ALESSE Reviews (ETHINYL ESTRADIOL; LEVONORGESTREL)Average Rating: 2.5 (179 Ratings)Filter ResultsCompare ALESSE with similar:
Type: Brand name discontinued; available as generic
|
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 |
| 3 | birth control; irregular periods | Migraines - starting the first day of the placebo week and lasting several days into the placebo week. Very debilitating. | F | 26 | 5 years | 10/20/2004 | 5 | Regulate period, prevent pregnancy | None. If I miss a pill, the hormone upset triggers a migraine (which I would normally get the week before menstruating anyway). | Periods became regular, and much less severe (less cramping, less bleeding). However, PMS (including depression, anxiety, irritability, bloating, and breast tenderness) was not improved. | F | 33 | 5 years | 9/29/2004 | 2 | F | 26 | 3 months | 9/6/2004 | 3 | regulate period | broke out, moody, period duration was shorter, but heavier in the beginning. | controlled period. | M | 21 | 2 days | 8/2/2004 | 4 | birth control | I experienced virtually no side effetcs from the pill (except a bit of breakthrough bleeding at the very beginning). However, after 4.5 years taking Alesse, I have experienced some break through bleeding again. | F | 24 | 4.5 years | 7/21/2004 | 5 | oral contraceptive | I initially gained about 15 lbs, but this could very well have been my fault and not the pill's. I went off the pill for 3 months and when I started taking it again, I did not experience any weight gain, or any other side effects. | One thing I noticed is sometimes if I was a few hours late taking it (got home late and forgot to take my pack with me, for example), I would get my period the next day, and then of course I'd have it AGAIN at the end of my pack, so I'd have my period twice in one month. That's no fun, believe me, so my doctor switched me to Ortho Tri-Cyclen to see if it makes a difference. | F | 22 | 3 years | 7/10/2004 | 4 | birth control/regulate periods | I took this pill for almost 7 years with absolutely no side effects then had 3 months in a row of spotting, breast tenderness, bloating and increase in breast size. | For the first 6.5 years this pill worked wonderfully. | F | 27 | 7 years | 7/5/2004 | 2 | birth control | So far, abdominal bloating and cramping, breakthrough bleeding (constant, as heavy as a regular period, halfway thrugh the pill pack), and moodiness | I know I've got to give it a couple more cycles, but I'm tempted to just go back to Loestrin, which I was on for years with NO problems at all... | F | 38 | 1 months | 6/28/2004 | 4 | attack of the killer period | some breast tenderness, no worse than i usually get before my period, and a bit of moodiness the first week | i've only used them for one cycle and i can't believe how much more bearable they've made my period... lots of people warned me about things like weight gain and depression, but i think that these pills have helped me a lot (i used to be completely useless for a week from pms, and another week from my actual period, every month... i'm only 18!) and if you're considering taking them, don't let other people's side effects put you off because everybody's different | F | 18 | 4 weeks | 6/15/2004 | 1 | Heavy Periods | Even heavier and longer periods | F | 47 | 3 months | 5/15/2004 | 1 | PMS-Heavy Periods | Heavier and longer periods Blood pressure higher Irritability Craving Snack Foods | M | 47 | 3 months | 5/15/2004 | 4 | birth control | breast tenderness, headche | I actually experienced less cramp than before I started the pills, but I always feel headche on the first day when I start a pack. I think it's a pretty good choice for contraception, but after reading all these negative comments about Alesse I am a little shaky.. | F | 19 | 2 months | 5/13/2004 | 2 | To control periods, PMS | Constant bleeding the entire time taken, increasing daily to the point of 3-4 pads a day; rash over my body (eczema-like; never had sensitive skin before) | Did control moods well and didn't have pimples | F | 31 | 2 months | 5/4/2004 | 2 | for endometriosis | Unbelievable, uncontrollable weight gain: 20 lbs in 3 months. I went from a size 6 to size 14. In desperation, I stopped eating for two days, which normally would cause weight loss. Result? My body just kept growing. Also experienced unquenchable thirst (9 litres a day, which is enough to flush out your electrolytes); constipation; chronic insomnia (awake 3 hours each night); and severe depression. After three months of this, I was switched to Ministrin, the other low-dose OC (only available in Canada). Lost the incredible thirst, but it took 3 years to lose the weight and stop the depression & insomnia. NB: I've only just recognized now, 5 years after starting OCs for endometriosis, how severely depressed I was, and that it was related to the OCs. If you experience depression after starting OCs, please take it seriously and seek treatment. | This is a low-estrogen dose oral contraceptive (20 mcg), so it's often prescribed by physicians concerned about the effects of higher estrogen doses. | F | 40 | 3 months | 4/12/2004 | 1 | Birth Control | Depression, Anxiety (sounds weird but this was almost disabling) and ACNE, ACNE, ACNE | Be careful with this one. It's highly androgenic. | F | 23 | 28 days | 4/10/2004 | 5 | birth control | Used it continuously for 5 years with no complaints. But after that time I started having some dark patches of skin on my cheeks, a more sluggish metabolism, and it made my cervix very sensitive--causing an abnormal Pap. | It didn't cause me to gain weight, my Dr said it's because it only has 20 mcg of synthetic estrogen...whereas many pills have 35 mcg of it. | F | 26 | 5 years | 2/25/2003 | 4 | BC | Headache, cramps, and moodiness. | F | 24 | 5 months | 10/29/2002 | 2 | birth control | uncontrollable weight gain | F | 23 | 4 months | 8/30/2002 | 2 | endometriosis | weight gain (severe), Hypertension | Took a while to regulate my periods, however I still have been starting my periods a week before the last row. I don't know what is up with that. Weight gain has been such a pain in the ass! | F | 23 | 8 years | 5/16/2002 |