Yasmin pill vs Rigevidon

So I was prescribed the yasmin pill for my PCOS after being on desogestrel since I was about 14 for my periods. I’ve always had really really irregular periods, and bled very heavily. They would last for 2 weeks roughly and sometimes id have two in one month. In my particular case, I was told to take yasmin continuously, so all 3 packets in a row and then stop for a 7 day break, and start a new box. This has worked well for me i think (baring in mind i’ve only just started my 2nd box). At the beginning I had severe nausea, not to the point of throwing up but it was there constantly all day. I started taking the pill just before bed, so 11pm- midnight roughly and that seemed to help with the nausea. That was the side effect that has affected me the most, and since restarting after my 7 day break I am still experiencing nausea. I’m just praying it goes away after 1-2 weeks like it did before. Aside from that, my sex drive historically has been really high. I was down to do it whenever, and no issues whatsoever. Since being on yasmin, i literally could not think of ANYTHING worse than having sex with my partner. (it is nothing to do with him!!) I just have absolutely 0 sex drive, I can’t even get horny unless i really stick with it- so that’s been another big issue for me. I have also had quite bad acne since I was in school, and i’ve always struggled with it especially on my chin, forehead and back. I haven’t noticed a change in my acne yet but praying yasmin is able to clear some of it up! In terms of my PCOS management aswell, yasmin has made my first period during my 7 day break incredibly light, I hardly needed to wear a pad at all. I had cramps but nowhere near as bad as they used to be and it also seemed to completely stop around the 4 day mark out of 7. So if i’m being completely honest, my experience on yasmin so far has been okay- i’m struggling with the nausea and low sex drive but hoping as the weeks/ months go on my body will adapt to the hormones and i’ll be back to normal. If anyone out there is struggling with severe irregular periods and pcos symptoms I would recommend giving it a try and sticking it out for atleast 6 months to 1 year. for me personally my periods are so much easier to deal with, and i will do an update in a few months time to see if my skin and other side effects have cleared!

This is an update as I have now been taking Yasmin for over 10 months. I changed to this pill specifically because another pill gave me terrible acne that did not go away after stopping it and trying an old pill I had been on, nor when I came off hormonal birth control all together to test if that would fix things. I know a lot of people wonder how long it will take for Yasmin to totally clear up acne and for me it was between 5-6 months. I remember I had one terrible, cystic spot for a birthday gathering I was attending in July this year (hence this being seared in my mind lol) and after that my skin cleared up, practically nothing since. Truly the only downside has been the quite considerable hit it’s taken on my libido — my husband is not the most pleased about that aspect but saw how down I was with the bad skin so appreciates that this was the right decision, haha. Unfortunately I moved back to Scotland late summer and Yasmin is not provided here, so I will be changing to another pill. Now begins the test to see if my clear skin remains after I finish this final pack and go back on an old reliable pill I was on from years before that had no side-effects. 🤞🏻

Love this pill, I've been on it for nearly 10 years now and have noticed few changes and side effects. If anything, my skin is more clear and my periods are light (3-4 days instead of my usual 6-7). I feel more emotional than baseline but it does not bother my day-to-day activities.

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.

The first month WILL be hard, I had intense mood swings and nausea, but by month 3 I promise you it will settle down. Personally, I wanted to switch to yasmin due to the fact the cramps and the bad mood coming on/off after a break etc were too intense for me. No weight gain, only loss. My sex drive has not been affected whatsoever. There is a lot of fear-mongering surrounding the pill, but I think some of it comes from placebo, so don't over worry yourself.

My completely lost my sex drive and was always upset and in a really bad mood.I was on this pill consistently for 1 year and about 6 months and I had to stop for awhile and when I went back on it for 1 month and the side effects were horrible my skin was breaking out I was constantly bloated I started having 2 /3 periods A MONTH iam currently trying to change the pill iam on but iam nervous in it’s worse .

I have had a positive experience overall with minimal side effects. The most notable was becoming more emotional (crying more easily) but I haven’t minded that.

Amazing compared to the progesterone only pill and progesterone only implant I was on previously. Less mood swings, no depression. Perfect for timing my irregular periods, except the breakthough bleed a couple days before I end my pill packet. DEFINITELY GAINED WEIGHT. Before I was living a bit sedentary, and even when I joined the gym, I was still heavy/gaining weight. Led to breasts and tummy increasing 4 inches each. Will be going back to the gym daily for cardio to maintain / decrease this. My migraines had stopped prior to taking the combined pill, but since having it, I am getting a few more headaches, and sometimes a migraine, but not daily like I used to.

This contraception changed my personality. It made me very angry, easily frustrated and issues that should be small seemed huge in my mind. Since changing contraception to the Yasmin pill, I honestly feel like a different person. I am quite upset that most of my twenties were spent in this state of constant anger. I thought it was just my personality but since changing pill I can now see that it was the contraception. I also got severe withdrawal headaches when I took the 7 day break.

i have PCOS this pill was amazing for the first 3 1/2 years, it made me lose 10 pounds in two weeks from me changing nothing to my active levels and diet, my skin cleared up, i had lighter and regular periods, had a high sex drive until i started having very irregular periods in the last 6 months. including periods happening every other week and spotting between it even when taking it correctly so i decided to change contraception but this may be because of my PCOS