Alesse for Birth Control User Reviews (Page 5)

• Che...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• October 12, 2016

"This birth control was the worst experience of my life. It gave me horrible breakouts for an entire week during each month, and I gained a significant amount of weight. I stayed on it hoping it would get better, but it never did. I've finally switched brands and finally seen improvement in my skin."

• NWa...
• September 15, 2016

"The first day I took Alesse, I felt perfectly normal. The next day, I instantly felt nauseous and tired. The third day and three days after, I had severe migraines that never seemed to go away, even after taking two 400 mg Advils. The migraines went away for a week but came back this week for another dreadful four days. Couldn't handle it anymore and went to my doctor, who advised me to stop taking the pills and wait a week to see if the migraines continue without the use of Alesse. Hopefully, I just need to change brands of birth control to better suit me! I'm sure it's a great birth control, just wasn't for me!"

• mad...
• October 13, 2016

"20 yr old female here. I was put on Alesse for acne & contraceptive purposes. Acne runs in my family. My mom had it really badly until she was about 21. I was on Tri-Cyclen Lo, but it made me feel sick in the mornings. So Alesse was pretty bad. I was on it for just under a year. I didn't get pregnant even though I never used a condom with my boyfriend. It helped my acne somewhat, except I got cystic flare-ups on my chin & small dots on my forehead during my period. I gained about 10 lbs. Period cramps were still bad and lasted for days sometimes. MADE ME AN EMOTIONAL WRECK. I'd cry so easily and felt unusually depressed/anxious. I believe I have too much testosterone in my blood, so Alesse might not have been strong enough."

• 22...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 26, 2014

"I was on Alesse for many years, and it worked fine, hardly had any symptoms. At first, it made me feel like I wanted to be more intimate with my significant other, but after a few years of taking it, I now have bad leg cramps, a very extremely low desire to have any kind of sexual engagement with my partner, and I gained about 20 pounds since I've been on it. I'm not blaming the birth control for the weight gain, but I'm looking forward to getting my libido back."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 23, 2017

"I took Alesse for 1 month and 1 week. After the first week, I broke out with the worst cystic acne I have ever had in my life. I tried to stick it out to the three-month mark to see if it would clear up, but it was so horrible I decided to stop 1 week into my second pack. I'm giving it 5 stars because I didn't experience any other side effects whatsoever, which I have gotten on other pills."

• uah...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• March 27, 2017

"I was taking this as a contraceptive and to prevent ovarian cysts, which I am prone to. This pill worked great for those two things, and I had no problems with this BCP for the first year of taking it. However, after around a year and a half on it, I developed extreme anxiety, panic attacks, severe moodiness and change of temperament, as well as nausea every single day. I am about to go off of it, hopefully, I can find a BCP without these side effects."

• k09...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 19, 2016

"Alesse is NOT an appropriate birth control choice to help with hormonal acne. One of the main causes of hormonal acne is a rise in androgens (male hormones), which you do NOT need more of if you are experiencing hormonal acne (jawline, chin, cystic). I did not realize that Alesse had added androgens and went on it for just short of a month. Needless to say, my face, back, and chest area have broken out worse than being off birth control altogether. I am sure this is a great birth control option for some, but keep in mind that it is probably not your best bet if your main focus is to decrease your acne. Hope this helps!"

• m09...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 29, 2017

"I'm a 27 yo woman who has only used the pill as birth control. I started birth control at 24 yo. I was on Microgestin 1/20 FE that worked pretty well for me for a couple of years. No weight gain, no migraines, no anxiety or depression, decreased PMS. The only thing was that if I was a little off on my timing, I'd spot. So I switched. Thought maybe there's a better pill out there for me? I was on Alesse for 10 months. I went from 112 lbs to 122 lbs. Which I didn't mind, really. What I endured with this birth control was horrifying. I was constantly bloated. Pregnant belly bloated the entire month, had severe cramps that would immobilize me completely, I suffered from panic and anxiety attacks and slight depression. I had a foggy mind and would sob at least 2 times a week."

