Bf symptoms and conditions

Hey ladies its so great to hear others going through same issues. Does anyone have ache between there legs like boils? I called my doctor today and she said ache shouldn't be happening with Mirena what? really! She told me hang in there and Mirena is the best option for me I thinking its not anymore I had mine put in Aug and since then I the ache is out of control and headaches and I am sad for no reason, My bf is not supportive because he doesn't understand so glad to hear others are having the same issues. Thank everyone for sharing I feel like I am going crazy!

Are there any meds that are safe? I was taking 10mg norvasc. I started taking 20/25 mg lisinopril. I was doing ok on the norvasc but the added lisinopril has almost killed me. They had cut my norvasc down to 5 mg then to 2.5 mg when I started the lisinopril. 4 days ago I stopped the lisinopril and added back 2.5 mg norvasc. Back to 5 mg. The side effects seem to be letting up. Now im wondering is all of my meds are killing me. I can't live without them. My BP sores. Im so scared of what I should do. Im afraid of all my meds.

I got mirena inserted in feb 2009, I bled off and on every month up until this last month. I have had drastic mood swings with my deployed fiance. One minute we are okay and for some weird reason I would just get so angry for something very minute. I have been experiencing discharge with a foul odor.
I have had increase episodes of migraines, insomnia, cramps, and throbbing pain in my vaginal walls. I have experience vaginal dryness and having to use lubrication more than often.
I have no desire for sex. My fiance is 24 and I am 28. He is always ready to go like 5 times a day sometimes if we don't have the kids at home with us. I feel really awful putting him through this, especially being he in Kuwait, he doesn't deserve my attitude. The problem is I can never remember to take the pill. The MIRENA is more convenient and a safer method to prevent pregnancy, My fiance does not want us to have any kids right now. I am nervous if I take out the MIRENA we will slip somewhere and get pregnant again. Pregnancy right now with really cause a strain in our relationship related to him not wanting us to get pregnant right now.
I feel so trapped because I don't know what to do at this time.
By C. W.

Wow. I am not even close to being done reading everyone's comments on Loestrin, and I am already EXTREMELY P.O'ed and at the same time relieved, at the fact that I found this page. I am 18 years old, and I started on Tri-Cyclin Lo when I was 15. I loved it, and never had any problems with it what-so-ever. It even helped with my acne problems. But a few months ago, my insurance decided to stop covering birth control, so my OBGYN decided to put me on Loestrin 24 Fe, because with the card you only have to pay 24 tops a month. But anyway, I now realize that all of the hell that has been happening in the past 3-4 months is due to Loestrin Fe. And after reading all of your comments I am POSITIVE! My Boyfriend and me have been fighting all of the time, and I have just been getting upset for no reason. I thought that it was because things between my boyfriend and me just aren't the same, and that maybe we are just growing apart.. but after reading all of your comments, and taking some time to think about it... IT HAS TO BE THE B.C! Before I started this pill we got along all the time... And also, my sex drive has plummeted so fast and drastically, to the point where my sex drive is NON EXISTENT. It has been hurting our relationship on top of my mood swings, because our sex life is also NONEXISTENT.. and we live together! I used to want to have sex all of the time.. and I haven't honestly wanted to have sex (not even once!) for the past few months...since I started Loestrin!!! Additionally, my face has been breaking out before periods excruciatingly bad. It has seriously hurt my self esteem. I have always had some issues with acne, but it has gotten ridiculous. I even bought an expensive acne kit that is supposed to be number one in the country, and it still keeps getting worse! .. And lastly I have been putting on a lot of weight, even though I have been eating the same.. also hurting my self esteem. Today, my bf and I finally came to the conclusion that "hmmm.. it most definitely might be the birth control." ..so I decided to come online and check out the side effects. AND BOOM! I see tons and tons and tons of comments from Women of all ages with the same, horrifying side effects. I am going to stop this birth control immediately. If my insurance won't cover anything else, and I can't afford any others, I will just deal with my cramps and longer periods. I never thought I would say this in a million years, but I would RATHER deal with the horrible cramps and long periods, than have to deal with the bull s*** that Loestrin has put me through. If anyone has anymore insight, message me or reply! Thanks.

