Dark cloud symptoms and conditions

I am a 36 year old woman, and I have taken Singulair for the past 8 months. I got a lung infection over the winter, and the clinic I went to put me on the 10mg Singulair. It helped my lungs and got me over the worst of the infection, but I never anticipated the side-effects. For several months, I attributed what I was feeling to hormones (like severe PMS) and the stress in my life. I started to have thoughts of death, especially at night. I also began to have a hard time leaving my house. I would have panic attacks, worrying that the window was left open, the stove was left on, and god forbid there was a dark cloud in the sky (I became convinced that a terrible storm would come). Several times, I nearly got in a car accident racing to get home after work. Then, I started to obsess over getting sick. I was convinced that I would get some terrible disease and die soon. The fears and anxiety got worse and worse until one day (a rainy day), I quit my job of twelve years. It was a good job. I was happy with my work, and I made more than enough money. I ended up moving across the country back in with my estranged husband, because here I would not have to work. I could stay home all the time, away from germs and storms and anything else bad. That was three months ago. Still on the Singulair, I began to obsess over death. The panic attacks were so severe that they triggered asthma attacks, and not being able to breathe triggered more anxiety. I stopped sleeping at night. In three months, I've slept four nights. I began to have nightmares that made me wake up screaming and violently lashing out. I had to urinate 5 or 6 times every night. I developed severe stomach pain and nausea. And I had leg pain (actually, I hurt everywhere, severe pain). I had headaches, dizziness, and fatigue. Slowly, I began to realize that it might be the medicine. I started to research, and yesterday, I took my last pill. Since then, I have not had one panic attack. I have not had one asthma attack. I slept last night with no bad dreams. I know what's happened now, and I'm so sad that I lost so much of my life because of this drug. I really had a good life...friends, a home, a great job... Now, I'm very tired. My body is very weak and still hurting. I'm shaky. But I believe in time, those effects, too, will go away. I feel like my body has been through a war. I'm grateful that I didn't kill myself. There were a couple of really bad days when the urge to be violent towards myself was overwhelming. One day, I punched a fence, making my knuckles bleed. I think I could've killed myself, and I know it was Singulair. It's going to be better now. Just as a note: what helped me withdraw without any major worsening of asthma was Advair 250/50 twice a day.

I am 24 and used the NuvaRing for almost 3 years. As I finished up college at 21 and directly afterwards I was becoming more and more depressed, which I first attributed to the transition. It was while I was still in college that I also noticed a change in my ability to concentrate and remember. Focus and decision-making were abnormally difficult. My moodiness and depression increased over the next two years, my sensitivity to other's comments became more acute and I constantly felt at the edge of tears. I had little to no enthusiasm for even my favorite activities, no energy for sports/physical exercise, and no interest in sex with my partner. I required more sleep, always feeling tired when I woke up. I also began to have headaches, which had never been a trouble before.
I have been off the NuvaRing for about 3 weeks. Like some have posted earlier, I feel like a dark cloud has lifted and I can enjoy life again. Notable changes over the last couple of weeks have included:

1. Waking up naturally in the morning, almost 2 hrs earlier than before
2. Dramatic increase in ability to focus and remember (effectively study)
3. Happy mood and few to no self-deprecating thoughts
4. Increased energy
5. Enjoyment of flavors
6. General clarity of thought
7. Return of interest/enthusiasm, competitive spirit
8. Interest in sex
9. Decrease in headaches

I am absolutely thrilled to have identified the NuvaRing as the source of these issues and having eliminated it from my routine. I feel like I have my life back.

I was on Nuvaring for three months. The first few days were very unpleasant. I had a lot of cramping and just felt generally lethargic and bad.

I've been extremely emotional over the time since I went on the ring. The intensity of my feelings, especially my sadness, has increased over this time. I have also felt very lethargic. I've been tired every day regardless of how much sleep I got. I have had crazy dreams every night and wake up tired. I've felt like there is a weight on me (and there is a literal weight - I've gained 10+ lbs).

I took the ring out 3 days ago and I feel like a different person. It's like a dark cloud lifted in my life.

It's a huge relief, but I am also very angry I was never informed of this side effect. I did ask my doctor about the side effects, and the only one she told me about was excess discharge.

