Extreme irritability symptoms and conditions

I have been taking Loestrin 24 for almost a year and a half now. At first the pill seemed like a godsend because it offered me shorter periods and more time in between period. However, I have recently become sexually active with my boyfriend and the pill seems to have turned on me completely. In May, I experienced an alarmingly light period with barely any bleeding and almost non-existent cramps. I attributed it to stress at first, but took a home pregnancy test just to be certain. Thankfully, the test came back negative so I put it out of my mine for awhile.

The following month I yet again experience a period that was barely the equivalent of spotting. Alarmed, I went to see my gyno. She told me that barely to no bleeding is completely normal with Loestrin 24, which is something that she failed to tell me of before I began it.

Tonight is my second night of iron pills in my pack and I have yet to bleed at all. On top of that, this entire month I have been experiencing night sweats, headaches, abnormal weight gain, and extreme irritability towards my loved ones. I can barely even stand to talk to my boyfriend on the phone regardless of the fact that I know I love him very much.

Should I stop taking them? Is there any suggestions for better pills?

I am so happy I came across this site! I have been experiencing all these symptoms as well. I am 22 years old and I have been on the ring about a year. I have noticed that I gained weight in the past year, but just attributed it to getting older. I have always been a petite woman, and so are all the women in my family, so the 8 pound weight gain in the first couple months was a huge shock. I have tried working out, and eating right, but the weight always comes back and my cravings are unlike anything I have ever experienced. I have also noticed extreme irritability and I seem to cry a lot more than I used to, over simple, stupid things. I am in the best relationship I have ever, I have a great job and school is going great, but I seem to get extremely sad and irritated sometimes, especially the week before I take it out and the week after I put it in. I have never been like this crazy, emotional person I seem to be now. I also seem to have no energy and being active is at times a lot harder than it should be, especially for me, as an active, on the go type of person. I also have noticed my leg is always numb, my doctor recommended a massage therapist, which helped, but it always comes back. After reading symptoms of leg pains, due to blood clots, I am even more skeptical.
I have read up on side effects on other websites, but like other readers, it says some women experience these signs. Maybe a lot of women are like me, and have never posted anything. I have not put the ring back in after my last period and I am not going to. I dread it every time I put it in, but until now I thought it was just in my head. I am not getting back on the ring, lets see if I can get rid of these horrible, hormonal symptoms.

I'm only 18 and I've been using nuvaring off and on for a while.
I took it out the first time because it was making me gain weight, decrease in sex drive, anxiety attacks, painful sex and i had been crying for no reason. I feel so bad for my boyfriend because I'm just now realizing that my lack of sex drive and painful sex is most likely related to the nuvaring. We've both been confused for so long and he's been feeling so bad about himself thinking its his fault :(.

This is the 2nd week I've had it in since the first time i took it out months ago and I've gotten what seems to be a yeast infection...but like someone mentioned earlier, my yeast infection tests come back negative...as do std and sti tests.
This is my second time with yeast infection symptoms and im only 18...
so, already that seems a little fishy (no pun intended).
Ive also been tested twice for all stds and sti's both times negative.

My doctor and mother don't believe any of this has anything to do with the nuvaring and tell me that i shouldn't believe what i read on the internet because most of what im reading is "rare"..but i believe it and i believe its happening to me.

im taking it out right now.
This website has been very helpful!

I'm off,of Yazas this past Friday after about 1 1/2 years. I have a personal and family history of depression and had serious emotional side effects. I've been on Lexapro for about 5 years for depression and very mild AD/HD. I started Yaz in January 2008, following the birth of my daughter. Last November I stated feeling depressed and had my the dosage on my Lexapro increased which seemed to work for a period of time. I'd say about February 08. I've pulled away from my husband who I've been with since we were 17. I've been having extreme irritability especially aimed at my mother-in-law who we live with. People have had to start reminding me to do small, routine things. It's affecting my job and taking care of my daughter. My husband has vociferously pointed out a lack of sex drive on my part. I probably should've finished out my current pack however I went off all together this past Friday because it was the only thing that seemed like it would help my situation. I will going back to the birth control that I was using prior to my daughter's birth/

