Microgestin Fe 1/20 and Bleeding: What Users Say (Page 2)

• mom...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 3, 2015

For Birth Control "I have been on this pill for over 8 years and loved it up until now! Now that Actavis has taken over manufacturing, I am disgusted. I gained weight with no change in eating/workouts and am back to having the extreme cramping and regular periods I had prior to being on the pill. I have even started cramping and bleeding midway through with no missed pills. With Watson, I had mild cramps and hardly ever bled. This is my 3rd cycle on this pill. I will stick it out until my next gyn appointment in September. If things have not improved by then, I will be shopping for a new pill. So disappointed. (And yes, my chest has gotten much bigger, but it is not worth it.)"

• Anonymous
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 7, 2012

For Birth Control "I was on Microgestin Fe for 8 months. At first, I had no symptoms and it worked great. Then, after about 5 months, I started having irregular bleeding. Almost as if I was having 2 periods a month. I also had a low sex drive. I would hardly have any lubrication during intercourse, which was never a problem before I started taking this. I also gained about 10 pounds during the time I was on it."

• Anonymous
• September 10, 2010

For Birth Control "I went on this pill because the last pill I was taking made me sick. I've been on it for about a month, and I've had heavy bleeding (this is my second period in 3 weeks). I have NO sex drive, and I am moody. I don't believe this pill is for me."

• Bon...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 9, 2015

For Birth Control "Unhappy with this birth control. Been on it for 2 weeks, continuous bleeding and mood swings. Day 1 starter. Started this pill on my first day of period and I've been bleeding since. My normal period before this birth control was 5-6 days tops. Took it to avoid pregnancy, but now I'm suffering. I don't even want sex anymore. Seriously considering throwing the pills away, won't need it anyway. Sex is the farthest thing from my mind after taking this pill."

• use...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• November 3, 2018

For Birth Control "I was on this pill for about 5 months. No bad symptoms except a lower sex drive, but it was manageable. I started to have irregular bleeding, so I switched to two pills over the course of 3 months, both of which made me severely depressed. I am hoping to get back on Microgestin since although there were symptoms, none of them compared to what the other pills put me through."

• Sky...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 28, 2020

For Birth Control "I originally went on Microgestin to help control acne, and it did the opposite for me. I’m in month 4, and my acne is worse than before I started. Overall, the first month contained a lot of mood swings, bleeding for a few weeks, and very tender breasts. All of the other side effects have lightened, but my hormonal acne is a lot worse. It might work for some people, just didn’t work for me!"

• mad...
• February 22, 2017

For Birth Control "I started taking this a month ago, and my skin has cleared up quite a bit, but the downsides are too many. I have had breakthrough bleeding (which was expected, so not such an issue), but extreme mood changes within just a few weeks. I feel negative constantly and so unbelievably tired, the worst part of all is the nausea. I am nauseous all the time and am having a really hard time doing normal things, like working out. I did not gain any weight and have lost my appetite due to the nausea. I went on this medication to help with migraines and admittedly have had fewer, but the other side effects aren't worth it."

• Pri...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 16, 2016

For Endometriosis "Well, my experience so far has been really bad. I have had excessive weight gain, acne breakouts here and there, not too bad though. I've had no period for a long time, but now I'm somewhat bleeding, and it's not even heavy. The bad thing is I'm getting really bad ovary cramps. I feel very bad with mood swings, they're driving me crazy, and I'm eating like I'm pregnant. I have pregnancy symptoms without being pregnant. I don't know, I wouldn't recommend this for anyone, but I have to suffer on it for like 2-3 more months."

• Dsc...
• April 2, 2016

For Birth Control "This pill was not a fit for me at all. They told me it would take up to three months to regulate me, and I took it for nine months and never became regular. I have always been to the day with my cycle, but I never got my period back after nursing my second for a year. This pill made me bleed every two weeks and sometimes once a month. It was all over the place. I got migraines and had major mood swings. I said goodbye to it."

