Ethinyl estradiol / levonorgestrel and Depression: What Users Say (Page 4)

• Jul...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 2, 2019

For Birth Control "This is the second pill I’ve been put on due to switching clinics, and it’s awful. Worsened my depression and anxiety and makes me so irritable. I’m not sure if it’s coincidental or not, but I’ve never weighed more in my life than I do right now, and I’m a fairly small person that has a hard time putting on weight. Also, my period has been irregular the entire six months of taking it, and I’m almost always spotting. What’s the point of having contraceptive if I can’t even have/enjoy sex because I’m bleeding a majority of the time??? I never had this problem with my old prescription. This pill is literally the stem of all my problems, and I cannot wait to switch."

• Amy...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 28, 2017

For Birth Control "I had my IUD removed and was put on this immediately after. It has been 3 months. I have gained 15 lb, have acne on my face and chest, and horrible mood swings, as well as periods of sadness. I do not recommend this at all. My doctor said it was a great pill for women in their 40s...men should take these things first!"

• Jac...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• January 26, 2019

For Birth Control "I have been taking Aubra for about 2 years now. I got prescribed this birth control in Planned Parenthood. The nurse never told me the side effects about this pill, and let me tell you, it gave me really bad side effects. I have anxiety, gained weight, really bad mood swings, I feel nauseous. Most of the time, I am crying. I never thought this pill would make me lose myself. I have really bad depression where it has gotten to the point where I don't want to get out of bed and not even go out. I haven't gotten my period for the past 2 months. I don't recommend using Aubra."

• Fed...
• November 3, 2018

For Birth Control "I have never experienced anything more awful. I was taking Levora, and I loved it, but then it got discontinued, and my insurance switched me to Portia. At first, I took two months of it and felt terrible. My breasts were so tender and hurting all the time, I had chest pains constantly and thought I had heart problems. I was incredibly moody and got sad or upset for no reason pretty often. I took a month break from it, but then felt like I had no choice to get back on since my insurance didn’t cover anything else, and things got worse. I have been getting panic attacks, feeling depressed and even suicidal, not acting like myself, shutting everyone out, and I finally realized that this drastic change is because of my birth control. It’s messing up my hormones and my mental health, and it’s just not worth it. I cry all the time and feel so empty inside, and I’ve never experienced this sort of helplessness before. Please don’t take this pill."

• Ale...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 29, 2016

For Birth Control "Just quit Alesse after 4 months. I tried to tough it out, but it just wasn't working. I was always hungry, then I would eat and feel constantly nauseous and bloated. I had no energy and felt tired, always wanting to eat sweet stuff. Didn't really gain much weight, just water weight around my hips and boobs (those were constantly sore as well), such bad mood swings and depressed and anxious often. Got lots of headaches, acne got worse (cystic acne on my chin, back, and chest), and lower sex drive. This is my first day without birth control (period will start in a few days), and I can honestly say that I feel so much better, which is weird because Alesse is 'ultra low dose hormones.'"

• Sof...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 29, 2018

For Birth Control "I switched from Levora to Portia about two months ago because Levora was discontinued. It is by far the worst two months. I have had a dramatic increase in acne. Levora really helped my acne, but with Portia, I am having constant breakouts everywhere. I have chronic headaches and feel very nauseous in the mornings. I feel an increase in my appetite. I tend to feel very down most of the time-sad for no reason. I am very unhappy being on this birth control."

• Jay...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• December 9, 2018

For Birth Control "This one is a 10 for me. It dramatically cleared up my skin, and I had no spotting when I started this medication. Occasionally, I will start spotting about a week before placebo week, which seems to be my body saying that it's ready for a period. But apart from that, there is no spotting. No weight gain or depression or other side effects for me."

• Anonymous
• April 10, 2012

For Polycystic Ovary Syndrome "My periods were fine. I was ovulating, had normal blood flow, slightly heavy cramps. I started this pill for Polycystic Ovary Syndrome symptoms. While it did clear up my skin a little, it has made me borderline suicidal. Within 3 days, I started hating people, crying at the drop of a hat, becoming irrationally angry, entertaining thoughts of suicide, and becoming severely depressed. I would be losing weight since I have no appetite, except I'm so bloated it doesn't matter."

