Re: perimenopause and Ortho Evra patch

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! Tweet