Food cravings symptoms and conditions

I have taking a generic for celexa, until recently I was satisfied with the results, but I had noticed weight gain. I called my doctor and asked to be put on something which would help with the weight gain. What a mistake, she put me on zoloft and now I have not only gained 5 lbs in the week I have taken it, but I cannot sleep, suffer from headaches, suffer from food cravings at night and taking clonazepam is not helping. Under normal circumstances taking 1/2 of a clonazepam would give me great rest. Last night I took, 1 and 3/4 and still could not sleep. Needless to say, I am going back to my other antidepressant. I am small boned and when I gain weight, My blood pressure goes up, which then requires me to take pills for that. I don't want to go on blood pressure meds just because of the weight gain. Hope this helps someone.

Okay, I had to stop reading all these posts because it all makes sense now! Never even attributed half of my symptoms with NuvaRing and so I got up in the middle of this and took the thing out for good. I just started the NR about 1 week ago and I was joking with my boyfriend that my lack of sex drive but be how the birth control works. haha I haven't used anything besides condoms for about 6-7 years until now.

Lost all my sex drive
burning sensation the one time I had sex
Food cravings and weight gain
MOODY, I am such a light-hearted person and now everything ticks me off and trying not to be mean to my new boyfriend...but DON'T TOUCH ME
Breasts are so sore. Can't touch them at all.
Night sweats
Sleepiness
all day blahs and no desire to work or be productive
Stop wearing my contacts because of dryness.

All of this within a week. I thought I was crazy and got online to check low sex drive as a side effect for NR and found a lot of similar symptom with other people that I would have never put with the NR. I will wait a week or two and then come back and update to see if I go back to normal.

I had mine removed less than a week ago after using it for almost 2.5 years. Like most, I did my research post insertion (I'm finishing up my PhD and have always been very 'body aware') and thought I knew what I was getting into. I've had 2 children (now 11 and 13) so I'm familiar with the pregnant feeling.
My life has been pretty turbulent for the last 3 years (grad school, divorce, cross-country move, intense new romance) and I blamed my symptoms on stress. The last 9 months, however, have been relatively calm. With that background, here's the low down:
Long term symptoms (since within a few months of insertion): Mood swings (very up to very down), Depression (with poor response to treatment), Bloating, Bleeding (sometimes almost all month...mellowed after 1 year), Cramping, Hair loss, Vision effects, Mental fog (pregnancy brain), Weight gain (20 lbs in 2.5 years), Hip pain
More recent symptoms that finally tipped me off: Acceleration of mood swings and brain fog, Lethargy, Acceleration of wt gain (despite consistent workouts and diet), Spike in blood pressure (feeling heart beat in finger tips...like when I was pregnant...verified by nurse at removal appointment. Mirena documentation says remove it if you get a spike in BP), Panic attacks (totally irrational with no external explanation, lasted for days), Suicidal thoughts (SO not like me).
In just in the few days since removal, my mental clarity has improved immensely. Nothing like being foggy when trying to write a dissertation! My energy level is way up. While I've been working out regularly for a few months with continued wt gain, I can feel it coming off now, already. My moods are much, much better. Little things have been throwing me way off track for a long time. I had a couple emotional knocks last night that just rolled right off (no gruesome details, just know that a week ago I'd have been in a puddle of tears). My blood pressure is down and food cravings are gone. Hips feel much better.
Doc at Planned Parenthood said that she has seen a few women in her clinic who have had problems and wanted the Mirena removed (cost me $94). She thinks it might be the beginning of the wave. I had no idea that the hormones in the device could be causing so much trouble. Over the last year, especially, I have adjusted my whole life and lifestyle to stabilize my moods (and maintain a relationship with my very patient partner), not linking them to all the other symptoms. Ugh. I am relieved and angry at the same time. The difference, pre and post, is night and day.
FYI, I had a few hot flashes the day after removal, along with a mild headache for a few days. I was on my (light) period when I had it taken out and it's still tapering off. Moods were pretty rough the first afternoon post-removal (another suicidal rant in my journal) but consistently good since then.
I'm going to circulate a cautionary message with my girlfriends and grad student peers. I sure would have liked to have known long ago what was causing me so much trouble.