• ky0...
• August 8, 2017

"I was on Alesse for about 4 years. Just going off it now just to see how I feel off birth control (if I feel any different). My experience with it was great. My period cramps became way more manageable, and my periods only ever lasted about 4 days max. For the last 2 years, my boyfriend and I would have sex, no condom, and never had any scares, so it works well! (I was good with it and took it every night before bed). I don't have acne-prone skin, so I didn't experience any problems while on the pill. I've been on Alesse since grade 12, so I'm curious as to how my body might be off the pill, that's the only reason I'm going off it, and I would definitely take it again if/when I go back on the pill."

• ano...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 11, 2017

"I started taking this pill about 3 years ago. At first, I wanted to use it as a birth control and to clear up my acne (which wasn't that bad; I had light to moderate acne with no cysts). However, my acne got a lot worse (severe cystic acne), and I didn't know it was from that pill. I had acne like I never had before, and I started experiencing violent headaches (at least 1 or 2 per week). I tried a lot of treatments for acne, but none of them worked. Due to a breakup with my ex-boyfriend from the last 5 years, I stopped the pill about 3 months ago. Honestly, my face cleared up now, and it's as smooth as a baby's butt! Also, I never experienced headaches again since I stopped that pill. So yeah, that pill did its job as a birth control, but it wasn't the great one for me, and it's too bad that I realized it 3 years later!"

• Lai...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 21, 2016

"I've been on Alesse for three months now, and although I haven't suffered any weight loss/gain, acne, or nausea, I have felt extremely fatigued and lethargic. Not to mention the fact that my period would randomly start halfway through when I still had 7 or 8 active pills left. And when my period did start, I would suffer bouts of depression, crying for no reason, spending all day in bed and entertaining a few suicidal thoughts. I will be discontinuing the use of Alesse, and I plan to speak with my doctor about other alternatives. As a contraceptive, the pills work, but they are not worth the side effects I was enduring."

• Amm...
• April 19, 2015

"I started using the generic brand, which the pharmacy gave me, and had really bad side effects, such as feeling depressed, listless, crying all the time, which I never do. Then my doctor recommended I use the name brand Alesse. I've been on it a month with no side effects at all. I feel great. I had no cramping and a lighter period. I feel happy and myself again. I've tried a lot of other brands, all with some side effects. For me, this is a great birth control."

• Ano...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 19, 2015

"I started the birth control last summer in August and stopped it this April. For the first 6 months of taking the pill, I had no problems at all, I felt normal except I did get acne, which went away after about 1-3 months. It shortened my period to about 4-5 days instead of my normal week-long and a half periods. But after 6 months of taking the pill, I would sometimes get my period early by about 8 days, and then the next month it would be back to normal. Also, I would get bad cramps and back aches, which appeared after 6 months. This was bothersome to me, especially after the pill worked great for about 6 months. The early periods, cramps, and backaches were doable, but I decided to switch off it to Loestrin 1.5/30."

• Ang...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 18, 2019

"I tried the generic brand of Alesse called AlySensa 28 for 3 months, and I can safely say it's been the absolute worst 3 months of my life. I experienced almost all possible side effects: painful cramping, increased bleeding, headaches, body pain, mood swings, panic attacks, everything. I also never had this birth control actually regulate my period, my period came when it wanted and was just super heavy and incredibly painful, and I had some major mood swings, which is not even close to normal for me. Although, I didn't get pregnant, so there's that."

• Anonymous
• March 10, 2016

"For the first year, I was on another brand (can't remember the name), then my doctor switched me. The first 2 months of using it, I started feeling exhausted and extremely emotional-I'm not usually. About 4 weeks ago, I ended up going to the hospital for difficulty breathing and such. The doctors misdiagnosed it and sent me off. After 2 weeks, I went back with a very swollen leg and very painful. Turns out this birth control caused a massive blood clot in my groin area, and those breathing problems were mini blood clots going through my lungs and heart. All thanks to this brand."

• Anonymous
• July 5, 2011

"I was on this for about a year and everything was great. Then I went off it for about 5 years (did not take anything else in place of Alesse). I then went back on for about 6 months. After the first month, I started having severe external itch, got tested for a yeast infection, but it wasn't it. For 5 months, I woke up 2-3 times every night with unbearable itch. I went off the pill and noticed right away the symptoms were much milder. Within 2 months, I'm completely normal again. I don't know what's different between 5 years ago and now, but something is definitely different."

