Chateal and Acne: What Users Say

• Swi...
• March 2, 2015

For Birth Control "This pill was the first kind of birth control my doctor recommended me. I was very nervous at first because she said it would help with my size and because I have had chronic episodes of anemia. I also had the fears of every girl: gaining weight, acne, mood swings, and the contraceptive failing. I've been on Chateal for a year now, and none of those things have occurred! I'm very happy with this pill and will renew my prescription."

• Pea...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 17, 2014

For Birth Control "I got the pills for free at Planned Parenthood. They were effective in the aspect that I never got pregnant, but the side effects were pretty horrible. I had clear skin all my life, but when I got on the pill, I suffered from bad acne. I gained about ten pounds, a full cup size, and I felt constantly bloated. By the third month, I started suffering anxiety and depression. This medicine changed my personality and really messed with my head. After quitting, I've finally started to get my life back, and my anxiety is going away. I personally don't think these pills are worth the side effects."

• Jro...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• December 2, 2014

For Birth Control "On the plus side, this pill did the job. I certainly did not get pregnant over the 9 months I was on it. That's it. On the bad side, this pill gave me the worst acne I have ever had. It was long until I realized that it was this pill causing my acne. I stopped taking it, and the acne went away. Scars are still fading."

• Fdu...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 2, 2019

For Birth Control "I've been on Chateal for around 4 months and have been having a terrible experience. Not until I had read some of these other reviews today did I realize that my horrible mood swings, depression, and anxiety were completely exacerbated by Chateal. I honestly thought I was losing my mind and have had some suicidal thoughts from time to time. I'm a college student, and these emotional episodes are taking a huge toll on my academic life. In addition, I have gained a significant amount of weight and feel bloated a good amount of the time, and also, I'm always breaking out with acne on my face, back, and arms. I'm so glad that I was able to see some of these reviews, which validated what I was going through. I'm going to stop taking Chateal today!!!"

• Jan...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 18, 2018

For Birth Control "This is the only birth control I have ever used. I am a college student, and I wanted something cost-effective. I have been on this pill for about 2 years now. I take it every single day around the same time. I have experienced no side effects. I did not gain weight, in fact, I have lost weight over the years, but that is due to a change in my eating habits. I do not get mood swings, nor have I ever. My skin is great. I have yet to get pregnant. I remember I stopped taking the pills for like 2 weeks once because I wanted to stop, and that is when I noticed some side effects. When I stopped taking the pill or when I was careless about it, I noticed dark vaginal discharge, and my skin broke out. If you take this pill consistently, then all will be fine."

• Anonymous
• April 5, 2019

For Birth Control "I was prescribed this medication shortly after my abortion (sadly). Normally in the past, I don't have major side effects of birth control, but Chateal birth control I did. First off, this birth control gives you the same exact symptoms of pregnancy: back aches, acne, nausea, fatigue, etc. I have been on this birth control for about 3 weeks now, and I had to QUIT. Please do not take this birth control. I have HORRIBLE nausea that lasts me all throughout the day, it is horrible. Also, my back aches are really bad as well. I had to take a pregnancy test. The acne I got from this was horrifying. Usually, I have pretty nice skin, and I RARELY get acne, but this made me break out on my whole face :( All together, this is not worth taking, I would DEFINITELY use condoms over this. Also, this medication causes me SEVERE anxiety as well and headaches! Please do not take this medication."

• Not...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 8, 2019

For Birth Control "Honestly, this birth control took me months to get adjusted to, but a year in and it works fine! It doesn’t help with my acne, but my boobs did get bigger, and I only gained a pound or two (although that could be from my bad eating out habits, lol). Also, it’s super effective. We are not using any other form of contraception, and I’m not pregnant!!!"

• wom...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 7, 2015

For Birth Control "I have been taking Chateal for about 3 weeks; after a year-long break from birth control. So far, the only negative side effects are tender/sore breasts. I have taken 3 different types of pills in the past, NuvaRing, and Depo shot; so far, Chateal is pretty good. I have noticed bloating, but it seems to be water weight and has reduced significantly on its own within the past couple of days. My mood and emotions-I find this pill to actually be somewhat of a mood booster! I am the happiest I have been in a long time, and my emotions are pretty stable. Acne: I have always had acne (I'm 23), and birth control has always helped. NuvaRing was the best for acne, but after being off birth control for a year, my acne went haywire. Chateal has helped."

