weight gain and birth control

wreath7

I have a friend who was on Ortho Tricyclin Low to regulate her cycle and she says she lost weight. How common is it to lose weight or gain on birth control pills? Wondering if other people have experienced similar issues.

shovav91

I personally gained weight. Everyone's body is different; unfortunately there's really no way to predict how your body will react.

PeaceLuvVeggies

I hope and pray I don't gain weight when I get my birth control pills. Yikes.

GB333

I would say most people have problems gaining weight. I've personally ever heard of anyone losing it.

But if you track your food and calories, you should have nothing to worry about.

inspiration345

I gained weight and off pills for a month now. Losing weight as I should due to diet and exercise but now I am getting pimples on my face . On the birth control I couldn't lose even with diet and exercise and I was always bloated. My stomach is totally flat after a month now. I can't even imagine that I had a 5 months pregnant looking belly a month ago and for 1.5 years.

brunzella92

Hi, i was on Ortho Lo and nothing changed, i've been on other's that i've gained but that one is great for staying the same

Tonnina

My weight only changed when I was on the Shot... I gained 30lbs in 3 months because it makes your body believe it's pregnant (in a hormonal way) and causes wacked out cravings for entire bags of cheetos and loads of ice cream...

Everyone is different though, I'm losing weight while taking Levora, a low dose birth control pill. But I'm only losing the weight because I'm eating less and working out more. :-) The only way you can tell is if you take the pill and have a "reaction" to it involving weight. If it's bothersome or troublesome, talk to your Doc to get a different kind.

Onesnap

I've been on birth control since 1994.

No weight issues due to it.

Since 2002 I've been VERY happy with Neuvaring. It's expensive but worth every $$. NO side effects because it's low dose hormones right to the source.

Ephena

Many women gain on the full estrogen pills while they either don't gain or maybe lose on the low estrogen ones because of the hormone regulation. I was using an IUD for 4 years and up until the last 6 months of it I didn't gain. I think the weight I gained was a lifestyle issue. I just came off Seasonique, which was a full hormone pill, and I lost weight on it but again I think it was a lifestyle thing since I made huge changes to my eating and exercise routines while on it. But I started suffer side effects from so much estrogen so now I'm off birth control for a while to give my body a break.

Onesnap

I hope and pray I don't gain weight when I get my birth control pills. Yikes.

Birth control pills are so 1970s-1980s. I will never go back on the bill. Neuvaring all the way, baby. We're not having our own kids (adopting) so I needed something better than the pill (no same time every day situation to worry about, no weight issues)

Onesnap

I gained weight and off pills for a month now. Losing weight as I should due to diet and exercise but now I am getting pimples on my face . On the birth control I couldn't lose even with diet and exercise and I was always bloated. My stomach is totally flat after a month now. I can't even imagine that I had a 5 months pregnant looking belly a month ago and for 1.5 years.

There's lower hormone solutions out there. See above.

smltwngrl

I gained weight when I was on the pill (about 10 to fifteen lbs) when I started using the Depo shot I gained close to 20 and even with diet and exercise, it is just harder to drop it. I know it IS possible, and you just have to be more careful, but I know that a lot of women do gain weight due to birth control.

JenOman

I have been on BC since 1998 and no change (besides me becoming a couch potato and eating like I was still working out constantly). There have been studies about how that is a myth (in most cases). I have had no problem losing weight while on the pill

wreath7

thanks very much for the responses

GB333

My weight only changed when I was on the Shot... I gained 30lbs in 3 months because it makes your body believe it's pregnant (in a hormonal way) and causes wacked out cravings for entire bags of cheetos and loads of ice cream...

I was on the shot for 10 years and had no unexplained cravings or weight gain. Everyone is different.

Plus, like you said, it caused cravings.... but it did not cause weight gain. Giving in to those cravings and eating more caused the weight gain. Track what you eat and your calories and you will be fine.

I went off the shot a few months ago and switched to Loestren Fe and again have had no side effects. I've lost 22 pounds on the shot and now the pill no problem.

Shayyy01

I've been on almost every BC out there.

Depo- i gained 30+ lbs and caused migraines
Neuvring loved it! Didnt gain to much but if you have history of headaches it can cause a stroke..
Now i'm on old fashion non hormonal pills.. it sucks taking them every day but i've lost weight instead of retaining weight normal period, that actually should decrease over time and no headaches

I think it depends on the person. I had a friend on depo that lost weight but it made her sick.

hellotina

i work for a doctor's office & more thank likely you will gain weight vs lose weight on birth control pills if anything.

Onesnap

I've been on almost every BC out there.

Depo- i gained 30+ lbs and caused migraines
Neuvring loved it! Didnt gain to much but if you have history of headaches it can cause a stroke..
Now i'm on old fashion non hormonal pills.. it sucks taking them every day but i've lost weight instead of retaining weight normal period, that actually should decrease over time and no headaches

I think it depends on the person. I had a friend on depo that lost weight but it made her sick.

If you smoke on Neuvaring you can get bloodclots and stroke (if you're over 35). I don't think the headache thing is true...it's such a low dose of hormones compared to the pill.

GB333

Now i'm on old fashion non hormonal pills..

Just curious - what kind of pill are you on that isn't hormones?

eddyca

I've been on Safyral for a month and lost weight, but I've been trying to do so. I was on Lo-Estrin 24 Fe for 2 months before that which caused me to gain weight rapidly along with high blood pressure. I started dieting while on Lo-Estrin and still lost weight but it was at a slower pace in comparasion to Safyral. Every BCP is different, and every women reacts differently to the various hormones so that's a hard question to answer definitively!

Amanda0325

nuvaring all the way.. love it.. easy.. didn't gain a lot on it.. and i don't even care if its expesnive cause i can't forget to take it and im protected all the time.