Norgeston pill vs Desogestrel pill

I’ve gained some weight but I don’t think it was the pill alone, other factors such as other medication and enjoying food are at play! I’ve enjoyed having a regular cycle (still ovulating) with less intense highs and lows emotionally but no impact to libido. Has been helpful for PMS overall. Some side effects are headaches and tender/larger breasts. I’ve adjusted the 3 hour window to take this pill a few times with ease too.

I moved onto Norgeston after trialling desogestrel for a few months (it gave me near constant spotting and super decreased sex drive). I was optimistic as levonorgestrel was the hormone I used to have in my combined pill and so far it’s been great for me - I do get periods, but these are regular and of a normal flow each month and thankfully my sex drive has come back.

The minipill gave me pretty bad acne, which took years to resolve after I gave up the pill. It also completely killed my sex drive.

Tried the mini pill because combined contraception scared me and I knew I had to go on something as I had recently got an abortion and suffered badly with period cramps. So far I’ve had very few side effects in the first month I had a couple of acne spots popping up due to the change in hormones but they stopped towards the end of my second month. I’ve been keeping an eye on my weight and it’s had no effect and I haven’t had an increase in appetite as I take the pill before I go to sleep at 9:30pm which I recommend so much. Overall my mood hasn’t been affected at all and I have stopped bleeding pretty much, I have had a small period recently on my 2nd month of pills but no cramps or bloating. Overall I’m super happy I started this pill of course it’s different for everybody my advice go with what you think is best for you and regularly check in with your doctor. It’s trial and error but don’t read into it online as everyone has different side effects this pill may work really well for you and not for others! I defo recommend though 🫶

3-6 months: (started the pill on 14/10/2024. I've done a review on my first 3 months so this is a follow up) Day 126 - 17/02/2024 – I’ve pretty much had 2 back to back periods with a 2 day break between which I really didn’t appreciate. They really hurt and I convinced myself something was wrong. I have made a doctors appointment to talk through everything. I’m just fed up with bleeding all of the time. I’m spending SO MUCH on pads it’s ridiculous. 12/03/2025 - I’m on my second week of my 6th month of the pill. I’ve kept having back to back periods and consulted the doctor. Because I’m coming up to 25 I had a routine smear (that came back clear) and the doctor did a pelvic exam and they recon it’s the pill that’s the cause of all the bleeding (which I assumed it was anyway. But better safe than sorry). I’m fed up of the bleeding but they’ve given me 6 more months after this to see if it settles. If not we’ll switch to something else. 5/4/2025 - I’m coming to the end of my 1st week in the 7th month of the pill. All I can say is that I’ve stopped bleeding/spotting for the most part. It’s been about 3 weeks since I last bled. So I guess the doctor was right. However, I had like a 1 day period at the beginning of the week it was painful and some period blood and then nothing since. But the last couple of days I’ve had some cramping as if a period wants to start but hasn’t yet. Overall, I think we’re getting back on track hopefully. Sorry I didn't reflect as much but it's pretty much been the same sort of story for the past 3 months

I’ve been taking the pill since I was 17, I’m now 25 and have never had an issue with it! I’ve not had any side effects at all! It stopped my periods after about 2/3 months and has been smooth sailing since then. I find the ‘window’ in which you can take it without it being considered a ‘missed pill’ is also really reassuring if you suffer with anxiety! Would definitely recommend.

The chest pain was really awful, and that’s a big red flag. Even though a month might not seem like long enough to make a final judgment, the intensity of the chest pain and other symptoms definitely made me question whether this was the right pill for me. It's important to listen to your body, and in my case, the discomfort and pain outweighed any potential benefits. I would highly recommend discussing these symptoms with a healthcare provider to explore alternative options or further guidance

During the first 2-3 months of using Desogestrel, I'd have prolonged periods (14+ days) of spotting/bleeding around times when my period would normally have been. I wasn't having cramps or any other pain, it was just a little annoying to be bleeding like this. It did settle down after a few months and I stopped getting my period altogether. Overall, I found the contraception to be pretty easy to use (I don't really have issues remembering to take the pill), physical side-effects were pretty minimal and it was nice to not have a period after suffering with really heavy painful periods for years. I had a gnarly chronic UTI issue around this time, but don't think this was necessarily because of the pill, there's a million other reasons why that could have been happening. I eventually stopped using it because I noticed it was really having an effect on my mood. I'd have days every few weeks where something small in the morning would set me off and I wouldn't be able to stop crying all day, which was starting to affect my social life, relationships, and productivity. I decided to stop using it a few weeks before my partner and I shifted into being a long-distance relationship.

The mini pill worked well for lack of periods and I only had one break through bleed. However I felt very emotionally unstable, crying a lot and feeling overwhelmed. I have come off this pill due to those issues. I also had very bad headaches in the first few months.

Did not enjoy this pill! Tried for around 5 months, mood was poor and crying very easily or completely numb! Skin got bad at first but then was okay! Gained weight around increase by a dress size or two, felt bloated constantly and breast size increased but sore! Vaginal dryness was extreme was even sore to walk and have thrush twice in this 5 month period! Was spotting pretty much constantly and obviously unable to track periods with it being a continuous pill and they were irregular.

I got put on this pill when i had a miscarriage, i get worried from time to time about my period. I have the flo app and i’m on my period about every 2 weeks, but it’s not exactly a period it’s just very very light and lasts for longer then a period should last this only started happening when i missed a pill for a day and the next day took 2 of them so it didn’t screw the pill up in my body and it has so it worries me. I’ve also put on so much weight using the pill.

I was 30 when I started this for anyone wanting reference and have had three children. I suffered from horrific period and ovulation pain coupled with ovarian cysts. I had tried many different forms of contraception but I cannot take estrogen as it gives me Hyperemesis Gravidarum, not uncommon in those who have also experienced it in pregnancy, which I did. The first three months weren’t great, mood was all over the place and libido plummeted but after that it levelled out and I’m glad I waited it out. My periods stopped almost immediately and so did my ovulation pain. As I usually got ovarian cysts that burst at the time of ovulation, that’s pretty much stopped too and I’ve gone from having cysts burst monthly, to maybe once or twice a year. It’s dramatically improved my quality of life and I’m so happy on it. What with it being desogestrel, it has a 12 hour time window, so if you forget to take it at your usual time, as long as you take it in the 12 hours following, you’ll still be protected. I’m usually fine as I take it first thing, but it’s always good to know.

I had no periods and then all of a sudden had extremely heavy and long periods, bleeding for weeks at a time. I had no libido which isn't ideal at all. I had terrible anxiety with this pill, I would get extremely bad anxiety with intrusive thoughts