Ocella and Bleeding: What Users Say

• Aim...
• April 12, 2017

For Acne "First few months weren't great. Had breakthrough bleeding the first month for 2-3 weeks, was very, very moody and irritated. Second month was a normal period, moods were fine, but still had bad breakouts. Third month, normal period and acne started to die down. Fourth month, acne is almost completely gone and normal periods."

• aml...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• July 2, 2019

For Birth Control "I’ve been on Ocella for about a year and 7 months. I was put on it after I took Loestrin Fe 1/20 due to breakthrough bleeding after 6 months of taking it. Ocella never gave me any noticeable side effects. No weight gain/loss, no depression or anxiety. Periods always on time. And it 100% prevented pregnancy. The only side effect that I still barely get is slight nausea if I am awake super early. It tremendously helped my acne, and my periods are always on time. Remember, every person will have different effects on their body, but I feel as if this will reassure some people on it. However, the one thing I just started noticing was the blood clot and DVT risk being higher in BC’s containing drospirenone, so with that being said, I will be looking into changing to a different brand (only because I’m a worrier about stuff like this)."

• Anonymous
• November 11, 2009

For Birth Control "I started out on Yasmin but had to switch to Ocella since I have no prescription coverage. Between the two, I was on them for over 2 years. In that time, I gained 20 pounds. After I switched to Ocella, while I was taking it, my moods were level, but the first day without the pill, I felt completely out of control of my emotions and on an emotional roller coaster to the point of having to leave work a few times, which is not me at all! Once I got my period, it was better, but I didn't look forward to the next month. After a crazy month of breakthrough bleeding, emotional ups and downs, and feeling like I was going crazy, I asked my doctor to switch me to something else. My sister had the same symptoms within a month or two, and so did friends."

• bb8...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• September 13, 2013

For Birth Control "No significant weight gain, no cramping during period, period lasts for a shorter amount of time, no heavy bleeding (no spotting, either). Overall, I'm very happy with Ocella. I'm 24 and have been taking it for 5 years. At this point, I'm not even sure how my body would react to not being on birth control since it has been so long."

• Anonymous
• December 11, 2009

For Birth Control "I LOVE OCELLA! I was on a generic form of Seasonale and it was HORRIBLE. I had the worst depression/mood swings ever and breakthrough bleeding EVERYDAY. So I switched to Ocella and love it. Acne hasn't really cleared up and I do have some weight gain, but my eating habits aren't the best either, so I won't blame it on that. I don't like that the price went up, but I'm not going to switch because I feel so normal now and never want to experience anything like my first birth control. I definitely recommend Ocella!"

• Anonymous
• February 8, 2012

For Birth Control "I have been on Ocella for about 3 years, and I have loved it. Never had any problems: cleared my skin, breasts grew, periods were light, sex drive was not really affected. In the past few months, though, I have seen a lot more breakthrough bleeding, leading to almost 2-week long periods (not fun), so I am switching."

• Ste...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 20, 2020

For Birth Control "I've been on this Ocella for 3 weeks, and currently now on the 3rd week I've been bleeding heavily for 4 days straight (breakthrough bleeding? With lots of clots?), which is highly irritating, and I'm already wanting to stop the medication. Doesn't seem normal."

• Ste...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 20, 2020

For Birth Control "I've been on this Ocella for 3 weeks, and currently now on the 3rd week I've been bleeding heavily for 4 days straight (breakthrough bleeding? With lots of clots?), which is highly irritating, and I'm already wanting to stop the medication. Doesn't seem normal."

• Sco...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• September 14, 2017

For Birth Control "I've been on birth control since I was 16, now 22. I've tried 3 birth controls before Ocella. All previous ones had breakthrough bleeding, mood swings, and one gave me out-of-control yeast infections. That's when I switched to Ocella: zero acne, I skip my period, no breakthrough bleeds, no weight gain besides 3 pounds and a little bloating every so often. Best part: no pregnancy scares for the last 2 years. Love the protection and stability it's supplied! I will say I've experienced intermittent anxiety on it, might try another kind if it continues. Hope this helped. Worth a try, it's kept me safe, happy, and acne/pregnancy free."

