Emotional problems symptoms and conditions

I got mine August 2008. I have periods that last for 10 days straight. Spotting in between. No sex drive and very painful intercourse if I do have sex. Severe lower back pain and weakness. I don't think the Mirena is contributing to my short temper..but I think the bleeding, lack of sleep, and constant pain from mirena is causing me emotional problems. Plus my husband is very insensitive and clueless and thats makes it worse. He is only concerned about not getting enough Sex and apparently cares nothing for my physical aliments. I want this out!

I am a 39 year old mother of two teenager daughters. I had my original Mirena inserted in July, 2002 due to extreme bleeding for many months. I would bleed for about 24 days out of every month and felt horrible. As I was only 32 years old at the time, my GYN did not want to perform a hysterectomy and suggested the Mirena. I bled for a couple of months after insertion, but shortly thereafter I had no bleeding and have had no period ever since. This is the side effect that is fantastic!

Shortly after having the Mirena inserted, my marriage fell apart and I was feeling very depressed, EXTREMELY EXHAUSTED and overall "crappy". I assumed that this was all due to my life circumstances. I gained significant weight in my mid-section, I had (and still have) constant headaches, I am always still very very tired, am dizzy, fuzzy-minded, blurred vision, achey, etc. etc. etc. I never once thought about the Mirena being the cause of any of these symptoms.

My doctor has checked my bloodwork numerous time to ensure my iron levels, etc. were okay as well as my thyroid - every time the results were normal so I thought it must all be in my head and all be due to me being somewhat depressed, etc. due to my marital breakdown.

I had my 2nd Mirena put in in December, 2009 as the first one was in for the full 5 years. It was a little painful getting it taken out and the new one put in, but for me the pain was worth it to continue to be period-free for another 5 years!

Recently I have been experiencing hot flashes and night sweats so I asked my doctor if I could be going through menopause. She ordered bloodwork to check my hormones and informed me last week that yes, in fact I am quite far into menopause!!! (remember, age 39)! Because I have not had a period in almost 6 years, I did have the early warning signs of menopause such as missed or irregular periods.

I wondered why I would be going through it so early so googled "Mirena and early menopause" which brought me to this site. When I started reading all the side effects, I wondered if it was maybe the Mirena that cause a lot my problems over the years and it wasn't in fact the dissolving of my marriage and change in life circumstances.

I now have to decide what to do. My doctor stated that I should (because of my young age) go on Hormone Replacement for quality of life. (I am close to my decision and believe that HRT is beneficial for me) - hopefully this will help with the terrible symptoms of menopause I have been having.

I am wondering if having the Mirena inserted had any part in accelerating my body into menopause. I am thinking of having it removed before starting HRT because even though the doctor told me that there is a very low hormone dosage in the Mirena, I don't want to over-do it with hormones as that could cause me even more problems. It would be amazing if I had it removed that I would feel the way I used to feel back 6 years ago (minus the husband)

FYI, before I had the Mirena inserted the first time I read and re-read the pamphlet which contained all the possible side effects, etc. But, as I stated above, my life changed dramatically very shortly after insertion so it never occurred to me that some of my problems may be related to the Mirena.

If this device does accelerate a woman's body into menopause, this should be well publicized as it would be tragic for young women who use this as a form of contraception early in their life to only find out later that they are no longer able to conceive due to their body going though "the change".

I've been taking Balziva for over a year, and I don't know what the heck these people are talking about! I think that before taking the pill they had serious menstrual and emotional problems. Before birth control I had long, heavy and painfully crippling periods. I do not have that anymore. My periods last about 4-5 days which are not painful and moderate flow at best. Actually, until recently, they had been so light that I couldn't use tampons and a panty liner was sufficient. Maybe the last couple times have I been heavy enough for a tampon (perhaps because my body finally adjusted after the last few years of birth control.) I was a moody person before birth control so I'm definitely now blaming that on the pill. I still get extra angry/moody that week, but I did before the pill too. And the only time I spot between periods is when I miss a pill, which only lasts for a couple days.

