45 replies to this topic

[AcneSlayer]

I've been off the pill April 2010 after being on it for 3+ years...........I had no major breakouts coming off, and no major breakouts to this day.........I get a few spots every now and then, but nothing I can't handle (they come mostly around my period)..........sometimes my face is crystal clear, just depends. I use no acne medication (skin is too sensitive for that)...........I wash twice daily with Cetaphil and moisturize twice daily with Avene.
Good luck!

Did you have acne before starting the pill, though?

[lindsayb1]

I've been off the pill April 2010 after being on it for 3+ years...........I had no major breakouts coming off, and no major breakouts to this day.........I get a few spots every now and then, but nothing I can't handle (they come mostly around my period)..........sometimes my face is crystal clear, just depends. I use no acne medication (skin is too sensitive for that)...........I wash twice daily with Cetaphil and moisturize twice daily with Avene.
Good luck!

Did you have acne before starting the pill, though?

That is WONDERFUL news!!! That gives all of us hope!!!
I will look into Avene moisturizer too =)

[Jessicauofw]

I've been off the pill April 2010 after being on it for 3+ years...........I had no major breakouts coming off, and no major breakouts to this day.........I get a few spots every now and then, but nothing I can't handle (they come mostly around my period)..........sometimes my face is crystal clear, just depends. I use no acne medication (skin is too sensitive for that)...........I wash twice daily with Cetaphil and moisturize twice daily with Avene.
Good luck!

Did you have acne before starting the pill, though?

Not really no.....it's kinda weird, during my teenage years I had perfectly clear skin..........I started breaking out at age 21, not sure why could've been a shift in hormones or University stress.....I got on Ortho and my skin stayed clear, then broke out a bit.......I was tired of being on the pill so I got off.....and haven't had a problem since being off April 2010 and it's now March 2011. Around my period I might get 1 or 2 spots......Because it's winter and i have really dry skin I only wash my face once a day and moisturize with Avene.....I do not wear make up, ever.....just clogs pores.....and ya, that's about it. Let me know if you have any more questions

[Jessicauofw]

I've been off the pill April 2010 after being on it for 3+ years...........I had no major breakouts coming off, and no major breakouts to this day.........I get a few spots every now and then, but nothing I can't handle (they come mostly around my period)..........sometimes my face is crystal clear, just depends. I use no acne medication (skin is too sensitive for that)...........I wash twice daily with Cetaphil and moisturize twice daily with Avene.
Good luck!

Did you have acne before starting the pill, though?

That is WONDERFUL news!!! That gives all of us hope!!!
I will look into Avene moisturizer too =)

It's great stuff.....they have it for all different skin types too, although pretty expensive. I think for my tiny tube of moisturizer it's about $40

[jdtravis]

I am planning to go off of bcp's after being on them for 11 years. I am 25 and still have moderately bad acne even though I am on the pill. I am going to try weaning myself off, this seems to be a logical answer to this issue.
Can someone else post if they have recently begun the weaning process and what has occurred? Also, how have sex drives and weight been affected? I am stopping bcp's mainly because tehy are doing no real good for my skin and my sex drive is super low. I am terrified to return to the acne I had before though, it is still bad--but manageable..
Linsayb1: Did you take those supplements during the bcp weaning process???

thanks
jdt

[jdtravis]

lindsayb1, did you tell your dermatologist first that you were gonna wean off of the bcp?? did your dr say weaning off would be helpful? cause i might tell my dermatologist that i wanna try weaning off the bcp eventually

hello,

no, i did not tell my dermatologist i weaned off it. i just figured that rather than going cold turkey which would put my body at a shock without all those hormones from the pill, i would gradually allow my body to adjust to the lowered dosage.

Honestly- so far, with the help of the supplements i am taking, it has been a godsend. Yes, i get 1 or 2 pimples occassionally but never any full blown cysts as I had before when I was off the pill cold turkey 4 years ago.

you have to be patient when weaning off as that was what i did for at least 6 months, so my body did not depend on the bcp any more.

good luck!

I am planning to go off of bcp's after being on them for 11 years. I am 25 and still have moderately bad acne even though I am on the pill. I am going to try weaning myself off, this seems to be a logical answer to this issue.
Can someone else post if they have recently begun the weaning process and what has occurred? Also, how have sex drives and weight been affected? I am stopping bcp's mainly because tehy are doing no real good for my skin and my sex drive is super low. I am terrified to return to the acne I had before though, it is still bad--but manageable..
Linsayb1: Did you take those supplements during the bcp weaning process??? Did you notice spotting or other issues when weaning?

thanks
jdt

[l'eremita]

I've been trying to read about weaning off the pill and I read somewhere that it might be dangerous to cut the pills because they are coated, and when you cut them, you are exposing your body to the pill uncoated. Has anyone heard anything from their doctor about cutting the pills?

[lindsayb1]

I've been trying to read about weaning off the pill and I read somewhere that it might be dangerous to cut the pills because they are coated, and when you cut them, you are exposing your body to the pill uncoated. Has anyone heard anything from their doctor about cutting the pills?

hmmm.... my bcp were not coated so i had no issues.

today is week 17 that i am off the pills and so far, i got 1 small pimple on my eyebrow area..but it beats having cysts!

i didn't get my period yet... i'm about 2 weeks late so we'll see...

