September 23th
2009
6:34 AM
hi, i've read through this several times, and it is now 3am and i find myself reading them again.
i was on both effexor and wellbutrin (generic versions of both) for quite some time, but didn't have full-on hair loss like I have now 'til about earlier this year when I was on wellbutrin only and was taking 150 mg twice a day. I got off of it because I have always had thin hair so I started to freak out when I noticed hair loss.
Unfortunately I became so depressed that I simply HAD to get back on it; and made the biggest mistake of my life by going up to the full 400mg dosage of the generic wellbutrin.
It killed me. I have very very very little hair especially on ONE side of my head, the left, and can no longer wear my bangs forward like I used to.
I went to the dermatologist (who I think was pretty bad, actually, because I went in for my HAIR and he didn't even do a strength test by pulling on it or anything!) and he said I had male pattern-ish baldness which is even more disconcerting because I can't hide the hair loss, I have a huge bald spot near the front of my head -- and I'm only a 21-year old female, people! This is beyond depressing, really. I'm beyond angry at my psychiatrist for always always downplaying the hair loss risk. I loathe him for it, in fact. But anyway.
I am going to start on biotin, and probably some prenatal vitamins, and maybe even tail Rx (******).
Thank you for posting your experiences, it has been a huge comfort to me (I wasn't lying when I said I read this thread many many times before and am reading it again now, at 3am!)
-- By secretbeaches | Reply | (2) replies | Private Message me
September 5th
2008
11:31 AM
Ladies,
God gave us all that "little voice inside" that we call a woman's intuition. LISTEN TO IT! Unfortunately, I did not when it came to choosing Mirena as my first and only choice of birth control since I was a young teen first experimenting with sex. Well now, I am a day away from my 31st birthday and have been married to my high-school sweetheart for ten-plus years. After two kids and a miscarriage of twins, I decided I just didn't want to go through pregnancy again. So, little ol' me decided to be hip and choose a form of birth control that allowed me to be free and not have to worry about the likes of condoms...or spermicide...or those wretched birth control pills. If only I knew back then what I know now, however.
I first got Mirena inserted the end of March 2007. Since then, my sex life with my husband suffered dramatically, because, first, I bled inconsistently (that is, I didn't know when my period was going to show up---every week, every two weeks, etc.); second, when my period did show up, it would last 8-11 days; and third, the wire attached to the device was painfully uncomfortable for my husband during sex to where we were limited to just a few positions, which made for a pretty mundane sex life.
From a health standpoint, like so many other posters, I suffered severe hair loss. It had gotten to the point where I literally had a receding hair line and had to wear very weird-looking bangs just to cover up my hair loss.
I stayed bloated and on edge from the anxiety I felt from feeling like the start of my period was just imminently hanging over my head, because it seemed as though I was always on it (because I did bleed more times times than not).
The weight gain was horrible. I always felt insatiably hungry and looked up one day and realized I was a size 16...and barely squeezing into my clothes. I went on a diet, which went fine. However, I ended up coming to a standstill even after increasing and intensifying my exercise and lowering my calorie intake even more than I had. NO ONE 'til the day I die will be able to convince me it wasn't Mirena's fault for causing the initial weight gain and later stagnating my progress to lose weight.
And, yes, there was a change in my personality. I went from a laid-back, independent, self-sufficient woman to one who was totally clingy, overbearing, and extremely jealous. But then, I turned into the worst person I had ever seen myself becoming: I then turned into a woman who just wanted to be by herself. And so, I was one phone call away from hiring a divorce attorney and leaving my husband and kids, because I just couldn't handle my every day life as it was. I did not know what was going on with me; I just knew I found myself having a total change of heart about everything in my life, even though my life was a pretty dang good one, according to all of my friends and family and even people on the street who would observe how well my husband treated me.
Enough was enough, and I finally had Mirena taken out Friday, July 11, 2008, at approximately 11:00 AM!
My life has totally changed.
No lies. No embellishments. No exaggerations. I lost three pounds by that Tuesday, July 15. So, my efforts to reach my weight loss goal don't seem so futile now. Furthermore, my husband and I are as happy together as we were back when we were in high school; and, I can't even imagine not having the kids and him in my life. Oh, and my hair.... I no longer have a receding hair line. It's still going through that annoying growing-out phase, but at least it exists again!!!
Looking back, particularly at some of these posts, something told me I was in for a nightmare come to life when my doctor was amazed at how I felt hardly any pain while he inserted Mirena. And even now how he and his nurse act totally shocked and surprised at all of the problems that I had while using Mirena just sickens me to the point of wanting to punch something. These medical professionals know. They get very nice perks for being in cahoots with these drug representatives and manufacturers by going along with making us, the patients, guinea pigs. Such low-life scum! I am hurt and totally pissed off by the whole thing. But still, I am thankful my life has returned to normal since having Mirena taken out.