The only side effect that I could say is caused by the drug is the loss of sex drive. But again, that may not necessarily be the pill. It could be my place in life. I'm a college student with an extremely busy schedule - full time school loaded with too much homework and I work as a flight instructor (tell me teaching some new by how to land is not stressful!!) Oh, and I lost the closest person to me two years ago which I still haven't accepted and basically closed my heart after that. I don't have trouble losing weight as long as I watch my diet and exercise. I don't really think that Balziva has caused any negative side effects, at least nothing that could be explained by something else in my life. I gain weight because I let myself go on break. I lose weight because I eat right and exercise after that.

I had my Mirena placed 8wks after my daughter was born. I have a history of bad reactions to all bc pills on the market, the patch, the ring and a latex allergy (condoms). I didn't want my man to get snipped yet because I was on the fence about having another in a few years. So I opted for the Mirena because it seemed like the answer to all my problems.
I "tightened up" quickly after delivery and had to be re-dilated for placement, HUGE ouchie! I bled like a stuck pig and soaked thru pads for almost a week after insertion, I called and was assured it was normal.
I had already been diagnosed with PPD at the time of placement so I assumed all the emotional side effects were because of that. Until I joined a group for Mirena users and found that emotional problems were top of the list! My family (especially my relationship with my honey) have all suffered from my short fuse, mood swings, crying jags that can last all day for no reason, anxiety (I have had 3 anxiety attacks in the last 6mnths and never had one before in my life!). I have had constant crippling fatigue and can barely get out of bed! I have a toddler and a 6yo son to keep up with and fall asleep on the couch during commercials!
I've had bloating in my midsection, frequent nausea/vomiting, headaches from hell!, constant aches/pains, shooting pain in my reproductive area, infrequent periods/spotting, acne (face AND body), thinning/dull hair. I had an incident of extremely foul-smelling, thick dark discharge that was caused by the Mirena's stopping of my cycle but not allowing the build up that was present to be flushed until a routine pap. I have also had lots of pain during intercourse followed by bleeding afterwards and that is when I can bring myself to have sex! I'm 25 and have a very low/non-existent sex drive!
My honey is finding out thru his insurance how much a vasectomy will be and if we choose to have another child, we'll just have to have it reversed. I can't live like this, I have kids, I have family and friends that I miss, I want my life back. The only way to get it back is to get the Mirena OUT of my body.

I've been on levothyroxine 150mcg for about 3 months before that it was 100mcg and so on. I have gain lots of weight and tired all the time. depression also, headaches. I hate this gaining weight, sleepy all the time and depression is from gaining weight. I thought this med is to up boost my thryiode but it doesn't seem to be working. my dr. said I'm on the highest dose there is. I don't know what to do any more. I was thinking about taking myself off this but not sure what will happen if i do. I hope there is someone out there that might be able to let me know if they are going through the same things what they are doing and how they feel now.

I had been taking Tri-Sprintec for about 4 months. I turned into a very odd person, i was pissed at everything, every tiny little thing would make me cry and i finally ran out of excuses for crying and was thinking was seriously wrong with me. I would break down bawling at work just because I didn't want to go to work that day. It was extreme. Then it actually turned a little bit into depression. It caused major problems with me and my boyfriend. He thought that I wasn't happy with him and I thought that I was crazy for getting mad about everything but I couldn't help it. I was also bleeding for about 10 days and it was heavy heavy bleeding.
I gained about 7 pounds and i ate like crazy, even when I wasn't hungry at all. The only good thing that I noticed was my zits went away for good. I have never had bad acne but a few zits here and there. I don't think I have one zit for the 4 months I was on Tri-Sprintec.
After 4 months being on Tri-Sprintec I switched to Sprintec. I noticed allll the emotional problems that I was having have gone away in an instant. I have only been on Sprintec for about 4-5 days but I haven't cried at all, I have not got into a fight with my boyfriend, I am not sad at all. I haven't noticed anything different about my periods though because I have only been on it for less than a week. I am amazed about the different emotional response to things and very satisfied because that was the main reason why I switched to a different kind.
I used Depo-prevera shot for about 8 years before I went onto the pill. The depo shot was convenient, cheap, and amazing! I never experienced weight gain, mood swings, or anything and it messed up my period so i barely had a period for 3 years. I didn't complain though. Then after the depo-shot I started taking pills because I wanted to decrease the risk of osteoperosis the depo shot causes. The first birth control pill I took was Lybrel and it was amazing, never had any problems, but it was also amazingly expensive so i switched the Tri-Sprintec and here I am on Sprintec now. Thanks for listening to my journey!

