I've heard that jawline acne on women is hormonal. I'm no expert by any means, but it sounds like the pill is really messing with your hormones. The irregular periods is not a good sign. Because BC pills do alter hormones, occasionally some can cause acne as well as prevent it.

I was on Yasmin for 2 years and it started screwing my periods up after a year; I had no sex drive either (which wasn't a big deal cuz I've also been single, haha) and I had small side efffects like tender breasts too. It never really helped my acne anyway, and I got the worst breakouts of my life when my periods went screwy. It could've been coincidence, but I went off it to be safe. My skin didn't clear up, but my periods went back to normal, and I was able to treat my acne successfully with topicals.

My advice would be to tell your doctor you don't want to be on the pill anymore and ask about alternative ways to control endometriosis. Since you can't get to your doctor though and have no insurance, you could try a women's clinic. When I was broke & in college and had no insurance I went to clinics for free to get birth control. Maybe they could give you an alternative prescription for your endometriosis. This site has some info on treatments for it. According to that, estrogen does aggravate it and some BC pills can treat it. However, it seems like there are other options too.

I don't know how serious endometriosis is, but if you could get an alternative treatment, then I'd suggest stopping the pill also. It seems to be causing you a lot of problems.

I took accutane 3 years ago. I'm still red so I have been taking Diane for 6 months now. Is that good cause my derm sais I shouldn't take accutane cause I don't have any new acne. SO did he put me on DIane. WHat's the difference?

Well, isn't accutane just intense vitamin A?

Diane 35 is the "heaviest" contraception pill around, as far as I know. It is often given to me women not for birth control but for skin and even things like excessive hair growth on body. It's a huge estrogen thing and made me very weepy and anxious. I mean, considering that I found out that I can barely bear any pill at all, it's horrible that I actually took Diane 35. It was actually after Diane 35 that my endometriosis-ovarian cyst came about.

I'm thinking - no wonder, endometriosis loves estrogen to grow, right?

Thank you so much, Siouxsie, I'll check those alternatives out.

I took accutane 3 years ago. I'm still red so I have been taking Diane for 6 months now. Is that good cause my derm sais I shouldn't take accutane cause I don't have any new acne. SO did he put me on DIane. WHat's the difference?

This is just my experience, but absolutely every BC pill I tried caused me to break out. I had little to no acne prior to starting the pill but after being on it a few years I developed jawline and cheek acne. It wasn't something that happened immediately but over the course of a few years. Once I stopped the pill, it got much better. My MD said that some people are very sensitive to hormones and I am one of those people:) Yay me:) Anyway , I hope you find out what is causing your break outs!! Good luck!

Yes, I was on Yasmin for six months last year and I broke out in horrible cystic pimples every single day. Now I only get cysts every once awhile. I mostly have papules, pustules and nodules and occassionally cystic pimples

Hi girls,

Thanks for your posts. At least I know now that some other people react strongly to BC pills, too. This is actually the second night I haven't taken mine, it feels a bit scary but I have the feeling my breast will burst if I don't, the tenderness is just so bad and I feel so tense. We'll see what happens. You know, I just sort of want to see what it'll feel like to feel like myself again, without popping any BC pills.

I'm a little scared about the endometriosis, but then again like I said, I sort of doubt that I REALLY have it anyway. Also, I've never had that pain problem that makes endo so bad for many patients. I've never had a problem in that regard.

Who knows, going off it just might make a huge change. And if not, then I know it's me and I'll go right back on it, right?

Hi,

 

I am a 28 year old female. Throughout my entire teenage years I had the clearest skin ever and only started having acne around age 23. That was also around the time I first went on the birth-control pill.

 

I had quite a few years of trying many different pills. I would stop in between because I reacted so horribly to them, mood swings, anxiety, depression. Diane 35 and Yaz were the absolute worst for me.

I only initially went on the pill because of birth control, but after a while my doctor gave them to me for skin problems, too. Apart from the fact that they didn't seem to do much for my skin, I couldn't stay on any pill because of the discomfort and anxiety. It turns out I can probably not take ANY birth control pill with estrogen.

 

For the past 3 years, I have been on a no-estrogen pill called Cerazette. It worked ok, not great. At least I did not go into complete mood swings. But I do feel my sex drive goes, and I often have breast tenderness and feel tense, and then I don't get my period for 6 months, and then 3 times in a month. this can't be good, right?

 

My forehead, nose, chin are clear. I only get jawline acne but it's quite bad. Why does it only occur there?

 

I really really feel like going off the pill altogether. I would have already, but two years ago I had an ovarian cyst that was taken out when they also discovered a mild endometriosis. Now, the pill I am on is supposed to keep the endometriosis from flaring up. I personally don't know whether to really believe that endometriosis stuff anymore. I have the feeling that that ovarian cyst/endometriosis only came about in the first place because of all that messing about with high estrogen pills. I remember once a few years ago in the middle of all that pill mess, I didn't get my period for ages for no reason and that's when the pinching from the cyst started, too.

