Desogestrel / ethinyl estradiol and Headaches: What Users Say

• Mic...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 15, 2019

"I have only just started taking Enskyce, about 4 days now. I am taking it because we are starting IVF treatments, and part of the treatment cycle is to take birth control for two weeks. I have had sudden onset headaches with neck and lower back pains, and I have vomited three times in the evenings. I take the pill between 11:00 a.m.-1 p.m. every day. Around 7:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m., I have thrown up everything I am eating. I am trying to stick it out since I should not have to take it for long, but if this could help anyone else who is considering taking it or currently having the same issues and plan to take it for long durations, then I wanted to share my story."

• Ano...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• January 26, 2020

For Birth Control "If you are prone to anxiety or depression, please be very careful while taking this Apri birth control pill. The first couple of months, I felt very nauseous and would have the worst cramps around my period, not to mention it made my flow heavier. I would get awful headaches the days leading up to my periods as well. I had anxiety before I started this pill, but when I started to take it, it escalated very quickly. I have been on this pill for a year now, and it took until now for me to realize that it was making me lose my mind. I felt completely out of control in my thoughts and was making my anxiety spiral. I am now off of it, and I feel like myself again. Be careful!!!"

• Sar...
• August 23, 2013

For Birth Control "I have been on Kariva for about five months. It is my first experience with the birth control pill as I am getting married in September and wanted to be regulated by the wedding. The first couple of months, I experienced mood swings, headaches, and weird appetite. However, my side effects have leveled out. I no longer have any side effects. In fact, it has cleared my acne up some. My periods have never been bad, but they are now only about 1-2 days long. I would say my cramps may be a little worse, but since the period is shorter, it evens out. I have not gained weight from this pill. In fact, along with diet and exercise, I have been able to lose weight while taking this pill. I would recommend Kariva."

• Ahm...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 19, 2014

For Birth Control "I was put on Apri because I had horrible cramps and long, heavy periods. I took it for about six months, and around the five-month mark, my longtime boyfriend and I broke up. He told me it was because I was 'too emotional' and stressed him out. He was right, before Apri, I was always happy and relaxed, but on it, I would lie in bed at night and cry sometimes for no reason at all. I had constant fatigue, frequent headaches, mood swings, moodiness, and felt depressed a lot of the time. After a conversation with my boyfriend, I realized that we began to argue about the time I got on Apri. I went to my doctor and told her this, and she told me that this was because of its high levels of progesterone. I switched and am much better now without Apri."

• Lil...
• December 15, 2020

For Birth Control "I’ve been on birth control for 5 months, but my doctor recently changed me to Isibloom. I’ve been on Isibloom for almost 3 months, and the first month was normal. Then the second month got worse - at first, I thought I was pregnant (also keep in mind I take my birth control at 9 am every morning and never missed one) because my breasts hurt, I had headaches, nausea (without throwing up so far), and a couple other symptoms. Then I looked up Isibloom side effects, and it all made sense. Hopefully, next month things get better."

• Let...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 19, 2020

For Birth Control "On month three of Isibloom, and it works! Not pregnant, and my boyfriend finishes inside most of the time. I’ll be honest, the first month was awful, the nausea was bad and headaches. But once my body got adjusted, it was fine! I do get the headaches a tad bit, but would rather have that than worry about an unexpected pregnancy. It works! I would say to try it for three months before switching."

• Gig...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 17, 2016

For Birth Control "So, I took this birth control for 3 years. Did its job in terms of preventing pregnancy, but at a horrible cost. I gained over 30 lbs, had terrible nausea, mood swings, anxiety, depression, headaches, almost no libido, you name it. It wasn't until I got off the pill completely to give myself a break from the constant stream of hormones that is birth control that I realized all of the issues I was experiencing were all the pill, not me. After 2 months off of the pill, all of the aforementioned issues have disappeared. Consumer beware. Not worth it. When I do decide to go back on birth control, it will not be Viorele."

• Anonymous
• October 30, 2008

For Birth Control "I have been taking Apri for at least two years and have never had any problems with it. Some say it lowers sex drive, but my sex life has stayed the same. This is the best pill I have taken. I have taken a lot of different kinds, and I get serious headaches from taking the others. This is the only pill that I have had no side effects from. I only have my period for 2 days, and they are very light. If you are in the market for a great birth control, this is it. You will feel normal, and you won't have heavy periods. So take Apri."