Hi, my name’s M. and I posted my story on here about a month ago. Unfortunately, I’ve made no progress. I was hospitalized again mid-October for numbness and tingling sensations in my legs, which is a symptom of guillian-barre syndrome and supposedly needs to be treated very carefully. I had an mri of my brain again, this time including my spine to check for possible tumors. I was sent home the next day, negative for guillian-barre, but having received no answers. I was crawling up the stairs by this time, and was too weak to walk without holding on to furniture to support myself. My legs felt like cement blocks, and the neurologist specifically said, “I don’t know why you can’t walk.”
Since then, I’ve developed acute mononucleosis, which increases my fatigue and muscle pain, and causes me to sleep about 15 hours a day. Recent blood work also showed I was positive for an autoimmune disorder called Myositis, which is a painful disorder that causes the body’s immune system to attack its muscles and connective tissue. I was referred to a rheumatologist, who was the least sympathetic person I’ve met in my life, and told me my physical exam was perfect, so she felt the Myositis must have been a false positive. She re-ran the blood work, and the Myositis was negative. This is of course a relief, but how we’ll ever know which test is correct, I don’t know. The rheumatologist did notice the weakness in my legs and my difficulty walking, and suggested physical therapy to help gain my strength back. She also prescribed an anti-inflammatory medication that took away almost all of my pain. Thank God, something finally worked for me. We then saw the physical therapist who said, “We can probably make you stronger, but I’ve never seen anything like this before.”
I’m seeing an osteopathic specialist who is convinced my illness is directly related to Gardasil. Through ancient medicine methods, she introduced a vile of Gardasil to my system and noticed an immediate weakness. I’m not sure if I totally believe in her practice, but the fact that she noticed a rejection to Gardasil the minute she introduced it is enough to convince me. She believes that my immune system was basically poisoned by the vaccine, which is causing it to fight off things I need. She also said it probably doesn’t recognize the mono as an infection, and decides not to fight it. For a normal, healthy person, mono can last up to 3 months. For someone like me, no one knows how long it could last. It was my immune system’s weakness that allowed me to develop mono, and it was the Gardasil that weakened it in the first place. So thank you Merck, for yet another thing I have to deal with.
And that brings us to today. I’ve missed about 30 days of my freshman year, so I’m assuming summer school will be necessary. My high school won’t provide a tutor, so I can only take my core curriculum classes, and am having difficulty keeping up with just those few. I’ve gained some strength in my legs, and it’s a little easier to walk with the anti-inflammatory, but I still can’t walk very far without resting. I’m also taking an anti-depressant to help me focus-hopefully it’ll lift my spirits. Since I received the vaccine, my periods have been painful and irregular. The constant nausea, headaches, and occasional stomach pain/joint pain continues, along with extreme fatigue.
The doctors make me feel like a crazy person who faked this to get out of school. How could I possibly fake nausea for thirteen weeks straight, and pain that kept me up crying almost every night? How could I fake my difficulty walking while it’s causing me to miss both of my volleyball seasons? Before this, I had hardly missed a day of school in my life, and refused to stay home whenever I got the flu because I hate falling behind. I’ve played volleyball tournaments with sprained ankles and chipped elbows, I can handle pain, and I’m not a baby. If the doctors would take five minutes out of their time to try to get to know me, maybe they would see that. And the few who actually take the time to be pleasant don’t listen. They tell you they know, that they understand, but they don’t. They won’t drag themselves out of bed in the morning feeling nauseous and half asleep; they’ll be able to walk into their office without feeling like they want to collapse, and they’ll go home to the people who care about them and will actually be awake long enough to enjoy their company. No one will tell them they’re insane, and the worst part is that most of them won’t take the time to realize how blessed they are just to have the ability to do those things. How can the doctors not have sympathy when they’re the ones who put this poison inside of me?!
I know I’m very lucky compared to girls who have experienced more serious side effects, and am thankful that we were able to make a connection between my illness and Gardasil after the first shot. But I’m living proof of what just one stupid shot can do to you-how can you put yourselves or your daughters at risk of what I’ve gone through? The benefits are not just worth the risk..
My 15th birthday is coming up in just a few weeks, and all I want is to be normal again.

