questions on ortro tri-cyclen

[myfakelife.livejournal.com]

i'm going to start BCPs next week, ortho tri-cyclen. the reason i'm taking BC is because i am not ovulating, probably due to my eating disorder/erratic weight gain. i was just wondering what the side effects of this form of birth control may be: physically, mentally, and the effects on my overall menstrual cycle. i've heard talk about weight gain, mood swings, maybe increased acne? a bit of info about myself that should probably help with answers to my questions: i'm 18 years old; i have no allergies to any type of medication; i am not currently taking any prescribed meds; i am mildly sexually active with males and females; i use condoms & coitus interruptus as contraceptives. hope that someone out there can help me out.

Comments

[asciident]

Ortho Tri-Cyclen has the known side effect of reducing acne, and is even marketed as such.

There may be weight gain, or loss. I lost weight while I was on it. I don't recall mood swings, but I do remember an increased libido. Which is perhaps odd since I've heard BCPs can reduce it.

By the way, "coitus interruptus" is not at all an effective form of contraceptive, at least with a male. Even if you're using a condom, because the pre-ejaculatory fluids can still leak out if the condom breaks/slips off and can get you pregnant.

[lovingboth]

at least with a male

:) Done consistently, it's actually around the same reliability as condoms. The combination of having him wear a condom and not come inside you should be roughly as reliable as the pill.

Re:

[asciident]

I realized the non-necessity of saying "at least with a male" after I made the comment. :)

While the effectiveness of the withdrawl method and the condom are comparable, the withdrawal method is not recommended for teens because the male lacks the experience to know how to do it effectively. Not to mention there would logically be much less of a chance of one becoming pregnant when there is an actual barrier.

Humans are inconsistant. Pulling out, condoms, BCPs: these methods will never be done with laboratory consistency.

By the way, combining the withdrawal with a condom equates to 99.88% (perfect use) - 97.34%*. The BCP has a range of 95% — 99.9%. Roughly, but not quite. The best reversible combination is the condom and the BCP -- especially for teens.

* Using this equation: 1 - ((1 - effectiveness of condom) * (1 - effectiveness of pull out))

[phuzzydee.livejournal.com]

im on ortho and the only thing i experienced is reduction of acne, and a little bit of headachyness as my body adjusted to it. now of course if i forget a bill my body gets crazy, i have a headache and nausea and its just not pretty. good luck with the pill, i heart mine.

[herbalgirl.livejournal.com]

You mentioned not ovulating and weight gain. Have you been tested for thyroid problems and PCOS? I have both, I almost never ovulate, and those are both often overlooked (in my case, 4+ years). BCP's might make it worse, and docs seem to hand them out like candy without checking you out first.