• Jai...
• March 24, 2016

For Endometriosis "Effective for birth control and less painful periods, but holy moly, no, no, no on depression and acne. I've been depressed before, but this birth control made me have thoughts of suicide for the first time in my whole life. I felt like crying for no reason every day, I thought life would be better for everyone if I weren't here anymore... I stopped taking it for 2 weeks, and for the first time in months, I feel like myself again. I feel like my head isn't on sideways, and I feel better. More energy, happier, no crying... My face broke out like crazy, and I've always had normal skin. Not worth it for me. I'd rather take a few days off every month due to painful cramps than be crazy and pimply."

• Nay...
• March 11, 2016

"Very unhappy with this pill. Never had any issues with any other brand I've been on, but I lost my insurance and had to start going to Planned Parenthood. When they no longer carried the pill I was on previously, they switched me to Chateal. I didn't get pregnant, but had severe acne and weight gain. I gained about 20 pounds and couldn't lose it no matter how much I exercised. Definitely was irritable on it, too. But my periods were much lighter and shorter with less cramping. I quit taking it since I'm not currently having any sex, and things got so much better. My acne cleared up after a week, and I started losing all the weight I gained right away. I'd definitely keep an eye out for the side effects though."

• abc...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 21, 2016

For Birth Control "So I wanted to take the time to review this birth control. I had tried several before this one, and none of them were the right one. I would bleed days at a time throughout the whole month on the other brands. Then one day, my doctor told me to try this one. I read so many reviews, and they were bad. I was terrified to try it, but you don't know until you try, right? Well, this is my fourth month on Chateal, and I couldn't be any more pleased. No weight gain, spotting, or mood swings. The only issue I have sometimes is bloating and breaking out, but it goes away. If you struggle with breakthrough bleeding, I definitely recommend this and push the bad reviews out of the way and remember everyone is different."

• Ror...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 19, 2018

For Birth Control "Although I have to give Chateal credit for doing its job by stopping an unwanted pregnancy, I put on 25 pounds in 4 months. I'd like to also mention I have a fairly low metabolism for the majority of my life. I constantly craved sweets. It made me nauseous every day at random, horrible mood swings, and crying spells the first month. It also increased my cup size and got rid of acne on my back, but the other side effects were too horrific for me. I am now discontinuing the pill and going back to the patch."

• Non...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 8, 2017

For Birth Control "I've been taking it for 4 months. I take it at night around 10, and to be honest, the only thing that bothers me is my boobs are sore and hurt all month long, but I mean I can deal with it. Also, it didn't help with my period cramps, they are still very painful. But no acne or nauseous feelings."

• mis...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 30, 2017

For Birth Control "As far as birth control goes, Chateal does its job. It definitely kept me from getting pregnant and was very easy to use as long as you can remember to take the pill at the same time every day (setting an alarm on my phone helped me). However, it gave me horrible acne. I have struggled with acne my whole life, mostly cystic, and after only a few days my face was covered far worse than I've ever had before. I would say if you have cystic acne or are acne-prone in general, do not use this product! It will only make your acne worse."

• mis...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 30, 2017

For Birth Control "As far as birth control goes, Chateal does its job. It definitely kept me from getting pregnant and was very easy to use as long as you can remember to take the pill at the same time every day (setting an alarm on my phone helped me). However, it gave me horrible acne. I have struggled with acne my whole life, mostly cystic, and after only a few days my face was covered far worse than I've ever had before. I would say if you have cystic acne or are acne-prone in general, do not use this product! It will only make your acne worse."

• Gir...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 2, 2016

For Birth Control "This was my first birth control medication, and I had a pretty rough time with it. I thought it would help clear up my acne. I didn't have acne issues whatsoever before taking this medication, and it just completely made me break out like never before. Also, I'm not much of an emotional person at all and had major mood swings and sometimes depression. Yes, it did serve its purpose by preventing pregnancy, it did help regulate my period, and my cramps weren't as bad, however, my face is literally a pepperoni face. I just got off of it 2 weeks ago, and my face is starting to clear up, and I'm not moody anymore. For a 19-year-old college student, you definitely don't want to have acne and mood swings. I would not recommend taking this at all."