I don't know what is wrong with you people but its like you can't handle anything. I had the mirena put in November last year and yeah ok i had cramping for the first month or so and yeah i had spotting. But unlike some of you fools i knew what the side effects were i read what came in the package which means i knew what to expect before i got it put in. And yeah there are loads of possible side effects but if you read everything and know what could happen you shouldn't complain if something does happen. Not everyone who has the mirena has these things and for people who are considering it i would recommend trying it and after 3 months if it doesn't feel good then get it removed. That especially goes to people that have just had a baby... i mean really in the first 3 months after having a baby who is really seriously interested in sex right away. The reason i am here was to see if there was more information about them now because UNFORTUNATELY i had to have mine removed for an operation. I had a cyst on my fallopian tube which was not mirena related. In fact almost all women get them when they are menstruating but they go away. Unfortunately with me they don't go away and this is the 2nd cyst to be removed in 3 years. I am planning on getting a second mirena inserted next week. Because frankly i find it ideal. And yeah i may have had mood swings on occasion while i had it but come on think about it what woman doesn't have mood swings. So sure you can blame everything on the Mirena but for the most part besides then for the people where the mirena got stuck or moved during the time you had it... its all in your head. And like i said before i would recommend the mirena and if after 3 or 4 months it doesn't suit you then go for something else... but don't dismiss it because some people have too much time on their hands and like to spend it whining over everything on the net. Remember with the Mirena you have a 50/50 chance of having symptoms or not. Take that risk before taking the risk of going on the pill and forgetting to take it or going on depo provera and putting on 20 pounds.

Hi, For those who are wondering if you can experience sudden, intense emotional changes as soon as you begin using the NuvaRing, here is my story:

I was on NuvaRing for 2 months. I put the 1st one in on Friday and by the following Tuesday, I had severe irritability, anxiety, anger control problems. I blamed myself but looking back now, having found websites and forums where other people talk about going through the same thing, I know it was the ring. I remember that Tuesday, thinking I had gone too far with my boyfriend by blowing up at him and being extremely anxious, unable to deal witht he stress i was facing that day. After I blew up at him, I was so remorseful and I cried and cried. The following evening, the Wednesday, again I became frightingly aggressive toward him, followed by intense crying. I felt so bad, so angry with myself for treating him that way. These outbursts continued and I became increasingly tired. I ended up going on the pill because the Ring gave me intense burning during sex. it was very painful. 4 months later, I was diagnosed with major depression and put on antidepressants and work arrest.

I warn everybody not to use hormonal birth control. If you decide to use it, be aware of the signs if your mood changes. It is so easy to blame yourself when it comes to emotional problems, but they are related to physical health (brain chemistry). It's all a big whole which you cannot separate. So if you play with hormones, you can become very screwed up emotionally. And don't expect the doctors/pharmacists/psychiatrists to listen or to recommend you go off the pill. For me nobody listened. it was my own decision to stop everything.

i was prescribed cipro on may 9th, 2008. It is now September 27th 2008. i have not had a really good day between these dates. have been hospitalized. lost lots of body fluids. pain, weakness, depression, emotional problems,no appetite, no energy, agitated constantly, lost 15 lbs.,so far. have seen specialists because i have diminished eye sight and hearing loss. no patience with family. i haven't moved my bowels on my own since first dose. have to take laxatives every week to empty my bowels. i live with full body pain and stiffness every single day, all day. lost interest in my life. i am forgetting the happy, active strong, energetic positive 48 yr old woman I used to be. i know it's the cipro that's killing me. i think my dr. believes me. the other dr.s think i should either that's where I discovered what was hurting me so badly]. I looked up cipro on the computer after i saw a warning about taking cipro and found the truth of why i was so sick. accidentally found out. no symptoms, no pain. Most doctors don't want to believe me. I've told several drs., nurses, and anybody who would listen. I'd tell you more but I can't remember right now. cipro stole my memory too. May God be with us. Betty M.

POLL: If you or your child have been adversely affected by Singulair could you please reply to this and let me know what ethnicity you are and skin tone. (fair, med., dark, etc.) I'm interested in the demographics of this drugs effects.
Thank you!

