Ortho Tri Cyclin Lo

Shash27

Hello MFP Ladies..

I'm really frustrated. I watch what I eat and track..I workout HARD and every month I have to lose the same 5 lbs. This has been goihng on since I switched from Lo Estrin to Ortho Tri Lo in May. I've had a really hard time losing and it's really starting to frustrate me. I've increased my workouts, track my sodium, drink TONS of water...

Retaining water easily, hard time dropping weight, REALLY moody...

I'm going to call my doc and see about switching. Has anyone else had these issues? Any pills that haven't messed with your weight??

This has been REALLY discouraging..

mallory3411

I was on that one. It didn't affect my weight at all but I switched off of it because it was giving me terrible migraines. I tried Yaz which I loved and it didn't do anything to my weight. However it's not the safest pill on the market as it's full of man made hormones so I switched from that to Aleese (I take the generic Avaine). Love it so far! No side effects.

It takes your body a good 3-6 months to get used to a new birth control pill.

Personally I don't think BC has all that to do with weight... but that's just me. Maybe have bloodwork done and thyroid checked.

sunnyk8

I had Ortho Tri Cyclin Lo and got off of it pretty quickly. I did gain weight while using it, although I don't know if the pill was the cause (my eating habits could have done that as well back then), but I was also really ridiculously moody while on it.

I am now on Levora/Portia (same ingredients, diff names) and have been on it for almost 3 years without any problems.

garnet1483

Ortho Lo is what works for me, but for about three months my doctor switched me to another one (Mirsette--it was for migraines) and it was a nightmare! I was bloated, beyond *****y, and my anxiety was through the roof all month long (and the stupid migraines got worse!). I switched back and all that stuff went away, so definitely, if the Ortho Lo isn't working for you, ask your doctor to put you on something else.

lhughes404

I recommend Essure. It is a 30 min surgery where they put coils in your tubes and scar tissue grows around them in 3 months and you can't get pregnant. It felt like I had my period for 2 days but otherwise painless and easy. No more pills!

LilRedRooster

I was on Ortho Lo for a few years, and it didn't affect my weight at all, or my moods. I know many people are more sensitive to different hormones in certain birth controls than other, so you might want to ask to switch if you don't feel more normal by a few months in. Usually, you'll know for sure by about three months in, because that's about the time your body will regulate itself with the new hormone levels.

nannigans

I take Trivora 28 and it works great for me in all aspects...no weight gain, no moodiness and I have been taking it for probably ten years now. I switched at one point to take the ones that you only have a period four times a year and hated them and went back on the Trivora not to long after switching.

PinkEarthMama

Ortho Tri Cyclin Lo = Almost 8 year old boy

CMmrsfloyd

I recommend Essure. It is a 30 min surgery where they put coils in your tubes and scar tissue grows around them in 3 months and you can't get pregnant. It felt like I had my period for 2 days but otherwise painless and easy. No more pills!

That is NOT reversible. OP is a 'bride on a mission' per her profile, she might actually want to have children one day. Just wanted to point that out, Essure is ONLY advisable if you are NOT wanting to have any children or if you are done.

OP everyone reacts differently to various forms of birth control, some have no side effects and others have a ton. I did Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo for awhile, I developed some nasty anxiety problems and was really moody, yes I did gain weight but back then I knew nothing about calories and TDEE so it was probably my eating habits. I did the mini-pill for awhile after baby #2 (progestin only as opposed to tri-phasic like otcl) and I still had side-effects even with drastically less hormones. Now I'm on Nuvaring which has similar hormones to the tri-phasic pills except you insert it in the vagina and leave it there for 3 weeks, then take it out for a week. It's nice to not have to worry about it every day like a pill, but I still have the moodiness and you also have to watch out to make sure it doesn't try to escape if you have break-through bleeding and use tampons while it's still in.

There is also the option of using an IUD, your dr. would insert it into your uterus through the cervix and it would stay there until you decide to have them take it out. There is a hormonal version (Mirena) and also one without hormones (Paraguard) - you could talk to your dr about it and see if it might be a good option for you. Some women love them, but as with all birth control some women do have negative side effects while using it, and it's rare but some women do get pregnant even after getting an IUD. I've known of a few women myself where it either fell out and they never noticed, or they got pregnant with it perfectly in place, and even one woman where the device punctured through her uterus and ended up in her abdominal cavity, and she only found out b/c she got pregnant and the did an ultrasound to try and find it.

Then there is Natural Family Planning and the Fertility Awareness Method, where you learn to track your cycle by observing various signs of fertility (basal body temperature, cervical fluid/discharge, cervix position and openness, etc) and either abstain during fertile times or use a barrier method (condoms). There's a learning curve and it's not for everyone, but a lot of women use it very successfully and without the worry of side-effects.

marquesajen

I gained a bunch of weight while on ortho when I was younger.

EmCarroll1990

I had Ortho Tri Cyclin Lo and got off of it pretty quickly. I did gain weight while using it, although I don't know if the pill was the cause (my eating habits could have done that as well back then), but I was also really ridiculously moody while on it.