 

The problem is I'm not insured right now and can;t really go see a doctor. Also, I'm from Europe and can't see my regular doctor now anyway.

 

Does anyone know about the pill and acne? Right now, I really just feel like throwing it out! then, I could also take St. John's wort again - great for milder anxiety and depression. I thought the St. John's wort was doing me good, but since it interacts with the pill (any birth control pill) I can't take it.

Hi,

 

I am a 28 year old female. Throughout my entire teenage years I had the clearest skin ever and only started having acne around age 23. That was also around the time I first went on the birth-control pill.

 

I had quite a few years of trying many different pills. I would stop in between because I reacted so horribly to them, mood swings, anxiety, depression. Diane 35 and Yaz were the absolute worst for me.

I only initially went on the pill because of birth control, but after a while my doctor gave them to me for skin problems, too. Apart from the fact that they didn't seem to do much for my skin, I couldn't stay on any pill because of the discomfort and anxiety. It turns out I can probably not take ANY birth control pill with estrogen.

 

For the past 3 years, I have been on a no-estrogen pill called Cerazette. It worked ok, not great. At least I did not go into complete mood swings. But I do feel my sex drive goes, and I often have breast tenderness and feel tense, and then I don't get my period for 6 months, and then 3 times in a month. this can't be good, right?

 

My forehead, nose, chin are clear. I only get jawline acne but it's quite bad. Why does it only occur there?

 

I really really feel like going off the pill altogether. I would have already, but two years ago I had an ovarian cyst that was taken out when they also discovered a mild endometriosis. Now, the pill I am on is supposed to keep the endometriosis from flaring up. I personally don't know whether to really believe that endometriosis stuff anymore. I have the feeling that that ovarian cyst/endometriosis only came about in the first place because of all that messing about with high estrogen pills. I remember once a few years ago in the middle of all that pill mess, I didn't get my period for ages for no reason and that's when the pinching from the cyst started, too.

 

The problem is I'm not insured right now and can;t really go see a doctor. Also, I'm from Europe and can't see my regular doctor now anyway.

 

Does anyone know about the pill and acne? Right now, I really just feel like throwing it out! then, I could also take St. John's wort again - great for milder anxiety and depression. I thought the St. John's wort was doing me good, but since it interacts with the pill (any birth control pill) I can't take it.

I used to break out mainly on my chin and jawline and I was told that it was because of my hormones. I started taking Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo in June '07, and it took about three months to start working. Now I don't break out at all on my chin or jawline, and only get the occasional pimple on my cheeks. Maybe those other BCs you tried were just way too strong. I also use benzoyl peroxide and that works wonders too.

I know you'll find a solution!

oh wow i never knew about this jaw-line acne = hormonal thing. i went on diane 35 and celeste pills, both made me break out horribly. i also had the worst acne on my jaw so seems there was definitely a link

Now that is strange, I break out when I go OFF of the pill! I am on TriSprintec (the generic version of Ortho Try Cylcen) and everytime I go off the pill i break out, and when I go back on it, i stop breaking out. Do you think you need to change pills?

BCP's helped clear up my skin but aggravated my depression, so yeah, it's all complicated. I'm Catholic, though, and have been using Natural Family Planning since getting married. Clearing up my skin after birth control was definitely an adventure. As far as the endometriosis goes, it depends on whether or not you can live with the pain and bleeding as opposed to the side effects of the pill. Endometriosis can also affect your fertility. There are other treatments for endometriosis, but they're often surgical and your OB-Gyn may be understandably hesitant to throw out the BCP's for more drastic treatment. Definitely find a way to contact your doctor with your concerns, be that with a phone call or e-mail or whatever. If the side effects are absolutely intolerable, there shouldn't be too much harm in going off your pill on your own, as long as you don't get anemic and as long as you have another means of preventing pregnancy. (I really, really hate telling people to quit meds without talking to their doctor first, though.) Pay attention to your mood, too, and seek help if being on the meds or off them causes severe mood disturbances.

I take the mini pill for birth control and have endo and it is hard to say if artificial hormones even really treat endo at all or make it worse. I've tried depo shot, combo pills and so far the mini pill is the best but still not perfect. The pill only helps suppress the pain, endo is still there and needs an excision specialist to perform surgery and remove. Unfortunately there are not many specialists out there compared to doctors who don't understand endometriosis and insurance doesn't always cover the specialists. So many women stay on the pill to dull the pain and avoid surgery. But if you aren't in pain, its probably safe to stop taking it and see what happens and go back on if you do experience pain. Endo is a terrible disease with no cure and limited treatment options and many doctors don't believe you (because only the big cysts show up on scans not small hidden adhesions). You could still have it without pain but the only way to confirm is a lap. Surgery which isn't worth it just for a diagnosis. My general philosophy is try to find out what works for you for relif of whatever symtpoms and take doctors advice with a grain of salt, because they don't know everything and they don't have to live in your body.