Caretaker symptoms and conditions

Well, it's been only two months since the insertion and I want to share with you my experience. But first, let me explain what led me to this product. I have had three children in the last 12 years. After the birth of the last child in June 2004 I started experiencing SEVERE mood swings. My periods became unbearably painful and heavy. There were times when I had to call in sick to work so that I could (excuse the frankness) sit on the toilet and expel numerous blood clots. My depression, anxiety and extreme and constant anger was so bad that just a few months ago I was contemplating admitting myself. I was also exhausted! It took so much effort every day to keep the lid on my anger that by the time I got home from work I was exhausted. I had removed myself from life - my husband was the primary caretaker. I was not emotionally available for anyone.

One day I made an appt with a new OBGYN. He was the only Dr, in all of my 36 years of life, who actually sat me down in his office to thoroughly go through my health history. Seriously - this should be a normal routine, but how many doctors really look at all the symptoms to come up with what's really wrong instead of just constantly trying to shroud only the symptoms? So he ran me through some tests and it came back that I was producing WAY too much of both testosterone and estrogen, but no progesteron. So he suggested Mirena.

It's been only two months - and I feel like a brand new woman so far!! The first couple of days after insertion I found myself crying over everything. I was making breakfast for my family and sobbing over it. But that quickly subsided. I have noticed that my face seems a bit more puffy than usual, but that is nothing compared to what I was going through. My family has their mother/wife back, and my periods may last a couple more days than they did before, but it is very light with very little pain. I no longer have my co-workers looking at me oddly while I felt as if I was giving birth at work every month.

I am very worried now reading these posts and I hope I don't become hyper-sensitive over every issue my body may or may not be experiencing. I'm sorry for all that you are going through and I sure hope that I am not one re-posting my own horror stories. My Dr made it sound as if was no big deal and I was so anxious to find relief I neglected to seek this sight out.

I'm alive and present and am, at this point in the Mirena journey, satisfied!

I am friend and caretaker for TBI patient (Traumatic Brain Injury).(he has no short term memory and some cognitive problems. Seroquel is his miracle drug . He has been on it for about 5 years now and it has helped so much with inappropriateness and keeping him calm and functional. He had been in long term care facility for about 6 years and they over medicated with many potent drugs (just wanted to keep him inactive since he was young mobile male with TBI).He has been out and living with me for past 5+ years, it took a little while to change and modify the medication and is now taking daily low doses of meds: (20 mg paxcil, 750 depakote er, 50mg x 3 times a day (total 150mg) of seroquel (using 25mg pills), and 5 mg of lipitor and 100mg docqlace. He does have a weight problem which is a bit hard to control because he does want to eat a lot but having lots of fruits and vegetables around and asking him to wait 30 minutes after eating for his food to digest rather than getting 2nds has helped a lot too. Seroquel for him is in my opinion the most important one.

I just received a kenalog injection a week ago when I went to the doctor for sinus problems. My regular doctor was not in,so I saw a different doctor who is an allergy specialist.He spent a whole 60 seconds with me and stated that I needed an injection of kenalog.I didn't question him,as I knew that kenalog was a steroid and I had taken oral steroids before with few side effects. The injection itself was not painful,but the next day,I felt terrible and have ever since.I ache,I feel very nervous and have been crying for no reason. My blood pressure is up.I have weakness in my muscles and heart palpitations,and a constantly upset stomach.I also have had a flare -up of irritable bowel syndrome and yet even with the stomach and intestinal pain,I cannot stop eating.I am also constantly thirsty and have excessive urination.I have a pins and needles sensation in my hands and feet and I have blurry vision and confusion and forget things easily.I have trouble typing,as I have to spell-check everything.I am going crazy wondering how long these side effects will last.I am the primary caretaker of my mother,and I now cannot take care of myself.Why do they not tell a person of the possible side effects? I would never have let that nurse give me the shot had I known that it could cause such horrid side effects. And my sinuses are no better.I have an infection and now need antibiotics,which is what I told the doctor in the first place.I don't know what to do,I feel like I am going to die.

I am so grateful I found this site! I only wish, like many of you, that I had done more research. I am glad to say that when I first encountered this site, I was suspecting I was having issues because of the Mirena, now I'm convinced. And the more I read, the more symptoms I realize are Mirena related not just "getting older". Thankfully, today I made the appt to have it removed. Unfortunately, it's not until March 17th. But, I will have it out and then have some green beer to celebrate!

In April of '06 I joined WW and was doing great, losing consistently. In June I had the IUD inserted, that went well...just some minor cramping. By September I was really struggling to loose weight and was feeling more irritable. But, at the same time had become caretaker to my Mother in law, so I attributed it to the stress of taking care of her in addition to my own family. Near the end of November I finally hit a 50 lb loss, and have barely lost any since then....that's 15 months!!!!! I've stuck with WW, and I know I'm not doing the program as well as I had but it shouldn't be such a struggle. Last week I started wondering if the problem was the Mirena, and that question led me here.

