Switching From Minastrin To Mibelas

I've been taking minastrin for about four years now. I was forced to switch over to the generic brand, mibelas. I haven't started mibelas yet but I will be in a few days. I'm worried because I don't want my periods to be affected or anything like that. I haven't really seen any positive reviews on mibelas so I'm pretty skeptical. Is there anyone here who has made the switch to the generic brand and can offer me some advice on if you've had any changes with periods or just in general? Thanks!

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Don't switch, it's horrible! I just made the switch too and wish i hadn't. I'm one month in and miserable. Depression, acne, moodiness, bloating, you name it. Don't switch if you can avoid it.

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Are you going to switch to a new birth control then? When I got the news from the pharmacy I called my doctor and they said they new there was going to be a generic form of the birth control.

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Yeah I just picked up my prescription and noticed it changed with out notice. I'm calling my dr tomorrow to see if I can get my normal prescription for minastrin. It's upsetting!

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I never got a warning that they were switching me from minastrin to mibelas. I called the pharmacy and they said if I wanted to stay on ministrin, it would be a $130 co-pay each time... I'm testing out mibelas this month to see how it goes.

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Hi Emily,

Have you tried using a pharmacy coupon to cut down on the cost of Ministrin? I know MedsChat has a free one that you can print out and take with you here: Rx Savings Card. Apparently patients can save an average of 15-75% this way.

Nevertheless, it's a frustrating that pharmacies are inherently forcing patients to accept whatever they may have in stock at any given moment instead of ensuring that people get what they need. Switching brands/generics/manufacturers on someone could turn out to be akin to taking something completely different if the binders and fillers don't sit well or absorb properly...

I hope the Mibelas ends up working well for you and others.

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Don't switch! I'm seeing where other women had the same issue as I did of not knowing the price of Minastrin went up and had to go to Mibelas. I'm experiencing horrible headaches, anxiety and chest pain. Years ago a generic ortho tri cyclen did the same thing to me and I had to get off it. The Minastrin worked great for me. Mibelas is awful.

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I'm going through the same thing! Paying more money to stay on minestrin is worth it, the side effects from mibelas are terrible (head cloudiness, teeeivle moodiness, anxiety, lack of motivation). Both my gyno and primary care will not acknowledge that it's my birth control so it is nice to hear I'm not crazy and other people are going through the same thing. I'm switching back to minestrin so will be able to confirm soon that all of these symptoms I'm feeling are definitely from mibelas.

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I was forced to switch with out notice and it horribe. I called my doctor and they said it was the same thing but it isn't!!! It had caused my acne, bloatedness, sore breasts, headaches, mood swings/ depression. It's horrible and I want my minastrin back! It is no where close to being the same as minastrin. If you can avoid making the switch do it at all costs because mibelas is horrible.

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I am just finishing my first pack of Mibelas and never had anxiety or panic attacks until recently. I couldn't figure out what it was but now thinking it's from switching to this generic. I felt alone and feel better others are facing the same thing! Thus is crazy if it is causing us all these side effects. My pharmacy switched it on me.

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I have been on mibelas for 3 months now and the only positive thing is that my periods are much lighter and on time. I liked minastrin but was also forced to switch without notice too.
Mibelas 24Fe Negatives: chest pains, pain in my arms, legs, and groin muscles, bloating, slight weight gain, and I feel down. Not depressed but just down and just don't want to do anything. I'm very hesitant to switch back to minastrin bc I had break through bleeding but I'm starting to think that I'd rather take that over these horrible, negative side effects.

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I was on Minastrin and Loestrin for years and had no problem. Since taking Mabelas I feel absolutely awful. I have had stomach pains, headaches, dizziness, and a general lack of motivation. I stopped taking the pills this morning because it doesn't even seem to be worth it anymore.

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Getting cramps when I never used to and also more acne. Also period started about 4 days earlier.