Five weeks after my daughter received 2nd dose of gardasil she began complaining of neck pain & stiffness. Fevers accompanied this for about a week. I found her early one morning seizing and foaming at the mouth. By the time we arrived at the er via ambulance she was in respiratory failure and had several seizures. She was intubated and continued seizing repeatedly for several days. She was placed in a medically induced coma for six weeks in hopes of "resetting" her brain to stop seizures, as there was no explanation as to why they started.After coming out of coma seizures continue and still do after one year. She has brain atrophy, gait abnormality, severe behavioral and emotional problems, memory impairment, ticks, numbness to limbs, impulsive uncontrollable erratic behavior, and of course uncontrolled seizures. After several months in hospital and numerous tests there is still no answer. She was perfectly healthy before this vaccine. She also received 3rd dose and was hospitalized again for increased seizure activity. She needs constant adult supervision at all times, falls when seizing, and is unable to carry out simple activities of daily living without reminders and supervision. She is almost fourteen and is living with the mentality of a 5 year old.She has no chance of ever leading a normal life.

I am 18 years old and have been taking Loestrin 24 for about 7 months now. I started taking the pill because I was sexually active and was having extremely long and painful periods. The first few months of the pill were fine, I had some minor bloating. However, I was happy with the pill for the most part. The little acne I had cleared up and my periods were almost non-existent (12 hours of a light brown spotting at most).

Now, for the past three months I have been struggling with depression and anxiety. I could not figure out what was happening to me because I had never had emotional problems like this before. Given, I am prone to depression (both my mother and father have been diagnosed). Nevertheless, I am starting to wonder if the hormones in Loestrin 24 have triggered my depression symptoms and made them worse since they were NEVER a problem until I went on this pill. Previously, I was on Ortho Tricyclen Lo and did not have any emotional side effects whatsoever.

Also, I am pretty much fed up with this pill after today. A few days ago, I suddenly began having chest pains and a numbness/tingling on my left side (arms, legs, face). Feeling nervous, I went to the doctor today. They gave me an EKG which was normal (thank goodness). However, they have ordered me an MRI for tomorrow to see if I have suffered from a stroke! My doctor said that he thinks that then numbness pain is more likely caused my depression/anxiety. Depression and anxiety that I think were caused by this pill.

I can't stand these pills and I refuse to finish this pack. Enough is enough already! Has anybody else suffered symptoms similar to these and if so, what was your outcome?

I forgot to add my son was also on zyrtec & claritin b4 singulair & they caused similar side effects as singulair but not nearly as severe & I didn't realize all this till after I stopped the singulair & started looking up all the old meds. he was on

YAZ!!!! It is great at first, have been on it for three months, and am going back to Ortho Tri-Cyclene Lo!!!! I thought it was fine at first and then I beleive I thought I was going crazy. Very emotional, fatigued(fell asleep, more like passed out for two hours with a two year old at home), I wasn't even this tired when I was pregnant. I am depressed, anxious, have no patients at all for anybody, rage, rage, rage, and headaches. You definately don't have PMS, PMD because you just have it all the time. Instead of only a week of being emotionally nuts, it just spreads itself over to everyday. Yaz slowly turns you into a emotional nightmare. I was NEVER like this while on other BC, only YAZ. I would not recommend it unless you like being depressed, tired, anxious, emotional, and plain out crazy. I was honestly going to seek out medical help for my depression and emotional problems before I figured out it was YAZ. I couldn't live with my husband and two kids they way I was feeling. I was miserable and making them miserable too. They are constantly walking on eggshells with me, and they never know and I never know when I am going to start yelling at them in a fit of rage that is hard to control. I went absolutly nuts when my two year old spilled her bowl of watermelon on a concrete floor. Watermelon?!?!?!!! Not glue, paint, nail polish just watermelon on a dirty CONCRETE not carpeted floor. Rediculous!!!! I know it's crazy but that is what the YAZ turned me into. It sounds great, that is why I started taking it, but over time it is just too good to be true. Stay away from YAZ !!!!!