Hello Ladies,

I first posted my story in 2005, but check in now and then to remind other poor sufferers.

The first year or so on Yasmin was free of any noticeable side effects then out of no where my whole life changed, I had vertigo, became severely depressed, very anxious, panic attacks, suicidal thoughts...NONE of these symptoms had I ever experienced before in my life...I was always the 'glass half full' girl.

No one knew what was wrong with me, and my family were desperate. One day I found this website and it saved my life. I realized that it was Yasmin that was destroying me. I immediately stopped it (although now am told that finishing the pack would have been optimal)...my depression and panic attacks stopped within days. It was like a dark cloud lifted. Let me be honest though, it was a long road to feel 100%...the first few months my anxiety seemed to get worse before it got better, according to my cycle. The light at the end of the tunnel is that YOU DO GET BETTER. I have been there when you wonder if the 'old you' will ever return....you do.

I recommend you eat a healthy diet, eliminate caffeine and white sugar, and get all your hormone levels checked...including your thyroid and adrenals. This pill is poison and depletes your body of all the necessary vitamins and nutrients, and completely destabilizes your hormonal balances.

Each month you will be closer to complete healing. I stress that everyone is different and you may not take as long as me to recover, but take heart if it is taking longer than you expected.

This is a temporary state of mind. It is not the real you.

Take care xx

I have been taking YAZ for 2 months and just picked my new pack up to start tomorrow but they are going in the trash! I started doing research tonight on YAZ for the first time searching for answers of what could be wrong with me! I have had an MRI checking for MS, blood work checking for Lyme Disease, along with many other tests to try to determine why I am experiencing NUMBNESS is my hands, arms, legs, feet and face, and mostly on the left side. After all the tests have come back negative, I have been left with confusion and sadness wondering what could be wrong. Then I looked at YAZ side effects tonight, and what a realization! I am so sorry for all the women like me that have been going through this. This drug is terrible and should not be on the market. I was just married on July 12th and the happiest time of my life has been covered with the dark cloud called YAZ. No wonder I have felt so sad and so crazy. I started taking YAZ because I wanted to be better for my husband and not make him have to put up with my PMDD. However, I have become someone other than myself, someone who is angry and sad for no reason. Thank goodness I have realized what has been wrong. Now I can get to the marriage I have waited for all my life! Please, if you are taking YAZ, stop, and if you are thinking of starting it, DON"T!

I am 26 and have been on several kinds of birth control. this is the best so far for my getting depressed although it makes me a total spaz....total spaz! i take a month or two break every now and then just to remember that i am a rational human being and feel great and happy and am a wonderful person and then i get back on the shit and two days into it i can feel the dark cloud of Aviane descend over me and i cant really describe it any better than that....the tiniest things irritate me and make me angry and become huge things. its annoying and makes me feel pretty frustrated but hey, its not a baby!...so thats got to count for something. it is true though....so true about it making you weird at least a little....it is a drug....and you are putting it in your body to alter the natural course of things.....notice how I'm trying to talk myself into it still....yuck.

Hello All,

As I read new stories on this site from women just realising the devastating effects of Yasmin, it breaks my heart.

I stopped taking Yasmin 2 years ago, after I found this site desperate for a reason for my complete insanity (anxiety, depression, panic attacks, vertigo....with no history of such). I had been on Yasmin for close to 2 years with the first year and a half symptom free....the last 6 months on it I became an entirely different person....scared to leave my house, utterly depressed and completely bewildered as to why when I had never felt this way, and had no reason to.

I cried as I read this site and realised Yasmin was poisoning me and my mind. I immediately stopped it (although it is recommended you only stop at the end of the pack you are on...I couldn't wait). Well the depression lifted within days....the dark cloud literally left like a miracle from above. Anxiety proved difficult as it continued for a few months but each month got better and I continually read from this site to remind myself that although I felt out of my mind at times, it was as a result of my body detoxing itself from this drug.

I did have plenty of times when I thought the old me was gone forever....but I now am back. Trust that you are getting better....trust that the real you is not mad or crazy and is returning slowly.

I recently read the following website and found it really made sense, particularly as my blood tests after yasmin kept saying my hormonal levels were 'normal' even though I didn't feel back to normal. You need to click on the 'cure for PMS' section. I would recommend all of you coming off this poison read it....

