ALESSE Reviews (ETHINYL ESTRADIOL; LEVONORGESTREL)Average Rating: 2.5 (179 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare ALESSE with similar:
Type: Brand name discontinued; available as generic
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Results are sorted by Date added. Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.) |
More on ALESSE: Reviews Summary | Drug Safety Information
| RATING | REASON | SIDE EFFECTS FOR ALESSE | COMMENTS | SEX | AGE | DURATION/ DOSAGE | DATE ADDED |
| 5 | BC & Severe menstrual cramps | Fatigue | I loved Alesse. Alesse cleared my skin 100%, had short, light, and cramp free periods, never gained weight and sex was fantastic. The only reason I went off Alesse was because it ran out and then I was switched to Yasmin, which was nothing but hell! I'm finally going back on Alesse after a year and a half of no birth control, I can't wait. Alesse and Yasmin both made me more tired but that's minor. | F | 25 | 6 months | 11/4/2008 | 3 | Birth Control | Constant bleeding for first month, leg cramps, acne, heavy discharge | Had continuous bleeding for 1st cycle, but after one month, no problems. Lighter periods. Severe leg cramps first month only. Acne started after 3 months and I haven't had acne in years. And heavy discharge that has not changed since starting pill. Lots of comments about sex drive, moods and weight gain, but I had no problems with any of these issues. | F | 31 | 3 months | 8/18/2008 | 5 | Irregular Periods/Menstrual Migrane | 1st time around: They don't put this on the package - what I call chewing anxiety. Always felt the need to chew on my lip or bite my nails or pen or pencil. Addicted to gum now. Leg pain (NOT blood clot related). 2nd time around - still the chewing and leg pain, dry mouth. Very very very short/light period. | I was put on it to stop my severe menstrual migraines. It was discovered I have a very low estrogen level, it cured other things we didn't realize were related to it. 7 years into it, I built up a tolerance to it and started having breakthrough bleeding. I spent 4 months on Ortho-tricyclin and gained 30 pounds. Dr. switched me to Yaz, and for the next 3, I was vomiting and having migraine aurae. I pleaded with the Dr. to let me try an Alesse generic, and I've been on Aviane and happy ever since. | F | 23 | 8 years | 7/11/2008 | 5 | birth control, regulate periods | nothing of note | This is the one pill that I've been on that didn't give me hormonal migraines or crazy mood swings. I've been very happy with it. The only thing that has bothered me is that my period has gotten a bit irregular after 4 years of use from time to time, even with proper usage. | M | 35 | 4.5 years | 4/7/2008 | 1 | birth control | Major depression, increased anxiety, weight gain, breast tenderness | I was on Alesse twice; the first time I went off it was because I started smoking again (lame), and the second time, I got severely depressed and my anxiety increased (I was previously diagnosed with both illnesses three years ago) | F | 28 | 1.5 months | 4/2/2008 | 3 | Endometriosis/Menstrual Cramps | Exhaustion during first week, minor headaches, minor nauseau, spotting during the first month | I was a little nauseous for the first couple days. I was extremely exhausted, constantly, during my first week. I randomly started bleeding quite heavily in the middle of sex in my second week of taking alesse, oops, sorry about the mess! These side effects all quickly went away, and Alesse never affected my weight or moods. Although, I randomly got minor headaches during the full year that I took it (And I used to never, ever get headaches). However, it didn't do very much for my cramps. It took the edge off but I was still in a lot of pain and bled heavily for the first two days. I'm on Loestrin now, I like it better. | F | 17 | 1 years | 2/15/2008 | 1 | cramps, heavy period, acne | Pro: No cramps (first time in a few years!) Cons: constant headaches, chronic fatigueness, mood swings, severe depression, constant vaginal bleeding, decreased sex drive | Worst pill ever!After 2 days of taking this pill I noticed vaginal bleeding that didn't stop until after I was off this pill and I was upset a lot...almost like I would be before my period without birth control.As soon as I began having almost suicidal thoughts and my mom constantly seeing me cry,I made an appt with my dr and immediately took me off.The headaches and always being tired did not help in school as stress is the name of the game in college. | F | 19 | 21 days | 2/10/2008 | 4 | Birth Control | NO WEIGHT GAIN! Yay!! But, frequent yeast infections, nausea and milk production for first 2 months (stopped after), slightly prolonged periods (mostly spotting-style though). | Honestly, despite some of the negative side effects, I really love Alesse. I have been on it nearly 4 years, and have had almost no problems except those mentioned above. I did have small ovary cramps for the first year on the right side, nothing major. I used to take OrthoTriCyclen and HATED it. That's where my yeast infections started (once a month!) and weight gain was severe and very hard to lose. Since being on Alesse, I've lost all