First of all, a big thanks to all of you who have shared your experiences. I am a biochemist, with a background in pharmaceutical research...I chose the Mirena IUD after careful consideration of it's active ingredient, Levonorgestrel. The side effect profile seemed pretty acceptable...until I started to experience nearly ALL of them...I am 33 years old and had the Mirena IUD placed in October of 2008 after the birth of my second child in June of 2008. The initial reaction was to be expected...cramping, a little spotting etc...nothing to be alarmed about. I still have yet to have a period (which I really don't miss so no problem there) I never gave a second thought to this until now...for the past month or so (coinciding with the weening process, since I have been nursing the entire time, I believe the side effects were not as noticeable) I have been experiencing the following (that may or may not be related to Mirena as my OBGYN has so adamantly pointed out, but after reviewing your posts I'm willing to bet they're connected) and are in order of occurrence: Major, but temporary, hair loss after 2 months or so; Major respiratory infection lingering over a month with difficulty breathing, tightness and pain in the chest at around 6 mos; And in the past month, several instances of motion-like sickness/ nausea, dizziness, blurred vision, major impatience/ mood swings, loss of appetite (pregnancy-like symptoms...yep, I was thinking man I'd be pretty pissed if I was that 0.01% pregnant statistic), and as of this past weekend, my first aurora migraine with tunnel vision and serious nausea and vomiting, to the point where I went to Urgent Care...who referred me to the ER...who wants to perform a battery of tests including a head CT. I have an appointment with a trusted GP tomorrow to discuss possible root causes...but it is to coincidental that so many women are experiencing these same symptoms! I am certainly leaning towards having this removed. CAN THOSE OF YOU WHO HAVE HAD THIS REMOVED PLEASE RESPOND IF YOUR SYMPTOMS SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED OR WERE RESOLVED!!! THANK YOU!
These side effects seem to go well beyond a 5% rate of incidence according to all of you who have reported. I will investigate further and keep everyone posted. As someone who is highly experienced in the pharmaceutical industry, you bet your a$$ I'm going to get to the bottom of this! Good luck ladies!

I THINK WE WERE DUPED!

Is anyone thinking that the drug company knew all of this, and therefore has been marketing specifically to women who have just given birth... this way, the postpartum symptoms are the scapegoat:

bleeding
cramping
hair loss (very common 3 months after.. I believe I lost more than most)
insomnia (very common after delivery due to motherly hormones have
you on high-alert))
No sex drive (because we're either breastfeeding, hormonal, or just feel
fat)
Mood swings (because of our ever-changing post-partum hormones)
depression, crying (must be Post-Partum Depression!)
Joint pain, back pain (we're carrying our new baby around too much)
Bingeing and Food cravings (we're home alone and bored or
breastfeeding)
No sex drive (we are bitchy, unsociable, depressed, feel overweight and have no energy.. I'm surprised they still want to have sex with us?!!)

hi ladies, im 18 years old, and i started taking loestrin 24 almost a month ago. The first 2-3 weeks i felt no different as i usually would. No depression, No headaches, but i did experience strong emotions, like i wanted to cry more often over practically nothing.. for a few days, but that went away. Randomly i started spotting between the 2nd-3rd week, but it wasn't just light spotting. I bled for about 6 days. Having sex felt a little different. Once the bleeding was gone, now ive been spotting here and there for the past few days. My mom says that it might not be strong enough hormones for me, so if any of you are having this problem, ask your doctor because it may not be working as a contraceptive. I guess we will see how it goes!

Hash thyriod disease with vitiligo.Synthroid .88mg. 3 yrs on Synthroid.
NONE OF THESE SYMPTOMS I HAVE HAD BEFORE SYNTHROID.
SEVERE knee pain,ovary pain,joint pain, bone pain,muscle aches, fatigue, sleep apnea, weight gain,depression, anxiety, edema, FIBROMYALGIA / LUPUS SYMPTOMS,chronic inflammation, numbness in left foot,numbness in left hand, lower back pain, headaches,elbow pain,abdominal pain, brain fog,HAIR LOSS and greasy hair (always had thick curly drier hair) greasy skin, white pimple-ish areas on arms, itchy breast, lymph breast pain,increased hunger, strong food cravings, irritability,high blood sugars (I am type 1 diabetic) synthroid is known to mess with insulin in a diabetic, all my symptoms have had one test or another ran and all come back normal. I have no diabetic neuropathys..which surprised the doctors when my nerve tests came back normal...he was blaming my diabetes for most symptoms and told me to eat less in regards to weight gain.Still he brushed off my symptoms. I have asked my (endo doctor) to put me on Armour but she refused, she said I would be taking steps into the dark ages.
As if the symptoms are not enough, I am developing more.
NEW SYMPTOMS..Globus sensation (feels like constant lump in throat) eye twiches, eye floaters (not diabetic related).
I did experience twice after a higher dosage was made I felt great for the first two weeks and then like crap again.
I have oddly noticed I have crazy-fast hair growth, although my hair is thinning and not replaced..I have to shave twice a day.