God I was really thinking I was starting to loose it.. I have never been a emotional person but in the past 3 years my moods have been steadily getting worse. I wanted more attention form my bf, but yeat didn't want him to touch me, had no sex drive... it almost caused me to ruin my relationship of 4 1/2 years.. hopefully we can pull it back together.

Wow you ladies are so right! I have had all the symptoms you all listed but my OB/GYN says it not the Mirena. What frustrates me the most is the random spotting and the cramps. I got my Mirena inserted 7/10/09 and it hurt like hell. I would not do it again. Immediately after insertion, I cramped and had severe lower back pain. I was almost in a car accident on my way back to work due to a sudden blurry vision episode. Afterwards that day I felt fatigued and cramped all afternoon. These cramps were short, sharp and uncomfortable, nothing like menstrual cramps. BTW, Im 29 and never had a baby so I don’t know what labor pains feel like. I recommend that if you do decide to get a Mirena (don't do it) take the rest of the day off after insertion and have someone drive you home to avoid any unknown side effects you might get (like the blurred vision I got). The rest of the month I spotted, had uncomfortable cramps and the lower back pain. 2nd month the back pain, cramping and spotting went away. I had a period as usual, but lighter. My 2nd checkup was after my 1st period not three mo, that’s what my doctor said and since the side effects had ceased, that is what I told my dr. All she said was that my strings had shortened and she yanked on them to make sure they weren’t too short and said everything looked ok. She asked me a question that caught me off guard that you should ask before you get your Mirena. She asked me if my bf had complained about getting poked! Because I had bee spotting all month I hadn't had any relations and said no but I should have asked her if the strings would be sharp enough to poke thru a condom or hurt the penis. NOW the OB/GYN might laugh at u but ASK! What I've learned thru this experience is that I need to do more research on things that will go into my body ad ask ask ask questions no matter how silly they might sound. Now going on to the side effects again. I’m going into my 3rd mo and I'm considering removal. My period was12 days late and I only spotted lightly that week. THEN I began to spot heavier 2 days ago. I have cramps today and am very fatigued. I'm also emotional (crying as I'm typing) almost like I'm having my period now. I'm very frustrated, my sex drive has not dropped at all but now I cant have sex because I'm spotting again. AND I fear my bf is gonna get poked! I am losing hair, but my hair has always fallen out easily so I'm not sure if that's due to Mirena. I do have some light acne on my back and face but it can be controlled by medicated creams obtained from a dermatologist (I use Tazorac and Duac for the face and Clindamycin phosphate topical lotion for the body) I get nauseous, dizzy and irritable randomly, and I even thought I was pregnant. Another thing I didn’t like my doctor telling me was that you cant be sure if its effective as a contraceptive, just have sex and if you don’t get preg then it works. What? Also I asked about how one can determine about it being embedded and she said that you couldn’t know until you have it removed. If it doesn’t come out easily then it might be embedded. What? I'm imagining a painful bloody extraction, which is the only reason I haven’t taken it out. But thanx to this website and you ladies, I'm feeling better about getting it taken out. I think that as long as its not embedded, there shouldn’t be any complications. Finally the last side effect that frustrates me is the weight gain. I have gained probably 10lbs and lots on the midsection. I'm not joking when I say I LOOK preg. AH! Yes I agree with one blogger below when she says that we should get together and formally sue. Good luck to you women who decide this is what you want and congrats to the women who actually like it. But I pray for all of us who are not taking well to it even if our doctors don’t believe its Mirena causing us all this grief. Now I have to consider my birth control options again, not happy about that. If you can tell me about BC that isn’t the pill or a tubal ligation or Essure, please let me know. Also feel free to ask me question about any of my comments. I will try to help as much as I can.

