Should I start the pill?! Scared to gain!

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liberty741
liberty741 Posts: 122 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hey everyone,

I have been contemplating going back on the pill (for health reasons) but am not crazy about the idea and am very scared. Regardless of what drug companies claim, i KNOW it makes you gain weight! I am just starting my weight loss journey and I really can't afford to gain weight anymore! I don't want to go up a cup size or gain weight ANYWHERE!

My doctor prescribed Loestrin FE. Any experience or advice for me?

Thanks!

Replies

  • sarah44254
    sarah44254 Posts: 3,078 Member
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    I've used the ring for years (close to 7 years now) and never had a weight gain caused by the ring. My weight gain is from eating candy and ice cream instead of balanced meals. Sure I'd only eat 800 calories a day, but all of it was candy bars and chocolate milk.

    The hormonal change does nudge your cravings a good bit. Don't give in to them, understand why they are happening, and you can beat it. Like I said, the gain wasn't from the ring at ALL. It was all me and my bad choices. :smile:

    I have an appt this friday to speak with my clinician about birth control options. I love the nuva ring SO SOOOO much but $70 every month is way out of my budget. I need to know more about pills because they are the cheapest option at about $25 a month. I don't have any kind of insurance, so if you do, your $$ are lower :wink:

    Msg me any specific questions and I will bring them to my clinician and let you know!
  • karaeb621
    karaeb621 Posts: 24 Member
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    hey,
    i am on the pill and experienced no weight gain at all with it. i would suggest a low hormone pill.
  • ms_erica
    ms_erica Posts: 173 Member
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    i know how u feel and i just completely stay away from the pill...do not like the side effects what so ever. Best of luck to u!
  • bunnysone
    bunnysone Posts: 486 Member
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    I had serious issues when I first got married with a lot of unwanted pregnancies as I was too scared to take the pill.

    I was put onto depo prevera, which is an injectable drug that lasts a couple of months. One of the side effects is weight gain and I put on a LOT of weight, with the depression and issues that accompany it.

    I have now been on Yasmin for years. It is a mini pill, it works for me and I have no issues with weight gain, in fact it helps regulate my body to help with weight LOSS!
  • edr2b
    edr2b Posts: 65 Member
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    I was actually taken Loestren FE but my insurance company stopped paying for it so I switched BUT personally I would rather gain w/the pill than get pregnant w/o using it... :) I guess if you tried it for a month or two and see how your body is w/ and w/o it then go from there..do whatever u are comfortable with..
  • angelarozmyn
    angelarozmyn Posts: 91
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    planned parenthood!! tops you can pay is $25/mo for the pill (w/ no insurance, at the top of their income bracket). If you have one nearby, I'd strongly suggest checking that out :)
  • Nysie5
    Nysie5 Posts: 215 Member
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    Loestrin is low hormone.. i started on that for health reasons also (PCOS) and i actually dropped a couple pounds on it.. but i take Genavi now, Dr's orders.. hope this helps
  • Sillybunni
    Sillybunni Posts: 61 Member
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    I've taken ortho tri cyclen lo for years and haven't gained weight as a result of that. I was taking it for years before I started gaining from eating too much and becoming less active. I gained because my lifestyle changed in a bad way.
  • Atlantique
    Atlantique Posts: 2,484 Member
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    Loestrin, eh?

    Well, it won't put weight on you. At least it didn't put weight on me.

    But it did stop my periods, which meant I was constantly taking pregnancy tests and having to get blood drawn ( to confrim I was not preggers, as once you miss 2 periods, the doc will want to do an 'official' test.)

    I gave up on Loestrin after 6 months. Constantly wondering if I was pregnant was so not the goal.

    Now, if you're sexually inactive, you may LOVE Loestrin, as not getting any periods doesn't suck. ;) But after that Loestrin 'experience', I went off BCP and went to other methods.
  • seatern
    seatern Posts: 15
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    If you want to go on the pill I'd recommend Yasmin as the type of progesterone it has in it is a mild diuretic so you're unlikely to have the fluid shift that most pills have. Alternatively you might want to consider another form of birth control such as an IUD. The Mirena just has a tiny amount of progesterone that is released locally with no systemic effects and no estrogen so should be weight/mood neutral.
  • iRun4wine
    iRun4wine Posts: 5,126
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    My doctor prescribed Loestrin FE. Any experience or advice for me?