Also I read a comment about one person switching synthroid to evening and said they felt better. I am pretty sure this is because doing it that way the body absorbs less synthroid. And for any one who doesn't know..synthroid takes calcium from the bones over time.
I am sure the avg person on synthroid complains to a dr about symptoms and doctors never get a clue.

I'am 45 year old female and I have been on simvastatin 40mg for at least 6 months. Here in the past 3 weeks I have had very weak legs and arms,they felt like they were wet noodles. I also was getting these week spells where it felt like I couldn't lift my arms or legs cause they was so weak.I had pain in my ear and big bad headaches that wouldn't leave. My heart feels like it skips a beat and I get very bad anxiety attacks. I have been to the ER several times and they can not find anything wrong. I even got very dizzy. The ER doctor told me that the dizziness and headaches was from a inter ear disturbance,well I think the inter ear disturbance might have come from the simvastatin after running across this web site. I'm going off the simvastatin tomorrow! Oh yeah and forgot to mention the weight gain and the tiredness and how I feel like a couch zombie. I think I'll stick to my salmon oil.

PLEASE HELP! My father, age 74, was on lipitor for a year or so and then was switched to zocor a few weeks ago to help control his cholestorol. In the past week, the tightening he experienced in his leg, while on lipitor, has become debilitating leg pain now while he is on Zocor. Ultrasounds have ruled out a blood clot. He has no pain when he sits, but he describes the pain has his calf wanting to explode when he stands and he cannot walk with out the help of a cain. The pain radiates from his leg up to his hip.

His cardiologist has taken him off the zocor for a few weeks to see if there is an improvement. It has been 3 days and he feels a bit of relief. SO here is the million dollar question: His labs indicate his cholestorol is normal now, most likely thanks to the statins.....can anyone suggest another form of meds that will help regulate his cholestorol....say COeq10 and fish oil? Any help is SO appreciated!!! Thanks to each of you for your posts. It is so comforting for my dad to know he isn't developing a new issue and that it can be resolved with the removal of zocor!

Sounds so familiar! Food cravings like I was pregnant, even with the aid of a prescription diet pill, moodiness, PMS like I haven't had in YEARS!!!! Periods heavy and generally felt horrible.

I'm a couple weeks into taking this Loestrin pill, after being on Seasonique for about 3 months, and I'm nervous about it. I'm in a monogamous relationship with my boyfriend, he uses condoms , and I'm on birth control , but I'm experiencing nausea in the morning, weird food cravings, unpleasant cramps, headaches, but still light blood spotting. I was absolutely terrified that I was pregnant, but after reading these other entries, it seems mildly common to 'be pregnant' for a month. To be safe I'm getting a pregnancy test, but I'm hoping that the chemicals in the Loestrin doesn't mess with the test. I don't think I dig these pills very much if this is going to happen every month.

I began reading all of the blogs about Topamax and was surprised. I have been taking Topamax as a mood stabilizer since February 2007 at 200 mg at bed time (I probably sleep off the fatigue). The only side effect I am concerned about is the weight loss. Short term memory is not an issue. As a matter of fact, I am attend college and am managing a 3.85 gpa. I wish all of you the best of luck and hope you find something that works for you.