I have been with my boyfriend almost two years. I have had mirena for two and a half years. Keep in mind Im only 20 i have no sex drive, im always tired, i don't want to do anything. I am a emotional person nut lately i cry over everything. And last night me and my bf had sex(normal positions that we have never had issues with) and it was the worst pain ever. We kept switching it up thinking it would go away. WRONG!!! It only got worse to the point of me sobbing, feeling like i was going to get sick, and my bf feeling terrible. So i thought today i'd feel better but i feel even worse. I feel like im being stabbed in my stomach. I have a terrible pain in my butt. When i cough it hurts when i pee it hurts. All this pressure it seems like i cant do anything without pain.if i move to fast the pain is sharp and quick. What should I do?

I've been on Yasmin for about 2 years or so, and before that, Ortho-TriCyclen for about 6 years. I've had no problem with Ortho-TriCyclen, but my Gynecologist switched me over to Yasmin due to my periods getting longer.

While I was on Yasmin, everything seemed fine, then a year later, I got a UTI. And I never get those! Nothing in my life had changed (same BF), and so I thought it was a one-time thing (or related to taking antibiotics at that time for a root canal). Well, I got UTIs 3 more times after that! Almost every month! However, during those months, I had switched to Ocella, so I thought it had something to do with taking the generic. Shortly after, I went back to Yasmin. I have had no UTIs since, but I also have been very careful to avoid it.

After the switch back to Yasmin (from generic), I noticed that I had NO sex drive and was dry, which was not like me. I also had melasma, which was noticeable to me and very annoying. I had recently stopped taking Yasmin altogether after searching for its side effects. It's been a month and a half now and my libido is coming back and the dark spots on my skin are beginning to diminish. Although my side effects were minimal compared to others here, I will not take Yasmin anymore. It's actually nice not to have to remember to take a pill everyday!

Hello,
I've tried a bunch of different brands and types of BC's in the past, and none ever worked well with me... then i started Yasmin. It worked wonders. helped my acne, cramps, length of my period etc... i was on it for about 1 year. i stopped BC and had my son (Nov 18 09) .. my doc told me to get back on the pill about 2 months after my son was born and i have been on it since.. lately I've been noticing that I'm not me anymore... i can't remember the last time I've felt like myself.. depression, lack of motivation, hopelessness, i get irritated over the stupidest things, LOW sex drive, LIKE NONE AT ALL, lack of confidence, loss of appetite, loss of hair ongoing 9 months after birth and getting worse, bad menstrual cramps, bad acne, dark colored urine,strange vaginal discharge before my period, longer periods, migraines, mood swings, irrational thoughts and outburst, dizzy spells, blurred (black) vision upon standing, seeing spots and light headed, etc... i attributed all of this to postpartum hormonal imbalance, stress, etc... but I'm now considering the fact that maybe Yasmin is doing this to my body... so i will stop the pill or switch it, my next appointment is only in a month so no sex till then, but yet again my libido is completely gone so that will be no problem... (ahh my POOR BF) lol

all this to say that if it was postpartum depression, my son wouldn't be the only reason i get up in the morning, i wouldn't get up at all...

i know that this isn't postpartum depression... I'm positive that it's Yasmin causing all this i know at least that some of it is..

What i don't understand is that we all have a bunch of docs that ignore us and our bodies.. this isn't only happening to on person this is a lot of people who have had similar and sever reactions to this pill, it should really be taken off the market, or at least doctors should warn us about the "other" side effects...

anyways I'm DONE with this pill and will tell all my friends.

it at least feels good to get this off my chest... it's hard to talk about this stuff to people who are close to you...

All this sounds crazy but makes sense at the same time...

thank god i found this site!