This. I've since switched to Depo-Provera - the shot. I started it in November, and that is also what motivated me to lose weight as I was told I can gain up to 20lbs on it. I haven't had a huge difficulty losing weight since being on it.

Mandykinz2008

I was on Ortho Tric Lo and it messed me UP..I'm now on Generess Fe and it works sooooo much better for me!

lhughes404

Of course its not reversible that is why I had it done. Best decision I ever made. Now when people say I'm going to have children some day I can tell them that they are wrong since it can't physically happen.

I recommend Essure. It is a 30 min surgery where they put coils in your tubes and scar tissue grows around them in 3 months and you can't get pregnant. It felt like I had my period for 2 days but otherwise painless and easy. No more pills!

That is NOT reversible. OP is a 'bride on a mission' per her profile, she might actually want to have children one day. Just wanted to point that out, Essure is ONLY advisable if you are NOT wanting to have any children or if you are done.

OP everyone reacts differently to various forms of birth control, some have no side effects and others have a ton. I did Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo for awhile, I developed some nasty anxiety problems and was really moody, yes I did gain weight but back then I knew nothing about calories and TDEE so it was probably my eating habits. I did the mini-pill for awhile after baby #2 (progestin only as opposed to tri-phasic like otcl) and I still had side-effects even with drastically less hormones. Now I'm on Nuvaring which has similar hormones to the tri-phasic pills except you insert it in the vagina and leave it there for 3 weeks, then take it out for a week. It's nice to not have to worry about it every day like a pill, but I still have the moodiness and you also have to watch out to make sure it doesn't try to escape if you have break-through bleeding and use tampons while it's still in.

There is also the option of using an IUD, your dr. would insert it into your uterus through the cervix and it would stay there until you decide to have them take it out. There is a hormonal version (Mirena) and also one without hormones (Paraguard) - you could talk to your dr about it and see if it might be a good option for you. Some women love them, but as with all birth control some women do have negative side effects while using it, and it's rare but some women do get pregnant even after getting an IUD. I've known of a few women myself where it either fell out and they never noticed, or they got pregnant with it perfectly in place, and even one woman where the device punctured through her uterus and ended up in her abdominal cavity, and she only found out b/c she got pregnant and the did an ultrasound to try and find it.

Then there is Natural Family Planning and the Fertility Awareness Method, where you learn to track your cycle by observing various signs of fertility (basal body temperature, cervical fluid/discharge, cervix position and openness, etc) and either abstain during fertile times or use a barrier method (condoms). There's a learning curve and it's not for everyone, but a lot of women use it very successfully and without the worry of side-effects.

crystal9999

I had Ortho Tri Cyclin Lo and got off of it pretty quickly. I did gain weight while using it, although I don't know if the pill was the cause (my eating habits could have done that as well back then), but I was also really ridiculously moody while on it.

This. I've since switched to Depo-Provera - the shot. I started it in November, and that is also what motivated me to lose weight as I was told I can gain up to 20lbs on it. I haven't had a huge difficulty losing weight since being on it.

My sister got pregnant on the depo shot, she also gained alot of weight on it.

lin7604

i had been on a ton of different pills, the last one for the longest time has been tri cyclin. i gained weight with all of them, some more then others... i'd say a good 10 lbs. this one has been the best for me even with a bit of a weigh gain. the only way i will ever see that weight come off i assume is when i stop taking it completely. when i had my son, i was off it for 6 months and i hated being off it, so as soon as i could i went back on it, weight gain or not.

CMmrsfloyd

Oh I understand it's a great choice for a lot of people, I may even consider it when I'm done having kids, I just wanted to make it very clear to OP that it is permanent since she did not mention not wanting to have any children. She was specifically asking for suggestions for her and you didn't mention that it's permanent, which may be a deciding factor for her.

Of course its not reversible that is why I had it done. Best decision I ever made. Now when people say I'm going to have children some day I can tell them that they are wrong since it can't physically happen.

I recommend Essure. It is a 30 min surgery where they put coils in your tubes and scar tissue grows around them in 3 months and you can't get pregnant. It felt like I had my period for 2 days but otherwise painless and easy. No more pills!

That is NOT reversible. OP is a 'bride on a mission' per her profile, she might actually want to have children one day. Just wanted to point that out, Essure is ONLY advisable if you are NOT wanting to have any children or if you are done.

alliesun53

I was on tricyclin and actually switched to lo estran (well, the generic version of it) because I was getting awful cramps that I was not having before going on tricyclin. Lo estran seems to be working great and no affecting my weight loss. When I was on tricyclin I did gain weight...but that could have been from a bad breakup OR the BC...not really sure which.

TeslaJoule

http://www.thedoctorstv.com/videolib/init/6163

They have a video on this very topic. While I know they are more TV show personalities than real doctors at this point, they do have medical degrees...which I do not.

OneSchrutebuck

I was on LO and I loved it. It was one of the few that actually worked for me and didn't cause any side effects. Before that I was on Yaz and it was awful. It actually caused permanent damage for me. I would never recommend that pill. Now I have Mirena and it is the most amazing thing ever .