Hi, I know this section is for posting side effects but I was wondering if someone could please help me and provide me with some information. I am very athletic and active so any type of spotting/bleeding is NOT FOR ME. I am trying to eliminate my monthly period. I was on Depo Provera for several years and loved it. No periods everything fine except for a low sex drive. Then I ran into some problems and had to stop that. Plus my doctor said it causes osteoporosis.
Then I tried Seasonique which was awful as I had instant weight gain and breast tenderness like crazy. Was only on that for a few weeks!!!
Then I heard about Lybrel which is supposed to stop your periods after some time so I started that at the end of December last year (2007). I had spotting and some bleeding EVERY DAY and a few days ago had a lot of bleeding but I also played with the dosage per doctor's request. So I saw my doctor today and I said enough is enough what else can I try? So she gave me the Loestrin 24 Fe and I will start that Sunday. She said many people stop having periods after a few months of use. HOWEVER, after reading these posts, I am thinking NO BC is right for me now. If anyone can help me on my goal of eliminating the curse or convince me that this pill is OKAY after 3 months I would appreciate it. Please email me at escarle1@hotmail.com. Thank and I hope to hear back soon!

My son is now 17. He has been on singulair for about 7 years now. We have been dealing with emotional problems with him for almost as long. Thinking back on his history, he manifested many behavioral problems almost since the start beginning with reports from his teachers that he was having meltdowns in class back in elementary school. He is very bright, but was having lots trouble with his school work. Finally we had to pull him out of 9th grade (2 years ago) because he could not function in a "normal" school environment. He has been in therapeutic boarding schools ever since. Not in my wildest dreams did I ever think Singulair might be the culprit. I called the school (2,000 miles away) and had him stop taking Singulair Saturday, March 29. He has exhibited many of the symptoms - depression, anxiety, mood changes, suicidal tendencies, itchy skin, joint pain. No one treating him ever recommended to take him off Singulair. I am hoping that he will start seeing immediate changes. We have spent a small fortune to keep him safe and protect him from himself over the last two years -- not to mention the personal toll this has taken on our family. I am going to see how he is within the next couple of weeks and I plan to report everything to the FDA. I am horrified that this drug was in my son's system for 7 years. I hope it hasn't caused any permanent damage.

I was horrified when I saw the news report about singulair on Thursday! My little angel had her first asthma attack when she was 5 years old. She was put on Singulair and has been on it for 5 years. My life has been a living HELL since. Temper tantrums, biting, kicking, screaming, nightmares, waking up during the night, clinging to me constantly, We were unable to take her places because we never knew how she would behave in public I felt like a prisoner. We tried putting her in school but she ran away from the teachers and got into fights with other students. The school said she had A.D.H.D. and severe learning disablities I had to pull her out of school and home school her. Before she was on this Devil medicine she was the sweetest little girl you could come across. She was very polite, respectful, happy, and loving. Her doctor always reassured me that it wasn't her medicine. I have 4 girls and she was the only one who had any problems. I thought as a parent I must be doing something wrong! I prayed for 5 years for this nightmare to end I never dreamed a little 5mg pink evil pill was turning my family's life upside down. I couldn't believe that other parents have gone through the same nightmare. I took her off that same night as the report and will never put her on Singulair again. It's been 5 days and I already see a big difference in her behavior. She woke up singing, laughing, and no fighting with her sisters. She wants to help with chores. She is doing great with her school lessons, and very patient with everyone. I thank God for answering all our prayers and giving us our children back. When everyone goes to sleep at night say A GREAT BIG THANK YOU TO GOD.

My daughter, who is 9.5 has been on Singulair for the last 6 years. I am saddened that I was so frustrated with her for all of these bizarre behaviors that I never even thought to link to this medication. My daughter has severe allergies, and her asthma is triggered by her allergies, so to that end the medication worked beautifully in controlling the asthma. But, it is not worth the aggressivenesses, horrible mood swings, suicidal thoughts, depressiveness. She has frequent temper tantrums that mirror those of a two year old. I frequently have asked her when she will outgrow this phase, it seems she never moved passed it. Then a moment later, it seems as though she has the drama of an adolescent girl, including the depression and even the extremes of threatening to run away from home and that she would be better off dead. This has been going on for years, and I never connected it to the Singulair. I just thought there was emotional problems, and that I was a bad mom, and that I just needed to keep being consistent and reassure her that she was loved, but that her behavior was not acceptable. She has very low self esteem one minute, and incredible confidence the next. She is very argumentative all the time, about everything. She also talks and sometimes walks in her sleep. She tends to get up 1-3 times per night, and has no recollection of it ever. She has begun to develop stomachaches, headaches, and leg cramps recently.