[l'eremita]

hmmm.... my bcp were not coated so i had no issues.

today is week 17 that i am off the pills and so far, i got 1 small pimple on my eyebrow area..but it beats having cysts!

i didn't get my period yet... i'm about 2 weeks late so we'll see...

Congratulations on your success! I'll take late periods and small breakouts to being on this stupid pill. I'm almost done my current pack of Yaz and then the next pack, I'm going to start cutting them up. I still don't have resolution on the issue of the pill being coated and any dangers, but...I'm really anxious to start the weaning process.

[l'eremita]

Oh lindsayb1, just to clarify, you didn't start your supplement regiment until after you had completely weaned yourself off and were not taking any pills any more, correct?

[lindsayb1]

Oh lindsayb1, just to clarify, you didn't start your supplement regiment until after you had completely weaned yourself off and were not taking any pills any more, correct?

You're exactly right! I started taking the herbal supplements AFTER i quit BCP. But at that point, i was weaning off the pill for a good 6 months so my dosage was less than a quarter from the original amount. Tomorrow is week 18 that i am off the pill and so far, i am amazed that i had no major cysts YET.

but no period yet.. still.. so now i know my period skipped this month. Hopefully i will get it soon.Good luck!

Edited by lindsayb1, 30 March 2011 - 03:30 PM.

[brenmc]

Hi lindsay,

Regarding your last post, I'm curious why you started the supplements if you had no major breakouts during the weaning process? I am currently weaning off diane 35 and still deciding whether I should commit to the supplement routine or not. I'm a few months in and down to half a pill. )

[l'eremita]

Well, I talked to my GP about weaning off the pill - she said there was no reason why she thought it would work in terms of keeping acne at bay, but she said it wouldn't harm me either. So come Tuesday, I will start taking only 3/4 of a pill. Hopefully I won't have too many issues cutting them up.

@brenmc, how is your weaning going?

[brenmc]

lindsay, what brand of vitex do you take? what dosage? l'eremita, it's going ok, I have a bit of redness today but no cysts. I'm down to half a pill after 3 months.

[lindsayb1]

lindsay, what brand of vitex do you take? what dosage? l'eremita, it's going ok, I have a bit of redness today but no cysts. I'm down to half a pill after 3 months.

Oh wow!!! At least no cysts!! Perhaps weaning off does help! As for me, i get occasional breakouts too but NOTHING compared to the first time I got off the pill.

This month, i completely skipped my period which sucks but I'm thinking its because the hormones are trying to get balanced.

I take Nature's Source Vitex ... you should buy it from Lucky Vitamin online.. it's like 30% cheaper.

Please remember to wean off slowly.. it took me a good 6 months too! And hopefully, if you have had success this route, you can help the other girls who are trying to get off the pill to try it this way.

Good luck!

[lindsayb1]

Hi lindsay,

Regarding your last post, I'm curious why you started the supplements if you had no major breakouts during the weaning process? I am currently weaning off diane 35 and still deciding whether I should commit to the supplement routine or not. I'm a few months in and down to half a pill. )

Hi,

I started taking supplements because the first time i got off the pill, i had MAJOR MAJOR breakouts on my face, back, everywhere! It were all cysts and till this day, i have pockmarks from it.

I've done research and while my weaning of my pill, they said the vitex and dong quai would help my hormones regulate. (i always had a hard time with my period) WHen I was weaning off, I noticed my periods wern't coming and only lasting one day... the supplements helped me keep regular for 2 months..although now i've skipped it.but good luck and right now, i think i'm on week 17 or week 18... and no cysts yet!!!

[chunkylard]

I'd recommend some of you check this blog out and read the entry about people getting acne AFTER coming off Birth Control.

http://www.thelovevi...h-control-pill/

[bananab]

Hi Lindsay,

Did you have any breakthrough bleeding or weird cycles while you went through this process? I am in a similar situation to you, been on birth control for over ten years, dying to go off, but I've finally gotten my acne under control and I'm worried about breaking out after going off of birth control. I'd like to try weaning, but I know that if I've ever missed a few pills I've ended up having really weird bleeding - breakthrough bleeding during my cycle or a very long period. I'm afraid that if I tried to wean the same thing would happen!

Did you experience this??

[lindsayb1]

Hi lindsay,

Regarding your last post, I'm curious why you started the supplements if you had no major breakouts during the weaning process? I am currently weaning off diane 35 and still deciding whether I should commit to the supplement routine or not. I'm a few months in and down to half a pill. )

actually, i didn't have major breakouts during the weaning process because i probably had the bcp hormones in me. I do remember when i got off the pill the FIRST time, for the first month, i was CLEAR. then after a month, i had MAJOR cysts. that's why i got on the supplements. to make sure i was properly getting my body on track. one thing that sucks is that i haven't had my period in 4 months though!

[lindsayb1]

Hi Lindsay,

Did you have any breakthrough bleeding or weird cycles while you went through this process? I am in a similar situation to you, been on birth control for over ten years, dying to go off, but I've finally gotten my acne under control and I'm worried about breaking out after going off of birth control. I'd like to try weaning, but I know that if I've ever missed a few pills I've ended up having really weird bleeding - breakthrough bleeding during my cycle or a very long period. I'm afraid that if I tried to wean the same thing would happen!

Did you experience this??

Hi, actually, my periods have stopped But i've always had this problem and I think i might have PCOS. The only time i remember getting break through bleeding was when i STARTED the pills more than 10 years ago... never since.

Good luck with your weaning process!