C. xxo

I had been on BCP a couple of years ago but was really terrible about remembering to take a pill every day. I went off of those because I was no longer sexually active, and I didn't see any reason for it. When i met the man of my dreams and became active again I wend to my Dr. to go back on Birth Control I told her about my previous lack of ability in the pill-taking department and she prescribed the NuvaRing for me. At first I thought it would be great! I couldn't ever feel it, I never had the problems with slippage that other people seemed to complain about, and it didn't even bother my boyfriend or I during sex. After 2 months on the ring though, last night was my day to put it back in, and I didn't. My libido wained to absolute zilch (in talking with my BF about this last night, we realized that we had only made love 3 times in the past 2 months) I just never wanted it. The times that we had made love, I suffered from extreme dryness, to the point where it really hurt a lot, even using lube. I also suffered through 2 UTIs and a Yeast infection in the last 2 months. (not to mention the 10 lbs I've gained, and the crazy irritabless/depression that the poor guy has had to put up with for the last 2 months... best described by me as "a boat load of crazy")

My BF and I discussed it last night and we decided it was best for me to stop using the NR to see if my libido comes back (it seems to be on its way already) and see if the dryness improves. I think my boyfriend put it best when he said "if it makes it so that you never want sex, and when you do - it hurts, that's one hell of a birth control. Can't make babies if you never make love!"

We decided to just continue using condoms as we have even with the BC. (I know they're not perfect) We realize that there's a risk of getting pregnant, but like he said "We'll cross that bridge if we come to it."

I'll see how this next month or two goes... if I am back to normal, it's got to be the NR.

I was put on Yasmin in 2006 due to irregular periods. I thought during the time I was on it I felt fine, I thought. I am the type of person who doesn't like going to the doctor bc all they want is my money. At first everything was fine. Then one day I started getting really hot and was so weak I could barely hold my head up. My vision was blacked out but I could still hear everything. I figured I was just dehydrated so I drank a few glasses of water and everything returned to normal within 15 minutes. I went on with life as normal and just swept the episode under the rug. The same thing happened a few more times in the near future but I didn't have loss of vision again. Still went on with life. I used to be a server, therefore I was on my feet all the time and I was a workaholic. I started getting severe cramps on my lower left calf but again ignored the symptom bc I just thought it was a bad muscle cramp from always being my feet. Then one day at work a girl ran into me just right and knocked my hip out of place. I walked around like that for about 5 days or so but I was taking TONS of Ibuprofen to ease the severe pain which helped me forget the leg cramps.. Eventually I went to the chiropractor to get an adjustment and everything was great again. No pain. As the next month passes the cramp in my leg started gradually moving up the back of my calf, around to just above my knee and then up to my groin. Again I just ignored this mystery "cramp." I ignored it until September 19th when I was working and my episodes stared again while I was working. I started feeling weak again and just really dehydrated. I went to get a drink and passed out in the kitchen during lunch rush. I got some water and then went back to work. I made one last round at my tables and then collapsed in the back bc I had one of the worst pains in my groin I had ever experienced. This time I couldn't ignore it and had my bf take me to an immediate care hospital. The doctor took my blood and ran tests and everything came back normal. Then they asked if I could give a urine sample and I did. They said it would take about 45 minutes for the results to come back. So I took a walk outside and felt like I was waddling. My left leg started getting really tight and swollen. I walked back in and went to the bathroom again. My left leg was purple!!!! I told the dr about it and she looked at my leg for a second, and ordered me to lay down and not move an inch and walked out the door. She immediately ordered a CT scan. We got the results back and we discovered I have blood clots from my ankle up to the top of my knee. That's the only part of my leg that was scanned. I was transferred to intensive care and was there for 4 days. I was immediately taken off Yasmin and put on extremely high doses of coumadin and other blood thinners to absorb the clots back into my bloodstream. Other CT scans were performed and the clots actually go from ankle up to my lower abdomen. After I was released from the hospital, I was on bed rest for 3 months. Bc I cannot be on my feet I had to quit my job. Keep in mind I was only 19 years old, now only 22. I now have to be on coumadin for the rest of my life, I have to get my blood levels tested monthly, and I also had to have a filter put in my inferior vena cava (the main vessel in your body that goes to your heart.) To prevent clots from moving to my heart, lungs, and or brain. Since then I have to have a job that I Cannot sit down for too long but can't have a job that I am on my feet either, pretty limited, huh? And of course I must have insurance to pay for the nonstop medical bills. I have been pretty depressed about the whole thing so make sure if you take Yasmin you get off immediately!!! Now instead of birth control pills I have a 10 year IUD. Now after reading some of the other posts I am wondering if my depression, anxiety, anger and mood swings have something to do with the IUD....