I've had my Mirena for about 15 and a half months and I am having it removed today at 2 o'clock. At first I had sharp pains when I would sit down and I felt like the cords were poking me and irritating me. My OB/GYN requires patients to come back one month after having it put in so he can check it and make sure it is still in place. At this visit he also trimmed the cords although he acted like he didn't believe me when I told him that I could feel them poking me when I sat down and that it hurt. At first I didn't notice any bad side effects, but I did have one good one: my periods stopped, but I still had occasional and sporadic spotting. I didn't think to look for any bad side effects because I got the device under the impression that it had no bad side effects. I thought it only had a rare complication of perforating the uterus, but since mine was in place at the one month check, I didn't think about anymore until I started thinking about having another baby recently. I went online to see if I had to have a doctor remove the Mirena or if I could do it myself, and I found out that it's best done by a professional because bad things can happen and then you'd have to go to the doctor anyway. Plus, I didn't want to hurt my chances of having another baby. While online I discovered this whole world of message boards where women were having a lot of the same problems I'd been having in recent months and they all blamed their Mirenas. Some claimed that their problems had gone away since having it removed. I never thought to link my circumstances to the Mirena, but when I saw how many women are having the exact same problems as me I knew that I needed to go ahead and get mine out ASAP. Here is a list of my side effects, and I've found other women have had them as well with Mirena: weight gain, bloated stomach, depression, short temper with husband and daughter, acne, low sex drive, spotting, cramps, constipation, and back pain. There may be more, but I can't remember them all right now. Some of them may not even be related to the device, but I've read of so many women with Mirena who are having or have had the same issues, so I suspect a link between my problems and Mirena. I hope this helps someone out there looking for answers. God Bless!

I've taken many different brands of birth control pills on and off throughout the years and never really experienced any kind of side effects except for maybe upset stomach or food cravings. From the very first day of taking Necon I felt tightness in my chest, dizziness, lightheaded, lose of appetite, and extreme fatigue. I've also had spotting all throughout the month and have started my period a week early. I'm not even done with my first pack, but I am going to see my doctor today to switch to another pill.

Extreme fatigue. Serious bouts of depression over minor things. Loss of desire in wanting to do daily activities such as cleaning, attending church service, going to school. Food cravings of bananas, strawberries, dairy products, potatoes. Body craves more water. I have been drinking more than the daily recommended amount of water.

Reading through these postings, I am surprised that so many women out there have had negative experiences with Desogen. I have had an extremely positive experience with Solia (the generic). It got rid of my preexisting, extremely painful premenstrual cramps, lightened my flow, didn't cause weight gain or bloating, cleared up my skin tone, and the melasma that is known to occur with high dosage pills didn't even happen to me. Conversely, I tried Yasmin about a year ago for about 5 months and it drove me bloody mad - intense food cravings, cramps came back, increased irritability - you name it, I had it. My advice to all the women out there is you really just have to try various pills until you find one that works for you. It's unfortunate and inconvenient, but if the side effects are significant enough to motivate you to research them online, then you owe it to yourself to switch pills.

I started my daughter on Apri in May of 2004 to help extreme period cramps & cysts building up and causing pain. During that time she developed severe headaches, gained 20-25 lbs weight, awful mood swings, depression. Hair loss, not much help with acne and also discoloration of skin. It is now August 2006 and she has been off for appx. 1 mo and it is an amazing difference. She said terrible food cravings that she was having for sweets have gotten way better - please think twice b/4 putting your kids on this - I am now looking at other healthier alternatives...

weight gain, food cravings and or repelled by it. Sore and larger breasts.

Well, I just stumbled across this site but WOW am I happy I did. I just started Yasmin about a month ago and have experienced some weird things. I've been having these random occurances I guess you could call anxiety attacks? I start getting really hot and then start shaking and a huge headache and my throat starts closing up and then my head goes blank with a MASSIVE headache. I also have constant headaches, random food cravings, and I am constantly thirsty. I've also been in such pain and it's a hastle to walk places and I am constantly tired. I thought it could just be growing pains untill I came across this site.

Could this all be related to the pill?

And what are the attacks called that I had described above?

Is this pill worth taking since it's doing all of this to my body?

Is there any other pills less risky I could take?

Thanks in advance.

I took Yasmin for 3 weeks. I felt so nauseous I struggled to eat and lost 10lb in weight. I got headaches, dizziness and some mild anxiety. I can totally relate to the lady with the food cravings. I could only eat certain things and just the thought of a lot of foods made me feel sick immediately. I have now been off Yasmin for a month and have only just started to feel better - I am eating more normally now (although not gaining weight) and find that I just feel a bit weird from time to time. Feeling ill for this relatively short amount of time has been a nightmare and I feel for all you ladies who are suffering for much longer. I have now come off birth control completely after 17 years of taking various pills. I'd rather use other methods than go through Yasmin again or risk taking anything else that could cause the same effects.

Rachel, UK

hmmm , i really like the ring, i'm at the end of my 3rd month and i've actually lost weight (but i think that may be because its summer time and i've been eating a little less), and my boobs arent sore at all, none of the usual BC pill side effects. the only thing i can say is that i get dizzy sometimes when i get up too fast, and i've been wondering lately if i am depressed. i've also been wondering if its even working because i seem to be getting my normal PMS (crying, and food cravings) toward the 3rd week. i'm gonna wait a couple more months i think, because this is the best thing i've tried yet. :[

Post your symptoms since stopping Yasmin!!!