• Ano...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 20, 2016

For Birth Control "I've been taking this for a month. I've never had acne before, and now I do. I get really depressed and have breakdowns. I've been spotting for almost two weeks, and I've put on weight that is hard to lose! I have stomach cramps every few days and sometimes really bad migraines. I hate these pills!"

• Pea...
• December 7, 2017

For Birth Control "I gave these pills a fair shot. After the first few months, I really started to notice extreme mood swings and an overall change in my mood. I was always angry, sad, and unhappy. Especially the week before my period, I was just plain psychotic. My cramps got worse on this pill too, they would start up to a week before my period. My periods got longer but also lighter. I gained 30 pounds in a year, and my acne got worse after about 6 months. The acne cleared up the first few months, though. I also would get nausea and headaches. My sex drive was just fine, no change. Vaginal dryness, yes. It did work, though, never had a single pregnancy scare. I just couldn't handle the mood changes, and neither could my relationship."

• Sfc...
• November 30, 2015

"I've been on Chateal for about a year and a half. I agree with many reviews that it's very effective for its intended purpose, but the side effects are awful. I've experienced extreme moodiness, irritability, and depression, panic attacks, and what I believe was a burst ovarian cyst. I've also been experiencing acne on my chest and back, which I've never had before. A few months ago, I ended up in the ER after having a severe panic attack and throwing up in the middle of the night. I can't say that the Chateal was directly responsible for the burst cyst, but I'm 30 years old and have been using BC since the age of 16 -- I've never experienced any of these conditions prior to using Chateal, save for your standard PMSing."

• End...
• November 15, 2016

For Birth Control "I took Chateal for 3 months. I was depressed, got nauseous every day, got horrible headaches, gained 20 pounds, got horrible acne, had the worst cramps, lost my sex drive. I stopped taking them 3 weeks ago, my acne is clearing up, my headaches are gone, my sex drive is back, but I have been bleeding since I stopped taking them."

• Ell...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 31, 2017

For Birth Control "This birth control is an amateur one for sure. I have been on it for almost 3 months now. I have mood swings, weight gain in hips and thighs (I'm a professional athlete and have never had weight there), increased appetite, and occasional bleeding. I have had some minor breakouts too. I am definitely switching over to a different brand."

• Win...
• December 22, 2016

For Birth Control "I've been taking this brand for a few months now, and I am very happy with it. In the first month, I did realize a bit more acne than usual, though this may have been due to stress as well. In the later months, acne was not a problem. I was slightly more emotional during the placebo weeks, but nothing too out of control. I found that my cramps were virtually disappearing with less and less pain each month. Good reviews aren't written that often. I recommend this brand if you are not easily prone to oily skin and breakouts. Oh! And no weight gain!"

• Ell...
• June 19, 2017

For Birth Control "I'm on my 3rd pack of Chateal, and I just called my birth control provider to ask them if they could switch me to another pill. It's worked for me the last 3 months that I've been on it, but with some side effects. Like really bad nausea, stomach pains, but the one that really bothered me was the acne. I usually have really clear skin and only get acne when I'm about to start my period, but ever since I started taking these, I break out like crazy! I expect to see a new pimple right after taking a pill. They're always really bad ones too! Hopefully my next pill is better!"

• Kaa...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• September 4, 2017

For Birth Control "Good things first; shorter, lighter periods, came at the same time every month, like started and ended the same day of the week, less pain, I get really bad backaches. Now for the bad stuff; discharge, horrible discharge every day. Acne, weight gain, mood changes, like so bad! It ruined my new relationship and turned me into an anxious, depressed mess. Like a literal crazy person. Gave it a three because it's easy to use, I didn't get pregnant, and it made my periods easier. So it did its job, but turned me into a crazy person."

• Sky...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 6, 2015

For Birth Control "So I had to switch to Chantel because I do not have insurance. I had emotional issues and I think for me personally it was due to switching birth control pills. I was leaving for school like I had time after time, and this one day I was leaving and I saw my cat, and I had tears well up in my eyes. Omg. It has been better since I'm on my second month. I read some comments and I guess I am experiencing some fatigue as well. My biggest complaint for this is the acne! I didn't have flawless skin before, but I would rarely get pimples, and since I switched to this, they are all over me! Face, chest, back of my neck, and even on my scalp! I cannot wait to get a new pill! Acne alone makes me want to stop this pill!"