• Drospirenone 3mg, Ethinylestradiol 20mcg (e.g. Yaz®, Drospera®)
  

• Do not stop taking your medication without checking with your healthcare professional.
• If you are switching from other forms of contraception, please seek advice from your healthcare professional.
• You should take this medication after food.
• You may start taking this medication on the first or second day of your menses (if this is your first time taking hormonal contraceptives).
• If you are also using it for contraceptive purposes, a barrier method of contraception e.g. condoms, is recommended for the first 7 days of taking this medication for the first time.
• Each pack contains 24 pink (active) tablets and 4 white (inactive) tablets = 28 tablets.
  
• You should take one tablet daily for 28 days in a row, preferably at the same time every day. You must take the tablets in the correct sequence i.e. start each pack with the pink (active) tablets, followed by the white (inactive) tablets. 
• The next pack is started after the last tablet of the previous pack. Withdrawal bleeding (menses) usually starts on day 2 – 3 after the last white (inactive) tablet is taken and may not have finished before the next pack is started.
  

• Week 1 of the pack:
• Take the missed tablet as soon as you remember, even if it means taking 2 tablets at the same time. 
• Continue to take your tablets at your usual time. 
• Use a barrier method such as a condom for the next 7 days.
  

• Week 2 of the pack:
• Take the missed tablet as soon as you remember, even if it means taking 2 tablets at the same time. 
• Continue to take your tablets at your usual time.
• If you have taken your tablets correctly in the 7 days before the first missed tablet, there is no need to use extra contraceptive precautions. However if this is not the case, or you have missed more than 1 tablet, use a barrier method such as a condom for the next 7 days.
  

• Week 3 of the pack:  

Depending on whether you have taken your tablets correctly in the 7 days before the first missed tablet, you would have to follow the following options:  

• You are allergic to this medication or any of the other ingredients of this medication
• You are pregnant, planning to become pregnant, or breastfeeding 
• You are taking any other medications, including supplements, traditional medications and herbal remedies
• You have a history of or current medical conditions such as liver problems, stroke, clotting disorders, heart diseases, migraine headaches, epilepsy (fits), diabetes or cancer 
• You are a smoker 
  

• Spotting or bleeding may occur between your periods during the first few months of taking oral contraceptives. However, if this continues after the third month, check with your doctor. 
• Nausea, vomiting, bloating and stomach cramps
• Take the medication after food to reduce these side effects 
• Breast tenderness
• Headache or migraine
• You may take painkillers such as Paracetamol to manage headaches 
• Unable to tolerate contact lenses
• Weight changes, mood swings 
• Take medication at the same time every day to avoid huge changes in the hormone levels in your body
• Pigmentation of the skin
• Apply sunblock when you are outdoors and avoid long hours of sun exposure
  

• Swollen face/eyes/lips/tongue
• Difficulty in breathing
• Itchy skin rashes over your whole body

• Any unusual sudden cough, breathlessness or difficulty in breathing 
• Severe pain in the chest which may reach the left arm
• Severe pain in legs or swelling in either of your legs
• Weakness or numbness in any part of your body
• Change in your speech, including slurring of words
• Change in your senses of hearing, smell or taste
• Vision changes such as loss of vision/blurred vision 

• Unusual, severe or long lasting headache or worsening of migraine 
• Dizziness or fainting
  
• Severe pain in your abdomen
• Dark urine or light coloured stools
• Nausea and vomiting
• Loss of appetite
• Yellowing of eyes or skin