Oral Contraceptives
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Oral contraceptives, otherwise known as birth control pills, are also approved to treat acne. They work by regulating male hormones in the female...

Oral contraceptives, otherwise known as birth control pills, are also approved to treat acne. They work by regulating male hormones in the female body. Less male hormones normally lead to less acne. 

Oral contraceptives contain an estrogen component (ethinyl estradiol) that is combined with progestin hormones, such as drospirenone (Yasmin® or Yaz®), norgestimate (Ortho Tri-Cyclen®) or norethindrone (Estrostep®). 

Oral contraceptives are taken once a day with a meal. Make sure to take the pill at the same time every day.

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April 2, 2011

Cons:

Weight Gain, Longer Periods

I switched to OTC because I was taking Loestrin and had some spotting here and there. I regret ever switching. I have been on the OTC for two months and have gained weight (dont have a scale so Im not sure of how much but my clothes are getting tighter and Ive had the same diet). I have been breaking out more than usual and my period lasts 6 days as opposed to 3 on the Loestrin. I was so happy about the OTC because its generic so its free but Id rather spend my money. I asked my doctor to switch me back to the loestrin, Ill deal with the occasional spotting because the benefits are much better.
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August 20, 2010

Pros:

--Completely fixed my skin
--Regulated my unpredictable period
--Made cramps less severe*
--Made period lighter
--Helped with mood swings and PMS

Cons:

--Bad initial breakout
--Initial side-effects for the first two weeks
--Forgetting the pill, even for a few hours, gives me a headache
--Although my cramps (which were horrendous for the first day or two) are greatly reduced -- a few ibuprofen almost knocks them out -- I tend to have this milder cramping for several days. It's almost like the bad day of cramps got spread out over three or four days.
--Food craving for the first month
--It takes several months to adjust

This review is for ORTHO-CYCLEN, which is a steady dose of hormones, unlike ortho tri-cyclen, which changes the hormone levels each week. I don't know if that makes a big difference or not... I had stubborn hormonal acne, which is why I eventually turned to birth control (along with other negative effects from hormonal imbalances). I would break out when I ovulated (about 2 weeks before my period) and then again a day or two before my period. Other than that, my skin was in good shape. I think this is the ONLY reason why my skin is so great now -- because hormones were my number one problem and now, with bcp, it's all under control. You may have a compound cause of acne, like monthly hormones plus stress, so your results will vary. Let me also say that I'm 25, and my reasons for taking birth control were not solely about my skin issues. I think, especially for young girls, you need to make sure that you're choosing to artificially alter your hormones for the right reasons -- that you understand that bcp have serious side effects and your health needs to be considered. I know the idea of nicer skin sometimes seems to trump everything else, but just make sure you've thought it al through and done your research :) As an aside, I take the generic brand, which only costs $9 a month without insurance. Don't believe a lot of the hype that generic isn't as effective -- by law, the meds in a generic pill is chemically identical to the brand name. It works just as effectively, only the fillers tend to be a bit different (if that). There's no reason to spend $30-60 a month (with insurance) if there's a cheaper generic available, unless you have an allergic reaction or sensitivity to certain fillers (like celiac disease or something).
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July 23, 2010

Pros:

No cramps ( Had horrible ones before )
Very light bleeding, and only for 2-3 days!

Cons:

Horrible acne. My skin isn't the best anyway, but since I started this pill two months ago, I get painful breakouts every day. It's very frustrating.
Felt sick for the first week, then fine afterwards.

I love this pill.. I love not having cramps and feeling like I'm in labour for three days a month.. I'm going to give it one more month. Hopefully my body will get used to it, because I refuse to walk around with welts on my face every day. *crossing fingers*
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November 20, 2009

Pros:

it works very well in regulating periods and clearing up acne no side effects

Cons:

makes breasts a little sore but it also makes them bigger too soo thats not really a con

this is my favorite birth control i have ever bin on because it has no side affects and works very well in regulating periods if they are irregular.
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October 8, 2009

Pros:

I started using ORTHO TRI CYCLEN my sophmore year of high school, to help with acne. I never had any problems with the pill whatsoever, no cramps, acne got better, no nausea, etc.

Cons:

A little bit of bleeding between periods, very light, and eventually went away after longer use.

I would recommend, the pill doesn't increase psychological problems, if you already have thoughts of particular troubling things in life, it's not the pill that increases these thoughts.
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September 18, 2009

Pros:

My breasts had gotten firmer, which is not saying much since im 36DD.

Cons:

Nauseous, Tired, Dizzy, headaches that increased in severity, confused and dis oriented.

I started this pill a week ago, on the first day I had taken a pill and i had gotten nauseous then i had thought it was because I hadn't eaten anything, so the next day I had taken a pill after dinner and i wasnt naseous but for the rest of the week I was tired then when the weekend had started I became nauseous all over again and I had a headache that started on friday at 7 and went away when i woke up the next morning but was back as soon as 7p.m. had came around. On monday I was so tired and nauseous that I felt like I was going to pass out and the headaches didnt help like clock work it had came back at 7. So I had stopped taking it on wednesday and it is now thursday and I have been feeling better the only thing was that I had a slight headache but it stopped after 10 mins. So now I would not recommend this birthcontrol to anyone.
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August 13, 2009

Pros:

bigger boobs, no babies, no more extreme cramps, less acne, and not as moody.

I would deffs recommend this product if you suffer from bad cramps and mild acne and (in my case) want bigger boobs!
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June 25, 2009

Pros:

Steady, light period.

Cons:

My skin seems to be breaking out more then usual. Change in my appetite, eating less, feeling nausea the odd time. Change in mood.

I've only been taking the pill for a few weeks now. I have noticed some changes. I barely have an appetite anymore, haven't noticed weight gain or loss just yet. My acne is worsening, I'm breaking out more then normal. Tender breasts. More emotional, feeling depressed and taking things more to heart, moody in other words as well ! My periods although are steady, light and short which is what I like. But the pill does affect everybody differently. I hope my acne will clear up, and I will not have a weight gain, because that will be an issue for me.
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May 31, 2009

Pros:

nothing

Cons:

never had problems with acne now I'm getting pimples. I'm really bloated and crampy almost every day. I've gained weight I went from 109 to 112 and I've only been taking it for 3 weeks so I'm about to switch I can't be handling all of this!!

I was on micronor before this because I was breastfeeding my baby. So now I'm weaning her and needed a stronger pill so I was put on this now I'm having all sorts of issues.
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February 3, 2009

Pros:

lighter period, shorter period, clear ance, enlargement breast, less cramps

Cons:

tender breast, a few cramps, a few breakouts, gain weight (5 lbs), food carving

I've only been on this pill for a month, so i'm going to keep waiting it out for the 3rd month to see how everything goes. It's so far the most amazing pill i've been on because i hated the long, heavy flows and now it's really light and only lastes 4 days rather than 7 days. It also made my boobs grow one size up which i'm quite happy about.
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