wow...i must say i feel sooooo muh better now reading this website..this whole time i have been thinking i had fibroids or even ovarion cancer because what i have been going through...this is my 3rd month with nuvaring..i went bc free a month between those though only because my bf was out of state and the bc is expensive..anyway the first month was great i loved it and so was the second but my gosh..this month my period was normal at first..i had the usual 3 days then im done..then all of a sudden my period came back and it came back strong and for a long time i was on my "2nd" period for a total of 3 weeks and 3 days..and finally the bleeding has stopped but im still having the HORRIBLE cramps i have to have 800mg of ibprofn just to make them go away and even still ill still have a horrible headache..(usually in the back of my head) .my cramps are so bad they extend down into my legs..i finally took my ring out yesterday night to start my ring free week and i doubt that i will be paying for a new one...i have also been very moody and bitchy lol...sometimes crying for absolutely no reason...and as for sex drive...now that you talk about it..i haven't wanted to have sex...im just sooooo happy im done with this..and that i wasn't going insane lol..feeling so much better..well mentally lol...

WOW...i have been on the nuvaring since January 2008 and i must say...i had the heavy bleeding and cramps until like..last month
since last month i had a period that only lasted 3 days...which is crazy wince there usually about 5-7 days. it was short and light....and my sex drive is also decreased...like..a lot lol, it frustrated my bf sometimes...but he understands...

i just hope using the nuvaring and the pull out method are good enough! (condoms are painful for him, and not very sensual for me)

...I am not taking any birth control, BUT i discovered this website on behalf of my best friend who's had Mirena for a little over 6, maybe 7 months now...Personally i Dont' trust any birth controls - other than condoms :-) why ? Guess i Just don't trust the Industry...it appears to me, that the only extensive Tests done on birth control are the ones done to make sure Ladies don't conceive...AnyWay, my BF's side effects include UTI's, stomach aches & cramps, yeast infections; I'd even say her mood has been effected by Mirena....she tells me & may i add we hide nothing from each other; she's had no issues w/UTI's or yeast infections before the insertion of Mirena...I worry about her. She wants to have another kid & i don't want this birth control messing up her body...just Last Week she told me: Out of noWhere - began to bleed heavily w/no pain w/heavy clotting....I keep telling her its the BC, but in her words, "it's just so convenient." did i spell that right ?....i know this BC is easy and effective & now i see all these harsh side effects it brings...A friend of my sister's complained of an Odor down there....I'll be telling my BF about all of u Ladies experiences w/Mirena...I know the reason why she & other women would get Mirena, but i don't want her or any other woman 2 suffer, or loss hair, or gain weight, or acquire cyts OR any of those things when it can be avoided....and of course your doctor will Tell u how great & safe it is....that's their job, its just unfortunate that their job isn't 2 tell us the truth !

