When I was in college, I was taking Ortho Tri Cycle Lo and never had an adverse reaction to it. After being off of birth control for a few years, I have recently got back on it. I am starting my third month and am currently taking Microgestin 1.5/30 FE, i have never seen my skin this bad... even in high school! it is frustrating that at age 26, i am still struggling with acne! i feel like it is getting worse and worse, and I am not sure how long I should wait for my body to get adjusted to the hormones, or if it's about time that I call my doctor.
Hey everyone, just a little information blurb, in case no one else posted this:
The initial hormonal imbalances cause the acne (and in some cases, mood swings, etc.) but whether or not these are within normal changes are something you have to monitor very carefully (especially if depression worsens) but the one thing no one has mentioned is the difference between Ortho Tri-Cyclen and Yas is that Ortho is a tri-phasic pill, meaning it mimics the "natural" hormonal cycle of a woman, but also exacerbates it through the extra hormones put in the body. Yasmin is a monophasic pill, which, as it sounds, means you get a steady level of hormones in the body throughout the cycle.
That being said, I hate tri-phasics. My cycle was extremely easy to predict, from the acne on my face in the week before my period to the lack of coordination on days 14 through 28 (yes, I have a steady 28-day cycle, which should have made it easier...but didn't) to the wonderful high of clear skin, no water weight, and steady diet of the mid-cycle fertility period. With my body, tri-phasics simply exacerbated all of these. Yes, the mid-cycle highs were better -- except I still had acne scars from the last period -- but the end-cycle lows were much worse.
That being said, give it a few months unless you have life-threatening symptoms (in which I include severe depression) then try something else. Monophasic pills work better for some and tri-phasics work better for others. That's why we now have all these delightful choices to try. But don't jump ship prematurely -- there is an adjustment period (pun intended) for every hormonal birth control.
Good luck, everyone. Sorry the advice isn't better, but sometimes you have to play the wait-and-see game.
The initial hormonal imbalances cause the acne (and in some cases, mood swings, etc.) but whether or not these are within normal changes are something you have to monitor very carefully (especially if depression worsens) but the one thing no one has mentioned is the difference between Ortho Tri-Cyclen and Yas is that Ortho is a tri-phasic pill, meaning it mimics the "natural" hormonal cycle of a woman, but also exacerbates it through the extra hormones put in the body. Yasmin is a monophasic pill, which, as it sounds, means you get a steady level of hormones in the body throughout the cycle.
That being said, I hate tri-phasics. My cycle was extremely easy to predict, from the acne on my face in the week before my period to the lack of coordination on days 14 through 28 (yes, I have a steady 28-day cycle, which should have made it easier...but didn't) to the wonderful high of clear skin, no water weight, and steady diet of the mid-cycle fertility period. With my body, tri-phasics simply exacerbated all of these. Yes, the mid-cycle highs were better -- except I still had acne scars from the last period -- but the end-cycle lows were much worse.
That being said, give it a few months unless you have life-threatening symptoms (in which I include severe depression) then try something else. Monophasic pills work better for some and tri-phasics work better for others. That's why we now have all these delightful choices to try. But don't jump ship prematurely -- there is an adjustment period (pun intended) for every hormonal birth control.
Good luck, everyone. Sorry the advice isn't better, but sometimes you have to play the wait-and-see game.
I started taking pills because of painful cramps during my period. Before the pills I had never had any problems with acne (a couple of pimples would show up just before my period but they would go away as soon as I my period started).
Once I started the pills, I had horrible acne break outs in my face, neck and shoulders. They were very random - one day I would have the face completly full of pimples and the next day it would disappear to appear again the following day. Cramps were gone but the acne become increasingly worse.
My mood also changed and I got quite drepressed and start having panic attacks. I thought I should probably give it sometime and in the end of the 2nd month I started to have horrible headaches, lasting days at times so I called my doctor, who changed pills immediately. I started then taking Yasmin - headache was gone, cramps came back even though not as strong, and pimples continued to take over my face. People that knew me from a long time wonder whether I had allergies!
I lost patience in the end of my third month and stop the taking pills altogether - and now? after 3 weeks of having stopped the pills I continue to have a face full of pimples - yep, they did not go away and I am so upset about that because I have never had any problems with acne before.