• Zan...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 4, 2018

"I started taking Alesse for really bad cramps that left me immobile and missing my classes. After being on the pill for 2 months, I've had the lightest periods I've ever had. Only downside is that my mood dropped considerably."

• Lt1...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• May 27, 2018

"I was on Diane 35 for 10 years. Started getting migraines with aura, so my doctor said I should try Alesse and it could help with the migraines. Only took 2 pills of Alesse to know I couldn’t take it again. I’ve never had such severe migraine auras and had actual migraine pain that spread from the top of my face down to under the cheekbones. I’ve never felt that bad/unwell in my life. I clearly had some sort of reaction, I’m sure it doesn’t happen a lot. I definitely will not be continuing Alesse. I’ll have to figure out what to try next. But just wanted to share my experience in case it might help someone."

• Nic...
• December 29, 2018

"I used Alesse for about two years, and it was effective as far as birth control goes. I got this to help my acne and irregular periods plus cramps. For the acne, I didn’t notice any difference in my skin, and since it’s always been bad, I couldn’t tell if Alesse was making it better or worse. For the irregular periods, this helped tremendously! My periods were so light, only lasted 2-3 days with light spotting on the last day, and I was cramp-free for two years! I would’ve stayed on it, but I wanted to try something different for the acne, so I’m now on Cyred. I didn’t notice any other symptoms besides what I mentioned. When I got off Alesse for a few months, my period was its usual weird, heavy, painful period as soon as I got off it. Overall, I would recommend it if your main concerns are irregular periods and cramps."

• wat...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• May 30, 2022

"I have used Alesse and then later the generic equivalent (for coverage reasons) for 8 years (age 17-24). I got a really consistent period, light, and would last 2-4 days max, no period side effects. I didn’t have any side effects of my period before starting birth control (no cramping, etc.), but they were irregular before. However, I believe that being on Alesse has caused me to gain weight and makes it difficult to lose weight, as well as gradually developing depression. I am going off of it for the summer as an experiment to see if this helps, since unfortunately, like many young adults, I have never known my adult body without birth control pills, so it will be interesting when my periods start again, without Alesse."

• Sky...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 17, 2022

"I was previously on a BC that made me moody, my new Dr switched me to Alesse. My mood is better, but I put on so much weight. It made me so depressed. I didn't know what was wrong with me, I felt gross all the time. Switched back less than 2 weeks ago. Feel less sick and lost a bunch of weight already, with nothing else changing. So now to find something that doesn't make me moody or fat, lol."

• Joa...
• October 21, 2018

"I was taking this pill for the last 9 years. Didn’t really have any side effects for the first few years. In the last year, I would wake up with blurred vision that would last for a good hour. I am now off this pill, and my vision is much better. Also, I started to get major cramps a week after I started a new pack, plus spotting. I’m done with this pill and all BC pills."

• Min...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 21, 2018

"I’m a first-time user, and my doctor prescribed me Alesse. I’ve been on it for 5 months, debating on switching pills for the last 2. This pill caused me acne when my skin was basically almost perfect before, and a little bit of weight gain. The only good it gave was some less bad cramps. But overall, would not recommend."

• Run...
• June 29, 2017

"There were many positives to Alesse (I was on the generic - Aviane). This was about my 4th or 5th kind of BC pill, as I tend to have issues and side effects with most others. The only side effects I had on this were spotty, random periods, and acne. I can handle the breakthrough bleeding, but the acne was just awful. I have acne-prone skin, and Yaz totally cleared it up, but made me gain weight. When I switched to Alesse, I lost weight (not entirely due to changing the pill), but my acne came back horribly. I am going to switch soon. I didn't have any mood swings. I have some cramps during my period. It didn't mess with my sex drive (Yaz killed it). I would recommend this ONLY if you don't have issues with acne."

• Jc4...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 2, 2017

"Started taking Alesse 4 months after first baby. Within the first 24 hours, I developed a headache. For a week, I took my pill at the same time every day. On day 7, my headache had become unbearably bad. By the next morning, I started pain puking, unable to open my right eye. I went into emergency at the hospital and was treated for a migraine... a migraine was not what the problem was. I have a blood clot in my brain caused by being on this pill for 1 week. I am now on blood thinners and treatment for the clot. Luckily, I did not keep waiting for what I thought was my body adjusting to this BC. I saved my life by going to the hospital."