Acne, weight gain... is it Yasmin?

After two years on Yasmin and two years prior on Triquilar—switched because Triquilar started messing with my mood and libido—I finally quit birth control last June. My first Pap smear in July flagged an infection, which I cleared up with some vaginal cream and pills. Follow-up was fine. Liver panels have always been normal.

Since then (though honestly, even during the six months leading up to quitting Yasmin), my skin has flared up with facial acne and weird breakouts on my back. I’ve put on some weight too, though nothing crazy; I've never been what you'd call "twiggy" anyway. 😁

The biggest perk of being on the pill was that I didn't feel my period at all—which is huge when you've been suffering through them since you were twelve. Because it was so easy, I probably ignored everything else. Like the acne.
However, things haven't improved since I stopped (it's been nearly a year now). The acne is still there, just as bad as ever. Every time I ask for advice on creams or treatments, everyone jumps to the same conclusion: it's hormonal. They see the breakouts—which I never had during puberty—and their first question is always, "Were you on Yasmin?"

After getting tired of those blunt questions, I went to my doctor. She sent me for blood work (standard liver panel) and a trip to the lab to check my thyroid hormones. Her diagnosis on the referral? Just "acne."
Both sets of results came back essentially perfect, aside from slightly high cholesterol.

Now I'm more confused than when I started. The acne hasn't budged. I'm seeing the doctor next Friday to go over the labs, and I have no idea where she'll send me. I'll definitely be seeing a dermatologist, though I know I should have done that sooner.

Has anyone here dealt with something similar? I could use some direction so I don't waste time wandering around. It seems pretty obvious that Yasmin left its mark, considering four different pharmacists brought it up without me saying a word.

Thanks, and sorry for the long post. 👋

Well, you’ve certainly given me something to chew on here... 😬
I haven't touched Yasmin in about a year, though I was on it for two years straight before that. And right after those two years, I switched over to Triquilar. And wouldn't you know it—it never even crossed my mind to link the weight gain and the breakouts to finally quitting the pill. 🙈

Anyway, my face is a complete mess right now. It’s nothing catastrophic, just a handful of larger breakouts, but I'm also dealing with all these tiny, annoying little bumps everywhere. 😕 Is that probably because I stopped taking the pill? It makes sense, doesn't it? I never had skin issues like this before, even though I was on birth control for a good five years—but I eventually had to quit because it was absolutely wrecking my mood and completely killing my libido. 🙄

But why on earth were they sending you in for all those tests in the first place? Honestly, it doesn't look to me like anything is actually wrong with you; it feels more like a delayed reaction to whatever you had to go through previously, which the pill just masked, and now—surprise!—the acne is hitting you. Just like it's hitting me. 😬

Angela Flores76 said:Why were you even being sent for tests? It doesn't look like there's an issue per se, just the fallout from what you had to go through before. Because of the pills, now you're dealing with acne. Same as me. 😬

What do you mean, "why was I being sent for tests"? Obviously, something is off. I’m 28, and I assume I shouldn't be breaking out like this at my age. Since I was on the pill, I didn't deal with them earlier... Acne usually hits during puberty, right? And back then, I wasn't taking anything 😬 that could have "delayed" the breakout...

I've heard/read in plenty of places that the pill clears skin for some people, while for others, it causes exactly what I'm going through. I'm calling the dermatologist tomorrow to get an appointment. We'll see. And starting the day after, I'm hitting the gym hard.

rowdylynx38 said:What do you mean, "why were they sending me for tests"? It’s obvious something isn't right. I'm 28, and I certainly shouldn't be dealing with acne at this age. I didn't have them back then because I was on the pill... Acne usually hits during puberty, doesn't it? And I wasn't taking anything 😬 that could have "delayed" my breakouts...

I've heard—and read—in so many places that while the pill clears up skin for some, it causes exactly what I'm going through for others. I'm calling my dermatologist tomorrow to get an appointment. We'll see what happens. And starting the day after tomorrow, I'm hitting the gym hard.

Oh, I see. My mistake. 😵
I thought you meant you had been on the pill throughout puberty and just recently stopped, which triggered all of this. 🙂

Anyway, I stopped taking it a year ago, and I'm 23, but honestly, I don't have acne. It's just the occasional pimple here and there, or those tiny little bumps. 😕
But I suspect it's because I was on it during my teenage years, and now my body is finally just "reverting to its natural state," if you know what I mean. 🙂

I honestly thought I was the only one going through this. About six months ago, I quit taking Yasmin and everything seemed fine for a few months, but then about a month back, my skin just absolutely tanked. It’s exactly what you guys described—a few big breakouts mixed with a million tiny ones. My dermatologist thinks it might be some kind of allergy, so we've cycled through all sorts of creams, but nothing works. Even when I go to an esthetician, my face looks amazing for exactly one day, and then it's right back to square one.
Since nothing else helped, I went right back on Yasmin, and well... here we are. I really thought I was finally done with acne in my thirties, but instead, I look like I'm just hitting puberty again.

