Ethinyl estradiol / norgestrel for Birth Control User Reviews (Page 5)

• wd1...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 14, 2016

"I got switched to this pill because I was beginning to have severe cramps on my Lutera pill. I liked this pill for the first 3 months as I noticed my boobs grew, my acne completely cleared up, and my cramps were gone. However, during this time period, I noticed about a 10 lb weight gain that only occurred while I was on the pill (I lost 8.7 pounds while on my sugar pills one week). I also noticed that I was really emotional and got upset about everything, and I never cry, ever. I know everybody has different reactions to medications, but I would suggest not even trying this pill because the pros were not worth the cons."

• Dev...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• August 22, 2015

"This was the generic brand my original BC was changed to. The 1st month or so I didn't notice any changes, but recently, about 3 months in, I've been getting headaches, horrible nausea, and stomach cramps, and my period has gone back to being longer than shorter like it was on the first pill. I've never been one to feel unmotivated, lethargic, depressed, or anxious, but as of recently, I've been experiencing all those things, which is no doubt making stress-induced nausea worse, and I have just generally felt bad. I went to my doctor and had multiple blood tests taken and some other tests, but all came back with no abnormalities, leading me to realize it was a change in birth control. Ups? Worked and no breast tenderness. But that's it."

• Agg...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• January 27, 2019

"While on Cryselle (almost a year), my body continued to show me almost all the signs of pregnancy. I missed multiple periods, my boobs would swell, I would get nauseous and throw up, etc. I HATED Cryselle. I've never taken so many pregnancy tests in my life."

• Jes...
• April 26, 2017

"I gave this pill a 5 because it did protect me from getting pregnant, so the pill does the job. Pros: easy to take. Protected me for 2 years. Did not gain any weight. Sex drive stayed normal. Cons: constant chin acne, bad PMS that would start a week after getting my period, so I felt like I never had a break. That food craving, sore breasts, emotional, angry feeling would pop up 2 weeks before my period even started. Basically, it was 1 week of normal and the rest was all hormonal. Overall, the pill does what you need it to do. Protects you from pregnancy. However, I can't take the emotions/acne, so I'm on the hunt for a new pill."

• tak...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 15, 2022

"Went on this birth control at the age of 16 to regulate my cycle. My cycle was irregular since it started at the age of 13. I went to my pediatrician, who prescribed me Cryselle. During the second month of taking it, I noticed weight gain in my torso and face specifically. In addition to that, my appetite was insane. I had huge cravings for junk food and was hungry all the time and had lots of gas. I also struggled greatly with anxiety and depression. Literally cried myself to sleep in my room and experienced dissociation like I never had before. Panicking and crying about everything, including my existence. I did get my period every month, but at what cost? Don’t recommend it."

• Car...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 7, 2019

"My doctor recommended I switch to this birth control about 2 months ago because of my worsening cramps on my period. This medication has worsened my anxiety, caused my depression to be through the roof, and made me break out with acne all over my face. My anxiety is so bad sometimes that I can’t even work up the courage to walk out of the door and go do things during the day. I had never struggled with acne in the past until I was put on this medication. Now I have acne scars and pimples all over my forehead that won’t go away even after getting medicine from a dermatologist. I am seeing my doctor on Friday to get off of this horrible birth control and get my life back on track. Do yourself a favor and NEVER go on this medication. It will make you hormonal and make you feel crazy."

• sen...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• May 30, 2018

"I have taken Cryselle for nearly eight years now. I was prescribed this birth control when I became sexually active. Its purpose was to control my abnormally heavy flow and to prevent pregnancy. For the last three years, I have been miserable. I did not believe that my worsening anxiety and depression were caused by my hormones, much less the prescription that I had taken for seven years. My blood pressure has been recorded at very high levels. My sweating is excessive and I have panic attacks regularly. My anxiety has never been so out of control, and I have withdrawn from my friends and family because of my uncontrollable mood swings. I have turned into an impulsive, irritable, and unhappy woman out of nowhere, and I need a different hormone therapy as soon as possible. If you experience worsened depression with this medication, please do not wait like me. Everyone's body is different. Go speak with your doctor."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 4, 2018