I couldn't believe what I was reading!!! It was me in all of you!! I have chronic depression and have been on meds for about 6 years, but even with increasing my meds to the max, I seem to be getting worse not better. I'm moody, irritable, blue, and impatient. It's like PMS all month long, and then when the real pms hits, I'm practically suicidal.
I also have had significant hair loss, fatigue, living in a mental fog, numbness in my arms and hands EVERY night, night sweats, lower back pain for several days on and off (are these cysts??), irregular and long lasting periods (although VERY light...I will miss that!!), nausea, headaches and dizzy spells on a regular basis.

I hope that when I have this thing removed I can return to my old imperfect self, and that I can finally achieve my weight loss goal and return my family life to a normal level of dysfunction! :)

THIS IS MY STORY AND I'M STICKIN TO IT! PREDNISONE IS A DRUG FROME HELL!!! I WAS GIVEN PREDISONE BACK IN THE LATE 90'S WHE DRUGS LIKE THAT WAS DESPENSED LIKE CANDY AND YOU DID NOT GET A PRINTOUT ON THE CAUSE AND EFFECTS THAT THIS MED COULD HAVE ON YOUR BODY AND IN YOUR AND YOUR HEAD!WELL.........I WAS ON A LARGE DOSE AND HAD A MAJOR EPISODE BUT I HAD A WONDERFUL FRIEND THAT I CALLED SEVERAL TIMES ONE DAY( 3 DAYS INTO THE PREDNISONE AND SHE WAS WAS A WORK!) SHE TOLD ME THAT MY VOICE WAS SO LOUD THAT THE OTHERS IN THE OFFICE COULD HEAR ME AND SHE ASKED EXACTLY WHAT THE DOC HAD GIVEN ME.SHE HAD ACESS TO A PDR AND WHEN SHE GOT HOME THAT DAY SHE LOOKED UP PREDNISONE CALLED ME AND TOLD ME TO FLUSH WHAT I HAD LET DOWN THE TOILET AND TO HELL WITH WHET THE DOCTOR SAYS BECAUSE THE PRED WOULD KILL ME OR MAKE ME KILL. SO DOWN THE TOILET IT WENT!!
THAT HAS BEEN AT LEAST 10 YEARS AGO OR MORE AND I HAVE REFUSED PREDNISONE AND MOST ALL STEROIDS THAT DOCTORS HAVE TRIED TO PRESCRIBE TO ME.WELL, I NOE HAVE A HEALTH CONDITION THAT REQUIRED PRED FOR IMMEDIATE RELIEF FOR THE PAIN BUT IT HAS BEEN GIVEN A MEASURED DOSE)BUT) I STILL AM HAVING THE SAME SIDE AFFECTS BUT HAVE ANTI AXNZIETY MEDS TO TAKE THE EDGE OFF.I SHARED THIS STORY WITH MY PRIMARY CARETAKER THAT I AHVE NOW AND HE SAID THAT HE WAS GLAD I TOLD HIM BEFORE HE TRIED TO GIVE IT TO ME.HE SAID THEY CALL THE SIDE AFFECT PREDNISONE PHSYCOSIS.YES.....IT HAS A NAME!!!! ALWAYS TELL YOUR DOCTOR YOUR EXPERINCE YOU HAVE HAD WITH THIS MED BECAUSE THEY DO HAVE ALTERNATIVE MEDS AND CAN ALSO GIVE MEASURED DOSES OF PREDNISONE AND IF YOU HAVE TO TAKE IT ASK ABOUT GETTING AND ANTIANXIETY MED ALONG WITH IT. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR MEDS ASK YOUR PHARMACIST FIRST FOR THAT IS WHAT THEY WAS TRAINED AND SCHOOLED FOR AND ANYONE OF THEM WORTH THEIR SALT WILL TELL YOU WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE MEDS BEFORE THEY HAND THEM TO YOU AND WILL TELL YOU THAT IF YOU HAVE ANY PROBLEMS TO CALL YOUR DOCTOR!!I HAD A GREAT PHARMACIST IN A SMALL TOWN I LIVED IN YEARS AGO AND HE WAS VERY INFORMATIVE AND WOULD EVEN TELL ME WHAT FOOD AND OR LIQUID THAT I SHOULD NOT HAVE WITH THE MEDS.DOCTORS TODAY ARE NOT SCHOOLED IN MEDICATIONS AS THEY WAS YEARS AGO! ALWAYS ASK YOUR PHARMACIST IF IN DOUBT!!!! HOPE THIS INFO HELPS!!! PAMELA