Oral Contraceptive
Efficacy
63%
Based on All Available Studies
Strength of Evidence
Note: Improvement significantly increases after 24 weeks.
Oral Contraceptive
Acne.org’s Real World Take
All oral contraceptives appear to clear the skin about the same amount. Some people report cessation of acne symptoms and others see partial relief. However, messing with hormones is messing with hormones and it’s best to proceed with caution. But if you’re looking to take the birth control pill anyway, one of the benefits is clearer skin.
Oral Contraceptive
How to Get It
Have a dermatologist? Make an appointment to get this medication. Don't have a dermatologist? See The American Academy of Dermatology Physician Database to find one.
Used Norgestimate (Ortho Tri-Cyclen®)? Rate It:
Choose from 1 to 5 stars
July 9, 2014
Wish I could give it no stars..
I promise you when I say this birth control seriously messed up my face, not to mention my self esteem and self confidence. I have never written a review for ANY product, love or hate. This is my first review and I feel it is totally necessary that I warn some of you. I realize this BC might work for some, including my roommate, but it definitely didn't work for me. I started OTC because i was getting a few breakouts here and there and my roomie went on OTC-lo and got cleared up right away, so why not try it? My doc told me OTC-lo isn't the best recommendation, so she suggested OTC.. First month, a few more pimples here and there.. no biggie, researched the product a lot in hopes to find some good reviews saying how in a few more months it will get better... I'll just fast forward to the 4 month mark... O M G... my acne went from bad to worse. I have never had forehead or jaw acne before and it looked like I had been bitten by a million mosquitos. Im not joking when I say I counted 20 zits on my face at once. I stopped going out to the gym when my roomies would ask, I stayed in my room most of the time, I couldn't even run outside in my neighborhood without feeling self conscious. I went into hibernation mode and definitely lost a few friends because of the no contact. After/during those 4 torturous months, I did my research not only online but into my past and when my skin was the clearest. I realized I was the clearest I have ever been on a mono phasic pill called Previfem (generic version of Ortho Cyclen.) I quickly/hesitantly switched back to Previfem and voila... my skin is almost back to the way it was.... but now I have a bunch of scars to remind me of the literal hell I was in for 4 months. I'm telling you people, be careful with this BC... It not only messed up my face but gave me headaches every day and made me extremely lethargic. Save your time and your money... Monophasic pills are the way to go.
June 18, 2014
Happy Happy Happy on Ortho Cyclen! :)
This is actually a review for ortho cyclen, not ortho tri cyclen. It's the same hormones, it just does vary throughout the month. I'm so happy being on ortho cyclen. I have been on many other pills, and this is the first to make a difference to my acne. The first week, I broke out. Big ugly bumps all over my problem areas (chin and between eyebrows). Then, after the initial breakout, for the next two months my acne was the same as it had always been and I didn't notice a big difference. The usual big white heads mixed with lots of closed comedones. The medi spa I go to sometimes gave me a sample of a benzoyl peroxide cream, and I used it on my problem areas where the skin was really congested. I think this helped to speed up the process. It brought my closed comedones to a head and made my acne flare up horribly! But then ... magic! I feel as if the benzoyl peroxide helped to speed up the process of the ortho cyclen clearing my skin. Now, my skin is almost completely clear. My acne is so small it is very easily covered with a bit of foundation. So, although my skin is not yet perfectly clear, the ortho cyclen has minimized my acne so much I feel very comfortable and confident that it will all clear up soon. Plus, my periods are not heavy or painful. I am not nearly as dizzy and icky feeling on my periods as I used to be. My skin looks noticeably less congested and is not sore like it used to be.
January 24, 2014
Not to sure...
Cons:
Mood swings
headaches
acne in sunlight
This was my first birth control. I'm 23 years old now, I was 18 when i started and stopped after a year or half a year. I can't remember. But I do remember this birth control was good because it stopped my acne on my face right away from starting it, it didn't get me pregnant. Great right? Wrong. In the summer time, I started to get acne all over my back and chest, even my face. but very very small pimples and only when I was in direct sunlight. (Swimming, even with or without sunscreen. walking outside.) It was like my skin couldn't breathe! so all these mini pimples would scatter all over my chest and back. my face had larger ones and I would have horrible headaches and cramps when my period came. I also was very bitchy. so angry about nothing, then emotional when my period was about to start.(for example. i'll be pissed off and rage and then about an hour later i'll start to cry. then the next day my period would start) it didn't make my vagina dry though. so In the winter time I didn't get acne (the mini ones that would scatter all over my chest and back like in the summer time). I recommending because it helped only in the winter times because the sun didn't affect me as badly as it did in the summer times. I guess because my skin wasn't exposed.
January 11, 2014
Fair
Pros:
No weight gain
Cheap(er)
Cons:
Difficult to lose weight on
Initial breakout
Migraines, moodiness
I took this medication for two months. The initial breakout left me feeling miserable; I had painful cystic acne all over my chin. I also got terrible headaches, and was a moody all the time. I think my acne is finally starting to clear up a bit but I don't know if it's because the medication is actually helping or if my initial breakout is just ending. This is not the pill for me at all.
January 2, 2014
So glad I went on this!!