Hi everyone, like almost all of you I was so glad to stumble across this site. I had my mirena put in 4 months ago and when I was getting it put in my partner took the day off work and decided to tell his boss it was because he was coming with me to get the Mirena (I was horrified that he told him at the time!). But it turned out to be a blessing because my partner came home 3 days ago and told me that his boss asked him whether I had been getting deep pimples that never come 'to a head' and that his wife had them all over her face and couldn’t get rid of them and that she had put it down to the Mirena. I said to him, "Don’t be ridiculous, the Mirena does not give any side effects", and that was that. See I was told from my gyno that "The Mirena is perfect" and she said that the only people that go back to her to go off the Mirena "are people that are never satisfied with any contraception". And then over the past three days I realized that the bumps on my face that are deep under my skin have only appeared in the months after I got my Mirena and I have had worse pimples than ever before, and they have been untreatable with new ones appearing every day and I had never before had lumps that remain under my skins for months. It also wasn’t until I got onto this website that I realized the anxiety I have been feeling in the last couple months, weight gain and itchy skin have also all come about since the Mirena. I am tired all the time and never want to move or do anything and hate getting out of bed even with 14 hours sleep!!!!! Also - I have been pulling clumps of hair out of the shower drain and my comb over the past couple months - yet have had the same hairdresser and hair routine for the last 6 years.... I could not figure out why I was losing my hair and ended up having it cut from a mid-long length to above the shoulders 3 weeks ago, because there was just hardly any hair left. Also - about 2 weeks ago I told my partner (in an emotional uncontrollable episode which has become a frequent event since Mirena) that I had no reason to live anymore and just didn’t want to go on. First time I have ever felt like this, it was awful. I am normally the happy person at work who gets along with everyone and yet now I cant stand the look of any of them or even the sound of their voice makes me want to scream at them. WHOA, CRAZY!!!!!!! I have also lost any interest in self appearance and in the past few months have completely let myself go. I have also had sex twice since going on it. YES thats right - SEX TWICE IN FOUR MONTHS, aaaaaarrrrrgh. And to the most disgusting part of all - I have been getting an awful discharge that smells bad. I am a really clean person and was considering going to my gyno in the coming week to ask why it was happening….. I have been on many pills and the depot and whilst I experienced side affects with all of them, none of them were anything like this, I would get a side effect here and there on the others, nothing like this. Biggest waste of $800 ever. p.s. I wear panty liners every single day and night of the week.

Okay, I'm 17 and have been taking Loestrin 24 Fe since early February.. This is my first birth control, so I wasn't quite sure what to expect.. but so far I can't recall any serious mood swings or crazy depression.. however, I am on my 4th pack or so and for the first time, I have yet to get my period and I am on the 3rd day of my 'reminder' pill.. My boyfriend and I use protection and I have heard that this missed period is a common side effect, but in the mean-time, I'm still going nuts! I'm just a nervous wreck and don't know if I should be.. Is it normal to miss my period this early since I've only been using Loestrin for 4 months??

Just want to survey everyone and ask for responses for the following 3 questions:

1. how long did you keep your Mirena and if you no longer have it, why did you have it removed?

2. how many of you had your thyroid checked? who's came back abnormal? what were the levels?

(I'm a medical student doing research on this one since I believe the levonorgestrel affects our thyroid hormone. My TSH was elevated to 5.2 which is considered "subclinical HYPOthyroidism". This was mid cycle when my natural progesterone AND synthetic progestin were cumulatively high. When I had it rechecked 6 weeks later (around my period when any natural progesterone level is gone) it was normalized at 1.5. So I think that the P+P screws up our thyroid and can throw us into a high TSH and "hypothyroid state". The opposite effect may be true during menstruation and we can become HYPERthyroid for a few days... hence the really bad anxiety?!)

3. where is everyone from? perhaps we can have support group meetings?