Nevertheless, be warned! Mirena is a steep, pricey sentence on one's life. So, you'd better be prepared.
-- By legendof4060 | Reply | Private Message me
August 31th
2008
11:43 PM
I have been taking Femcon Fe for almost a year. I really didn't notice any bad side effects, except one. My hair started falling out during my third pack. I guess I didn't realize that it may have been from this, until my husband mentioned it. For those of you that had this same problem, once you stopped taking the Femcon, did your hair grow back??? I am planning to call my doc and switch back to my old BC.
-- By awc0820 | Reply | (1) replies | Private Message me
January 15th
2008
9:14 PM
Hi so I've only been taking Topamax for five days now and I have a question? I am black and I also have a problem where I woke up this morning and instead of hair loss per se, my bangs on either side were cut straight across about 4 inches missing (this is a lot for a black person, maybe even to anyone trying to grow their hair for their upcoming wedding). It's like someone used scissors to cut off 4 inches, of only the front of my hair (breakage). Has anyone else heard of this? Please help.
-- By sspegasus23 | Reply | (1) replies | Private Message me
December 18th
2007
6:27 PM
Hair loss! My hair was falling out by the handfuls after about 5 months on Yasmin. It first I had no idea that it could be the BC, since I have never had any side-effects like that from any other kind. I stopped taking the pill immediately, but my hair still falls out! I've been off Yasmin and any other BC pill for over a year now, and my hair is still falling out! Help! My Dr. is completely ignorant and telling me that he's never heard of any side-effect like that. I also have really bad acne. I had thick hair and completely clear skin before I started this BC pill. What the heck is happening? I had all my hormone levels tested as well as thyroid, and those are fine. Any ideas? Anyone else having this problem? Anyone found a cure? What is going on, and how do I get my hair back?
-- By eknowlen | Reply | (6) replies | Private Message me
September 21th
2007
7:47 AM
I am having horrible hair loss too. I always had thick, helthy hair. Now my pony tail is about half the diameter...I have to twist the hair band 3 times instead of 2 and it still slides off. And I barely have any bangs left at all.
My doctor said it doesn't matter, (in fact, he wouldn't even acknowledge it as a side effect) since my levels are now fine. Easy for HIM to say!!
I'm considering getting the thyroid surgery now, so I can get off methimozole, but I'm afraid what the side effects for the OTHER medicine will be. Since that's permenant, I don't want to take that step too soon...but I also don't want to go bald!
-- By hypergirl | Reply | Private Message me
February 7th
2004
12:07 PM
I am 49 years old and I have been on lisinopril, 10 mg for almost a year and half. This past summer I developed psoriasis of my scalp and then a few months later I had hair breakage on my bangs and I have severe hair loss in the back of my head with bald spots. I had no idea these were side effects. I also have hypertension and nervousness along with the hair loss side effect. To make matters worse, when I was about 6 or 7 years old I had Sclerderma and was treated at the Childrens Hospital in Boston. I am very concerned about all these side effects and it also states this drug treatment may not be suitable for you if you have Sclerderma. I do not have it any more, however, when I did have it when I was young it did leave a small bald spot in the back of my head, however now the bald spot has spread to a much bigger area. Additionally, my hair is very dry and it was always oily. I would like to know if my hair will grow back in the areas where it has left bald spots once I get off the drug. I found all this out today because I just went on line and looked up hair loss and this awful drug popped up.
-- By judiegriles | Reply | Private Message me
January 16th
2004
4:06 PM
I have been on Lisinopril for 8 months, 10 mg a day. I have been showing signs of hair loss in the bangs area. I have seen a doctor and dermatologist and they both think I'm over-reacting. Who would have thought I would have to choose between a full head of hair and normal blood pressure.
-- By lauraanchorage | Reply | Private Message me
Mirena (2) Lisinopril (2) Topamax (1) Yasmin (1) Methimazole (1) Femcon FE (1) Wellbutrin (1)
November 3th
2009
10:07 AM
I am getting my mirena taken out on the 16th. I can't wait! Everyday I am nauseous and I get migraines and I never got headaches before. I exercise and never lose weight. Before I never exercised but weighed 15 lbs less than I do now. My hair fell out and is now starting to grow back. It looks like I have really short bangs. I can't say for sure if these are all because of Mirena but I never felt like this before except when I was pregnant. Oh I also gain and lose 5 lbs every day. It's like water retention or something. Really weird. I'll let u know if anything changes in two weeks.
-- By iplaybadpoker | Reply | Private Message me