• Kim...
• July 8, 2015

For Birth Control "I started Microgestin last month. This is the first time I've ever had birth control. It is easy to take, and it tastes like sugar. But I started bleeding this week, and it has been so heavy. My period is never this heavy. I am bleeding through a super tampon in 4 hours. It might be normal, but I'm not sure."

• kai...
• November 19, 2010

"Okay, I just finished my first month, and in that month, there has been maybe 2 days that I have gone the whole day without bleeding heavier than my normal period. My hair is like 3 times thinner and getting progressively worse. I'm calling my doctor on Monday to switch. I would never recommend this to anyone. Also, every time I eat, I feel awful, like my stomach hurts, my head hurts, and I'm always tired with absolutely NO sex drive. My breasts got a little bigger, but my acne got worse. Overall, this pill is miserable."

• est...
• November 14, 2017

For Birth Control "Worked fine the first five months of taking it. Around month six, I started getting horrible, heavy, crampy, clotty breakthrough bleeding with cramps that were up there in terms of the worst I've ever experienced. It started giving me horrible migraines that made me unable to function. However, it did do its job as a contraceptive. I never got pregnant the six months I was taking it, so three stars for it!"

• Tur...
• March 10, 2016

For Birth Control "I've never taken birth control before, I was always scared to. I'm not sure how I feel about my experience with this. I'm on my last 3 pills before the brown ones, and this week I've started experiencing light bleeding. Also, this week I have started to experience depression, for lack of better words. I've never really been an emotional person, but this pill has made me super emotional. I literally have cried at the drop of a dime this entire week. I wasn't sure if it was just the things going on in my life or if it was this, but after I've read the reviews, I've narrowed it down to it being this. I haven't experienced any weight gain, though I think. I haven't weighed myself, but my boyfriend has told me that I'm looking smaller now."

• its...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 12, 2015

For Birth Control "I started this in mid-October after I went off my old pill (LoLoestrin Fe) due to the fact I couldn't afford it anymore, and there's no generic. My reaction to this pill is odd.... sometimes it gives me an insane, insatiable sex drive, and sometimes I have no drive at all. Sometimes I bleed/spot for 2.5 weeks, sometimes I bleed for 3 days. I have a little acne, which is bothersome since I have PCOS and was hoping for this pill to get rid of the spots, but so far there's been no improvement. Sometimes I get nausea and headaches, but not consistently. Had my first ever yeast infection after being on it for 2 weeks, none since. I'll give this a few more months before I look into switching, since I may still be just adjusting to it."

• Ali...
• December 8, 2015

For Birth Control "While I was on it for a week and a half, I started getting irregular bleeding that has still not stopped, and I'm on my second month with these. Bleeding is very annoying. Do feel sick sometimes, but when I eat something, it goes away 99% of the time. I haven't tried it for contraception yet, but I can only imagine how it will go. I don't mind being on this pill, though. My doctor said if the bleeding gets worse and if it goes past the third cycle, I should contact her. And sometimes it doesn't taste good."

• sas...
• March 20, 2012

For Birth Control "I was on this pill for 3 months, and I decided to switch because I kept getting breakthrough bleeding and headaches. I did not experience any changes in breast size like some other people are claiming to get, I also did not experience any weight change. I did always feel lazy/tired, and my hair seemed to be falling out. On a good note, it seemed to help with my acne and didn't kill my sex drive. Oh, and I didn't get pregnant."

• Bri...
• September 20, 2015

For Birth Control "I am stopping this pill today. I used to take Ortho Tricyclen Lo. Took it from age 16 to 27, but Planned Parenthood decided to stop carrying it, so they told me this one was the next best thing they carry. I expected my body to be a little out of whack the first month or two, but this is ridiculous. I've held out for five months hoping I would eventually adjust. Every month my periods have been all over the place, starting anywhere from a week early to three weeks early, with every single pill taken at night right on schedule! Also, heavier bleeding, intense cramps, intense breast tenderness, breakouts on chest and shoulders, no sex drive at all, lethargy. I am done. I'll pay more to get Ortho from a regular pharmacy. I cannot do this to myself anymore."

