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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August 21, 2009

Pros:

No babies, slight growth in breast size, less cramps, no acne

Cons:

WEIGHT GAIN, more emotional, tired often

I've used OTC for over 3 years and decided to stop taking it due to weight gain. Even while eating light and exercising I have gained 30 pounds in 3 years. Weight seems to be dropping off now with ease. Periods always lasted 5 days. It was good knowing the exact day you were going to start though. I always seemed to be tired, but am now finding that I have more energy. I was also very emotional with mood swings during the week of my period, which was never that way before the pill.
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August 21, 2009

Pros:

Stops pregnancy, clear skin

Cons:

Started a smell "down there" after periods

I took OTC Lo when i was in High School with no side effects, i stopped taking them and i had my son. When i started them again, I noticed that i was getting a bad oder after my periods...i guess when I had to take the pills with the highest dose of estorgen it really was bad. I have since stopped taking them and it went away.. i am now searching for another birth control, was thinking about Yaz, but i haven't heard many good reviews for that..needles to say i have an appt. with my doctor this week!!
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August 11, 2009

Pros:

No babies, bigger boobs, controls my acne quite well even when I'm not using acne products, no side effects =]

I love it
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July 24, 2009

Pros:

Just had my first period. I usually have very bad heavy cramping. I just started my period and the cramps started off bad where I had to take medicine, but I only had to take it once and no cramping for now.

Cons:

Made acne worse, bumps everywhere on my face, chin and neck

I've never been on any form of birth control (im 31), therefore, my doctor first tried me on the ortho tricyclen lo. I have taken it for a full month now; however, it has made my acne worse within a month. I get these hard bumps that are under the skin on my face. Two may come up the same time and when they go down, I get more that appear in different areas. They just come back to back and then leave these awufl black marks on my face and neck. What a way to try something for the first time and it is already turning out horrible!
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July 17, 2009

Pros:

no babies. did not gain weight. period was only a few days. no cramping. no mood swings

Cons:

acne was out of control. everywhere on my face that i never had before.

When i was 18-21 i used Ortho Tri cyclen LO and my acne was under control- amazing skin. 21-23 i used a british brand called "Celest" and it was amazing too NO ACNE! i moved back home to the US and started using again Ortho tricyclen Lo and my skin was never the same. constant breakouts especially on the chin. The last few months i'd get painful breakouts ALL OVER MY FACE. Even on my eyebrows, really painful ones. its time for a change. Its true that your body/hormones change so i'm in the process of finding a new pill. Started Yaz today and hopefully my acne subsides.
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July 13, 2009

Pros:

Lost weight, Absolutely no side affect(unlike the YAZ), light period 3-4 days, No acne! and No babies

Cons:

Bigger boobs :( yes that is depressing for me I never wanted big boobs!

Works better than the YAZ that one made me depressed. I have no problems with th.is one at all
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June 22, 2009

Pros:

Nice, easy form of birth control. I did not experience weight gain or nausea.

Cons:

I could not control my emotions most of the time when taking this; may have also made acne worse.

I had the Paragard IUD for awhile. I had it removed because partly because of the severe cramping every month and partly because I thought it was contributing to my acne. It wasn't that bad, but the breakouts were enough to aggravate me. I thought going on birth control would be the answer to all my problems as far as cramping, acne, and birth control were concerned. I specifically asked for the non-generic OTC because i once took trisprintec and had to come off it because of severe mood swings and depression. I thought maybe the regular OTC would be different. For about 3 months I thought I was doing OK, but gradually I became irrational, angry all the time, irritated over everything, and just very unhappy in general. I was never calm. It felt like having severe symptoms of PMS all the time. And my acne got WAY WORSE after taking the OTC as well. Full-blown cystic acne all over my face. I've stopped taking it and already i feel more in control; taking Doxycycline to treat acne.
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June 5, 2009

Pros:

Boobs got a little bigger

Cons:

I have never had acne before but now i get a new pimple like every other day, Iv gained some weight but i think thats normal during the first months of the pill. I have spotting like crazy.

Im gonna stay on it another few months just to see if this is the initial side effects but I cant handle the acne problem. I am on the generic version, Trinessa, and my doctor said that its practically the same thing. Please if anyone can help me please respond.
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May 24, 2009

Pros:

Improves skin, good contraceptive, regulates periods,

Cons:

Less PMS control over time. All other results last though.

I started Ortho Tri-Cyclen over 10 years ago for acne, irregular/heavy periods, and PMS. It helped my skin become much more clear, regulated my period, and kept the babies away. About three years ago, I tried to switch to a different pill because my insurance would only pay for the generic version of regular OTC. Tried OTC-Lo and saw none of the benefits beyond the birth control aspect. Then Yaz. For the first three months that was not bad. Very short, light periods and decent skin. But over the next two years, it all went downhill. Acne came back with a vengeance, periods became ridiculously irregular to the point that I was almost constantly bleeding and slightly anemic, and moods became very irregular with lots of irritability. Switched back to OTC. And starting my second month back on it. My skin is improving drastically again, moods improved within the first week or two, and things are regulating again. Paying out of pocket for it now but it's worth it.
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May 15, 2009

Pros:

it gets rid of acne and gives you a light period... for me i had no weight gain at all.. infact i lost almost 40 lbs!

Cons:

if you have any emotional problems or depression.. do not take it-- especially if you have PMDD!!!! the pill made my pmdd a million times worse... i found myself crying about everything-everyday. it kills relationships. it made me feel crazy.

it's a great pill as long as you are mentalllly stable. The fact that the dossage in each pill would get higher everyweek made it so i could feel my hormones go crazy every sunday after the new pill. my boyfriend and I almost broke up so many times during the week before my period would start. i remember really noticing that my hormones were a little out of wack when i found myself crying-no balling- at the sight of a dung beatle rolling poop up a hill and i started talking about how beautiful a role they play on earth and how thankful i am for them.... now this is true and all... but it wasn't really a reason to start balling.
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