of the weight easily, and gotten my yeast problems reduced. The first couple of months were hard, I had nausea, breast tenderness, and some very slight milk production, but it all stopped soon. I still have slightly longer periods than I'd like. On Ortho my periods were 4 days, but I'd rather be 30 pounds lighter with a very light 7-8 day period than the other way around! | F | 24 | 4 years | 2/3/2008 | 1 | perimenopause systems | anxiety, dizziness, itchy skin and irritability were the worst symptoms. | This pill seemed to work for the first couple of months and then symptoms gradually began to get worse. The last 2 months I had severe anxiety and dizziness and only felt good while having my period. So I discontinued use. It's taken 3 weeks to actually get back to feeling normal again. | 36 | 6 months | 1/20/2008 | 3 | heavy flow , severe anemia | Melasma spots on face when in the sun for only minutes a day, after a year I began spotting all the time. | Alesse cleared my skin up completely after 3 months on it.. I literally did not get one zit, did not gain weight, lowered sex drive but potentially from the SSRI I take. | F | 28 | 2 years | 11/11/2007 | 4 | contraception | NO Libido -- very low except for a few days mid-cycle. PMS symptoms and very snack for the last 2 weeks. BUt the best bcp for me compared to Triphasil and even the generic AVIANNE. (AVIANNE gave me bad acne, increased appetite, and moodiness. Even though its bio-identical to Alesse.) | Very disappointed to learn they have discontinued making Alesse. Have been taking it for the past 3 years after many expts with other bcps. WHAT WILL YOU BE SWITCHING TO NOW? I'm looking for suggestions. The generic Avianne does not work for me. | F | 30 | 3 years | 11/3/2007 | 1 | birth control | severe migrane, headache, body aching, heart bumping, loss of sex drive | I really had to stop taking it even a month of cycle was finished, cuz the medicine was literally making me sick. | F | 24 | 10 days | 10/23/2007 | 1 | birth control | extreme moodiness, suicidal after not ever having this problem before | Two days after I quit taking it, I felt much happier and suicidal thoughts completely stopped! | F | 22 | | 10/10/2007 | 4 | birth control/mood swings | After about a year of taking it, I experienced breakthrough bleeding. | I loved this pill so much. I have been on many trying to find one that helps my mood swings. This pill was great for my mood. I hate that I started having breakthrough bleeding because I have not been able to find a new pill that doesn't make me crazy one week a month. | F | 29 | 1 years | 9/16/2007 | 3 | Make periods regular/less painful | Irregular periods. | It was great besides irregilar periods...No nausea or anything. | F | 16 | 9 months | 6/23/2007 | 2 | Pregnancy prevention; cramps. | Loss of sex drive; anxiety/emotional imbalance; HUGE breasts | I didn't notice any effects at all the first month or so, but since being on it after about 5 months or so I have had horrible anxiety (which I have a history of already), am very emotional (I well up with tears for just about anything), and generally feel out of balance with my emotions. On top of that I have almost no sex drive and want sex only a handful of day out of the month. This pill is driving me crazy it seems and am thinking of switching to a tri-phasic pill like Ortho Tri-cyclen esp. for the loss of sex drive. Also my breasts are huge, I've gained some weight, and have experienced vaginal dryness and breakthrough bleeding. The only good thing about this pill is that my skin is clearer and my cramps are not nearly as bad. | F | 25 | 5 months | 6/12/2007 | 3 | Ovarian cysts/family cancer | Killed sex drive, gained a little bit of weight, acne in the beginning | I had NO libido w/ Alesse...it took care of my ovarian cysts and I gained about 3 lbs on this - when I got off the pill, the weight came off. Cystic acne was sporatic in the beginning, esp behind my ears but this tapered. No nausea or other side effects. | F | 33 | 18 months | 5/21/2007 | 5 | Endometriosis | Mild acne, mild fluid retention. | I prefer Lo-Ovral, but have high blood pressure so I was switched to a couple different pills. On Alesse, I now have longer periods (about a week and a half) but they are VERY light and only happen every three months! I get mild acne and fluid retention on occassion. I haven't had any weight gain except for the fluid, which goes away. I don't have any of the crabbiness that I had on a progestin only pill (THOSE pills were bad-caused skin infections!) Overall, I think Alesse is a great drug and it stomped my endometriosis symptoms dead. | F | 37 | 9 months | 5/17/2007 | 4 | birth control | F | 34 | 5 years | 5/5/2007 | 5 | birth control / irregular periods | I took Alesse for 8 years and last years started crying 2-3 days before period. Dr. switched me to Desogen which made me gain weight. In 8 years on Alesse I did not gain one pound, on Desogen in two months I was huge. And no sex drive at all on Desegon. | I would rather cry for those two days and be skinny and have regular sex, and feel like a pig and wake up every morning mad on the whole world. | F | 29 | 8 times | 4/26/2007 |