• Ros...
• April 8, 2019

For Birth Control "I started using this as a purchase recommended from Nurx (20 years old). Also, doing some research, I figured this would be great considering I had a horrid experience with Lo Loestrin Fe, which gave me terrible anger and mood swings, huge cystic acne, which the doctor said would help with my acne. Now, switching to Ocella, I don't see a difference besides I'm not getting as many pimples, but I still am getting a new painful pimple every day, which is so frustrating. Not sure how I feel; it has been almost 2 months now, and I am now starting to bleed on and off. I am very disappointed."

• lpw...
• January 19, 2012

For Birth Control "I was on Yaz before and did just fine on it. They switched me to Ocella four months ago and said that it was the same, but I am having such a hard time on it. I bleed heavily, cramp, and have migraines for at least 10 days. It knocks me off my feet to where all I can do is stay in bed all day. I have to use double protection when on my period. I bleed so much the first month that I almost had my husband take me to the ER. I instead started taking iron pills to help me recover from my period. With all the scare on blood clots in the news, I just called and asked my doctor to switch me to something else. The other thing was that I have zero sex drive, and I can't lose weight."

• mad...
• October 27, 2009

For Menstrual Disorders "Ocella used to be the only generic available in the Yaz/Yasmin family... not anymore! I went to refill my prescription and was shocked when the pharmacist told me it was going to cost $100, with insurance (it used to be $30 for three months). I've been on it about 7 months now, and I really like it-- I know other people have reported getting side effects, but past the initial month of nonstop bleeding and cramps (probably more because I wasn't used to taking birth control and would forget until several hours after I was supposed to, than problems with the drug itself), I haven't had any problems. It hasn't exactly made my acne disappear, but it's better, and my awful PMS depression has basically disappeared! And no babies, either."

• Anonymous
• May 31, 2009

For Birth Control "Ocella is a good birth control medication. For the four months I've been taking it, my only complaint is the multiple periods of breakthrough bleeding, bloating, and nausea. I'm sure weight gain would be on my complaint list, but you just have to maintain a really good diet and exercise whenever you can. But it's great."

• Anonymous
• January 3, 2017

For Birth Control "I have been on Ocella about 5 weeks now. Worst decision I ever made. I have been having heavy, uncontrollable bleeding, terrible stomach pain, fatigue, nausea, and migraines. I informed my OB, and I have an appointment set for tomorrow. Fingers crossed that something else will help. I have been miserable ever since I've started Ocella."

• Cat...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 27, 2022

For Birth Control "I think this birth control is okay. It makes me really moody sometimes, especially on my period. I only get nauseous, heavy bleeding, headaches, and cramps, but other than that, it’s not bad. I have gained plenty of weight being on it, and I get paranoid ONLY on my period. It seems impossible to get off the weight, but it could be because I’ve been on pills for 5 1/2 years straight to make sure it’s a better chance I don’t have a child. When not on my period, I get really sad sometimes for no reason at all."

• Ski...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 3, 2016

For Birth Control "I started taking Ocella in March of 2016. It was the very first time I tried birth control, and I am 26 years of age. I got on birth control because I am in a serious relationship, but I am not ready for children, and I wanted something to help me with my bad cramps and vomiting on the first days of my period. During the first week after my period, I experienced breakthrough bleeding for about a month. Things were fine until I began having yeast infections. The first I just thought, okay, it's just a yeast infection. However, I began to consistently experience them at least every month since then. I'm thinking of switching the pill as soon as I can to see if that helps. Besides this unrelenting side effect, my breasts have become larger."

• Anonymous
• January 27, 2012

For Birth Control "This is the first birth control pill that I've been on as I don't necessarily like the idea of hormonal contraceptives. I just started Ocella this month and so far I have bled for 10 days straight (lightly, but I've been used to light periods that last four or five days), and my emotions have been out of control. I normally have light mood swings before my period, but this has been ten times worse and nonstop for the week and a half that I've been on Ocella. I crave junk food 24 hours a day and feel angry or upset about the littlest things. My skin is pretty clear naturally, and I haven't noticed a change in that. My sex drive is about the same. I can't say much else as this is my first month on it, but I am not a fan of the super PMS so far."

• Lib...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• June 8, 2018

For Birth Control "This medication caused really bad breakthrough bleeding. I’ve basically been on my period for a month, it’s miserable. It’s also causing migraines. Effective at preventing pregnancy, though."