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I just started taking Mibelas a little less than a month ago, I was told there was a back order on Minastrin so the pharmacy offered me Mibelas. IT'S AWFUL! I'm extremely moody, lazy, cramping, and feeling bloated. As soon as I finish this cycle, I'm going back to Minastrin. If I have to pay more, I don't care. I was taking Minastrin for years and never had a problem.

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Please report this to the Drug Company! These are reportable side effects and if you report them they have to be reported to the FDA and eventually will be investigated. I am in my mid-40's and also was surprised when I picked up my scrip and it was swapped for Mibelas 24Fe. I have had many of the same symptoms that are being described here, cramps, depression, mood swings, break through bleeding, heavier periods, and sore breasts. It's really terrible and the only change has been this pill. This generic is not an equivalent drug. But we need to go one step further and report these adverse effects.

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I was on minastrin for almost a year and I was so happy because it was the first hormone in my whole life that was able to stop all my erratic break through bleeding. I loved it. They started switching me over to mibelas at the pharmacy and suddenly I have crazy cystic acne and feel bloated and get headaches all the time. I hate it, plus it's not even REALLY chewable like the other one. This one tastes terrible. I just want to switch back to minastrin but the pharmacy told me they couldn't without my doc writing a new script and that my insurance might not cover it now. My mom is a drug rep and so I've always known that genetics are never the same as the brand name... they might have the same active ingredients but the quality of everything else is always totally different. I'm gonna call my doc and see if I can switch back because this is horrible. Also this is not the first time a generic birth control f***ed with my s***. So yeah.

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I'm so mad they switched me from minastrin to this garbage mibellas. It's not the same at all! I had spotting throughout my pill pack when I never have before and my period is being really weird like here then not, here then not and the cramps I got OMG, I haven't felt something so close to a labor pain/ contraction in many many years.

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I too was switched without prior notification. I researched Mibelas and read horrifying reviews. I was so nervous. I had been on Loestrin and then Minastrin for about 6 years without any issues. And then guess what? Nothing bad happened. I haven't experienced any negative side effects and I am starting my second pack this week. Fingers crossed it stays that way.

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I just finished my second pack of Mibelas, after being on Minastrin for 2 and a half years, HAPPILY!! the First month I didn't notice much except the pills were gross. This last month as been the biggest waste in my whole life! I wake up in the middle of every night with uncontrollable anxiety, I do NOT sleep. It usually ends in a bawling fest on the couch--I mean I don't even ever feel tired! It's like a caffeine pill! and When I am awake, my chest is riddled with pains from anxiety! It has to be this pill! Literally I have nothing in my life right now to be this anxious over. I can't sit still, I can't sleep, I am not motivated, I want to lay in bed constantly. I am throwing pack #3 away and will either just try and stay off it or see If I can go back on Minastrin-- SO GLAD I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE!!!

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Mibelas 24 FE is officially on recall. They say packaging errors that could cause unintentional pregnancies. Thank goodness I switched back to Minastrin!

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DON'T TAKE IT! The only place mibelas belongs is in a garbage can. I got the generic in the mail and calling my pharmacy screaming. I tried it for one month, and it was the worst experience ever. I don't care what they say, it's not equilivent to minestrin. My doctor told me to finish the one pack and then switch me to something else. I don't know why I even bothered taking it because I spotted on and off for 3 weeks, had terrible cramps, and my skin has never been so disgusting in all my life. I was on loestrin/minestrin for 10 years and I certainly didn't miss those terrible cramps.

After reading everyone else's comments, I think it also explains why I was so irritable too.

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My daughter got horribly sick using the generic. Complain to your insurance company. Tell them NO. She had every awful side effect you could have gotten.

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Re: BP93 (# 17)

I didnt start having any side affects until now.. and Im half way through my second pack

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I switched to Mibelas from minastrin three months ago (same thing, pharmacist just gave it to me went i picked up my usual prescription). Ive been experiencing severe headaches and slightly more acne. I did notice that my boobs may have gotten slightly bigger but at the expense of my stomach growing too. This past episode, my headache lasted 4 days so I called my pharmacist and am switching back to Minastrin!

