Portia and Cramps: What Users Say

• Ros...
• January 7, 2019

For Birth Control "This product should be banned! Everything that can go wrong will go wrong! Painful abdominal cramping all day, every day, breast tenderness and heavy pain in breasts, dramatic mood swings, intense depression, cramping during sex, yeast infections, dry skin and scalp itch, numbness in arms and legs, heart palpitations. It is taking STOP IMMEDIATELY and talk to your doctor. I was put on this without my consent!"

• Hea...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 26, 2012

For Birth Control "This pill by far cleared up my acne! I've been trying different face washes for years, and the thing that worked the most was THIS PILL, which isn't even a face wash! I experienced no weight gain at all, I was actually hoping for weight gain. Also, everyone was talking about how birth control pills helped your breasts grow, and with Portia, it just didn't happen for me. Maybe because it was a low dose. It prevented pregnancy, and I had NO CRAMPS! Wooohoo! My periods were a lot lighter. I actually felt healthy on it!"

• the...
• September 21, 2017

For Birth Control "I was switched from Levora to this. I never had issues with Levora, but I hate Portia. I get cramps and pain randomly throughout the whole month. My right breast has gotten nearly a half cup bigger, despite my weight being stable. I feel bloated a lot and have cut carbs to try to fix it. This is my third pack, so I was hoping the side effects would have subsided by now, but they haven't. I am not impressed and hope Levora comes back on the market or whatever is going on with it because Portia sucks. Also, they have red dye in them, something I try to avoid. I waited to review until I had been on it a while to see if I was biased because of the dye, but there's definitely an unwelcome change going on in my body that is really frustrating."

• Anonymous
• August 23, 2011

For Birth Control "I switched to this from the NuvaRing about three to four years ago. It originally worked great; timed my periods perfectly (always Sunday at noon after the last active pill), would stop my period with no breakthrough bleeding when starting another pack and made my periods light and pain-free. It was also an effective birth control method as I've never been pregnant. This year, however, my boyfriend and I noticed I would have severe mood swings in my third week of active pills. I would literally not want to be in a relationship. I've also noticed breakouts on my face and body and get mild cramping every few months."

• Nik...
• October 12, 2016

For Birth Control "I have been on 3 different types of birth control since I was 15. I am now 21, and I wanted to be able to skip my periods, so my doctor put me on Marlissa, and then they discontinued it, so I got switched to Portia. I was only on Portia for just a month, and I hated it!! I was very moody and felt sad. I was hungry, and it made me very, very bloated. I was getting bad migraines as well. The worst was when I got my period, it started off not normal than what it usually is for me, and it was the worst cramps I have EVER experienced! I suggest trying a different birth control like Tri-Sprintec or Tri-Linyah (which I am now on)."

• eed...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• October 27, 2018

For Birth Control "I have had a rather decent experience on Portia. When it comes to my period, it has not improved my flow any, but it has lessened my cramps and the number of days my period is. My period used to last about 7 to 10 days, and now my period lasts a maximum of four days. I have also lost weight instead of gaining weight like I expected. I have gone from 132 to 120 ever since I started it."

• Nek...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 18, 2018

For Birth Control "I feel absolutely terrible. I have painful breast pains/tenderness, pelvic pain. I've been super anxious and depressed, the nausea is my worst effect. I could eat normally and still feel nauseous. I wake up and feel nauseous. I recently spotted for the first time, and it sucked. I've never had such a terrible period. For my first month, it caused heavy bleeding and painful cramps. It also hasn't affected my sex drive, but the discharge is horrible, I'm always wet. Also, recently, as of these past two weeks, I've been diagnosed with a yeast infection and vaginitis, and yesterday I went to urgent care, and they did x-rays to find out the pills' hormones have been causing me to be constipated - making my stomach growl after literally anything I eat. I get gas/bloating, so everything has been building up inside me causing the pelvic pain on my left side. Now, the only good effects are I've been losing weight, and my acne got somewhat better. I hope to switch brands soon. I hope this information helps someone."