UGH.... ladies i feel ur pain!!!!! i have had mirena in for about 6 months n i am soooooooo ready 2 get this thing out of me!!! i had a miscarriage in august n decided that i just didn't want 2 go through that again so i spoke 2 my doctor n she suggested MIRENA! i thought 5yrs without having 2 worry about getting pregnant was a win win situation n exactly wat i needed! i had insurance at the time n it payed for EVERYTHING so i said y not!!! so i got it put in n i felt great! i went 6 months without any symptoms n then WHAM!!!! ....constant headache, nausea, cramps EVERY SINGLE NIGHT N EVERY SINGLE MORNING, i cant lose weight, crying ALL the time, DEPRESSED n asking myself y im even alive, LOW LIBIDO(im 21yrs old!!! n i have no desire to have sex!!!!).... snapping at everybody (especially my bf) we almost broke up bc of it :-( thank God i found this website n let him read all the things that other ppl have been going through! it was just so horrible bc i would miss him all day n pick a fight with him as soon as he got home :-( then cry about it! he was soo confused!!! soo now im conscious of my moods n i try my best 2 control them... i have been trying to wait it out, hoping that my symptoms will go away but they have not gone away yet n i talked it over with my boyfriend n i decided 2 get it taken out bc i just want 2 feel like myself again... i miss ME! so i will keep u guys updated... im going 2 call planned parenthood on Monday n see if they can remove it, if not, then refer me 2 someone who will do it for little or no cost bc i no longer have insurance :-/

ive had mirena since march 09 after it got inserted i bled for 3 weeks then spotted for another then bleed again for another couple weeks until last week and now this week ive been feeling super nauseous everyday has anyone had this happen im worried that i may be pregnant b/c my bf used to say he could feel the mirena when we have sex be the other day when we did he said he didn't feel it is that normal and has anyone had similar things happen im so scared im pregnant and need some reassurance!

I've had similar experiences to many of the other posters. I've been on some form of birth control since I was in my teens. I've always had acne and was very concerned about weight gain, so I switched between the ortho's quite a bit. I used to take a shot (Lunelle) that was perfect, but its been discontinued. Anyway, about 3-4 years ago my doctor put me on Yasmin. I thought it was great! Skin cleared up, moderate weight fluxuation, which I attributed to inconsistent diet/exercise habits. I was so happy with it I pushed it on my girlfriends when they were looking for a pill.

But then about a year ago, it all started to change. I became WAY emotional out of the blue. I would cry over the smallest things. I had suicidal thoughts, totally lethargic and "hazy." My sex drive reduced to 0 - I love my BF, but we stopped having sex for nearly 6-8 months because I had no drive and would pick fights for NO REASON. Awful.

In March I got busy at work and stopped taking it by accident. I felt so good, so NORMAL, that I just discontinued use. The first month was great. My personality re-adjusted over night, I have more energy, I'm genuinely happy, my sex drive is through the roof. But now I am 1.5 weeks late on my second period since quitting. I am bloated and have noticed water weight gain. I hope that it can be managed with strict diet, exercise and anti-bloat pills. I am breaking out, but I expected that. It's bad, but I am hoping that Pro-Active will keep it at bay until my body regulates. But again, my mood is so much better that it seems like a small price to pay. So far anyway. I have not noticed the hair effects yet - I have always had very think, long hair. For those of you experiencing that side effect, there are vitamins you can take that may help you get through it. Ask your salon.

If anyone has any advice, or can share what happened after the 2 month mark, that would be great. I'm bracing for some tough moments.

wow. i am so happy i found this website. after reading everyone's posts, i now know that i am not alone. my doctor prescribed me Yasmin about maybe 3-4 months ago. i take BC to regulate my period & ease the pain of it (my cramps are unbearable and cause me to get very sick & sometimes pass out). and almost as soon as i started taking it, i was also having UTI-like symptoms, but with no infection whatsoever. my urethra was SO sensitive it even hurt to wash myself sometimes, peeing was painful, i was constantly irritated, dry, and red down there, and sex was nearly impossible. the lack of sex caused me to become somewhat depressed, because i knew my bf was unhappy, just as i was. & besides vaginal problems, i experienced headaches every 2-3 days, and my breasts were sore 24/7 and felt VERY dense, as if they had knots in them. i already have the beginning stages of fibrocystic breast disease (like my mother), so i figured there was NO WAY this pill could be healthy for me to take. so just a few days ago actually, i switched to ortho tri cylen. i've only been on it for about 4 days, so i'm crossing my fingers that those horrible symptoms stay away. for anyone you know who is thinking of going on BC, please tell them to stay away from Yasmin. this site and everyone's posts honestly made me feel so much better. i wish the best for all of you.