I already listed all my side effects on the 4th of Feb. I immediately called the doctor and set up an appointment to have it removed. I'm not waiting till my hair falls out before I get it out of me. The doctor said they couldn't remove it for another month so I decided I'd just wait patiently until I read someone's comment saying that you can EASILY remove it yourself! I went in the bathroom, washed my hands, squatted and reached up, found the strings and tugged gently. I'M FREE!!! YAY!!
My side effects were:
Nausea
Vision Loss (seeing spots, and blurriness, pressure behind eyes)
Back Pain
Knee and other joint pain
Headaches
Extreme Irritability (mood swings)
Lack of energy
Weight Gain
Bloating (very rounded belly)
Discharge with an odor
Dizziness
Abdominal pain
Chest pain
Pain in breasts
Loss of sex drive
Dehydration (so thirsty, but very dry lips and skin no matter how much I drink)
Water retention
Anxiety attacks
Ear infections
Sugar cravings
Sweating
I'll update you on whether things change (and how fast)! Fingers crossed, I'm so hopeful!
I have to say that within minutes of removing it I'm dizzy, lightheaded, nauseous and my head is suddenly killing me!

I began taking birth control pills at 16 to help control excruciating cramps that have now been diagnosed as endometriosis. Every pill I have taken has regulated my period but seems to have some other side effect. Aviane however, is most definitely the worst I have tried. I was taking Allesse, but had to switch to Aviane because of mild anxiety problems. It turns out, since taking Aviane (approx. 5 months) my anxiety has gotten worse, I suffer from nightmares, as well as extreme irritability. I become furious over the smallest things and I am typically a laid back person. I spend 3 days in bed during my period vomiting and with severe cramps, but this is due more to the endometriosis than anything. PMS starts about 2 weeks before I get my period, and I am extremely irritable for about a week after, this has not happened on any other pill. I go through periods of extreme depression, hopelessness, and am extremely tired. Also, since switching to Aviane I have battled with severe acne which I have never experienced before. I have gained a huge amount of weight. I am just waiting to see my doctor to get me off this horrible pill.

My son was on a cocktail of Singulair, Zyrtec, Astellin and Nasonex. Like a miracle, his severe allergies cleared up almost immediately. Months later, behavioral changes started to surface. Extreme irritability, major meltdowns over nothing, problems in school and pulling out his facial hair including eyelashes and eyebrows. We stopped the medication in April and he improved. By mid summer, the hair pulling stopped. When his allergies started up again about 10 days ago, I put him back on the Zyrtec, because I was certain the Singulair was causing most of the problems. Within 3-4 days, the emotional outbursts started, panic attacks that never happened before - he said he couldn't breathe. Now the hair pulling is back. Everyone thinks I want to blame medication for his problems, but I am certain that Zyrtec has something to do with these problems in addition to Singulair. We have taken him off Zyrtec 2 days ago. We have a dr. appointment in 2 days and we will discuss all of this with him. In the meantime, his allergies are back and he is miserable. I would rather him be physically sick than mentally at this point.

I was horrified to start femcon fe after reading all these blogs, but I decided to try it anyways with the hope that my experience would be different...and it has been so far. I was taking Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo for over four years and was always suffering immense Nausea ,low sex drive and extreme irritability. My nausea ceased overnight after taking femcon, I am no longer moody, my husband has noticed an increase in my sex drive and attitude.Lets just wait to see where this will go...

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.

I took paxil when I was around 24 years old. The stupid psychiatrist (who was so cold, and never smiled, and then asked me to tell her how I felt) at the time never warned me about NOT stopping it cold turkey. So one day I did stop and I experienced symptoms already described by other people: extreme relapse into depression and anxiety, felling like I "wasn't real", social phobia, agoraphobia and feeling suicidal. Now I am on Effexor and my doctor says "there are no withdrawal symptoms". I was put on Effexor due to a diagnosis of major depression last 6 months ago and I believe it was all precipitated by hormonal birth control. All the doctors and psychiatrists I spoke to about the possible link between hormonal birth control and depression and anxiety told me there was no link (or that it was very rare). I hate the attitude of the medical community:(

I just wanna cry.I had mine put in on April 9th 2008. I thought for sure I was crazy and I was making a big deal out of nothing. I have it all the depression, lethargy, extreme irritability, mood swings, cramping, back pain, stabbing pain in my abdomen, bloating, abnormal and irregular bleeding, headaches, nausea, dizziness, lack of motivation, reduced interest in sex, continuous yeast infections, sore breasts, weight gain, itchy flaky oily scalp, joint pain, continuous gotta go feeling, and I so could go on.......... I just wanna give up. I have 4 children and can't afford anymore. I can't deal with the way I feel all the time. I want to get it removed but I don't want to end up pregnant and I'm just at a loss I don't know what to do.