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I was taking minastrin for almost a year with no side effects, lighter periods, less acne. The only side effect I have from minastrin is my bra size increased a full cup. I did not get notified. At the beginning of the year my insurance company decided they weren't going to pay for the minastrin anymore because a generic was being released and minastrin was no longer a preferred medication. I was paying at least 200$ for a 3 month supply. Then comes mibleas. The second I started this drug I had and have continued to have breakthrough bleeding, sometimes heavy bleeding as if I have a period. The blood is dark brown to red. I contacted the company the first month I was taking this drug because I was so annoyed with the fact that a generic drug is supposed to be the equivalent and it's entirely not. I have been taking the mibleas for the last 4 months and continue to experience the breakthrough bleeding which is the reason I went on the pill in the first place. I made an appointment with my gyn because I am not happy with this drug and I am concerned. A generic drug is supposed to be the bulk ingredient and it's not at all. Do not take it. Switch to another one. It's really ridiculous that your insurance company can determine which drugs are preferred and which aren't. I pay enough for my coverage. The whole point in having insurance is to be covered not to be told what medicine they will and what medicine they won't pay for. This medication is what agreed with my body and I've been taking and now I have to change it? Screw you big pharma.

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Re: R (# 21)

Follow up to my post from June - shortly after discovering this thread I requested my doctor call in a Minastrin prescription as "brand required" so that my insurance (Cigna) would cover the cost. I just completed 3 months back on Minastrin and I can't believe how much better I feel on a day to day basis.
On Mibelas I experienced unusually heavy bleeding, mood swings and anxiety (both very uncharacteristic for me), loss of motivation, and what felt like living in a general 'fog,' for lack of a better term.
After a few weeks off Mibelas I noticed all of these symptoms clear away. The most noticeable was the improvement of my mental health - no more anxiety spells or mood swings.

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Re: Lauren (# 29)

Yes that was my symptoms and the midwife made a side comment about the change to the generic which is why I investigated it and found this thread. I have been able to switch back the brand name and the symptoms have gone away.

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I am so glad I am not crazy!!!!!!!! I didn't even think switching from Minastrin to the generic was the cause of some of the horrible (what I know now are) side effects I've been experiencing. A friend was telling me how she was nervous to go on a new pill because of the reported horrible side-effects, which got me wondering if mine could possibly be similar. Sure enough, the horrendous depression, mood swings, anxiety, body aches, headaches, weight gain, and extreme fatigue are not a figment of my imagination! I just called my doctor to see if I can switch to something else. I called my pharmacy, and similar to what others have reported, switching back to Minastrin (which I loved) will cost me an arm and a leg out of pocket. I am so annoyed with the switch, but you ladies have made me feel so much better to know that I'm not alone!!!

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Both me and my daughter both were prescribed Minastrin and were switched to Mibelas and have had terrible results! Bloating, pain, breakthrough bleeding - it's awful on both of us. I also got a recall notice that a certain lot of it was recalled and could cause pregnancy - NOT good since my teen daughter uses it to control both ovarian cysts AND pregnancy!!! Even though the lot we had was not included in the recall, we are still going to switch back to Minastrin -- it's going to cost us now as opposed to when we were switched by our insurance company. I will call and complain to both our insurance co and the drug company - horrible drug for both me and my daughter (and others based on the posts).

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Has anyone been getting really sore/swollen breasts? I just recently switched from minastrin to mibelas and my nipples are so sore and tender and my breast are definitely swollen and tender as well.

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I was on Loestrin and then Minestrin for 8 years. No problems. They switched me to Mibelas and over the course of the month I've felt bloated non stop, constantly tired, racing heart, random headaches, moodiness. Here I am after a month and I'm randomly crying and getting upset. I feel severely depressed and foggy.

Went back and forth with pharmacy and my dr. office today. Finally got a month supply of Minestrin. It was $175 and that was WITH a coupon they applied for me. The nurse I spoke to on the phone said that there was a generic gel capsule version of Minestrin available that I could consider. There's no way I can keep paying almost $200 a month so I plan on looking into it.

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