switching from alesse to seasonale..???

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-26-2004
switching from alesse to seasonale..???
3
Tue, 10-26-2004 - 11:42pm
Hi, I've been on bcp going on 8 years now. Started with Desogen.....killed my libido...went through a couple of others before landing on Alesse. The Alesse was at my request after finding information on what pills best curtailed the side effects that I was having. I was very pleased with the Alesse. Having no side effects at all in the beginning. Within the past year or so I've noticed more pms type symptoms....breast tenderness, irritability, bloating, etc. I've also put on a few pounds. That could be attributed to several things that have happened personally, so I hate to place that blame solely on the Alesse. However, if it is contributing at all, then I've got to try and go on another bcp hunt to eleviate these symptoms. My doctor recommended Seasonale, but after reading several of the posts, I'm really hesitant to start that. Since I would be going straight from Alesse to the Seasonale without any down time would I still experience symptoms as if I'd just started bcp's altogether??? I've been curious about Yasmin as well. Could it possibly be a better choice??? I'm so frustrated because I thought I had found that one pill that was the answer to my symptoms. I never anticipated acquiring symptoms with it as time went on. If I do go ahead and start the Seasonale, how long should I give it? I don't know how long I can go if I start to see the pounds creep up. I've worked so hard to maintain the weight I'd lost, I would hate to go backwards. If anyone has any suggestions I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks so much!!!
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Wed, 10-27-2004 - 7:20am
Alesse and Seasonale contain the same hormones, but Seasonale contains more of both the progestin and the estrogen than Alesse. If you're already having problems with the combination, I don't think I'd put in a whole lot of time with Seasonale trying to see if they go away. Your body does keep changing as time goes by, I've been through a number of pill changes myself over the last 8 years and am really happy with Nuvaring.

Any time you switch pills, you have to be prepared for side effects just as if you were starting fresh, but it might be a little easier. As far as what you might switch to to alleviate these particular issues, you'll have to look back at how you've responded to the other pills you've taken and note what similarities and differences there were. Breast tenderness and bloating are often related to the estrogen or lack of progestin, but Alesse is already so low in estrogen.... Everybody responds differently to each pill, so it might be a crapshoot for you to find another pill that you like! The big hype with Yasmin is that the progestin is derived from an anti-androgenic drug that also works as a diuretic, so what that means for some women taking Yasmin (not all) is that they have less bloating than they might with other pills. In theory it may be good for acne, and for other women it's just a different enough progestin that they have fewer side effects in general.

Good luck finding a new pill!

Judie
Co-cl for Birth Control
Judie Cl for Birth Control 
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-26-2004
Wed, 10-27-2004 - 4:27pm
I think some women, myself included, just get too used to a pill after taking it for awhile and start developing pre-pill symptoms. I've had to change pills multiple times and been able to go back to ones that I liked after taking time off from them. But I would not go to Seasonale. I just quit taking it. After 6 months I couldn't deal with it anymore. I felt constantly hungry and bloated and gained weight when I ate less. I felt totally out of control emotionally and physically. Hated it! Physicians seem to be pushing it as "the" continuous dose pill but you can take bc continuously, skipping the placebo, with any pill that has an equal level of hormones throughout the pack. I'm not familiar with alesse but I have heard good things about yasmin and I really like Ortho Novum 1/35. 1/35 apparently has a pretty high estrogen dose so that might be something to consider before taking it but I really liked it. Hope this helps a bit.
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-26-2004
Wed, 10-27-2004 - 5:53pm
Your suggestions are truly appreciated!!! Thanks a bunch!!!