• xxs...
• January 24, 2017

For Birth Control "I got pretty bad mood swings/anxiety with this, but worst of all, I got cramps. I had cramps all month long for about 3 months before I switched. It would feel like someone punched me in the uterus, and I'd bend over in pain at random times in the day. However, I did experience this with other Barr/Teva pharmaceutical birth controls. I didn't get pregnant, so I suppose it was effective in that sense."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 14, 2013

For Birth Control "I was on Levora, but my pharmacist switched me to this because it's cheaper. I hate it. I have acid reflux, and it's making it unbearable. I'm sick all the time, terrible heartburn making me puke. I've been on the pill for a little over a month. I have a terrible headache almost every day, and now I have this terrible pain in my left hand and going up a little bit. Next month, I'm off this pill. My period was horrible last month, horrible cramps, I couldn't get out of bed!"

• Cat...
• April 3, 2017

For Birth Control "During the first month of Portia, I was loving it. No side effects, no nothing. My only side effect was breast enlargement, which was not a problem for me. But when it came to be the week before my period, I noticed I was getting pimples by the daily. My face is always perfectly clear, but I literally turned into a pizza face. Not exaggerating, I decided to stay on it because I knew it was because of my period. But once my period came, my cramps got so much worse than what they normally are like. I was bending over the whole entire day, and it became painful to walk. Not to mention, my stomach is always flat. I am always bloated now. I could eat a grain of rice, and my stomach will pop back up. I've gained 10 pounds. I am not confident in myself."

• shy...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 9, 2021

For Birth Control "Don't ever use this. It is horrible. I've taken the pill twice, I take them at night, and I make sure to drink plenty of water and eat with it too, but both times I have woken up super sick. I throw up to the point where I'm dry heaving, and it doesn't stop. My body has a severe reaction, I get cramps like I'm PMSing, and I'm not due for another couple of weeks. I can't leave the bathroom because every time I do, I'm back within five minutes needing the toilet or trash can, if not both. I don't know if it helps with anything else, and I'm not going to find out. This is awful, please listen to these reviews. It sucks and is not worth it."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• June 20, 2014

For Birth Control "I have had a great experience with this medication. With this pill, I have some PMS, nothing out of the norm, and barely any cramping (which is great because I suffer from bad cramping). I recommend this pill, been on it 6 months, and it's great!"

• Kir...
• April 29, 2015

For Birth Control "I started this birth control about a month ago and immediately felt side effects. The first two weeks I noticed my appetite was completely gone and my stomach always felt slightly bloated. Then suddenly I started my period, and the first four days were very light bleeding, but I had terrible cramping/back aches/nausea like I have never experienced before during menstruation. Now I'm on day 9 of this never-ending period, and I've had a consistent stomach ache/cramping to accompany it. I HATE this birth control. I know that you're supposed to give yourself time to adjust to these things, but I don't want to keep putting something in my body that can make me feel this sick."

• Ang...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 16, 2015

For Birth Control "I've only been on this birth control for about a month, and I already don't like it. I've been spotting for about 2 weeks now, I get headaches, vivid nightmares, gained weight, terrible mood swings. The list goes on... The reason why I switched birth controls was because my last one (the Depo shot) was giving me extremely bad headaches and cramps. Also, I bled for 3 whole months while being on it. I just want to find a birth control that fits me and doesn't give me all of these symptoms."

• Rha...
• July 26, 2015

For Birth Control "I switched to Portia after being on Levora (I had no side effects with it) for three years. My first period was extremely heavy, but no cramps. I'm on my second period, and I feel like I've gained 10 pounds from bloating. I look like I'm 3 months pregnant. I've been very irritable and had cramps and headaches during these few days. I hate this birth control. It's effective, but it's not worth severe, uncomfortable bloating and weight gain."

• Anonymous
• April 25, 2011

For Birth Control "Portia is the third birth control that I have tried. I have noticed weight gain that I did not have with my other pills. My moods are also terrible and unstable. I get awful cramps and headaches during my period. Overall, these are small prices to pay compared to other issues I have had with other pills."

