Any ladies who got acne solely from taking Alesse? Please post. What did you do once you found out?

I stopped taking Alesse mid-cycle. I got my period early but I didn't care. I'm going to switch to Yasmin tomorrow.

I took Alesse for over a year and it made my face horrible! I switched to Yasmin about six months ago and my face looks a ton better! I think Yasmin is definitely better! Good luck!

Love, Jen

Yes - Alesse was awful for my skin - broke me out with cystic acne. Stopped the Alesse and switched to Demulen.

Why don't doctors warn us about the potential acne-causing agents in birth control? It's so dumb. It seems like it's happened to enough people...

Ugh. Now I'm scared...because my doc put me on Alesse to TREAT my acne. Has anyone had a GOOD response to the BC? Because I really don't want to get worse than I am!

(Moderate cystic combo skin)

Aleese has saved my skin.

It took 5 months to work (doc said it would take 4-6) and I am glad I stuck it out.

I had to switch from Orthocyclin to Mercett b/c ortho was giving me migraines. That's when all hell broke loose. I developed horrible cysts, bumps and blemishes all over my face. I took Mercette for 3 months before the MD would switch me to Aleese.

After about 2 months of Aleese, I noticed mild improvement. I started taking B5 with other vitamins to fight acne and slowly but surely, the cysts went away. I still get zits but nothing like before. I am about 90% clear and my complexion looks tons better. During the week I don't take Aleese is the only time I ever get any cysts and even then they go away quickly.

I believe that everyone reacts differently to BC pills. So what works wonders for me may be another's nightmare. My advice is to try at least 4 cycles before giving up. Most pills or any other acne treatment doesn't work in just a few weeks. Good luck everyone. I've been there...

Thanks for replying, MistyDawn...

If you're still around, I'm wondering...did your skin get worse before it got better while on Alesse?
I seem to be getting a few more cysts than usual, but I'm not very good at judging how much worse/better my skin is.

Years ago I took A BCP called Demulen that was suppose to help acne. It did nothing for my acne. Recently I read that the cyclic estrogens in Demulen help acne resulting from increased androgen primarily of ovarian origin. Since my increased androgen is of adrenal origin Demulen was not appropriate for me.

I am now taking Spiro and have had excellent results. This is why it is so important to know the source of increased androgen by an appropriate battery of labs before prescribing hormonal treatment.