I wish you all the very best of healing and health. Take care of yourselves, avoid caffiene, white sugar, excess salt (none of which help anxiety) and drink plenty of water and exercise....and always remember to talk to someone about how you're feeling as you go through this...I always felt better talking rather than letting things stew in my head...even if it sounded insane....my sister was a godsend reminding me that I was going through a detox.

Be well!!!!

2 DAYS!!! That's it ladies. I had the dang on thing in for two days. I'd found this website on Day1(Monday)...cause only after 30mins of having it in, I was having weird tighten cramping like crazy. Later in the day they subsided...some! On Day2 (Tuesday), it was like a dark cloud was coming over me (depression?). It was no positive thinking going on ladies. To know me, people come to me when their down. I was also bloated beyond belief... Mind you, I'd just inserted this thing after my regular period (following the directions). So, on the 3rd Day Wednesday), experiencing more cramping, more depression, more bloating... I'd had enough. After reading blogs I knew the best thing to do was to REMOVE the ring. When I pulled out the ring it had a thick white substance on it. WTF!!! Then on Saturday, I started having cramps, and would you know that on Sunday, I started my PERIOD, again!!!! WTF, Really! And, this was no ordinary period... it was everything these women have talked about. It had a smell, it was bloody red/brown mixed, and still today (Thursday) I gotta odor and only brown discharge...GRRRRR!!! Messed up 1pair of panties. I'm mad. Ladies, listen up DO NOT USE THE NUVA RING!! 2days = 2weeks of Bull-----. Bottom-line, it ain't worth it. Sadly, NuvaRing was my 3rd and last BC option. I'm off to find those women condoms. Eureka!!!

Hi Ladies,

I just wanted to offer some hope to the ladies suffering out there post yasmin. I stopped Yasmin 2 years ago after realising it was the cause of my major depression, panic attacks and personality changes. Within days of stopping Yasmin the dark cloud over me lifted and my depression ceased.

The most challenging aspect of stopping Yasmin was definately anxiety...the first 6 months off Yasmin was probably the hardest, particularly around ovulation and pre-menstrual times (although some months were worst after my period). These times were filled with days where I didn't remember the 'old me'...anxiety fills you with scary and sometimes terrifying thoughts...my main anxious thoughts were that I was a bad person that could do bad things to people and I was keeping it a secret...ridiculous as it sounds, but it would go over and over in my mind, making me feel sick. Anxiety is an awful thing because it feels so real when its actually all chemical.

The wonderful thing is that every month since getting off Yasmin I have gotten better and closer to the old me. I remember being at the stage so many of you are at now, and reading these posts to get me though the day. It is these times you have to remind yourself 'these thoughts and feelings are not real, they are the result of chemicals...these feelings are only temporary, and no matter how bad it is...THIS TIME WILL PASS'.

Try also to remain busy and distracted while you ride it out....books, puzzles, crosswords, movies....running/exercise really helped me as it increased endorphines (happy hormones) and I'd be so focussed on my breathing and not stopping that I'd not be 'thinking'...it would also tire me out and help me sleep.

We are survivors...everyone of us. Imagine how equipped we are due to this experience to deal with anything life has to offer.

The old you is coming back, slowly but surely, I promise.

Take care each of you. God bless xxx

It's been 1 month since I quit cold turkey. My doctors said to quit taking it. My symptoms r : insomnia, dark cloud over my head feeling, panicking, not eating much( a good thing ) gums are irritated, corners of mouth splitting (never had that in my life) legs weak, restless, can't concentrate sometimes. I know it's a matter of time before this all goes away. I hold on to that. It will get better. Thanx for asking. I like this website.

Peg,
I've been off of Pred. for 8 days and after reading all the others it may take a while because of the high dose u were on at first. I was on pred. for 4 yrs. My legs get so tired. I'm finding now that I feel like I have a dark cloud over my head. I know this is part of withdrawl but it's bad. Take one day at a time and keep telling yourself within time it will get better, and it will. It won't be easy but keep us updated and u won't feel so alone. Complain all u want, that's what this is for. Just go with what each day brings and don't feel like u r going crazy, you're not. wonderwoman..................