• So-...
• April 14, 2016

For Birth Control "I've been on this pill for about 2 years now. It really helped straighten out my irregular periods and the heaviness of my flow. However, I didn't get cramps much before I started the pill, and now I get them, and they are horrible. Sometimes I even feel like my legs are going numb. And I get these horrible headaches every day, they worsen when I don't take my pill right on time. Even a few minutes late, and they only get worse on the week I take the sugar pills. I didn't have any issues until about a year and a half after starting this pill."

• Han...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 30, 2019

For Birth Control "I was prescribed this to help lessen my cramps since they were debilitating, but it stopped them completely, and as someone who someday wants to be a mother, this was distressing, but obviously reversible. I began the birth control at the end of my period as prescribed, and three weeks came, and I began to expect my period. I got severe mood swings, irritation, anxiety, and beyond severe depression. I usually get moody around my period, so I didn’t think anything of it. But I ended up skipping two periods with no let-up of the emotions I was feeling, not to mention tender and painful breasts and random punches of cramps. My depression and overall emotional state have been bad before, but never this bad. Never to the point of such incredibly dark thoughts. If you are being prescribed Portia, go ahead, but it may muck you up mentally and physically, and you’ll prefer your periods to it any day."

• Anonymous
• March 10, 2010

"I recently got off of Portia because after over a year of taking it, I noticed it caused me to be more irritable. It did what it was supposed to, though - had no problems with that. No weight gain, but I did get pretty bad cramps on the first couple of days of my period. It improved my skin complexion drastically, though. I just wish it didn't affect my personality nearly as much."

• Anonymous
• February 23, 2010

For Birth Control "I started using Portia when I was 17. Not knowing much about birth control pills and what they can really do to you, I didn't really know what to expect or how great this pill actually was! I had no side effects to begin with. I think my boobs got a little bigger and there was no weight gain and drastically lighter periods. I do have to say, before I was on the pill, I had no cramps and I have gotten some after starting the pill, but only on the first day. I'm now 20 and I've decided to switch to YAZ to try something different. I've heard the complaints about it, but I have always had anxiety and maybe a depression problem, so I want to see if Portia caused it. If I do have severe side effects, I'll switch back!"

• C-J...
• March 31, 2014

For Birth Control "I've been on this pill for about a little over a year and a half, I have had a very good experience so far. I never got headaches, pain, or any of those things. It cleared my skin pretty well, but after a while it stopped. I never broke out crazily. My breasts grew a little, and I still PMS and get minor cramps, but my period is still heavy but shorter by 4 days, so I'm not going to complain! I hope this birth control will continue to work for me just as well as the months go on."

• Anonymous
• September 29, 2011

For Birth Control "I have been on Portia for about a year now, and it has been great and effective. I am not pregnant, and it reduced my period days by about four days. I had very bad cramps before I started birth control, but Portia helped a lot. I would recommend this to anyone!"

• mia...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 6, 2018

For Birth Control "I hated Portia. A lot of why I was on it was to combat heavy bleeding, acne, cramps, and bloating. It made me have 10-13 day-long periods, of which the last 5 days would be so heavy I would use 6-10 Super Plus tampons in the span of a day. I broke out less but still broke out around my period. I had unbearably bad cramps. The only thing it fixed was my bloating and fatigue and partially acne, everything else it made worse. I also began to uncontrollably lose weight and feel faint around my period, including constant dizziness."

• fin...
• October 21, 2015

For Birth Control "I went from Mylan to Portia. Ever since I switched, I've been getting massive headaches, horrible cramping/bloating when on my cycles, and just overall been feeling terrible for the past 2 months of taking it. Still works, but not the type of pill for me."

• Eri...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• July 29, 2015

For Birth Control "I switched over to Portia because my previous birth control was making me highly emotional. Portia was able to fix that. I felt like myself again, and I wasn't crying over every little thing. However, the side effects I'm facing are not worth it to me. The first one is that my cramping from my period is extreme. The main reason I got on birth control was to minimize the pain from my period. With Portia, I'm back to spending a week with a heating pad on my stomach and just hoping for the week to go quicker. The second side effect is the nightmares. I would get them every night the second week of the series. They are awful. I would wake up sobbing. These are just my experiences, though."