• SEa...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 1, 2019

For Birth Control "I just started this, and right now I am on the period pills. I feel horrible and have felt horrible since the very first pill. Legit nausea all the time to the point where I was waking up once or twice a week around 4 am throwing up (I tried to take it around 12-2 with food every day to maybe avoid this). I also experience uncomfortable bloating really bad when I haven’t even eaten much to be bloated. I haven’t even been eating much period because I’m nauseous all the time. Add mood swings, sadness, anxiety, and headaches to the mix too. I just feel so awful and not myself, so I DO NOT recommend this pill! I hope it gets out of my system ASAP!"

• aut...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 10, 2019

For Birth Control "I've been on Isibloom since July. The first two weeks, I suffered headaches, and at times I felt nauseous. Since I was using this pill to skip my period, I had breakthrough bleeding for a few weeks. However, I decided to have my period this month. Before birth control, I had 7-day periods that were quite heavy the first 4 days. Now my period lasted 3 days with light flow. I have not gained any weight, in fact, I was able to lose 5 lbs through frequent exercise and somewhat watching my diet. My acne is under control, and I rarely have blemishes."

• Sid...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 1, 2020

For Birth Control "This was the worst BCP I’ve ever taken. Terrible side effects, headaches, stomach cramps, bloating. Weight gain, swelling, bladder issues. I had no problems until I started taking this pill. I took it for 2 months and decided to stop because of the unbearable side effects. DO NOT TAKE, you will regret it!!"

• Tor...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 26, 2014

For Birth Control "I've been on this birth control for about 5 months now. And it sure is doing its job very well. But I do get huge headaches from time to time and feel dizzy for about 2 months now. When I started to take this birth control, everything was fine. But until now, I'm thinking of trying another brand of birth control."

• rad...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 19, 2019

For Birth Control "I have been on Enskyce for a little over a year. Getting adjusted was the difficult part, but you have to understand that it's new hormones entering your body. Since being adjusted to it, I have had little to no issues besides your occasional bloating and headaches. I have tried many birth control options (NuvaRing, Nexplanon, other pills) and have had a lot of issues with bleeding. This keeps me on a regular cycle, has no weight gain, and I would not say I feel very different on it. I never trusted the pill before Enskyce, and now I don't foresee myself going back to anything else."

• Try...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 28, 2017

For Birth Control "I was on this birth control for 4 months and LOVED it. I’ve been through quite a few pills. It cleared my skin completely (I am prone to acne) and made my periods lighter, and PMS was so much better and easier with fewer mood swings that were not even half as bad as they were before I started taking Viorele. I also went up two full cup sizes, which was wonderful for me. Then all of a sudden, I started getting unbelievably painful, pounding headaches. I was walking around work, squeezing my head (since OTC pain meds didn’t help) and saying something is wrong with me. I was so scared. However, the only new change I had made in my life was this pill. So I stopped it. After about 10 more days of horrible, debilitating headaches, they finally stopped."

• Bri...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 27, 2019

For Birth Control "This is the worst pill I’ve ever been on. I took it for 11 days, and on the 12th, I had forgotten to take it until it was well past 24 hours. That day made me realize just what this pill had done. The past week and a half is just a haze of unimaginable mood swings (I’m usually laid-back and calm, I cried at least twice daily and even once got so crazy I screamed at my husband). I was sick to my stomach every night and threw up on three of the days. I had some kind of headache, whether small or almost migraine, daily. I couldn’t keep my contacts in all day because my eyes felt dry and irritated. That night (after forgetting my pill that morning), my husband mentioned I may be getting used to the pill and its side effects, as I was my usual self. So I haven’t taken another. I have an appointment with my doctor to figure out something different, I do not recommend this pill for anyone."

• Sea...
• May 3, 2016

For Birth Control "This pill is effective as a birth control pill, but the side effects are absolutely miserable! Each month before my period, I get horribly depressed and incredibly emotional and irritable. I also get constant headaches on this pill. Would not recommend if you have anxiety or PMDD, as it only seems to exacerbate these conditions."

• Eli...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 27, 2020

For Birth Control "My Dr. told me Enskyce would clear up my acne, and I would have no bleeding because she highly suggested skipping the placebo week. HOWEVER, about 2 and 1/2 into taking Enskyce, I noticed bleeding outside of my period time. Apparently, it was spotting from withdrawal bleeding (something my Dr. failed to mention to me), and when I looked it up, it seemed normal for women starting a new birth control, so I thought nothing of it. It wasn’t until the bleeding became heavy and constant that I began to worry. It’s been 13 days, and the little “spotting” is now a heavy flow of blood. My normal periods have NEVER been this bad. What sucks even worse is the cramps that accompany this constant bleed. The pain has woken me up at night, interfered with my job, and overall just made doing anything difficult because it’s crippling. To top it all off, this med has given me intense headaches every evening, hot flashes, and zero improvement on my acne. I would absolutely not recommend Enskyce to anyone."