I can't even type fast enough to describe how astonished (and relieved) I was to run across NUMEROUS web sites with women describing the same symptoms as have been perplexing me the past few weeks. I had the marina iud inserted a little over a month ago and the past couple of weeks I"ve noticed such a dramatic change in myself, but couldn't figure out what was wrong with me. Depression, lethargy, extreme irritability, mood swings, cramping, back pain, swelling in my abdomen, abnormal and irregular bleeding, headaches, nausea, dizziness, lack of motivation, reduced interest in sex...these just top the list. I thought maybe I was pregnant again, but knowing that it wasn't possible when you haven't had sex because I've either been bleeding, in pain from cramping, irritable, or just couldn't get "excited". These are all things that I've never experienced before and I cannot place blame to post partum depression because I had 6 weeks post partum that I felt "normal"....energized, happy, motivated, patient...all the things that are "normal" to me. I wish I had done further research about iud placement before I decided to go with this form of birth control, but the pamphlet made it sound so dreamy and my doctor swore by the thing. Before this thing does any permanent damage to my body, or my relationships; I'm having it removed. Pregnancy is a better option for me at this point (at least without the iud I wouldn't be so frustrated with my children!) I couldn't imagine dealing with these symptoms for years. I've read of women even being driven to attempted suicide and being on the verge of divorce. NOT ME....I knew from the beginning I had a bad feeling about getting the iud....and I wish I had listened to my intuition!

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!

i am older than most of the women here. I am 49 (yeah turning the big 50 soon) and was having very long and heavy periods with extreme irritability and moodiness. The worst symptom though, was the cramping. So my doctor suggested NV and gave me two free samples. I just came home from vacation and ripped the second damn thing out. I have been spotting non stop. My entire lower pelvic region feels like it has been invaded by a version of the alien (Sigourney Weaver style), the cramps are continuous and unrelenting. My libido has gone from "not now" to "don't even think about it....ever".
I have been trying to soldier on but I don't think we are supposed to suffer like this.
I am trying to accept that my period will come and never go away. I will have continuous cramps, will never want sex again and will be irritable and angry all the time. But I was doing that all by myself so who needs the damn Nuvaring?

Monthly wicked migraines, right before period starts. Sometimes lasting on and off for 2 1/2 days. I had one so bad I had to go to the ER. I've never had problems with migraines before in my whole life. A few were very bad and makes me not want to do anything all day. I went to the neurologist just to get a pain medication for this.

Also was diagnosed with allergies last summer because I had 2 bad sinus infections.

Recently I have started to have acid reflux every night and now sometimes in the mornings. This sucks!! I am getting this removed.

I did several internet searches over the past several months and all these symptoms are caused by progestin (levonogestrol). This is not worth it.

I've had this thing in for over a year now, but all these symptoms appeared after getting this thing in.

Ive also been very moody around the time of the month, super irritable and bitchy.

My gyne suggested to take another drug to counteract, (basically prozac with another name) but that's like taking speed to counteract a downer. No thanks!!!!!!!!!!

I got this thing put in because of heavy periods, but it is totally NOT WORTH IT!! My health has suffered because of this.

I am going to tell you of my experience of being off the Nuvaring. I took it out 6 weeks ago. I got on the ring before my wedding last july. I used it for over a year. I had no experience with how sex was w/o birth control. I didn't know it wasn't supposed to be painful & burn after! The final straws for me were 10 lbs. gained in the last year that would not come off, despite serious dieting and working out 5 days/week. Extreme irritability, inconsistent with my nature, and constantly flying off the handle over little things. The nasty stuff always clinging to the ring when taken out wasn't too pleasant, either. D: Tingling in my legs when working out, migraines, all that jazz.