My son, who is 6.5, and has ADHD, now is starting to mimic some of the things he has heard her say, and it is difficult to undo this damage.

Again, I never connected any of this to Singulair, I just thought I had a challenging child. I pray for all of our children that the damage is not permanent, and that there is a safe alternative that we can have faith in. I know it will be difficult for me to trust another medication.

My deepest sympathies to those families who have lost a child to the perils of the side effects of this medication that were not disclosed to us.

My son started on 5mg Singulair in 1999. Later that year and the next at the age of 10, my husband and I realized he seemed really depressed. I took him to his pediatrician, who talked to my son at length about anything that might be bothering him, if someone had try to touch him, etc.,etc. Nothing. He had been a really happy outgoing child. Now he was not. The next year in 4th grade he seemed to be worse. We kept an eye on him. There were no warnings whatsoever about Singulair causing emotional problems, depression etc. at that time. Shortly after he started 5th grade, we moved to another city with almost no air pollution in the area we picked to live, and he was still "down". But a few months after we moved, even though we left long time friends, etc., I took him off the Singulair, as he was not really having asthma. The kid got happy again--he was was my happy cheerful boy! I don't believe this is coincidence. Then when he started Middle School in 6th Grade, his school was old and dusty with no doubt mold problems and he started having breathing problems pretty bad again. We started him on Singulair again, for the next three years that he was at this school. He tanked emotionally. Hated himself. Was so depressed it was scary. I kept telling him it was adolescence and it would get better. Then he started a new high school, and was off the Singulair for 6 months, and he was happy again. Then he got flu and bronchitis and was back on it and emotionally tanked again, and never really came out of it. Though out these episodes a few times he told me he thought the medicine was making him feel weird. He last took the 10mg Singulair in 2006, the beginning of his sophomore year when he was sick. His depression exploded and he became suicidal. He was diagnosed with depression in April of 2007 and went on Zoloft. He was not on Singulair then. Then he became suicidal again in August of 2007. His depression medication was changed. He got worse. We found a psychiatrist who was able to help some, but could find no background reason for depression. There is some depression in the family, but none of these relatives became depressed until adulthood. He became suicidal again in November of 2007 and went through outpatient care at the local children's and psychiatric hospital. He came out somewhat better, with skills to help monitor himself. He had more med side effects and has changed meds again. Now he is on 40mg Prozac daily now and doing a lot better, and since we saw the news about Singulair a few days ago, he is extremely better. He is almost back. I would rather go the emergency room 5 times a year then go through this again. We were not given a choice. What are the long term effects of this drug for someone who has been on it through adolescence? No one knows. How can a drug with this sort of side effect for children be allowed on the market? I feel blindsided by the FDA and Merck. If his Dr. in 1999 knew about this side effect she would have never put him on this drug, nor would I have allowed it. I say sue the bastards.

As a pediatrician I write for singulair every day.
The medication is for allergies.
Allergies cause adenoidal swelling, which cause sleep disturbances which makes the child tired the next day with makes him over weight, less attentive, hyper and eventually act out.
This in turn makes the child experience parental, peers and teachers criticism/ abuse, with leads to the child feel inadequate, embarrassed, frustrated and eventually depressed and suicidal.

Yes, singulair does cause behavioral change but they appear within the first couple of peels, the rest is due to allergies, lack of medical care, i.e. sleep, singulair, and zyrtec deficiency.
Allergy shots cause 4 times the incidence of suicidally than singulair, and Ritalin 10 times more.
They say in hebrew "once a stone is thrown into a well, thousands of smart people won't find it".
Check it, it's true.