• Suf...
• March 5, 2021

For Birth Control "After years of suffering with PCOS symptoms, Apri has saved me! It has eliminated most of my acne. The first month was harsh, but I knew with how out of whack my hormones were, I was going to have side effects adjusting, so I bared down, and now I'm in the last week of my third pack! The first month, I had the worst morning sickness, I didn't know how I was going to handle it. Each month so far, I've thrown up at least once in the first week. I find the more often I eat, the less I feel the sickness. I've gained about 15 lbs. My appetite has started calming down this month. I went from an A cup to a C cup so far, so I stopped wearing a bra. Some nights, the pain is so bad I have to massage my breasts. I don't find I'm holding much water weight anywhere. I have experienced some headaches, but I try to sleep them off. My periods are already lighter, but still adjusting overall. The best thing from all of this is my depression and mood swings have depleted. I'm meeting with my doctor to renew my prescription!"

• pic...
• October 14, 2015

For Birth Control "Holy no. I do NOT recommend this birth control medication. I've been on it for three months now, and I've experienced: bloating, breakthrough bleeding (heavy), headaches, moodiness (anger), crying, increase of Tourette's tics, anxiety, 7/10 lower back pain, weight gain, increase in desire for all things sugar :( And the blister pack itself is terrible! I've never had such a difficult pack to use. I wouldn't recommend this medication whatsoever."

• hea...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 29, 2018

For Birth Control "I had seen the comments before I started taking this birth control, and I was instantly scared. The first week, I experienced random headaches, but nothing too crazy. My boobs did grow significantly, but no other crazy weight gain. Also, my face broke out slightly, not really noticeable."

• Kaa...
• January 23, 2013

For Birth Control "I started Apri five months ago. I have always suffered with terrible ovarian cysts, and now they're starting to finally decrease. I have lost twenty pounds while I've been taking the pills, without changing my diet or exercise. I'm not pregnant, nor have I ever been. My sex drive is the same, but I can't eat anymore. Small meals twice a day that have absolutely no dairy in them are all my stomach can handle now. I have never had a problem with dairy before Apri. I also get terrible headaches and am constantly tired. There are positives and negatives to this pill."

• NJa...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 10, 2019

For Birth Control "Enskyce honestly is the worst birth control I've had. I have had depression on a previous pill (Cyred) before, but that was always just two days before my period. This one gives me really bad mood swings, going from being fine to being super angry or completely depressed to the point of crying. This is all within the first two weeks of taking the pills. I've also started getting really bad headaches about an hour after taking the pill and have felt really fatigued. I have never experienced this many side effects within the first month of taking a birth control pill. I've been on Cyred and Reclipsen. Reclipsen was the best for me, but they changed it at the pharmacy because 'they're the same thing.' Obviously not."

• Bug...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 28, 2020

For Birth Control "I’ve been on Enskyce birth control pill for a little over a month, and it has been horrible so far. It has given me side effects so that I am anxious and sensitive to pretty much everything. My boyfriend could say “stop” to me, and I would start crying. I’m skipping the placebo pills, and yet I’m still bleeding (not nearly as much, however) AND cramping. I feel nauseous, and my boobs hurt tremendously. It pretty much feels like I’m constantly on my period (minus the bleeding). I’ve been bloated, constipated, with horrible stomach cramps. I’ve had headaches. I haven’t noticed much weight gain, but mind you I’ve only been on this a month. Apparently, symptoms are supposed to improve in a few months, but that’s ridiculous. I haven’t gotten pregnant, so that’s the only advantage to this pill. I would not recommend this brand to anybody."

• Jul...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• August 12, 2019

For Birth Control "I’ve been taking Apri for about 3 weeks now. Just after the first few weeks, my boobs have been super sore and have grown to where everyone, including my boyfriend, notices. I have weird cravings and am getting hunger pains, but feeling full quickly. I am nauseous more than usual. This pill has made me feel pregnant just based off of side effects. I did miss one pill, but doubled up the next day with no issues. I do feel tired and get small random headaches, but nothing unmanageable. Not too bad after being on Depo for over a year. Lol"

• Anonymous
• October 21, 2009

For Polycystic Ovary Syndrome "I have been on it for 3 months now. No breakthrough bleeding at all. Short, light period. Have had a few more headaches, but nothing Advil won't take care of. Great results with this pill. A lot less moody than with other pills."