From my experience, birth control pills are terrible for women. I took Diane 35 for almost two years and while it did the job for birth control and cleared up my acne after about six months to a year, it screwed up a lot of other things--very gradually I started feeling very unlike myself--depressed, tired, emotionally numb, and I couldn't sleep properly. I never remembered my dreams. I am convinced that birth control pills are awful for women because they throw off your natural cycle which goes with the lunar cycle of the moon. This connection with the lunar cycle gives women a great sense of intuition. But when you are on the pill your cycle is being manipulated to go on a pharmaceutical rhythm which throws your body's natural sense of balance COMPLETELY out of whack. You may not even notice it at first (it took me almost a year to figure it out) and it's really difficult because the birth control pill seems like the only viable way of ensuring you won't get pregnant. The pharmaceutical companies won't tell let it be known just how bad these pills are for women because the birth control pill industry is a billion dollar industry. Women's health is not being protected in the least. I'm still looking for a healthy form of birth control, but it isn't worth it to take the pill to get rid of acne. You have to treat the problem, taking birth control pills is just treating the symptom. Acne is a symptom of a greater problem. There are some great books to read to learn more. There's a great book about women's health and the mind body connection in women called "Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom" by Christiane Northrup, which is great for all women to read. Also if you're interested in learning about the mind-body connection try researching psychoneuroimmunology, naturopathy and natural medicine. Your mind and psychological structure has a very strong impact on your body and the illnesses you could contract/develop.