I too am in shock as well as relived about the news on singulair. Last night my 15 year old son called me (he's at the beach on spring break w/ friends), first he said Mom don't be mad but I haven't been taking my singulair and I feel better he then proceeded to tell me what he saw on the news about singulair and he was not ever taking it again. My son has been on singulair for the past year and as I write this I want to cry thinking of how I have treated him the past year because he went from a loving happy child to a tired, moody, grades falling, bouts of anger where he would tell me to just leave him alone he didn't care anymore about school or anything. He would stay awake at night and I couldn't get him up in the morning. Over the past 8 months I've had him at the Dr.s office trying to tell them something was wrong with. He shouldn't be so tired, angry, falling asleep in class. He was tested 3 times for mono with neg. results and I was told it was his age. Last month at my wits end I took him to the Dr. and demanded a complete blood work up because either something was very wrong with him or maybe he did developer teen add or emotional problems. The doctors diagnosis: depression and fluctuating hormones of a teenager. I'm furious at myself for all those nights trying to understand why he could pay attention in class, wouldn't remember his homework, getting angry when I would tell him theres no way you can be that tired all the time, telling me he hated fighting with me over school,and just wished he could quit school altogether. He even lost interest in his favorite sport and would get so frustrated at how he felt he would cry at night say he was sorry he didn't know why he felt so mad inside and I would try to understand but not know what to do.
I asked his Dr.s on several occasions if singulair could cause him to feel like this and every time they told me no and blamed on his age and being depressed about school. He will not be taking singulair again!.

I have recently brought my 9 year old son to a therapist. His emotional problems have seemed to come out of nowhere the past year. He was always a happy, loving boy who loved to talk to me and his dad but the past year we've seen a big change in him. He's very distant and very sad a lot but he can't tell us why, he seems to not know. He's up a lot at night with nightmares and has a lot of leg pain. We had no idea what to do with him and our concern has grown since he feels he wants to disappear. He actually gets sad enough to want to disappear - how can this be? He's only 9 years old! We saw the report on Singular last night and are mortified, our son started Singular last year and this is when we started seeing the change. I sat and cried last night after finding this website and reading what other parents have went through. We stopped the Singular and are hopeful that we'll get our son back. I will post again in a couple weeks to let you know if he gets better.

I'm in the same boat with so many of you parents. After MY parents sent me a link to the news story, I broke down in tears. My 8 1/2 yo daughter has been taking Singulair (5mg) daily for 5 years.

She is the oldest of 3 and has some emotional issues we've always attributed to her personality: mood swings, rage that will last anywhere from 2 minutes to an hour, over-emotional, and yes, even at age 5 she said she wished she was dead. We were shocked, wondering where in the world that idea had come from. I can't say it was caused by Singulair, but it very well could be a factor. Our other two children just don't have the same issues she has with emotions. As a side note, over the years (and just yesterday as a matter of fact, she has complained of severe leg pain. Again, I never thought that would be a side effect of this medication.)

Lately, her allergy/asthma doc has been prescribing more and more meds for her and we have chosen to not give them to her. We will certainly remove Singulair from her regimen. As a parent, who can we trust? My child can't breathe if she's not on some sort of medication.

I would like to know, as another parent asked, if these side affects will subside once Singulair is discontinued.

I must say that Singulair works to control her allergy-induced asthma, but after seeing the story, reading comments here, and seeing my own daughter's behavior, I don't believe it's worth the risk. She's off this medication as of today!

I'm praying for each of you and your kids!

Dear friends,
After being on the NuvaRing for nearly two years, I just took my last one out two weeks ago and haven't replaced it. This site made me realize I wasn't going crazy and there wasn't something wrong with me. I really liked the Ring for the first year because it was easy, convenient, and maintained the secrecy of being unmarried in my culture and having sex. I'm 27 years old and am in an amazing relationship with a great man who is really understanding. This was my first form of birth control and maybe my last.

Here are some side effects I experienced:
Numbness in the legs
Loss in desire to have sex
Pain while having sex
Sinus issues
Feeling sleepy and tired all the time
Anxiety and emotional problems

I know people react differently to medication and I was fine until year 2 but if you're taking this or considering it, please do all the research you can and also pay attention to your body. You're not going crazy and you have to know that so you don't medicate for all the symptoms caused by the Ring.

I saw a Neurologist for the pain in my legs. I had an MRI taken. I never took the prescribed medication but there are women on the Ring going through surgery and countless medication treating the very things caused by the Ring. It's an endless cycle.

I don't think there is any form of hormonal birth control that is safe and symptom free. Just be careful because it's not worth losing your loved ones, your work, or your sanity over.

I'm Ring free for 2 weeks and I'm afraid of what that will cause but hopefully one day my body will be back to normal and hormone free.

I'm still tired all the time and am experiencing some spotting. I hope that's the worst of the after effects.

Take care of yourselves....