Yaz birth control pill vs Nortrel 0.5/35 birth control pill

Five stars because it saved my life. I have zest for life and do not intend to kill myself, but my PMDD turned me into a threat to my own safety for two out of every 3.5 weeks. I was so miserable that I wanted to be euthanized. Yaz makes me feel normal again, treat people normally again. The downside is some bloating, breast tenderness, and what little libido I had is gone. Additionally, since starting the pill I am prone to uncontrollable and unprofessional bouts of weeping when I do not feel like I need to cry. This is highly frustrating but better than living with PMDD. Generic version does not control my PMDD symptoms, brand name for me only.

wasn’t strong enough for me, caused breakthrough bleeding, mood was terrible

Yaz hit me like a freight train. Only lasted a month. Anxiety, panic, isomnia, dizzy spells and nausea and loss of appetite, and oh my god I peed like every 30 minutes, and felt my bladder was filling back up as it was emptying. A lot of pelvic pressure. I was tested for UTIs and got to a point where I made ultrasound and urologist appointments for my bladder, I had no idea what was going on. I did end up finding out I have a small bladder, so the diuretic effect of Yaz just hit me very hard. Do not recommend. The anxiety and insomnia hit hard and two weeks after stopping everything is normal, but those anxious thoughts at night needed ongoing cognitive behavioural therapy to get through.