Thanks for all the helpful comments, everyone.

I'll be starting the pills on Sunday, so we shall see. The pill I have been prescribed has only 20 micrograms of estrogen in it. Is that the same as the "mini-pill"? Interestingly, neither of my sisters has been able to take oral contraceptives either due to the depression they experienced. So we are mutants!

alex, I don't have any pain at all when I have my period. It is mid cycle when I ovulate that is the problem, and only when I ovulate on the side that has the problematic cysts. The doctor doesn't think the large cysts on that ovary are an endometrioma type cyst, since that would be associated with pain during the period. Instead, she thinks I have some sort of increased vascularization in a benign growth on the affected ovary, and every time I ovulate, the follicle bursts open and reinjures the vascularized area, causing substantial bleeding into my abdomenal cavity. They have visualized this by several imaging techniques. The pooled blood inside my belly is very painful and can just knock me off my feet when it happens. It takes the body about a week to resorb all the internal blood. My doctor says my case is quite unusual, and she sees many women with cysts on their ovaries, so it must be different somehow from the standard affliction. She is hoping that if I give my ovaries a rest and prevent this continued cycle of ovulation and reinjuring my ovary, that it will heal and then be ready to resume ovulation when I stop with the pills. If the ovary doesn't heal, and the pain resumes once I stop the pills, I will need surgery. Since the pain is quite incapacitating, this is something she doesn't want to ignore, especially since my ability to urinate becomes so compromised. Now if there was a corner clinic that would do catherization on demand, that might make the situation more tolerable. But my doctor doesn't do catheterizations in the office setting, so I would have to go the hospital emergency room for that, and they would be obliged to do imaging beforehand for liability reasons, and it would end up costing an arm and a leg. The last CT scan I had cost $6000 (insurance covered all but 10%).

Kendyll, that's interesting about using hormones to moderate your moods. I am lucky and don't get PMS. Maybe taking contraceptives gives me PMS. (Is getting really depressed and manic symptoms of PMS?)

Thanks, Gemstone, your words about pills are encouraging.

What is Yasmin, anyway? I saw a commercial for it on TV tonight. I have never seen a commercial for BCPs before. Strange!