I was hoping the weight would fall off by now, but it has not. A few pounds lost as I have gone down a full cup size and my hips are shrinking to their original size. (btw, I was 115 at 5'6", now 125, and gained it all in my curvy areas, with a nice lil' pooch on my belly).

The other side effects left within 2 weeks and have not returned. My husband, who is skeptical of me contributing so much to the ring, did comment on how I smile more and am happy all the time. it's true; I am so much happier.

I have more energy and am able to fall asleep easier. I used to freak out at my husband and lay awake for hours with anxiety.(isn't that dumb?!) haven't done that in 6 weeks.

And lastly, I finally want to have sex. :)
thought something was wrong with a newly wed like me...

I have only been on using the NuvaRing for about 2 weeks now but I am already having mood swings and extreme irritability. I go to school with all men because I am trying to get into the aviation field and the guys I go to school with have informed me that I have become a super bitch. I did not attribute it to the ring until reading the other post's here. I usually ignore all the immature comments that the guys make but lately I have found myself bickering with them on a regular basis.

I have only had sex 3 times since I have been on the ring but each time I had an intense burning sensation on the exterior of my vagina, almost like a yeast infection. The reason that I decided to google the side effects of the ring is because ever since me period has ended I have had a think brownish discharge and cramps every day. I have been wearing panty liners for almost two weeks and this definitely needs to stop. The number one reason I decided to try birth control was because of my severe menstrual cramps, heavy periods and mid month spotting. Now I have all month spotting, what the hell!

By far the worst experience I have had since using the ring happened yesterday. As I mentioned before my irritability has definitely increased. That was very evident yesterday when while at work, of all places, I attacked a girl and beat her up. I was arrested and charged with battery. Granted the girl and I have been having an escalating fued for the last couple of months. My mother was also involved and she was more pissed with my mother than with me. But the fight had in no way been physical until yesterday when she began to curse at my mother. I lost it and swung her into the wall by her hair, she never even saw it coming. I sort of blacked out and cant even remember all the events. This whole thing was definitely out of character for me, especially since I was at work. I am fortunate to work at an office where we are all close enough to be called a family. My boss stood by me and did not fire me. He even bailed me out of jail but that is definitely one hell of a side effect

Dr. put me on Loestrin 24 on Dec 9, 2007. Immediately my period stopped (after a non-stop episode for 14 days) but then I started gaining weight (15 lbs), rapid heart rate after climbing 5 steps, extreme irritability to almost psycho stage and the kicker, my blood pressure kept shooting up. Today, it was at 154/99.

At the time I saw my OB/GYN a week ago, my BP was at 150/99 and she said she wasn't concerned. She doesn't feel that the pills have anything to do with my BP, weight gain or increased irritability. All my life, I've never had high BP until I got on these pills. I know my body.

Funny thing, my general practitioner was very concerned about my BP and told me to bring it down in 2 weeks or he's putting me on pills.

I've spotted for 5 days and am now on full-blown period (day 3) and it's heavy and my cramps are very painful. I have decided I will not to take the Loestrin starting tomorrow even though I risk the chance of having on-going periods.

I don't feel comfortable putting my heart at risk because of some pill supposedly regulating my period. Doesn't seem regulated with 5 days of minor spotting/clotting then full-on period. I have no clue how long it will last but at my age (45) guess that's just part of the cycle of being a woman.

I want to thank all of the women who posted on this website ..this is how we found out what was wrong with our daughter. She was on the NuvaRing for 4 years..she was extremely sick,...severe back pain, day and night sweats, memory fog, extreme irritability, hand tremors, hair loss, uncoordinated, weight gain, breast enlargement..the list goes on. She was so sick she couldn't stay awake..we had to move her back home. finally, one night we read what other women were saying, we called her up at midnight and said TAKE THAT THING OUT! She did and now 4 months later she is back to normal!!! She does have liver tumors that we are having checked out. My advise: GET OFF OF IT NOW LADIES!

Took it out today after being on it for only 2 weeks. Noticed a change in my personality after one day. Have become increasingly withdrawn from friends and family, extreme irritability, complete loss of sex drive, can't sleep, loss of energy, increased appetite, aches in my legs and vagina, headaches, and zits like you wouldn't believe. The worst is the anxiety and depression which led me to this site after doing a search on side effects. I was on the pill for years and had some irritability here and there but nothing like this.
Had a baby 2 months ago and have been freaking out that I was just now getting post partum depression but I believe it is the ring!!! To those who will argue, the ring becomes effective after only 7 days which means that the meds rush into your system almost immediately after insertion.