I’m certainly not going back to Yasmin just to deal with whatever mess she likely left me with.

So, what do you even do when you've already tried everything? My face and my back are absolutely trashed, and honestly, it feels like it’s just getting worse by the day. I refuse to believe Yasmin is the cause, though—if she were, my bloodwork would probably show some massive hormonal mess, but everything came back perfectly normal.

I've never touched birth control. Honestly, I figured the side effects would far outweigh any benefits, especially considering what's mentioned below. Besides, my sex life is perfectly fine without them. 😬

From experience, I know exactly what those weird breakouts and "skin volcanoes" caused by hormonal imbalances look like. In my case, antibiotics absolutely wrecked my liver. Ever since then, I’ve been wary of anything that hits the liver, because you need to take very little medicine to endure years of suffering 😁, and nobody needs to see what happens when your liver fails 😁. My liver eventually recovered in a few months, but my body spent the next year and a half purging everything through my skin—acne, pimples, redness, itching, dehydration, peeling... basically, the toxins that the liver simply couldn't process were being pushed out through the skin . Even though my liver was medically cleared, there were still plenty of toxins left in the system...

So, stopping the pill is just as much of a shock to your system as starting it. Your body is trying to flush out all the "toxins" you've accumulated over the years while trying to relearn how to function on its own. The clearest evidence of this is that you're now dealing with issues you've never had before, and you're left wondering what triggered them... 😬

Trust me, doctors aren't going to be much help here 😬. For now, your best bet is finding some decent skincare products to manage the symptoms...

As for going back to your old pills, that seems like sweeping dirt under the rug to me. Sure, things might look better temporarily, but imagine what your body is actually feeding on once your liver stops filtering it out 😉. Eventually, you'll stop taking the pills again, and the whole cycle starts over. I don't know, for those reasons, the pill will never be for me. Given everything I've been through, I'm generally against unnecessary drugging up 🤷. Side effects are inevitable... and the reality is, doctors can't fix most of them without just creating new ones 🤣 🙂. But hey, I'm just one of those people who has lost faith in doctors 😬

Good grief, you all have actually managed to spook me now. To give you the full picture, I’ve been taking antibiotics alongside Yasmin—which my dermatologist prescribed to deal with my acne—and honestly, my complexion has been incredible; the breakouts are practically gone. My only real gripe with the Yasmin is that whenever I start a fresh pack, about three days in, I break out in this mild facial rash—just these tiny little bumps—and perhaps, given the antibiotics I'm on, I'm also dealing with frequent bouts of depression and these erratic mood swings. But here is the kicker: despite being relatively young, I feel like I’ve already absolutely wrecked my liver, so if I stop taking these pills, isn't it all just a massive waste? A total disaster, really...

So I’ve actually noticed this super interesting side effect with Yasmin, which happens to be the first birth control I've ever tried, and I've been on them for over a year now. I’ve realized that my period has definitely gotten longer. It lasts exactly seven days, and if I happen to have sex on that last day, I'll still have some light spotting going on through the eighth day 😢

Before I started these, my period would only last four days max, and those last two days were just light brown spotting—honestly, a regular pad was plenty because it wasn't even heavy—and usually, if I had sex or went swimming in a pool or at the beach on that final day, it would just stop right then and there 😢

As far as the cramps go, they feel pretty much the same as they did before I started the pill, so it’s really nothing too crazy; just popping an Advil totally takes care of it.

I originally started taking Yasmin on my gynecologist's recommendation, specifically to deal with some moderate acne breakouts. After just one month of use, things actually took a turn for the worse; what started as a few stubborn spots escalated into such intense inflammation that I couldn't even rest my face on a pillow without significant pain. Following that ordeal, I had to go on a course of antibiotics before finally switching over to Diane-35. I've been on it for about six months now, and frankly, my skin has never looked better. That said, from everything I've read, Diane is considered much more "heavy-duty" than Yasmin since it's an older-style contraceptive with a different hormonal profile. Interestingly enough, I actually experienced more side effects with Yasmin than I have with Diane—and it wasn't just the skin issues, but also noticeable shifts in my mood, a loss of appetite, and a drop in libido.

Well, it seems I’m not alone in this particular predicament, as I find myself staring down that exact same list of consequences...

gentlecanyon92 said:I’ve never touched birth control. Honestly? I figured the side effects would totally outweigh any benefits... plus everything mentioned below. Besides, my sex life is fine without them.😬

From experience, I know exactly what those weird breakouts and hormonal "volcanoes" mean. My liver got absolutely wrecked after a heavy round of antibiotics—ever since then, I loathe anything that hits the liver because you have to take such tiny amounts to endure years of misery😁, and trust me, nobody wants to see what happens when your liver quits on you😁.. It eventually recovered in a few months, but my body had to purge everything through my skin (acne, pimples, redness, itching, dehydration, peeling...) for about a year and a half (basically the toxins the liver just can't process getting pushed out through the skin)... even though my liver was medically "fine," there were still toxins everywhere
.
So yeah, stopping the pill is just as much of a shock to your system as starting it. Your body is trying to flush out all the "junk" you accumulated over the years while trying to remember how to just be itself again. All those new issues you're dealing with? That's the proof right there. 😬

Trust me, doctors aren't going to help you much here😬.. For now, your best bet is just finding some decent skincare to manage the symptoms...

