Gotta add my story. ;) And I hate to be negative, but...

I forget what I started on, but it was popular then. Yasmin has since taken over. I had low sex drive, definitely. But the worst of it was I packed on the pounds and I swear it triggered PCOS in me. I am convinced it messed with the delicate nature of my hormones because it was like I hit old age the night I started the pill. I went from having normal weight fluctuations I could control between 115-145 pounds to ballooning uncontrollably and not stopping until 235.

It's a chicken/egg thing, which came first the weight gain or the PCOS? But I can't help thinking it was the BCP. I went off them about five years ago and have never looked back. No more messing with my hormones. :no:

The first time I went on the pill I was put on Ovcon35, and I gained about 10lbs when I went on it. My skin cleared up a bit, but not much. I didn't really notice any changes in libido (but then again, can anything dampen a 17 year old's libido?)

I'm 23 now, and have been on and off the Pill for 5 or 6 years now. I've noticed that when I go off it, I tend to gain more weight (I have PCOS, so that's a factor), have increased mood swings (higher highs and lower lows), and though it takes a while for my body to adjust, my libido increases significantly. When I started taking BC again in October I noticed a significant decrease in libido.

That, in my opinion, is probably one of the biggest downsides to being on the Pill.

Your body will take some time to adjust to the change in your hormones, and the spotting/breakthrough bleeding is common for the first 3 months or so.

I ballooned a bit when I was on the pill, too. I always had irregular periods and all the other signs of PCOS, but the summer before I started going on the Pill I lost 30lbs. Went on the pill, gained 10lbs... Went off of it and maintained the weight for about 9 or 10 months and then got up to about 195 after eating and partying and doing other nefarious things that cause massive cases of the munchies. I had also gone back on the Pill during this time. I, too, think it was a combination of being on the pill and having a massive weight gain. I started skipping periods WHILE ON THE PILL... Three years later I switched doctors and she realized that I had PCOS.

i am on nuvaring. I am a very forgetful and lazy person and i like how convenient it is. The first month was a little rocky emotionally, but i think my body has adjusted nicely to the hormones and there was no weight gain for me, which was a big plus since i started a few months before my wedding...

I had the exact same mood swings with Tri-Sprintec. I had to switch to that from Orho Tricyclen Lo since my insurance company no longer covered name-brands when generics were available. After the first 6 months on Tri-Sprintec, I was having spotty TOMs, my BF and I got in all kinds of stupid fights for stupid reasons and I would cry at the drop of a hat. My BF suggested maybe it was the different BC. I switched back Ortho after talking to a friend who had the same issues. Once I switched back, my TOMs were back on track and so were my moods. My BF and I both couldn't believe the difference between two things that were supposedly to be "exactly the same." It's $40/month more for me to take the name brand, but it's worth it.

I've been on a few different things since I was about 17. I haven't had any issues with any pills, currently on Yaz for the last couple of years and it's going well. For a few years I switched over to NuvaRing since it seemed so easy. It went well for a while, but eventually it really messed with my moods a lot and I had to switch back to the pill because it was making me so crazy all the time.

I was on Tri-Lo Sprintec (generic Orthotricyclen Lo) for 3 months. My hunger increased, I was much angrier and more unpredictable than before and I cried a lot. It was such a miserable three months that I have up the pills and never tried another brand or dosage. I certainly hope you have a better time with the Pill than I did.

I'm on NuvaRing and have been on/off of it for five years. I find it very convenient because I am notorious for not taking pills every day. It also has given me a regular cycle which I never had before, I used to go 5 months with no period and now it is fairly predictable. One thing I'm noticing now that I'm in a relationship and on the ring AND THIS MIGHT BE TMI, FAIR WARNING
I have significant discomfort if I leave the ring in during intercourse. Anyone else have discomfort with the NuvaRing? Did it freak out your SO?

I had CRAZY mood swings on Ortho Tricyclen Lo....then switched to Yaz which made me hungry all the time...

And now the Nuvaring is my best friend. The only downside is it does not affect my acne, so I still break out some when I really didn't on pills.

Love my short, manageable, predictable period, without remembering daily pills.

I have taken regular Ortho ones and they made me sweat a lot and a little teary. I did ok on the mini pill for a few months. Loestrin just made me really moody. Basically, what happens is that I start them and do ok but by the 2-3 pack when your body is supposed to adjust, mine adjusts wrong. Instead of 1 week period/ off 3 weeks, I have 3 weeks on and 1 week off. I don't want to do any stronger b.c. to try to stop that b/c my hubby says they affect my moods as it is but I am getting a little too old for b.c. anyway.

You might have good luck though. I have friends who love their b.c. It all depends on your body chemistry and how the hormones affect it.

I have taken multiple synthetic hormones to prevent pregnancy, all of which have increased my migraines. It's not for everyone, me being one such person. Condoms work great, but that is only because i am in a monogamous permanent relationship that having another child would be ok in.

Good luck on your birth control journey!

Thanks everyone! This is looking like a very hit or miss thing. I'll give it some time. I'm only in my first week and I can barely sleep. I'm getting moody too. I woke up from my intermittent slumber in tears 11am.

I just hope all goes well. I had 17 periods last year (I had to bold that because it was pure ****) and my PMS symptoms increased in severity as I lost weight. I'm hoping I don't have to try dufferent pills because I was put on the one I could afford w/o insurance.

I gotta say, I'd reccomend getting an IUD. I'm 23, and I've been on birth control for almost a decade. I tried at least 5-6 different ones, and each one killed my sex drive. Then I started reading up about my options and found out about paragard.

Copper, no hormones, IUD. Cost me $30 - never had kids & the insertion took 5 minutes of kinda bad cramping. The rest of the day had cramping, and then I was fine the next day. It's been about a month and my strings have curled back and my boyfriend doesn't feel them anymore. He felt them a couple times and said they felt like waxy thread. I've had no other bleeding or cramps, and am expecting my period next week. Sex drive is kind of out of control, lubrication is up... things are goooood.

i was on loestrin 24 and i think it had something to do with my gain, i have to be honest a lot of it had to do with me and my binging but the the pill i think def made my hips and boobs get bigger. i had terrible headaches and absolutley NO ENERGY on the pill for probably the first six months. I'd go the gym and would do like 15 minutes and then i would just be soo done.

i will say it did a wonder for cramps and and made my period super light.

i just stopped taking it a month ago because i really worried not only did it cause weight gain, but also it really thought it made losing weight impossible (or maybe it was in my head but the scale didn't seem to be moving)

i haven't weighed myself in a week and won't until april but i'm not sexually active so i decided to stop it while i am losing the weight. i got my period monday and yesterday my cramps were some of the worst i have ever had and its a heavy period which sucks but i'm not putting these hormones into my body when i don't need to.