So I was first put on Alesse, after my third month it finally started to decrease the severity of my acne - however it made my period SO bad so I was prescribed Triquilar. This has done absolutely NOTHING good for my skin so far. I'm on the third month now and I really just want to stop and not even finish the pack.
I'm thinking of going on Ortho Tri-Cyclen as my last resort before I see a derm. Is it smart to just go off the pill? Or should I finish the pack even though I literally have a new zit everyday and see no difference whatsoever.
Have any of you stopped your bc and seen a difference?
Well, if your acne is caused by hormonal issues, Triquillar is the worst pill you could try, since it contains levonorgestrel, which is a VERY high androgenic progestin.
Ortho Tri-Cyclen, on the other hand, contains nogestimate, which is low androgenic and good for oily skin. I think you should give it a try and just forget about Triquillar (I wouldn't even finish the pack, really). Just give it about 3 or 4 months onOrtho Tri-Cyclen and your pimples should dissapear.
Good luck!
Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo is what I was on, in conjunction with spirnolactone and I was 95% clear for two years. Recently went off both as my husband and I are trying for a baby, and the cystic lesions have started to return... currently looking for new methods to clear my skin. And I am also getting my hormones tested -- which I advise everyone and anyone to do, especially if you are a 20+ years old and a female.
They always say give a new pill 3 months to work before changing -- unless your symptoms/side effects are really badly affecting you (stopping you from
living life), but every doctor and medical journal I've read or researched says it can take up to 6 months to really see the full effect of how much a pill will help or not.
A lot on this forum here seem to hate on Alesse and other EE & levonorgestrel combination pills due to levornogesterel having a reputation for high andronocity, but the key to it all (and it's sucky to hear this) is you just don't know how it's going to work until you try. Everyone's body is different.
In the US, the pills that are FDA approved for acne are Ortho-Tri-Cylcline, Estrostep, and Yaz. Also, Yaz is usually recommended for PMDD symtomatic women: however, my personal experience on Yaz, Yasmin, etc was horrible, first time in all years of my life both on and off birth control that I ever experienced acne...and it was bad for me.
I was on alesse and levora (same hormones, different amounts) and both worked amazing for me. Never had acne issues or period issues (some light spotting on Alesse, so that's how I ended up on the higher blend Levora) but it was all amazing for my skin and usually very manageable period wise for me!
Here's other snippet from research I've done, Health Canada recommends Alesse or Ortho-Tri-Cycline for acne. So again, it all depends on your body.
Only thing I don't understand is, when I had some spotting start happening after being on Alesse for a little while (maybe 2 years) my doctor just bumped me up to Levora -- same hormones as Alesse but a little higher dose and that was all it took to help with my periods. But maybe you're symptoms were worse or different than mine?