Acne ON the pill? Help!

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-16-2004
Acne ON the pill? Help!
7
Fri, 04-16-2004 - 9:39am
Hello all! I hope this hasn't been asked before, but I couldn't seem to find a similar topic, so here goes:

I just switched to Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo from Yasmin, because my health care provider (those SOBs) stopped covering Yasmin. I have always been very lucky with having clear skin, never a problem aside from a very occasional pimple here and there, yet two weeks into my first pack of Ortho I am breaking out HORRIBLY. Here I thought ortho kept acne at bay, and since I have never had a problem with acne before, I thought I'd be fine - but I'm having the worst breakout I've ever had in my life.

What gives?

- kim

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-03-2003
Fri, 04-16-2004 - 10:25am
if it makes u feel any better..I got switched to OTC-Lo too and i am also breakin out like not only on my face a bit but like my shoulders and stuff..which isnt cool bc i never had any b4 grrr...so i feel the same as u *hugs*
iVillage Member
Registered: 01-20-2004
Fri, 04-16-2004 - 10:30am
Yep, me too kimasxi! Like you, I have never really had a bad skin problem - just a pimple every now and then. The first week I started on OTC Lo (after switching from Loestrin) my skin looked horrible - not even pimply so much as really blotchy and red. Even my family noticed it! It's actually gotten better now that I'm ending my third week on this pill but I'm not sure if that's because my body has adjusted or because I'm using a new skin cleanser (Ha!). The only thing I can say is that it might get better - I'm hoping that it will. My guess is that it would the new cocktail of hormones we're adjusting to? What do you think?

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-29-2003
Fri, 04-16-2004 - 10:50am
I broke out while on OTC lo also. For me, a pill with higher progstin did not give me acne, like Loestrin 1/20. I think this goes against the norm, but it worked for me. The following link will give you the progestin activity of pills from low to high(among other info):

http://www.fpnotebook.com/GYN105.htm

Here is the list:

# Oral Contraceptive Progestin activity (low to high)

1. Progestin activity based on Norethindrone mg/day

2. Ortho-Cyclen (Norgestimate): 0.3

3. Ortho Tri-Cyclen (Norgestimate): 0.3

4. Alesse (Levonorgestrel): 0.5

5. Triphasil (Levonorgestrel): 0.5

6. Modicon (Norethindrone): 0.5

7. Nordette (Levonorgestrel): 0.8

8. Lo-Ovral (Norgestrel): 0.8

9. Ortho-Novum 777 (Norethindrone): 0.8

10. Ortho-Novum 1/35 (Norethindrone): 1.0

11. Ortho-Cept or Desogen (Desogestrel): 1.0

12. Estrostep (Norethindrone Acetate): 1.2

You dont necessarily have to take the highest one. But maybe something a little higher than OTC lo(which is not on here but I figure it is similar in progestin activity as OTC)

Hope this helps and let us know how it goes!

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-29-2003
Fri, 04-16-2004 - 10:55am
Oh, I forgot to mention that at walmart you can buy something called AcneFree. It is the "generic" of proactiv and has worked wonders on my skin! It might be worth a try if you are happy with otc except for the acne part.
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-16-2004
Fri, 04-16-2004 - 3:08pm
ice - Aww, thanks for the hugs and sympathy. I'm glad I'm not alone - I used to like my skin. Now I want to claw it off or wear a bag over my head. :)

kms - I'm having the same problem as you, I think. We're not talking (excuse the grossness) huge, erupting pimples but a lot of small ones and a lot of blotchiness. Ugh. You give me hope, though. I'll stick with this one until I'm through with the package, and we'll see what happens. *fingers crossed*

ilv2cook - Well, that makes four of us now. :) Thank you very much for the list. If this continues, I'll take your advice and talk to my doctor about trying a higher dosage or I'll just switch back to Yasmin and deal with the cost. :/ I'd speak to my doctor now, but she's inconveniently on vacation somewhere in Italy for two weeks. :) And thanks for the pointer towards Acnefree. I'll give it a shot to see if I can get rid of these evil pimples in the meantime.

Thanks everyone!

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Fri, 04-16-2004 - 3:47pm
I wish I'd seen these posts before.

OTC (the regular, Lo wasn't available when I was on OTC) was my first BCP. It was prescribed to HELP my cystic acne but instead it made it worse.

If you are breaking out that badly, the only thing that will really help is switching Pills, and as helpful as that fpnotebook list is, it is not the be-all, end-all, because it's totally up to your body what works and what doesn't. For me, I tried 3 other Pills and finally went back to the dermatologist to be prescribed Accutane (not to be taken lightly, it's only for cystic acne and as a last resort - I had been on every other acne med there was at that point).

Keep trying, however. This could just be your body reacting to the new Pill. Give it a chance of at least another month. BELIEVE ME - I know how hard it is to see yourself in the mirror, but you really should see if the problem corrects itself before you panic.

Best of luck to you!

Caitlin

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-03-2003
Fri, 04-16-2004 - 5:53pm
well i tend to keep it undercontrol since then with a clearsil body soap and facial wash but it def aint cool!