Ortho try cycline (sp) help...

[b fold the truth]

Hey...my girlfriend just started taking Ortho...(sp) 2 weeks ago. She is taking it for her complection, which really isn't all of that bad, but some of the small sides have began to bother her.

Really moody.
Constant PMS.
Frequent bleeding like a very light period, everyday.


No...these aren't just something that I think she has because I have to put up with her ...she lives about 70 miles away and I haven't even seen her in a while. She is worried, although her doctor reassured her that that was normal for like 3 months.

Ladies, or gents, experiences?????

Thanks

B True

 

[fitgal]

That is the same pill that I was on (off for now), and I didn't have any problems with it. I was not taking it because of its skin clearing properties, it just happened to be a good dose that the Dr. finally figured worked good for me. All was well for me. Sorry, I'm not much help.

 

[b fold the truth]

Thanks...very much

Any other advice????

B True

 

[Sassy69]

I haven't been on that particular oral contraceptive, but every time I've gone on or off or changed dosages the doc says it will take about 3 months for your body to adjust to the alteration in hormones. They even say to allow 3 months after going off birth control to try to have kids. I'm not a doc, but 3 months seems to be the magic number. If your girlfriend does continue to have break through bleeding or anything, talk to the doc and maybe he/she can prescribe a pill with a different dosage. I'm guessing orthotricycline just happens to be one of the brands of birth control that agressively advertises. Birth control in general is supposed to help with acne.

Good luck and be patient!

 

[BigEasy]

First, I'm not a Dr. and second, my wife has not been on oral contraceptives for 3 years. All I know is what we learned in her quest for an alternative to the strong dose est/progest pill that caused her problems with complexion (Rosacia<sic?>). The last oral C she took was Orto TriPhasic. She tried three different 'mini' pills as they are called before she found one that liked her. I say liked her because what you described was what the first two were like for about four months each. Add to that depression and life was a roller-coaster around here.

But it was worth it! The triphasal mini pills were at that time the best in terms of minimal hormonal content and closely mimic the natural hormone phases of the body. I don't know if that is still true, but she needs to do the research to make sure. The theory was that the mini doses of hormones did not overpower the body and force it into submission like some of the more powerful pills. However, some women have endocrine systems that do not respond to the (relatively) mild prodding of the minipill. My wife finally found a combo and dose that worked, so all was relatively normal and predictable for two years.

The only down sides to the mini pill for her was that because the hormone doses were low, she was subject to break-through bleeding and some slight variation in cycles. This is similar to when she was on no contraceptive at all and stress and illness affected her cycles. She also still had the estrogen bloat and fat retention. But that is because she is hyper sensitive to estrogens, not necessarily the mini-pill. All-in-all, the mini-pill was great for her. <if you can call altering a natural body function using chemicals great >

Again, these are her experiences and your G/F's mileage WILL probably vary. Also remember, this was 3 yrs ago and the science may have changed, and my memory CERTAINLY has! Check the current state of research for yourself.


BE


P.S. Your observation about the three months is well noted. Also, have you ever noticed that it almost always takes six weeks for ANY musculo/skeletal injury to heal? I thing Dr's are too general with their generalizations!!

 

[jakbear]

i was on ortho tri-cyclin for about almost 3yrs. im off now but i can tell you this....every women will react to birth control differently. i had no complaints with it. i never had bad skin, nothing out of the norm. so i cant say if it helped any with clearing my skin more. i never had spotting outside of the days i had my period but my period was ALOT lighter and shorter and my cramps we slim to none. as far as being moody and PMS, yup! i had that! ive been off it now for about 7months and i feel there really isnt that much of a difference w/ my mood swings....maybe a little more bitchier then before. but that just comes with the territory, i guess!
maybe she should talk to her gynecologist about this...maybe she can get on another brand that will interact with her body better.
hope this helps!

 

[tripleV]

That is the same bc pill I am taking and no complications. I am also taking it as a contraceptive and skin clearing properties. I did have problems with previous pills. Ortho Tri Cyclen is a pill that has differing doses throughout the months, slowly increasing. I was on another pill (Marvelon, etc) that are the same hormone dose throughout the month. I reacted negatively to the same consistent dosage, and changed to one that varies throughout the cycle. Maybe she should ask her doctor about that. Also, my doctor says there is a new pill which is better for skin clearing...it is called Jane i think.

 

[pinkprincess]

I take it and I have no complaints either. I was off of it for about a year and a half and the first month back on I had some very minimal abnormal bleeding but it cleared up by the next month. I never have cramps and my cycle last 4 days max- very light. I am very pleased with OTC!

 

[b fold the truth]

Thanks for all of the help. I am feeling much better. I think that her skin is just fine...but who is happy with their skin anyway? I just want to be able to help her and support her decision. Not worried about having kids till we are married anyway...she is just really concerned about the sides of the med. She will give it a few more weeks before she goes back to the doc.

Thanks

Any more advice???

B True

 

[fawnmarie]

Sure, I have more advise...

Since birth control isn't really an issue, there are probably better ways for your girlfriend to improve her complexion than BC pills. High andosterone levels in women are known to cause acne, and the simplest and easiest way to treat this is by eliminating sugar and simple carb intake.

It's healthier than dumping more estrogen in the system to compensate. Excess estrogen will cause PMS and moodiness, as well as water retention and fat gain.

Many women compensate for this excess estrogen by supplementing with a progesterone cream, either by taking a "combo" pill or using progesterone cream. Wild yam cream is said to work, but Macro tells me it's not effective.

Is Ortho a "mini-pill"? These can cause break-through bleeding. Especially if it is taken erratically. I took it for a short period of time and had the same problem if I didn't take it at EXACTLY the same time every day. Being an hour late would cause break-through. You might tell her to see if it helps to take it at exactly the same time every day. The mini-pills aren't very versatile in this regard.

Fawn