My feed
Premium

Please
or
to access all these features

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

General health

Major Microgynon problems - anyone else had this?

54 replies

dinosaurus · 19/04/2010 16:58

I started taking Microgynon 2 months ago after having quite a long break from the pill (I tried various sorts years ago didn't feel brilliant so came off it). I decided to have another go because I just feel its the 'easiest' type of contraception and thought it might be worth a try.

I know there can potentially be alot of side effects and discussed these with my doctor who reassured me that it would help me with my rather annoying pmt!

Anyway, in a nutshell, I have turned into a depressed, emotional, grumpy but also, at times, a rather detached, unemotional person. My sex drive has disappeared and I sometimes feel a bit sick and dizzy. What is most alarming is that although I obviously know I haven't been feeling great, people around me have commented on it. My poor husband told me last night (on the nicest possible way) that I've completely changed and the rows and arguments we've had in the last couple of months (which have increased due to my grumpiness) is seriously getting to him - in 15 years, I've never seen him quite so sad. He also described me as seeming very 'preoccupied' in that I've almost withdrawn from him?? Strangely enough, a couple of people at work have commented on me seeming 'preoccupied' which just seems such a coincidence.

I have stopped taking the pill as of today even though I'm midway through a pack because I can't stand it anymore. I'm convinced it is the pill - I have nothing else going on in my life to make me feel like this - in fact, we recently moved, I enjoy my job and my relationship with my husband was good. I am actually feeling quite upset that this pill appears to have changed my personality and am wondering how long it might take me to get back to normal? I haven't phoned the doctor because I feel rather stupid describing the symptoms above. Has anyone else experienced this? Could something else be to blame? It just concerns me that people have commented on how I have majorly changed and that I've single handedly put a massive distance between my and my husband. please help if you can enlighten me!

OP posts:
Report
Beauregard · 19/04/2010 17:11

I came off microgynon after taking it for years because i felt that it wasnt helping my depression and i was getting violent/angry outbursts.These have stopped since i came off it although still have depression.I am now on Marvelon and so far it seems to suit me.
Hope you can get things sorted soon.

Report
iggypiggy · 19/04/2010 17:14

We are talking a long time ago - but I was put on microgynon as my first ever pill - aged 18 I think... and it was awful - it never suited me. I changed to femodene - which was fine for me and then later Loestrin-30 - which was also fine! Only ever had problems with Microgynon...

Report
Naetha · 19/04/2010 17:15

I blame taking Microgynon for a lot of the ills in my life, and I haven't taken it for a good 8 years.

Report
madwomanintheattic · 19/04/2010 17:15

my mum had a series of strokes on microgynon, but i guess she had a pre-disposition towards issues. (interesting to note the other side effects, which could describe her to a t...) the docs did say the pill was the trigger.

Report
Failsafe · 19/04/2010 17:31

hi dinosaurus,

I had problems with Microgynon too.
Had been on it for around 4 years and then all of a sudden started with really bad headaches/dizzyness and then really painful periods. came off it and went onto Loestrin 20, been abolsutely fine ever since.
My nurse said some people are more sensitive to the artificial hormone, and the lower dose pill (loestrin 20 = 20mg instead of 30mg) can be tolerated better. Might be worth asking if you can be switched to a lower dose pill.

Report
Rockbird · 19/04/2010 17:39

Yep, microgynon nearly wrecked my marriage. It completely changed my personality, I was bad tempered, depressed and had absolutely no sex drive at all. I slept in the spare room for the first two years of our marriage. I never linked it to the pill. I came off it because I was concerned about being overweight and taking the pill. Instantly things improved and the penny dropped. Never again.

Report
Elsa123 · 19/04/2010 17:46

I was on microynon for years, but got awful withdrawal headaches, then started to get really spotty, so I swapped to Loestrin 30 and got a low libido and rashes. I then went onto Mercilon 20 which was fine, but being off the pill was so much better. Going to consider the coil or diaphragm for the future. I have heard that Jasmin is very good.

Report
MrsMorgan · 19/04/2010 17:49

I took Microgynon for years and it was fine but then after I had Ds I went back on it and just felt miserable all the time and very angry.

I ended up swapping to Cilest which seems to be better, although I also got rid of my xp too so that might account for the improvement in my mood lol.

Report
AuntieMaggie · 19/04/2010 17:54

I took it for about 8 years and was fine on it but had to change in the end because it stopped working on my periods...

Report
wannaBe · 19/04/2010 17:57

I took microgynon for years, then after I had ds I went back on it and was so miserable I seriously thought that I might have pnd. I didn't - I stopped taking it and felt fine.

I went back on it for a year after and had thrush every month.

Have been off the pill now for five years (came off it to ttc five years ago, never got pg but didn't go back on it either) and am fine now.

Report
LadyBlaBlah · 19/04/2010 17:58

This is unbelievable ! Surely Microgynon should only be prescribed in exceptional circumstances ! I guess these side effects are difficult to prove so it slips through the net, but the stories on this thread are dreadful.

Report
BabsH · 19/04/2010 18:14

I have to agree i went back onto it at the turn of the year and lasted two and a half months before I stopped taking it, got loads of dizzy spells mostly, now it seems to be working its way back out of my system and i feel soooo much better!

Hope you get back to normal soon too

Report
BertieBotts · 19/04/2010 18:16

Microgynon always seems to be the first one they prescribe - I think it is the cheapest, IIRC? I seem to remember seeing a list of costs of different pills on a forum somewhere once, but can't find it now.

