Zoely pill and vaginal discharge

unfortunately caused severe negative effects on my mental health and quality of life. increased anxiety & depression (both were constant) and drastically reduced my confidence and body image. all symptoms intensified the week before a period was due - body image was so poor i wouldn't leave the house or wear anything other than baggy clothes, felt suicidal, cried over nothing, lost all motivation/drive, couldn't concentrate + poor short term memory, felt worthless, anhedonic, insomnia that was worst the few days before a bleed, and persistent fatigue & lethargy. i did try to stick it out as i assumed it was pre-existing conditions causing my symptoms, but they got progressively worse the longer i was on it. after i came off the pill i noticed pretty rapid improvement in my self confidence and overall mental health.

The first 2 to 3 months on this pill were difficult. I was very emotional in a chaotic sort of way. But my main goal for using birth control was to manage hormonal shifts and how I believed they affected my quality of life and mental health. After the difficult first few months, I settled into a steady neutral zone. Yes, my libido is a little bit lower, but a lot less so than compared to other combined hormonal contraceptives I've taken. Ditto on vaginal health - I personally feel everything is a lot more healthy down there. I had previously taken a pill that I was convinced caused dryness to the point of occassional pain, whereas with Zoely things feel a bit more normal, with the obvious lack of ovulation not changing discharge week to week. This is of course my personal experience, but compared to at least one other pill I have taken which raised my blood pressure, Zoely has not (for me!) And my "periods" or withdrawal bleeds feel more natural in that the bleeds are short but bright red versus what I've experienced with other pills. I still struggle with the 4 days off the pill - with both good and bad days and acne coming through those days. And it does sort of feel like every time I start back up on the pill after the 4 day placebo pills that I need a few days to "get used" to it again. But I also don't personally feel that great skipping placebos and taking it continuously as it doesn't feel great for me. Overall, it's not a miracle but it does feel better than other pills I've taken, both physically and mentally. Having said that, it's not good as my very best physical and mental "natural hormone" days pre pill nor ever as bad as my worst "natural hormone" days pre pill. I probably hold on to a couple of extra pounds of bloat but other than that I do not believe this pill has had a good or bad effect on my weight. I take the pill like clockwork at the exact same time every day (evening) and never miss it.