    Thanks!

    I was on Yaz for about 3 or 4 years, but just switched to LoEstrin this past month. So far I haven't noticed any weight gain at all. It was something I was a little bit concerned about, but I haven't had any trouble with it.
  • lukimakamai
    lukimakamai Posts: 498 Member
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    Good luck! You won't like my advice, which is don't take the pill. I was on the pill for 2 months 8 years ago and hated it so much that NEVER again! I know it is finding the "right combo" of hormones for you but tried 2 kinds in two months and both we horrible! I do hope it works out for you!
  • alecta337
    alecta337 Posts: 622 Member
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    I'm on Loestrin FE and I really like it, I haven't experienced weight gain. I actually switched to Loestrin (from Tri-cyclin Lo) about the same time i started dieting. I've lost 10 lbs since being on that pill =] I'm sure it has nothing to do with the pill, but it is a testament to the fact that you can definitely lose weight while taking that pill. I hope this helps =D

    If you have any other questions about this pill or birth control in general, i'll be happy to answer them

    edit: I still get my periods, they're very light and only last 2-3 days, which is down from medium 4-5 days on ortho tricyclin lo (maybe TMI, but Atlantique mentioned that she didn't get her periods on them) Although I have only been on them for 3 months and i think my periods are slowly getting less and less, maybe they'll eventually go away... hmm
  • fromaquasar
    fromaquasar Posts: 811 Member
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    Hi there,

    I am not a medical professional in any capacity and I think you should definitely discuss this with one BUT I'll just tell you about my experiences - I spent 4 years on the pill, a proestrogen one (I get focal migraines) and had lots of side effects, mood swings, weight gain, break outs etc. Eventually I got an Implanon Implant. Basically it's two little matchstick size rods they insert into your upper arm under the skin under a very painless local anaesthetic procedure.

    These rods excrete the same hormones as the pill continuously into your blood but because they are continuous it is a MUCH lower dosage then the pill meaning side effects are basically non existent. I have had no side effects at all

    Other benefits include that it is more effective than the pill (99.99 percent).The implants last 4 to 5 YEARS and you don't have to do anything (I used to always forget to take my pill). You can have them removed early and 99% of women have full fertility within 3 months (80% within 1 month!).

    The only downer is you can't control your periods and they can be erratic (I didn't get any for the first two years!)

    Personally the implant works perfectly for me - especially when I was travelling, I didn't have to cart boxes of the pill around with me or worry about having somewhere safe to get an injection. Just a thought! x
  • alecta337
    alecta337 Posts: 622 Member
    Options
    Hi there,

    I am not a medical professional in any capacity and I think you should definitely discuss this with one BUT I'll just tell you about my experiences - I spent 4 years on the pill, a proestrogen one (I get focal migraines) and had lots of side effects, mood swings, weight gain, break outs etc. Eventually I got an Implanon Implant. Basically it's two little matchstick size rods they insert into your upper arm under the skin under a very painless local anaesthetic procedure.

    These rods excrete the same hormones as the pill continuously into your blood but because they are continuous it is a MUCH lower dosage then the pill meaning side effects are basically non existent. I have had no side effects at all

    Other benefits include that it is more effective than the pill (99.99 percent).The implants last 4 to 5 YEARS and you don't have to do anything (I used to always forget to take my pill). You can have them removed early and 99% of women have full fertility within 3 months (80% within 1 month!).

    The only downer is you can't control your periods and they can be erratic (I didn't get any for the first two years!)

    Personally the implant works perfectly for me - especially when I was travelling, I didn't have to cart boxes of the pill around with me or worry about having somewhere safe to get an injection. Just a thought! x

    I'm going to look into getting an implant =]

    I am currently on the pill, but sometimes forget to take it. I was thinking about getting an IUD but they're sooo expensive and theres a ton of possible side effects
  • Pawsntails
    Pawsntails Posts: 67 Member
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    I'm on implant aswell, no side effects except that I seem to be on every 2-3 weeks but they are easier to manage then they used to be so I can live with that
  • liberty741
    liberty741 Posts: 122 Member
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    Wow thank you ladies for all of the helpful advice! I really appreciate it and it makes me feel better hearing your stories. I was on the pill before, in cluding the Ring, Mircette and Kariva, and had HORRIBLE side effects including weight gain, mood swings, depression, etc. So I guess I will start with this and see how it goes! Thanks :-)

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