It made me depressed and low sex drive as well, though I am not sure how much of it was the pill and how much was just my life at the time! I do feel that I overreacted to what was going on so suspect the pill had a part to play.

Report
dinosaurus · 19/04/2010 19:23

Its interesting and also worrying that so many people have replied so quickly.

Having googled microgynon, there are many nightmare stories about it, but I just hoped that for every one nightmare, there were many women who didn't have effects. I just find it quite upsetting that my husband has found me so difficult to live with over the last few weeks and I've felt so different. I've cried more in the last couple of months than in the ten years put together which is an obvious sigh that something isn't quite right, but I still didn't realise that it could change me that much for the worse. Doctors must surely be aware of these stories and give some kind of warning other than the bog standard 'mood swings'.
For ladies who did come off it - how long do you think it took you to get back to normal?

OP posts:
Report
dinosaurus · 19/04/2010 19:25

sorry - meant last ten years put together and sign, not sigh!

OP posts:
Report
TheFowlAndThePussycat · 19/04/2010 19:33

Yes, terrible terrible pmt with microgynon, I went on to Trinordiol and the problems stopped very quickly. Hope you feel back to your old self very soon.

Report
AuntieMaggie · 19/04/2010 19:47

See this is interesting - I took it from the age of 15 for heavy periods etc, and certainly never had any issues with my sex drive during that time!

However I was in a volatile relationship for 6 of those years, and had problems at home (abusive parents) and I thought that a lot of my emotional problems were down to that but maybe it made them worse....

Report
Beauregard · 19/04/2010 20:08

For me it took a couple of months but my sex drive has never returned

Report
dinosaurus · 19/04/2010 20:21

It seems that lots of people have had major side effects. Its so annoying because the physical side effects such as bloating and sore boobs seemed to have settled but I just feel so weirdly different and not in a good way.
I only threw the pack away yesterday so its obviously too early to see if I go back to feeling normal but here's hoping. I do normally suffer from bad pmt, but at least I know thats only a few days of the months and I just feel grumpy. On microgynon I have experienced such a multitude of emotions.
I don't think I dare try another pill for fear of this continuing.

OP posts:
Report
rosiejoy · 19/04/2010 21:57

Have only read op...but this is exactly the experience I had with Microgynon.

I took 1packet because I was determined to see it through, but really after 1 week I'd had enough. Within a couple of days I became so depressed, detached, lethargic...my children were crying (baby and toddler at the time) and I remember sitting on the sofa and looking down at them on the floor and thinking, 'god are they ever going to stop crying' but without really having the desire to do anything about it myself!

Got back to normal quite quickly after stopping.

I have been too scared to use a hormonal contraception since, just seems like a BAD idea!

Report
SixtyFootDoll · 19/04/2010 22:00

I lasted a week on it, was dizzy , nauseous and had terrible head aches.

It was awful.

Report
HeinzSight · 24/04/2010 12:52

dinosaurus I've just started a very similar thread and was kindly linked to yours.

It's only occurred to me today that the reason for, if I'm honest, my change in personality could be down to taking this pill. I even asked my husband last night if we should call it a day. We've been together for 17 yrs and have four beautiful children, we do have a few issues but not enough to warrent splitting over, but I've become emotional detached and almost felt like I didn't care whether we split or not. I've found myself getting snappy with my 2 yr old too.

I finished my first pack of Microgynon on Wednesday but I've now been bleeding for nearly four weeks. Currently VERY heavily so much so it's becoming difficult to go anywhere because despite using the biggest tampax and putting two large pads on, on two occasions I've flooded through onto my jeans, in public . Fortunately there were toilets nearby so it wasn't too embarrassing.

I feel VERY up and down, it's horrid.

I think if this pill comes with a risk of depression and mood swings, it was rather irresponsible of my doctor to put me on it when I have a history of PND.

WHat would a better alternative be?

Report

Don’t want to miss threads like this?

Weekly

Sign up to our weekly round up and get all the best threads sent straight to your inbox!

Log in to update your newsletter preferences.

You've subscribed!

diddl · 24/04/2010 13:25

I took it for years without problems but Dr changed me to Marvelon as there were bad reports about Microgynon-and this is some years ago.

Report
dinosaurus · 24/04/2010 21:49

Sorry to hear about your problems Heinzsight. I took my last pill last Sunday and luckily only had a few days of bleeding. I still don't feel fantastic in myself though. I had another 'chat' with my husband today and he says that I just seem very detached and distant as I have done for the last couple of months (which was when I started taking it). I've gone off sex completely and he is right - I do feel somewhat detached emotionally from everything.

I don't know how long it takes to get out of your system, I just can't believe that it appears to have had such bad effects. Surely it can't be a coincidence that I seem to have drastically changed in exactly the same time period that I began taking the pill? I too have a history of PND although this was about 10 years ago. I also suffer from PMT and ironically, thought that taking the pill might help! Hope you start to feel better soon.x

OP posts:
Report
TotalChaos · 24/04/2010 21:57

Apart from the higher blood pressure and withdrawal headaches I was fine on Microgynon - it was the mini-pill (Micronor) that was the nightmare one for me, it gave me terrible PMT that was bordering on clinical depression. I was fine pretty much as soon as I stopped the mini-pill. I think there can be a bit of a one size fits all approach with hormonal contraception, in that the psychological effects can be downplayed a bit. I think you are absolutely right to have stopped the Microgynon if you feel it's causing you to feel so low.

Report
Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.