I hope it is true what some say that break outs occur after stopping taking pills. Right now I feel like a cactus, washing my face 2 to 3 times a day to calm down my skin.
Once I started the pills, I had horrible acne break outs in my face, neck and shoulders. They were very random - one day I would have the face completly full of pimples and the next day it would disappear to appear again the following day. Cramps were gone but the acne become increasingly worse.
My mood also changed and I got quite drepressed and start having panic attacks. I thought I should probably give it sometime and in the end of the 2nd month I started to have horrible headaches, lasting days at times so I called my doctor, who changed pills immediately. I started then taking Yasmin - headache was gone, cramps came back even though not as strong, and pimples continued to take over my face. People that knew me from a long time wonder whether I had allergies!
I lost patience in the end of my third month and stop the taking pills altogether - and now? after 3 weeks of having stopped the pills I continue to have a face full of pimples - yep, they did not go away and I am so upset about that because I have never had any problems with acne before.
I hope it is true what some say that break outs occur after stopping taking pills. Right now I feel like a cactus, washing my face 2 to 3 times a day to calm down my skin.
You sound a lot like me. I'm 23 and have been on bcps for about 4 years (and I've just started my 4th brand). I started taking ortho tricyclen lo in college for both birth control and because I've always had very long periods. I took it for about 2.5 yrs and never really had many problems, except breakthrough bleeding in the first month or so. At this time, I was buying it through my school (because my parents wouldnt approve and it was very cheap). Then, ortho tricyclen lo became too expensive for the schools health center, so they started giving me a brand called ortho-cept, assuring me that it was extremely similar to ortho tricyclen. Of course, it wasn't true and I wouldn't stop bleeding for 3 weeks at a time for 3 months. I graduated school and then saw a gyno at home who told me that ortho cept was totally different than ortho tricyclen....and she prescribed ortho cyclen (monophasic version) to help control my problems with breakthrough bleeding. Everything was fine, no breakthrough bleeding on that. However, about 4 or 5 months in I developed this severe acne like i'd never seen before- many red bumps on the sides of my face and even some cysts. I found myself crying over it because I was so embarassed and I never had to deal with that before. I just recently attributed it to the bcp because I started noticing that my face would begin to clear up during the week of my period. I planned this month to talk to my gyno about switching, but I had already picked up my next pack of pills, so i decided to deal with it for one more month and then switch after my next set of inactive pills. BUT this past month my face exploded with really bad acne and after a week I got fed up and abruptly stopped taking them. For a couple of days, it seemed to clear up a bit....but then about 3 days after I stopped taking them, I started to bleed heavily (I had just had my period 2 weeks before) and my acne worsened again. I got a hold of my gyno and she said that when you stop taking the pills, you go through a period of withdrawl where your hormones are going a little crazy. She put me on Loestrin 24 fe, which I just started yesterday......in reviews a lot of people said it gave them acne, so im scared.....but a lot of reviews also said ortho cyclen cleared their acne......so maybe im just the opposite of most people....i guess we'll see
I'm going to be starting my 5th pack of Yaz this weekend, and my face looks terrible. I was on Tri-Sprintec for a year, and it was giving me random sore pimples - the kind that are huge and very painful (I was also on prescription benzoyl peroxide face wash and spot treatment and hated it. I would end up with bleach spots on towels and random clothes every few months). I also felt queasy every morning while on it. When I switched to Yaz my face broke out really bad (but no queasiness). I was covered in tiny pimples all over my nose and forehead and larger ones on my chin and cheeks. It's been getting better (nose and forehead pretty clear), but my chin and cheeks are frequently covered in pimples. They're painful and worse than they were when I was a teenager. I was thinking about asking my doctor about switching me to something else, but after reading though your replies I'm going to try to stick it out. It just sucks because the holidays are coming, and I would really love to spend Christmas Eve with my boyfriend's family ACNE-FREE. I'm crossing my fingers!!
For those taking Ortho Tricyclen or the generic Sprintec: my sister started taking Sprintec about the same time that I switch to Yaz. I think when she went away to school she had to start taking Ortho Tricyclen because the pharmacy there didn't have Sprintec available. I went to visit her about a month and a half ago and her face looked really good. She had one pimple on her forehead that had popped and was healing. The Ortho Tricyclen seems to have really agreed with her because she had mild acne before going on birth control, and it seems to have cleared right up. I'm not sure how during her first few packs, but she seems to have adjusted to it.