Hey everyone it's Kay21 here and I just wanted to post my 3 month off Yasmin update. Because stopping the pill is a hard decision, I figured we should all post are updates here to help/support those who are planning to stop or who have recently stopped Yasmin.

I have been off of Yasmin since April 17. As some of you already know, I was experiencing horrible side effects while on Yasmin for 3 years (particularly stomach problems, vaginal dryness, muscle cramps, increased blood pressure and heart rate and anxiety).

The first 1 month off of Yasmin was okay. In fact, I felt the best I had ever felt in a while. My blood pressure and heart rate decreased and the migraines and muscle cramps went away. But when I hit the 2 month (8 week) mark, I felt HORRIBLE. I was severely depressed and anxious. I was crying all the time and felt a severe sense of DOOM! The physical symptoms also started to become problematic. The acne increased and I started growing more facial hair. The worse symptom, however, was that I started losing a ton of hair. I would lose stray hairs all day (probably about 200 a day). Since I have hit the three month mark, the hair loss has gotten MUCH WORSE! Now I am losing CLUMPS of hair all day. I have seen several doctors about this. Some say it's because of stress and a few (a derm, GYN and endo) say that hiar loss is common after stopping bcp. I have already loss about 1/3 of my hair.

I am also really concerned, because I have not had a period since April 22. So my doctor has put me on provera for 10 days to induce a period.

For those who have stopped Yasmin, what have your symptoms been (i.e. increased acne, weight gain, anxiety, etc.). Has anyone experienced hair loss? How long did it take to get a period???

Thanks...

I just received my second shot for Lupron. I took my first shot three months ago and had very mild side effects. I have some hot flashes, back pain, occasional migraine, and food cravings, but overall I feel better. (I have metastatic breast cancer that has spread to bone, which is why I'm taking Lupron, along with Femara and Zometa).

I also continue to take excellent care of myself (which I have for years), including working at a job I love, taking daily long walks, some yoga, very clean diet, acupuncture, homeopathy, and supplements. Taking 200 mg of alpha lipoic acid with meals and eating many snacks throughout the day seems to help with the migraines as this evens out my blood sugar.

Overall I'm pleased with the drug and all my doctors agree that I'm doing extremely well and, amazing as it seems, after quite an ordeal, getting well.

K

I've never been on desogen but I was on several other birth control pills, Yasmin, Ortho Tri Cyclen, depo-provera and ortho Evra. All four created serious emotional and health problems ranging from pimples to severe nausea, to muscle aches and pain to EXTREME mood swings especially crying, anger and feelings of "neediness". Worst of all was the 20 lb weight gain and constant food cravings. In 1998 I got 2 shots of Depo Provera and immediately gained nearly 10 lbs per shot regardless of the fact that I was very active travelling all over at the time. After the second shot wore off and my body's metabolism returned to normal, the weight melted off just fine. I began taking ortho evra in 2001 because I established a monogamous relationship with a boyfriend. The effects were horrible, I began having terrible tantrums for no reason with him and that is NOT my style. I couldn't concentrate on anything without feeling emotional and irrational. Also within the next 3 months I gained 15 lbs and another 5 over the next month, and it would NOT come off no matter what kind of dieting or exercise I did. A year later, I quit the pill and suddenly my diet began to "work" and I lost 15 lbs immediately. I met my current boyfriend a few months later and decided that pregnancy was just not an option and tried ortho tri cyclen. Same results, horrible mood swings and creeping weight gain that happened WAY too quickly for the way I eat which is very sensible and low-calorie. I switched to Yasmin and immediately my sex drive was GONE. My boyfriend couldnt get ANYTHING to work down there, if you get my drift. In 2003, I finally made the decision to just give up on birth control and try pull-out, condoms, and ovulation monitoring methods. I lost 20 lbs within the first 4 months and another 5 later on and my emotions returned to normal.

I am just writing this to let you gals know that theres other methods besides stuffing synthetic hormones into our bodies that create BIG problems for our mental and physical health. Educate yourselves on other methods of birth control. Birth control pills aren't supposed to prevent pregnancy by making you a sexless, fat, emotionally labile and crazy woman that no man wants to have sex with much less spend time with. Hah.