• Bre...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 3, 2016

For Birth Control "I have been on Seasonale for 2 years now and have now just realized that it's the reason I can't lose weight, and I feel depressed and absolutely 0 sex drive. I didn't know until now, only because I have researched it today, and I am planning to get off it ASAP."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• December 4, 2012

For Birth Control "I'm only on the first week, and I'm moody and feel down a lot. I don't like it because I took birth control before, and I've never felt mild depression like this before and moody. I'm also having cravings for sweets every day, which is very unusual."

• sam...
• July 13, 2017

For Birth Control "Amazing! It broke me out the first two months, but by now, at month six, my skin has been completely clear. I used to struggle with PMDD, which gave me really bad depression around my period. Now, I feel so much more stable and my depression and mood swings are gone. No weight gain, I actually lost a few pounds. No bad side effects at all! Would recommend this to anyone if you're looking for birth control with only positive side effects. And of course, I have not gotten pregnant."

• Anonymous
• September 15, 2011

For Birth Control "This pill didn't work for me. I was on it for 3 months. I spotted for several weeks (probably 6 weeks), gained weight (went from size 0 to a 4-6), and felt depressed and suicidal. I switched back to a pill I had been on several years ago (Levora/Portia). It's been 2.5 weeks since I switched pills, and I already feel back to normal. I'm back to size 0, mental health is normal, and no more spotting. Jolessa didn't work with my body's chemistry, but that doesn't mean it doesn't work. The birth control pill is trial and error, in my opinion. Find what works for you."

• Ski...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 30, 2020

For Birth Control "I’m taking birth control for acne. I’ve tried a few other brands before this but had to quit within weeks because I got severely depressed (I don’t have preexisting depression when I’m not on BC). I have been on Vienva for 1.5 months now and I haven’t experienced the mood swings that I did with other brands. Like I said, I’m trying to use BC to clear my skin, and so far this has done a decent job. I’d say it’s reduced the acne by about 40%, but I’m sure it will keep getting better as time goes on. I am trying to skip the sugar pills to skip my period. The PMS symptoms that week (back pain, stomach ache, irritability) were worse than usual, however, I barely bled, so that’s good."

• Mar...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 13, 2019

For Birth Control "I’ve been using Levlan for the last 4 months. I don’t recommend this pill at all. Previously, I was on Estelle with no problems. Dr. changed me. I know everyone is different and their hormones and bodies act differently, but I’ve never had any problems with any medication before. I’ve always had relatively great skin, especially on my face! A few weeks after on Levlan, my cheeks, chin, and forehead have been covered in tiny lumps and almost cyst-like pimples since! I’m 24 years old and have never had acne. I’ve also been having crazy mood swings or been upset/depressed, and I don’t even know why. I’ve never been like this before, and I’ll never use Levlan again. I’ve been back on Estelle for 1 week, and my face is already 3x better. Hope this helps!!"

• Sph...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 31, 2019

For Birth Control "Took this in July 2017 for three weeks. This is the worst birth control I have ever taken. I was extremely angry and depressed. I hated the sight of other people. Every night after work, I would lay on the couch for hours and cry. It made my mind race a million miles per hour and my body ache all over. The only good thing about this pill is that I became more assertive, and people started to listen to me. I was mad angry."

• exa...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 17, 2020

For Birth Control "Larissa is by far the worst birth control I have ever used. The mood swings, depression, and anxiety were through the roof. I was constantly emotional and anxious about nothing. I didn’t feel like I was in my own body. My head was always foggy. My appetite changed, and so did my sleeping. A week before my period, I would always get unbearable uterus pain. Do not use this birth control whatsoever. Always do your research!"

• You...
• March 27, 2019

For Birth Control "I started this when I was 16. I was terrified hearing all the side effects. The doctor I had said I could skip my first period. (But after going to another doctor, it is highly not recommended to do that, apparently). The second month I had breakthrough bleeding that turned into a 21-day period. This time I was the angriest, nastiest person. I went to the doctors at 12 days and said to wait longer to see if it would stop. Then on the 20th day, I went back as it hadn't stopped, and he put me on 30 ED. This stopped my period almost immediately. Throughout this month that I stayed on Levlen 30, I had severe depression. It was very, very bad. I changed back to 20 ED. I haven’t skipped a period yet as I’m too scared to, but I would 100% recommend. I have been very sexually active in this time, and I have not had a pregnancy scare. I don’t use condoms as I trust my pill. I have had no side effects on this one other than slight mood swings and a little bit more emotional. No weight gain. This pill is very, very good towards me."