"I have been taking this pill for 7 months. The first 3 months were the worst as my body was adjusting, and I was so bipolar and nauseous. Now... it honestly worsened my acne from mild to moderate, painful cysts. No weight gain. But honestly, this pill has left me an emotional wreck. If I'm not angry, I am sad or easily irritated. Happiness is rare. And I break out even worse during my period in places I never even broke out before. Not the worst, but not the best. Definitely switching pill brands."

• Anonymous
• October 6, 2016

"I've been on this pill for four months now. I used to have extremely heavy periods that could last longer than a month. This pill has reduced my period to a week, and it's what I imagine is normal instead of heavy. Since I started this pill, I've had extremely strange experiences with my stomach. I have a lot of stomach problems, but this has been a lot worse. I'm nauseous almost all the time now, with the mornings being the worst. I experienced discomfort in my upper right abdomen, mimicking gallstones or an infection. Went to the ER, they had no idea what it was. Unsure if this is related to this medication, but there definitely seems to be a relation between it and the nausea. No acne or weight gain from me, as I've been reading about."

• Mel...
• December 9, 2015

"This is such a terrible pill. I have never ever felt the way I did while I was on this pill. I took the pill for 4 months. The first month was okay, I had no symptoms at all. However, towards the end of the month, every day I either had a headache, had anxiety, was very angry, or miserably depressed. I couldn't stand the person next to me, any person who made a noise or laughed too hard. I was very mean and so frustrated towards everything my boyfriend did and said, and the next day I would feel bad and apologize. This pill made me feel like a crazy person and was driving me insane. One minute I was laughing, the other I was crying. I do not recommend this pill to any girls out there, this pill is terrible!!"

• Anonymous
• May 14, 2011

"This really helped me for my period. Before this pill, my period was so bad, going on for 7-8 days, with serious pain for the first 4 days. I would take like 4 ibuprofen (in just 3 hours, NOT good), and it wouldn't help! But now my pain is mild to none, and that makes me happy. I was seriously hoping it would help lower my acne level though... but it gave me more, plus oily skin. Just as long as it keeps the pain away, I'll keep taking it."

• Bcc...
• May 24, 2014

"I switched to Cryselle after a terrible experience starting birth control with Junel. On that, I bled without break for months. So Cryselle seemed like a godsend when the bleeding stopped and I had no spotting between periods. Minimal side effects besides increased acne. My skin was fine before, but I've been on this pill for just under a year now and in recent months have developed horrible, painful cystic acne. I am looking into a new pill now."

• Mil...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 15, 2015

"As soon as this drug started working, I stayed in one constant mood of irritable anxiety. I was a horrible person to be around and cried every single day. I was having hormone problems, and this drug made my life go from bad to worse. I would never pollute my body with garbage like this again. Be careful, girls!"

• str...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• January 5, 2016

"I've been on this pill about 8 months now. It's my 3rd birth control. Tricyclics give me bad migraines, and I was on Minastrin before this. Minastrin always made me really sad for no reason, too nauseous to eat, very moody and depressed, and I had no period. Cryselle was such a big turnaround for me. I'm back to my normal happy self, periods only last 1-2 days, rarely any cramping. The only thing I noticed was a little bit of weight gain, but that could also be from switching, as the last birth control made me too sick to eat half the time."

• Ves...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• January 6, 2021

"Do not take Cryselle. Terrible mood swings and irregular periods. I started taking Cryselle for pregnancy prevention and to maintain regular periods at the age of 18. After less than 3 years, I developed a severe blood clot in my right leg due to the amount of estrogen in this pill."

• Ash...
• November 7, 2013

"I am one of the unlucky few who had a severe side effect from this birth control. My legs, knees, hips, and ankles all feel like they're being crushed. My muscles in my legs feel like they're being torn from the skin. The pain is tremendous. I was advised to stop the pill and wait 2 weeks to see if the pain subsides any. Hopefully, this doesn't leave any lasting damage. I was only on this pill for 8 days, and all of this happened!"