As for going back to your old pills, to me, it feels like sweeping trash under a rug. Sure, things might look better for a second, but imagine what your body is actually feeding on once your liver stops flushing it out😉.. You'll just end up quitting the pills again later, and the whole cycle restarts. I don't know, for those reasons, the pill will never be my thing. After everything I went through, I'm generally against dumping unnecessary stuff into my system🤷. Side effects are inevitable... and the truth is, most of them, doctors can't fix without just creating new ones🤣 🙂 but hey, I'm just one of those people who lost faith in doctors😬

I'm with you on this. Nothing is worth sacrificing your health for.. especially since most women want to have kids someday.. and you're just loading your body up with useless junk that requires even more cleaning later. Why do the work twice? Plus, everyday stress is already enough to make your body struggle, let alone adding a pile of pills that people take just because it's easy and convenient..

So, what? I just sit here and wait for my system to completely flush itself out?

rowdylynx38 said:So I guess there's nothing left to do but be patient and wait for my body to fully reset?

I don't know how you view your own health, but isn't it obvious? Anything unnatural—especially pills—is just going to force your body to react...
Honestly, if these breakouts are just a side effect of quitting, they should clear up eventually... you just gotta stick to a skincare routine... or whatever your dermatologist tells you to do...
And look, since acne can get pretty nasty and deep, leaving permanent scars behind... I really hope it's not that bad for you... I truly believe you'll get through this...
Maybe hold off on the birth control for a bit. The worst part is that it takes the whole body seven years to fully regenerate... so yeah, you can't always expect results in a few months... sometimes it takes way longer... 👎
It’ll get better!!!!!!!!!! 🙂

I have no idea where I mentioned other pills 😕

I’m not planning on taking any of that stuff again. Period. I was simply asking if anyone else deals with similar issues and whether there are alternative tests besides thyroid panels that might yield results.

That’s it.
I never said my health wasn't a priority, nor did I say I wanted to switch to different pills.

rowdylynx38 said:I have no clue when I brought up other pills 😕

I’m not looking to start taking anything like that again. Period. I was just asking if anyone else deals with this stuff or if there's some other test besides thyroid levels that might actually show something.

That's it.
Never said my health doesn't matter or that I want to be back on birth control.

Look, I'm sorry... I didn't mean to offend you. I just thought maybe you were considering going back on them, since I know plenty of women end up on the pill just to deal with acne..
I probably sounded harsh, but I really wasn't trying to be. 🙂

Everything’s fine, hiddentiger20.

The point is, I never dealt with skin issues like this before. Not until I started taking birth control. There is zero chance I'm going back on them just to clear up acne.

My skin looks great today (I have some minor scarring, but I'm using Mederma so they're fading, and the breakouts are gone), but who knows how it'll look tomorrow. That's the whole issue. On top of that, weight has always been a struggle for me. But since the pill, things have spiraled. I don't even have my waistline anymore, which I used to maintain regardless of my weight. I can't seem to get rid of this midsection bloat. I thought it might be a thyroid thing, but my labs came back perfect.

rowdylynx38 said:It’s all good, hiddentiger20.

The thing is, I never dealt with skin issues like this before. Not until I started birth control. So, there is zero chance I'm going back on them just to fix acne.

My skin looks fine today (got some tiny scars, but I'm using some Mederma so they're fading, plus no active breakouts). Who knows how tomorrow will go? That's the point. On top of that, the weight has always been an issue. But the pills made it worse—now my waistline is just... gone. I used to have one regardless of the scale, but now I've got this "spare tire" I can't shake. I thought maybe it was my thyroid, but everything came back normal.

Well, I honestly think if you could just get moving more... you know, doing some core work, waist exercises...
And maybe you're stressed too. Believe me, whenever I'm stressed, something else breaks. But I'm not looking to fix that with supplements—just making a change myself. Like actually trying to get some rest... though finding the time is a nightmare! 🤷

hiddentiger20 said:Look, my take is that if you can just step things up a bit... you know, some core work, waist exercises, whatever...
plus, stress is probably playing a role. Believe me, whenever I'm stressed, a new problem pops up out of nowhere. But I’m not looking to fix that with some supplement; I’d rather make a conscious change, like actually trying to get some rest. Though, finding the time is its own struggle. 🤷

It sounds ridiculous, but I don't actually eat much. I move around a little, sure. I just don't have the bandwidth for a regular workout routine. Back when I was younger, I played sports every single day for eight years, so I was always in shape 😁.

As for stress, it's my biggest hurdle. I'm convinced it's tied directly to metabolism, but unfortunately, it's not something I can just switch off. 😢