• not...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 28, 2016

For Birth Control "I first started taking Lutera around the beginning of January. I noticed immediate mood swings within the first 2 weeks of taking it. I had a little trouble sleeping one night and literally started sobbing out of nowhere (mind you I'm not a very emotional person). It made me extremely depressed, and I only ever felt angry or sad, never happy, not to mention I felt very disconnected from my boyfriend, who I am deeply in love with. I immediately got off of it during the third week. They say to stick it out the first 3 weeks at least, but I could not stay on it one more day. I immediately noticed the changes, and I was back to my spunky positive self, thank God!"

• not...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 28, 2016

For Birth Control "I first started taking Lutera around the beginning of January. I noticed immediate mood swings within the first 2 weeks of taking it. I had a little trouble sleeping one night and literally started sobbing out of nowhere (mind you I'm not a very emotional person). It made me extremely depressed, and I only ever felt angry or sad, never happy, not to mention I felt very disconnected from my boyfriend, who I am deeply in love with. I immediately got off of it during the third week. They say to stick it out the first 3 weeks at least, but I could not stay on it one more day. I immediately noticed the changes, and I was back to my spunky positive self, thank God!"

• kek...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 28, 2020

For Birth Control "I switched from Microgestin FE to Larissia. Microgestin FE gave me terrible anxiety and depression and made me feel like I was an alien in my own body. Switching to Larissia, I definitely had some cramping, breakthrough bleeding, mood swings, and acne during my first 2-3 packs of this pill, but after a couple months, all of those symptoms went away. My first pack, I could tell that my boobs were bigger, but that went away as well over time. I haven’t gained any weight on this pill (I was actually hoping that I would) and have less acne than I did while on other pills. I would recommend this to a friend."

• Ano...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 5, 2018

For Birth Control "I took Alesse 28 for three months, and it worked. I never got pregnant, and Alesse cleared up my mild acne. But the side effects legit made me feel like I was crazy. The mood swings made me question my sanity. I would always lash out at my boyfriend randomly and be angry at him even though he did nothing wrong. I hated him so much for no reason. I lost my sex drive, my vagina was always dry, and so it would cause my vagina to bleed and hurt after sex, and I became really depressed. I stopped taking Alesse for a month now, and my boyfriend told me that my attitude and mood are normal and back to the way I was before taking Alesse."

• Aua...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 9, 2018

For Birth Control "I had been on Levora for about ten years when my pharmacy switched to Portia. I was told it was the same thing (generic version), but my experience says otherwise. I took it for about two weeks when I started noticing I was VERY gloomy/sad/easily triggered. I wasn’t as resilient as I normally am. I also started bleeding during sex and was so disturbed by it I almost fainted (I never bleed during sex and basically got my period out of the blue). I would NOT advise anyone to take Portia - the gloominess/hopelessness feeling I got from taking it is enough to make me quit oral birth control altogether. I’m really struggling to find a solution."

• Aua...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 9, 2018

For Birth Control "I had been on Levora for about ten years when my pharmacy switched to Portia. I was told it was the same thing (generic version), but my experience says otherwise. I took it for about two weeks when I started noticing I was VERY gloomy/sad/easily triggered. I wasn’t as resilient as I normally am. I also started bleeding during sex and was so disturbed by it I almost fainted (I never bleed during sex and basically got my period out of the blue). I would NOT advise anyone to take Portia - the gloominess/hopelessness feeling I got from taking it is enough to make me quit oral birth control altogether. I’m really struggling to find a solution."

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

For Birth Control "Avoid this birth control if you can. This was my first time going on birth control, and my doctor prescribed it because it apparently was a good 'starter birth control.' But the side effects were terrible. I had the common ones, headaches, nausea, etc. But the worst of all was that it gave me TERRIBLE anxiety, on top of depression. I got into a really dark place and was getting around 1-3 anxiety attacks per week. I also experienced terrible leg cramping, to the extent that I paid the hospital a visit because it was so bad, and there was the fear that it may be a blood clot. There are so many better birth control options out there."

• Dru...
• September 30, 2014

For Birth Control "I developed terrible depression taking this medication. The first month and a half were fine, even energizing. I actually slept less and felt more alert the first few weeks. The first two nights I took the pill, I only slept 4 hours and woke up sweating, and then couldn't sleep the rest of the night. This side effect went away, and then all was pretty normal for a while. Then I felt myself slowly slipping into a funk. It started with a negative attitude toward things I used to enjoy and progressed into terrible depression. I suspected the pill, and the day after the 3 months ended, I felt immediately better and happy again. It was like day and night. I went back to NuvaRing after this experience."