Pros:
Cleared me up in a week
No pregnancy (plus if you're in a relationship)
Bigger boobs
Cons:
Nausea
Sore/Tender breasts
I've been on this pill for almost a week and 80% of my acne has cleared up and I am so glad I decided to go on the pill. I needed birth control anyways because I am in a serious relationship, but a few years ago I went on Accutane and unfortunately after about a year and a half of being off of it, my acne started to return and that's when my dermatologist recommended that I try birth control because it may be hormonal acne. I didn't actually try birth control about until almost two years later and I have to say, it's done wonders for me so far. Only negative effects I've been dealing with are nausea and sore boobs, but either than that, I really think it's worth a try, especially if your acne gets worse around your period which is a good indicator that you have hormonal acne. Of course everyone's different but because this pill is indicated for acne, I think that if you've tried absolutely everything, this is another option. *****UPDATE***** Alright so I feel like it's time to write an update, I've been on this pill for 8 months now and my rating of 4 stars won't change. So I feel like it has helped with my acne, making it very moderate, a few zits here and there, no miracle though. For me the first row of pills seems to clear me up and then the next two breaks me out a bit, and then the sugar pills are just neutral. So it has helped with my acne, but only slightly. One thing though is that my skin is now pretty soft, tolerant to acne face washed, doesn't dry out anymore, I'm not sure if that's because I don't use anything on my face now and just wash it with a salicylic acid wash, but yep, nothing to really complain about. All those symptoms I've experienced in the first month are now long gone, so that's a plus! So I still recommend this because again, it will most likely help with breakouts, but don't expect a miracle, so any relive you're looking for you might get it with this BC.
December 24, 2013
:(
Pros:
Works for a whole
Cons:
Nausea
Mood swings
Acne worsens
I've been on ortho tri cyclen for 5 months now, and for the first 4 months it really cleared up my skin, better than it's been in years! But this month my skin has broken out worse than ever before. Plus I have naturally dry skin so when it breaks out and I try to treat it, it dries out too and looks disgusting. On top of that I've been nauseous and had crazy mood swings. I've been trying to stay positive, but I can't decide if I want to quit the pill or switch to another one.
December 24, 2013
Worst Initial Breakout EVER! Best skin after 6 months.
Pros:
Improves tone, texture, and firmness of skin.
Clears skin
Easy to take
Cons:
Worst IB EVER!
I switched to OTC after Yaz stopped working as well. I experienced the WORST initial break out of my life in the first two months. I never thought my skin could get that bad, but it did! I even took pictures of the acne to chart how bad it was. Slowly over 6 months I started to clear up and, now, I have probably the best skin I have had in a year. Everything is clear, save one or two small spots a month. I'll take those small spots over the cystic acne I had even before the OTC. I still have a lot of red marks left over from the initial breakout, which are clearing slowly. One good thing, the tone and texture of my skin has improved greatly. So has the firmness. I never thought I would have skin this bad, but I do and the OTC has helped. UPDATE: I am still on this BC and my acne is pretty much non-existent now. I have the best skin of my adulthood. This stuff is great!
November 25, 2013
This worked for my cystic acne!
Pros:
Results almost immediately!
cleared painful, cystic acne
no bad side effects so far (2 months in)
Cons:
Slight weight gain (5 pounds?)
I never write these reviews for things but have to for this because after much hesitation I went on Ortho-Tri Cyclen for my cystic acne and it has been the only thing that's cured in in 4+ years of trying! Like many women i was hesitant to try the pill for acne because of weight gain/other side effects' well, i have been on it for a little over a month and a half now and i saw results immediately and they have steadily improved since then. Now the only thing left on my face is really bad acne scarring (i still use makeup to cover it up) but am starting laser treatments for it soon. Also helpful - i use baking soda as a physical and chemical exfoliant followed by honey every night, and only moisturize with coconut oil. I have to believe this has helped give my skin the awesome glow it has now. Gained a few pounds despite being a varsity athlete in college - but I'd say overall its worth it. Give it a chance as it helped me so much when i thought I had no options left besides accutane. I was wrong!
November 21, 2013
Product used: Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo (Oral Contraceptive)
Acne completely gone after!
Pros:
No acne or bacne!
no babies!
fewer cramps!
Cons:
spotting
remembering to take it at the same time every day
Even though I had suffered from facial acne for over ten years, I recently started to get horrible bacne for the first time in my life. I changed every single shampoo, body wash, detergent, etc trying to pinpoint the cause, but finally, after a year of trying to figure it out, it finally dawned on me. My acne might be hormonal. After doing a lot of research on which birth control would be best for acne, I made an appointment at Planned Parenthood. When I got there, I told them my problem and they handed me a year's supply of birth control for free. After taking it for about three months, my face and back COMPLETELY CLEARED. My skin hasn't looked this good since I was on accutane! Before getting on Ortho, I would have at least ten zits on my face at a time. Now, I have maybe one small one. I haven't had a zit on my back since this medicine kicked in. I'm so happy. If you are able to take birth control, it's worth a shot!
November 19, 2013
It made me crazy!
It made me sick! Made me crazy I would go frm extremely happy to extremely sad in less than a sec !
Pros:
not getting Pregant
Acne free
not dry Vagina