Dianette pill vs Rigevidon

I have been put on Dianette to assist with hirsutism, endometriosis and acne. It has helped with acne. I unfortunately have seen no change in endometriosis symptoms or hirsutism. I have experienced a massive increase in weight, particularly face, arms, stomach which has really impacted my confidence.

I started taking Dianette as my first ever contraception pill. It is a combined pill which gives me migraines for a period of time. I was told to stop using it immediately as it put me at an increased risk of having blood clots and stroke. Now I am left not knowing what to do. Overall it did not give me any other side effect and I see a big difference on my skin. It is just me having a reaction to estrogen-related pills.

This pill is great for hormonal acne and cleared my skin up relatively quickly. I did experience some weight gain at the time but unsure if it was pill related .

Started on this pill when I was 18, all was well at the start, my skin cleared up and my periods were much lighter/less painful. I then started to not feel like myself and be quite emotionally dull, I started getting headaches on the week off and being more fatigued than normal. Good for those who are looking to lighten periods or reduce PMS

It was ok the first couple months but I've started noticing more side effects the longer I've taken it. I get much more muscle aches, especially in my back. My gums bleed randomly during the first week of each cycle and are much more sensitive. My mood is fluctuating more too.

I went on the pill to sort out my mood swings on my period - I would get a drop in mood in the week before my period which made me very emotional, but aside from that I normally have very even moods and don't ever experience serious lows. However, a few days into taking Rigevidon i experienced a low I've never before experienced, with honestly no possible external event in my life that might explain it. It was far worse than any mood swing I've ever had, and it lasted about 3 days before I stopped taking the pill entirely. This is not to scare anyone considering taking it (my mum was on this pill for 15 years and loved it!) and it's possible the drop in mood might have evened out if i had taken it for longer, but I wasn't able to stick it out. Both dretine and milinette have done wonders for my mood swings though!

I ended up getting headaches daily which is why i stopped after taking it for 7 years. After stopping (7 months currently) i am dizzy DAILY. I dont have spinning dizziness. its more off balance feeling all the time nearly. I only took this pill to regulate my periods more as this is what was prescribed by the doctors..

I actually find this to be pretty good, very few side effects, but the increased blood clot risk does concern me.

It is a balancing act, but, overall, I am happy with the results. I take the pill back to back as my cramps were so bad that they were effecting my personal and work life terribly and I could no longer stand the pain. Unlike other pills I have tried before, this stops my periods. After 3 or 4 months I get heavy spotting and take a break for 7 days which sorts it out - the breaks are fine with only mild cramping and nothing like my periods before. It has saved my ability to work. I have had negative side effects - weight gain and mood. I have no history of depression, anxiety or struggling to process things until I started taking this pill but I now struggle with these things most days. Compared to the pain, for me, the impact on my mental health is a trade off I've accepted.

This pill severely increased my anxiety levels, I constantly felt like I was in a haze and I couldn’t regulate my emotions- I was constantly crying and overthinking every little thing. I lost my sex drive and was scared to socialise. I had intrusive thoughts that made me worry even more and I just wanted to stay at home all of the time, I was on the border of spiralling into depression. The first month was okay, I didn’t notice any symptoms and it did the job fine, but soon after the symptoms started to kick in. I gained weight which made me feel increasingly insecure and I had a larger than normal appetite.

I’ve tried a few pills in my time now, to be honest I think they’re all as bad as each other. I was put on this one after accidentally getting pregnant as I stopped using hormonal contraceptives due to the side effects. I found Rigevidon to be virtually useless at controlling my hormones- maybe I’m a very hormonal person or something but this did virtually nothing. I was as spotty as I was when I was a teen, my chin hair growth was horrific and my hair was SO greasy. I just don’t know why but this genuinely seemed to not even touch the sides. Also the back pain was bad.

My legs randomly ache, I have. 0 sex drive, the thought of being touched is making me sick. I have severe anxiety and I’m borderline suicidal. This is not the right pill for me but going back to my gp and getting another one seems exhausting.

This pill gave me severe emotional dysregulation (notably anger) to the point it almost felt like a fever dream. Granted, I only used it for a month, but that's because I genuinely couldn't tolerate it and had never experienced anything similar on other pills. I was angry to the point of having rage-inducing nightmares and feeling provoked by most harmless interactions. It also made me stress and ruminate a lot more. Frankly, I think it is appalling that such medication is deemed fit for use - which generally circles back to the issue of dismissal in women's healthcare. It was an absolute nightmare, and no one should have to tolerate going through that even if it does "get better eventually." To provide some perspective, the contraceptive pill in men's trials was shut down simply because it caused headaches. So why should we put up with symptoms that are a million times worse? Echoing other reviewers, I'd rather switch to a brand that doesn't come with the hassle (though ideally, the whole industry needs to fix up). Why this is the most commonly prescribed brand in the UK is beyond me.