• Ril...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• August 23, 2016

"I have had an awful experience on this pill. I switched to it 9 months ago, and since then I've gained about 15 lbs. It's given me terrible acne and headaches. I'm waiting for a different pill now, I can't wait to be off of this stuff. Everyone has different reactions to different BCs, but I would highly suggest using a different one if you can."

• Mrs...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• August 4, 2018

"I would not recommend this pill. I've been on this pill for 5 years, and at the beginning, it was okay to use for my acne and to use for regular periods, but over time, my acne comes back horribly. I have severe anxiety and I hyperventilate. I absolutely have no sex drive. It's been making me beat myself up. My mind goes crazy all the time, overthinking. I have extreme anxiety and depression, and I have crazy mood swings. I realize that I've been changing the way that I am and being angry over small things, or I cry for super small things. I've also been having chest pains that I read are a side effect. I would not recommend this pill, and I'm deciding to go off as soon as my pack is up. I would not recommend it long term."

• Bet...
• November 10, 2020

"I was on Low-Ogestrel-28 for about 9 months before my family basically had an intervention with me and told me I had to switch to something else. It wasn't until about month #6 that I really started experiencing the bad symptoms like depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts, and anger/mood swings. I also saw increased appetite, bloating, water retention, and 10 lb weight gain. I was crying, lashing out, and overly emotional. I finally called my ob-gyn, and I got switched to the mini pill, and I feel 100% myself again. I feel like I'm on nothing. I came to the conclusion that estrogen and my body just don't do well, no matter what brand of combination pill. This pill has big-time side effects on me and messed with me psychologically. I noticed a drastic change 1 month off of them already, like I'm mellowed out and relaxed. This pill landed me in therapy because I couldn't control my anger. As a side note, it 100% did its job, which was to prevent pregnancy."

• ema...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 18, 2020

"Okay, I'm going to admit there is some nausea, but after about 2 weeks, it goes away. Also, my breasts are slowly getting bigger... not sure if anyone else has similar results. Other than that, it works."

• DMD...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 24, 2015

"This was my first time experience with any birth control. I'm 22 and have no children and take no other medication. Unfortunately, this birth control side effect on me was numbness on the left side of my body (left arm and leg were both numb). Also, my sex drive decreased tremendously."

• jun...
• January 6, 2018

"I've been on this medication for almost 6 years, and other than a few side effects, it's amazing - honestly. The side effects are mostly related to PMS, tender breasts, and some mood swings, but that could also just be me. In my opinion, the pros outweigh the cons. Pros are a short, light, and very regular period; no weight gain; reduced acne; and, above all, no pregnancies in my 6 years of using it! So yay!"

• Kat...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 3, 2019

"Stay far away from Low-Ogestrel-28, that is all I can say. This birth control has made me the most unhappy human being. I cry at random times, my mood swings are unreal, and I’ve gained so much weight. I’ve also started getting acne. I am switching asap."

• uni...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 23, 2018

"I’ve been on Cryselle for two months, and my overall experience has been pretty decent. The last birth control I was on made me extremely nauseous all the time. Cryselle, in my case, has only two cons. I have extremely sore breasts, and I have more acne."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• June 27, 2019

"I have been on Cryselle for 5 years now. At first, it did its exact job, prevented pregnancy, and regulated my period. I became an emotional roller coaster once I got on the pill, but my mom and I always chalked it up to teenager issues (I got on it when I was 16). Once I got older and grew to realize that I was severely struggling with anxiety and depression, I felt it was best that I got off. I only got off a week ago, so I can’t say what side effects come yet, but I will say that this pill makes anxiety and depression so much worse than I could have ever expected! I also struggled with severe acne in high school. Never any weight gain though, but with the depression, I had severe body dysmorphia, and anorexia could have just kept my weight down."