I considered putting this in the Drug Questions forum, but since it pertains to a drug only women take, thought I'd be better off putting it here.

I just went for my annual exam and I mentioned to the doc (a new one) that I wanted to start taking BC again (I haven't been on it since mid-2007). At first she agreed when I told her I'd like to start taking Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo again, but when she found out I have extremely heavy and painful periods that frequently leave me nauseated and so weak/tired I require frequent naps, she told me she wanted to put me on Microgestin Fe 1/20 and instead of taking the placebo pills, I am to immediately start a new pill pack after three weeks of active pills - the idea is to "trick" my body into not having my typical weeklong period from hell. Eventually, I'll have only three or four periods a year and they will be very light.

I had never heard of this pill before and Googled it a few minutes ago, and virtually every post I read about it on various message boards complained about low or no sex drive, extreme breast tenderness and horrible depression - and some of these women had been on it for 6 months or more.

Any of you familiar with this pill and its potential side effects? I know everyone's different but I'm a little nervous about the depression risk since I already struggle with it. Any feedback would be great. Thanks!