Anyway it's really nice to know that I'm not the only one experiencing this Yaz acne dilemma. I hope it clears up for all of us soon!
For those taking Ortho Tricyclen or the generic Sprintec: my sister started taking Sprintec about the same time that I switch to Yaz. I think when she went away to school she had to start taking Ortho Tricyclen because the pharmacy there didn't have Sprintec available. I went to visit her about a month and a half ago and her face looked really good. She had one pimple on her forehead that had popped and was healing. The Ortho Tricyclen seems to have really agreed with her because she had mild acne before going on birth control, and it seems to have cleared right up. I'm not sure how during her first few packs, but she seems to have adjusted to it.
Anyway it's really nice to know that I'm not the only one experiencing this Yaz acne dilemma. I hope it clears up for all of us soon!
I am on ortho-tryclen lo and am experiencing the same issues: mood swings and acne on my chin that is much worse than anything I've ever had. I went off it for about two months just to see if it helped at all. My acne got a little better and so did the mood swings. I'm gonna call my doc and see if she can suggest another pill. I'll let you know if she says anything worthwhile.
i started yaz begining of august and now i have horrible acne. acne conglobata. im debating quiting yaz because i believe the hormons in it are causing it.
Hi i am on the ortho tri cycle lo and my acne is horrible i been on it 3 months. I take off my make up every night and use a Clen and Clear Acne wash and its not helping at all! ugh
Ive been on the generic Tri-Lo Sprintec for 4 months until it was discontinued. The pharmacist switched me to the brand Ortho Tri-Cyclen LO and from the first day i started to break out. Im 3 weeks in and my face has been turned inside out. I have very large painful liquid oozing cystic acne all over my cheeks and its slowly making its way down my chin and up my temples. In addition, my lips have gotten so dry that it feels raw and painful when im eating, and im starting to lose my lip line. what a mess!! at the rate this is worsening I dont know how Im supposed to survive another 2.25 months letting my body "get used to it".
yeah i get sososoooooo moody and depressed and ive only been on it for a month
aaaaaaand im getting more pimples... :(but im sure itll get better though.
whats up with moodiness with bc
aaaaaaand im getting more pimples... :(but im sure itll get better though.
whats up with moodiness with bc
I am 29 years old and I had been on the pill since i was 16. I have had severe acne the entire time. I tried pretty much every remedy you have heard of and nothing worked to clear my acne ( with the exception of acupuncture). I finally decided to get off of the pill even though my dr. told me it should be helping. At that time I was on Ortho Tricyclen Lo. Within 2 weeks, half of my zits were gone. I then got on a prescription for spironolactone, which is used for high blood pressure but has the side effects of balancing hormones, and my face was almost completely clear. That lasted about 5 months. I recently got on Yaz to try and reduce the size of a painful ovarian cyst and now my face looks awful again! My recommendation would be to get off the birth control and try something with no hormones like an IUD which is what I did.
My teenager uses Niapads (for over a year). Apply when needed and stop when it is under control. Scientists at NY College of Medicine have shown that the active ingredient in Niapads (nicotinamide - also known as Niacinamide) is superior to antibiotics such as Clindamycin - with no side-effects. We buy them on Amazon.
I am on my third week of yaz and my face went to not having acne to having horrible painful acne all over my chin and face! After reading everyone's experience on this bc pill, I am getting off it right away! I am 23 yrs old and never had acne like this before. I have tried about five different pills bc I get bad migraines from all birth control pills. I think I am now convinced that birth control is NOT for everyone.
i started taking ortho tri cyclen lo 3 weeks ago for moderate acne and my face seems to be getting worse. its driving me crazy, ive already been to the point where i cant even look in the mirror without tearing up and now my face and my chest is breaking out more than before i started the pill.i'm 17 and have had acne since i was 12, Kepflex ( medication not bc) worked for me for about year, and this summer is when i started breaking out again and when my derm decided to put me on the pill. how long will the pill take to start working
i'm on that now, it took about two months or so and my breakouts cleared up.
but this is my fifth month and they've gotten waaaay bad again...
but this is my fifth month and they've gotten waaaay bad again...