  Sad and hardly any energy.  My back has been hurting and my neck is sore.  I feel bloated and just overall uncomfortable in my own skin.  My eyes get dry and I almost feel like my vision has changed.  My left leg feels heavy and numb at times.....like it's swollen but it doesnt look swollen.  I am very concerned but I am not sure if I should stop taking it.  It's only been close to 2 weeks since I have been on the pill so I dont know if I need to give my body more time to adjust or what.  Does anyone else out there feel like this?

I feel the same way while taking this! Im always so moody and anxious and have irrational thoughts. I want to go back to the fun and outgoing person I used to be before taking this pill and I feel as though it is ruining my life

I have always had a steady weight of 125/130 and over the last 8 months taking Apri I have gained almost 15 pounds. I still exercise and eat the same and it is almost IMPOSSIBLE to get rid of the weight. 

did yu get yur period the day or a few days later after finishing yur third pack... i have all the same symptoms yur talking about and it sucks ive been flipping out for a week now wondering when im gunna get my rag .. i just finished my last red pill in my third package and idk when im suposed to expect my period because my second pack i was on my rag for almost 3 weeks 2 days short and so imma lil freaked out HELP sincerly haley

after taking yur second pack how long did yur period i have the same sypmtoms and i just finished my second pack today and and my first pack i was on my rag for almost 3 weeks

I have PCOS (poly-cystic ovarian syndrome) and was on Yasmin for years with no complaints. I recently became unemployed so I had to make the switch to a generic BC. First on the list in my price range was Apri. I called my doctor and she approved of me taking this pill.

I am only on my second week of pills but I too am experiencing anxious and irrational thoughts. This is very abnormal for me-- I am usually a calm, logical person but recently have noticed a couple of 'episodes' of high anxiety and/or depression. I can't blame it all on the pill because I do know that being unemployed in itself is highly stressful. Sex drive is down too.

I have also noticed diarrhea all week which could be attributed to my diet, but I feel as though I have been eating normally. Will try to monitor this more in the coming weeks. The worst symptom for me, however, has been nausea. It got so bad this past week that I assumed I was pregnant and experiencing morning sickness (which I have experienced in my past pregnancy). But alas, pregnancy test came back negative.

Again, I have only been using this brand for a couple of weeks but I am definitely going to pay attention to these side effects. As with most pills, it will take the body several months to adjust to the change/new brand. It does bring a peace of mind to read that some are going through the exact same thing. I certainly am not going to carry on with the nausea and mood swings if they persist.

Just wanted to write that I am in the same boat!

Also, I did experience dryness in my eyes. I wear contacts and at first I thought maybe I just needed to throw the pair I had been wearing in the trash. I did and put in fresh lenses and still experience dryness and irritation.

I have been using Marvelon for 15 years now. My drug coverage changed and they gave me Apri as I can only get generic brand. There were some terrible side affects for me....My period never stopped for 3 weeks. I dont care waht they say about them being the same , they are mad. SO I thought ill try them for the 3 months and basically I was on my period 90% of that time. So I told the doctor and he now puts no subtitutions on my prescription. I started the marvelon again and everything is perfect! So Like I said , they are not the same!

I was on Marvelon for about 12 years, and was switched to Apri due to my drug plan's rules. I was on it about 3 years in total. I was always curious if it was responsible for my weight gain (about 30 lbs) but dismissed it, trusting all the literature supporting that generics are the same as brand names, and blamed myself.

Then a year ago my pharmacy was out of Apri when I went for my refill so they gave me a 3 month supply of Marvelon. I started to lose weight. In addition, other things began to clear up, things that I had not associated with the Apri: night sweats almost nightly, depressed mood, vaginal dryness, frequent urination. I was 37 and had been thinking maybe I was experiencing some pre-menopause! While on Apri I also developed an inability to wear contacts, any brand, after wearing them very, very sucessfully for 10 years. I did not know that is a known side effect of Apri. I'll never know if that particular symptom has improved since being back on Marvelon because I ended up getting Lasik [an expensive alternative to my contacts problem, but no regrets :)]. I couldn't believe it when I woke up one morning (after about 1 month of Marvelon) having slept through the night without waking to pee. I continued to lose weight, and lost the entire 30 lbs fairly "easily", meaning I WAS making an effort to lose weight, but this time it was working, finally, and without the same cravings pulling me off the wagon. I had better self-control. Weight loss is never easy, but it was easiER than my previous efforts, and I believe it was because my hormones were finally not working against me.

I had never mentioned any of these symptoms to my Dr (again because I had read the literature) but when I mentioned the positive changes since the pharmacy had given me the Marvelon, she agreed to write me a "no substitutes" prescription for Marvelon, and I'm still feeling great a year later.

If my story only was about weight gain/loss, I would still believe that Apri is the same as Marvelon, and that the weight gain was my fault. But I can't ignore that the other problems are the same things menopausal women complain about, problems caused by hormones, problems that disappeared reasonably soon after discontinuing Apri. And that's why I've added my story to this thread, so maybe someone else with similar problems will read it and end their Apri misery sooner than I did.

Me too. I started it almost 2 wks ago & yesterday, took myself to a mental health dr because I was having thoughts of suicide.

I am so glad I found this site!

A friend of mine in the Public health field told me never to take the generic brands since they are not as closely regulated.  My pharmacy didn't bother to read my prescription and see that it didn't allow for Marvelon to be substituted and gave me Apri.  I have not taken it yet and will be filing a complaint for their incompetency.  I am LIVID.  Thanks ladies for saving me the apparent pain of trying Apri.  

2012 2013 pills were found to have some packages of all sugar pills.

I had been on apri for about 6 month and in between then and now i have stopped taking the apri because i have acid reflux now i have never had heartburn or ingestion on any other pill but on this i got chest pains a lot of the time and i also had severe cramping and the reason for being on my bc was for cramping also to insure no kids for me i had all of a sudden at the fourth month of taking apri lost my sex drive and i have been off for two months now still not returned to normal also while i was on the apri i was severely depressed when i got my period and i always felt like chit i bruised way to easily i started to form axiety also being on the pill i have axiety still and before but worsen by the birthcontrol i have never felt like such poop in my whole life but now being off it for two month my acid reflux has gone down and i dont have to take pill for that but still get heartburn once a day and i have no chest pain now i feel better but i miss having sex and i want to but i have ligit no libido to bring myself to have sex with my boyfriend of five years i am starting to worry he might pull away because i feel like me and him do not bond like anymore i dont no what i can do it also does not help i am super stressed.

I also never had indigestion problem at alll

I've been on Apri for a month, I used to get horrible mood swings the week before and really heavy and painful periods. After taking Apri I had the lighest period I've in my life and no mood swings. So far it's been wonderful. 

The only thing though that I had experienced my first week on the pill was fatigue. I got extremely tired during the middle of the day. That only lasted a week or two though. Other than that I've had no other side effects.