Qlaira pill vs Yasmin pill

I'm 43 and was suggested Qlaira because it has a supposedly more safe estrogen component. I've always had slightly elevated sensitive CRP and during the use of Qlaira it did drop to nothing so that was a positive finding. I had no bloating or weight gain. I would get breakthru bleeding on the active pills usually a week before my actual withdrawal bleed, which would last approx. 5 days. So all in all I was bleeding approx 12 days per month. And because you can*t skip the placebo pills on Qlaira, I found it was too much bleeding days compared to non-bleeding days. Another major side effect and the reason I wanted to stop using Qlaira was complete loss of libido. I felt almost repulsed by the idea of sex and I had trouble getting aroused. Altho my natural libido is quite low to begin with, Qlaira took it to completely new levels of zero. Hence why I stopped it after 6 months.

Very minimal side effects so far (3 months)

I have used Zoely, Yasminelle and Qlaira previously. i had really bad hormonal acne that was cured with accutane and i am on pills so that my hormones dont make my skin breakout again. Zoely and Yasminelle kept my skin clear but with Qlaira my skin has breakouts. Not bad as I had while having acne, but some pimples here and there. Also my periods are so random with this pill. Sometimes I have to worst period pain and ovulation pain and sometimes I dont have periods at all. Also my sex drive has lowered. I got back to Zoely, since that has been the best pill for me.

Yasmin was the best pill for me. I have PCOS and it completely took care of my symptoms like acne. I also had very stable mood and positive mental state with this pill. My periods were light and I used to skip them 3 packets in a row and have only maybe 4 withdrawal bleeds per year. When I tried to extend it to 4 packs, I would often start to get light spotting so I think 3 packs non-stop was optimal for me.

Terrible terrible pill - started in in March 2023, by May 2023 had developed what I know now is POTS. Went to GP they dismissed me so thought it had nothing to do with the pill so kept taking. Constant dizziness, faintness, low BP, high heart rate - constantly felt fatigued. Passed out several times in public - GP again said it's vasovagal syncope and common in young women. Did some research, the progestin drosperinone in the pill is a diuretic and can cause this - no amount of water with salt could fix this either, water would just go straight through me which I think was affecting my BP so much. Also caused extreme dry skin and vaginal dryness, as well as pain during sex (which I think was directly related to the dryness), and emotional fluctuations - in the last few months of being on the pill I felt constantly sad, anything would set me off sobbing and it was terrible. I came off the pill early March 2024, within 2 weeks the POTS like symptoms had gone, my dry skin is slowly getting better and in general feel a lot better in myself. Have had a copper IUD put in. I am not sure if the pill caused weight gain per se, I thought the above had manifested as hypoglacemia as before starting the pill I would not eat much, and thought maybe it was related to blood sugar - I now know this is not the case, and since coming off I have gone back to eating once a day with none of the above issues. I will say it increased my appetite though and I think it made it harder to lose weight - since coming off I have lost 7kg in two weeks.

This was the first pill I've taken and was on it for about 5 months. When I first started it I had the worst breakthrough bleeding and cramps so bad I was bedbound but thought that may be my body just getting used to the hormones as I'd never been on the pill before. However, I breakthrough bled a 'period' every month for a couple weeks whilst not on my break. I had no weight gain or mood changes which was great. This really helped my acne!!! I've struggled with back acne for years and this has improved it drastically. However, I also developed pretty bad eczema all over my body a month into taking it which I haven't had since I was a toddler. I've been off it for a week and it has actually gone down so much.

Only negative for me is it does make me very emotional and I’m not usually an emotional person!

i’ve been on the yasmin pill for about a year now and it’s been amazing! my boobs grew from an AA to a C and i’m no longer struggling with acne

At first Yasmin was great and really cleared up my skin which I loved. However after 2 and a half years my mood had declined and I struggle with anxiety a lot more. Around the time of my pill break I get terrible headaches and nausea. When I start a new pack my anxiety increases massively and makes it hard to function. The worst side effect is I have no libido at all and I feel very flat.

Much better than previous contraception I was on. Having to change to mini pill for health reasons

I was on rigevidon for a few years which I found made me really emotionless and dull. I switched to this one bc of the different type of progesterone and found it gave me quite severe mood swings. I was annoyed with everyone around me and very self critical but then a day later I’d be absolutely fine. There was definitely a big change in my mood between the two pills.

I’ve been off Yasmin now since end of June 2023 and had the jaydess coil fitted in july. I feel so much better mentally and physically for being off it. The more I read about the combined pill the more I wish I had never been on it in the first place. It’s so wrong that drs just prescribe this method of contraception so quickly and to young girls, which alters your hormonal development. I wouldn’t recommend it

First 3 packs were fine, in the 4th i developed SEVERE anxiety panic attacks daily which is SO unlike me, nothing ever stressed me out before. I also cried every day and felt like a completely different person. The anxiety caused me to not be able to drive or work due to lightheadedness and nausea and even just sitting on the sofa i had constant heart palpitations. It was so severe i had 111 on the phone and went to the hospital and i am not one to panic about my health. If you’re experiencing similar symptoms definitely come off this pill.