Go to the WOMANS HEALTH section of the following site. Also read the entire HOME page! You'll find help!

http://store.yahoo.com/the-real-health-shop/index.html

I read Could It Be Perimenopause & decided to ask my GYN if birth control could work for me. I also had a horrible year- felt crummy - no energy - food cravings, low moods (ok some attributed to normal life stresses... taking on too much, aging parent, teenage child, etc). My GYN suggested the patch and I've been on it 2 months now. It has helped A LOT with leveling out my mood over the course of the month. My energy level is totally even throughout the month too now - but it's not really higher as I wish it could be. The down side ... I'm ravenous! I have gained a lot of weight - a size or 2 (I can't bear to go near a scale given the way I look and the way my clothes fit). ALSO my breasts are tender and I went up more than a cup size! SO is it worth it? I don't know... I'm not crabby due to hormone fluctuations but I'm bummed out about the weight & not feeling like going to the gym. I'm going to give it one more month & try to get back to my exercise regime which I let go (I can't totally attribute the lack of motivation for exercise to the patch but I was an avid exerciser before). Of course the problem with all this is no one seems to experience the same side effects... but just thought I'd share mine. GOOD LUCK!