Thank you all for sharing. I thought I was all alone.

The other really bad side effect which I forgot to mention was constantly feeling thirsty, but no matter how much water I drink, it doesn't make a difference. I also noticed a bad taste in my mouth since I started taking Yasmin. I was brushing my teeth 5 times a day but as soon as I brush them, the bad taste comes back. I wanted to go on the pill b/c I have really painful periods and am prone to ovarian cysts, but for me, this is even worse than bad periods. I think the only way to know is to try it, b/c I do have friends who use it and like it, but for me, it had very negative side effects.

I've also had so many problems that I never realized until recently were related to Yasmin. I'm so angry at myself for not realizing sooner. I started taking Yasmin about 3 years ago because I was on Ortho Cyclen for a long time and stupidly thought maybe I'd try something new. Ortho was great, the only reason I switched is because I like to run my packs together and skip periods and I was starting to have breaththrough with the Ortho. BIG MISTAKE. I've had nothing but issues since, and I consider myself a stable, normally functioning woman. Since staring Yasmin 3 years ago, my libido has completely dried up. In fact I can barely let my sweet hubby touch me, let alone initiate it. We're starting to argue constantly because things irritate me that never did before. I've had mini anxiety and panic attack symptoms, blurry vision, foggy head feelings, and weird inner ear pain with occasional ringing I never had before. The worst part is, shortly after starting this terrible drug I developed IBS when I'd never had it before. Now I literally run for the potty after every meal. I cannot even lead a normal life anymore. I've struggled off and on with depressive type feelings, but for the most part have been able to muster through. Some days I am just so fricking tired though I can barely get out of bed. Oddly enough, I also get very hungover from even small amounts of alcohol....(also unusual for me)

More recently I have developed increasing chest tightness and palpitations. I am only 33 and have been checked out and they say nothing is wrong, except for my BP which always used to be very low, and has risen steadily over the last 3 years. I have also experienced significant bloating to the point most of my clothing no longer fits, despite the fact that I eat little given the IBS. My thyroid has been tested and is fine.

Finally, my hair has gone from great spirally curls that I loved to limp, weird half staright, half frizzy. I've never had this ever before. You literally could see this happen over the last few years as new hair grew in, it pushed the curls out and left this behind. I actually blamed my hairdressers and went from salon to salon before I put it all togehter!

I stopped Yasmin 2 days ago as I have had enough. I want to take something though so I started Seasonale, but this will be it. I'm giving it 6 months and if things aren't better I'm done with hormonal BC. I think with so many women who have had serious problems on this pill, you'd think they would listen. My GYN said no way it could be the Yasmin causing the IBS, but Yasmin does increase serotonin levels and the number one side effect of serotonin is diarrhea...so I think it is the cause!!

This is only the 3rd day I'm taking Singulair. Tonight when I got home I quickly did a search for Singulair side effects. Here is what I had been feeling.

1) Extreme deep neuromuscular pain in my neck and shoulders and extreme pulling muscle tension along the length of my spine.

2) Thoughts of paranoia.

3) Extreme irritability

4) Heart palpitations

5) General feeling of malaise

6) Feeling that there is some toxic substance in my body ...

It is the Singulair!

7) Very very bad case of indigestion and upset stomach

After 1 week. I experienced moods that I had never encountered before. I had extreme irritability and dark thoughts. I wanted to get rid of my pets. Hated my kids, and hated everything. People at work or on TV, I felt like killing them. I felt like a walking time bomb serial killer. I immediately stopped taking the Lamictal after 1 week. I could tell a difference by the next day. I was still depressed but not suicidal or full of hate that I experienced on the Lamictal. This type of side effect can happen with any mood stabilizers or anti depressant type drugs. I'm glad I knew this, or I would have killed my pets, family and myself.

only took for 3 weeks, experienced EXTREME irritability, hypersensitivity, paranoia, crying spells; no effect on skin (same as when i was on Yazmin), no weight gain