• AP1...
• January 25, 2017

For Birth Control "I was put on this medication to help with pain associated with endometriosis. I have suffered with it for years. When I first started it, I had breakthrough bleeding, extremely sore breasts, and mood swings. Eventually, after a couple of months, my body adjusted and the breast tenderness subsided pretty much, and I no longer had irregular bleeding. I was instructed to take this medicine for 3 months continuously and have a period only once every 3 months. I also suffer from migraines, so my doctor put me on Topomax 50 mg to help prevent them. The medicines interacted with each other, and I bled so heavily and had labor-like cramps. I stopped Topomax, and my body still hasn't regulated."

• AP1...
• January 25, 2017

For Birth Control "I was put on this medication to help with pain associated with endometriosis. I have suffered with it for years. When I first started it, I had breakthrough bleeding, extremely sore breasts, and mood swings. Eventually, after a couple of months, my body adjusted and the breast tenderness subsided pretty much, and I no longer had irregular bleeding. I was instructed to take this medicine for 3 months continuously and have a period only once every 3 months. I also suffer from migraines, so my doctor put me on Topomax 50 mg to help prevent them. The medicines interacted with each other, and I bled so heavily and had labor-like cramps. I stopped Topomax, and my body still hasn't regulated."

• AP1...
• January 25, 2017

For Birth Control "I was put on this medication to help with pain associated with endometriosis. I have suffered with it for years. When I first started it, I had breakthrough bleeding, extremely sore breasts, and mood swings. Eventually, after a couple of months, my body adjusted and the breast tenderness subsided pretty much, and I no longer had irregular bleeding. I was instructed to take this medicine for 3 months continuously and have a period only once every 3 months. I also suffer from migraines, so my doctor put me on Topomax 50 mg to help prevent them. The medicines interacted with each other, and I bled so heavily and had labor-like cramps. I stopped Topomax, and my body still hasn't regulated."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• January 24, 2018

For Birth Control "The first five months were great. No spotting, no weight gain, no cramps, no acne, regular periods, not moody. I’ve been on this pill close to a year, and the last six months I have had a lot of breakthrough bleeding between periods, and once didn’t even get a period for two months. Usually, the period would last about 4 days. Definitely prevents pregnancy, but for me, breakthrough bleeding was annoying, so I’m switching it up with another pill."

• Wic...
• September 15, 2016

For Birth Control "Okay, I haven't been on this pill very long, but my doctor prescribed it to me for heavy bleeding and intense cramps. He told me to skip the brown pills and start a new pack instead. Doing that, I wasn't supposed to have a period at all. Well, that isn't the case at all. The last two days have been pure hell with cramps (worse than before), and I'm bleeding heavier than usual (I didn't think it was possible). Not to mention the migraines are unreal."

• Bel...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 20, 2021

For Birth Control "I took it for 5 months and went through a living nightmare on this birth control. At first I was okay and had breakthrough bleeding for the first month but no other symptoms. Then I started getting waves of nausea every once in a while in the second month, and by the time I quit, I was getting nauseous over 5 times a day and they were so strong I’d have to stop what I was doing, including pulling over if I was driving. Then within a week of not taking it, the symptoms were all completely gone. BAD DO NOT TAKE."

• May...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• July 4, 2017

For Acne "I switched from Portia to Microgestin Fe 1/20 because I was having breakthrough bleeding, and after 2 weeks, I experienced red, itchy, hive-like rashes on my cheeks. I stopped the Microgestin immediately once I noticed the itching because I figured I might be having an allergic reaction to it. I'll be on Ocella in a few days. I'll update and tell if that helped clear up this mess on my face..."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 3, 2017

For Birth Control "I have been on this birth control since September of 2016, and it is now February of 2017, and I am having to switch birth controls. I was having heavy bleeding in my periods and severe cramping. My skin was relatively perfect. I never got acne, besides maybe 1 zit every month or so. When I first started this birth control, I started to get some acne. It wasn't anything too alarming, because I thought it was normal and it would clear up quickly and would be done. But this acne did not clear up. Over the months, my skin has gotten to the point where I don't want to leave my house without face makeup to cover up my acne and scarring. This BC has broken me out severely. My bleeding has reduced some, but my cramps are still severe on most periods."