NR has been great birth control...but only because my crazy mood swings & crying jags don't exactly put either my BF nor myself in the mood for love. I've always been one of those "stiff upper lip" types & have never been able to remember when asked when the last time I cried was (nor the reason)...at most, I cried once or twice a year, usually out of sheer exhaustion from work. However, in the past two months since I started NR, the answer now would have to be either "yesterday" or "I'm crying right now". Even my mother (with whom I talk daily) has noticed that I'm not the same strong person I used to be & it started with the NuvaRing. I am so tired of feeling like lying in the dark, listening to Joy Division & feeling sorry for myself, that after sobbing though (yet another) commute, I pulled the ring out & threw it in the trash on the way into the house today. Now, all I need to do is find a new birth control method...

I am quitting Yaz tomorrow. All totaled, I've been on it for about 3 years (I quit a year and a half ago because I was getting terrible yeast infections and gross brown discharge every month, but then after I quit I didn't have a period for three months, and that drove me nuts, so I got back on). I've recently realized that I have EVERY symptom. I have zero sex drive (actually, less than zero--the thought of sex makes me sick to my stomach) and I used to be way more "excitable" than my boyfriends. Now my bf thinks I don't find him to be attractive, which couldn't be more false! When we do have sex, I do not get wet (ever) and do not have an orgasm about 90% of the time (I used to have multiple EVERY time). I get foot cramps every night (no joke), sometimes multiple times per night. I've gained 20 lbs since I started. I get migraines every month with my period, and sometimes as many as one per week. Though it cleared up my acne, I still get really big cystic acne around my period, so that small benefit isn't enough to outweigh all of the horrible side effects.

Like someone else said, it also has taken away my feelings. I don't feel much of anything anymore...no happiness, no sadness...nothing. I'm always exhausted, no matter how much I sleep, and even with regular exercise and an extremely healthy diet. I get sore nipples and cramps...something I never got pre-Yaz. I just can't take it anymore (literally). I'd rather be zitty than be a fat, sad lady with ZERO sex drive.

The first couple of months were fine..but now I am realizing that I never want to have sex and try to avoid it whenever my bf wants it. I think its because of being on femcon FE. I've always been a horny person but on these pills I'm completely different. I'm getting off them..TODAY!

I have been on the nuvaring for almost 3 years.
The first year was great! I hated taking a pill everyday, so at first i opted for the Depo, which was great for a year, but i really didn't trust it and not having periods made me uneasy.

The nuvaring seemed like a blessing! I had no trouble for the first year and a half. I recommended it to all my friends. I didn't have any side effects, and I loved the convenience!

However, now i am experiencing some serious side effects, and thanks to this website I realize I am not the only one. I have two concerns that i link to the BC: depression and no sex drive. Some days I just want to lay in bed, and sleep. I do not want to leave the house, or see anyone. I have told my BF (of 3 years) that i just need some "me time". I am fatigued and show many symptoms of depression.
I am only 24 years old, and i have NO sex drive. It has taken a tole on the relationship with my boyfriend. Many nights i try to get in bed before him, so i can appear asleep. There have been so many nights where i would tell him "i'm sick", "i have cramps"... sooo many excuses. When we do have sex it is usually forced, and i do it because i haven't in a week!

This past year I have also had digestive problems, which seemed to have appeared out of no where. Im not sure if I blame them on the nuvaring, but I've noticed a few other people have mentioned it as well.