Gastrointestinal problems symptoms and conditions

Ok so...I started taking Loestrin 24 almost a year ago and I can't really complain too much. I've had a few pregnancy scares because of missed periods but they were just that- missed periods. And there's nothing wrong missing a period or two imo :D
About two weeks ago I ran out and couldn't refill so I neglected to take any pills for a week, figuring I would just pick back up when I could. I've since started taking them regularly again but in those two weeks my personality changed sooo much. In an attempt to describe myself I'd say I was...confused and depressed, for no real reason. My stomach was so messed up I don't even want to share the details. And the strangest thing... I've noticed two VERY SMALL spots (one on my upper thigh and one on my butt) that are slightly red and drier than the skin around it. I'm positive it's not an STD but I'm concerned nonetheless.
In conclusion, I'm gonna take my pills regularly from now on.

But seriously if anyone else has gotten weird small spots of dry skin, plz respond cause it's definitely worrying me a little.

omg finally someone who understands me....i got my Mirena put in august '06, and ever since i have felt totally out of it... i am tired all of the time, i feel totally detached from reality, cronic panic attacks, much longer heavier periods, intense back pain, sore breasts, i have had a very short temper, shortness of breath, aching legs, headaches, nausea, gastrointestinal problems... and many many others... not to mention the toll it has taken on my relationship with my children, because of the way i have been feeling i haven't spent the quality time with them that i should have.... i thought i was going crazy and that it was all just in my head... i am going to get it taken out ASAP... i will let you know how i feel afterwards

I have just sat here and cried listening to your story and your side effects! Finally, I feel like someone gets what I've been going through! Hell! I had Mirena put in this past Aug. '08 for heavy periods and cramping after surgery in March for endometriosis (my 5th) and then two session of the worse drug in the world, Lupron. The Lupron had already made me gain weight and then the Mirena came along and made me gain more! I have taken 4 pregnancy test in the time I have been on it. Really convinced at times I was pregnant. I felt so bad, so tired, nausea. That was basically the whole months of Nov. and Dec. Now I have acne which I've never had, still horrible cramps, cramps in my legs, my period are back to every month, my pms is horrible. I can barely get out of the bed, I am so tired and when I do I can barely keep my eyes open. I feel like I have been hit by a truck. Cramping all the time! Headaches. I'm so swollen! I feel in a fog! People will be talking to me and I have know idea what they are saying. It drives you crazy, like you are just in another world! Insomnia. Just feel miserable especially, when I'm about to start my period. I've started spotting again. My periods are heavy again and I have huge blood clots! MY breasts are engorged! Huge! So uncomfortable. I've felt so alone. My doctor said this will be so great for you because it will eventually leave you with no periods, which will help with your endometriosis pain, but I'm really not sure that will ever happen! People don't understand how hormones can make you feel so awful! I have a 2 yr. old and I feel so guilty being so tired and feeling bad all the time! I just want to fell good for once since I've had him. It is the worse feeling when they just dismiss what ur saying to be something else and I'm smart enough to know and know my body well enough by now, with all the crap I've been through to know when it is the Mirena. Thank all of you for sharing your stories and making me feel that I'm not alone anymore!

I have been on Topamax for about two years for migraines, and was very pleased that after the first month or two, most of the noticeable side effects (dizziness, flat-tasting soda, etc.) disappeared, and the Topamax has been very effective in cutting my migraines in half. However, I've recently begun to question whether other health problems I've been experiencing are actually Topamax side effects and I just didn't realize it.

The first is intermittent stomach troubles that have been ongoing for the last year. Starting last January, I started experiencing diarrhea, stomach pain, and other persistent gastrointestinal problems, and through online research, I decided that it was probably either a spastic colon or Irritable Bowel Syndrome. I lost 15-20 lbs. in the spring and summer, but the problems would always recede before I took them to my doctor, then resurface just long enough to irritate me before disappearing again. It never occurred to me until recently that these could be Topamax side effects.

The other possible side effect that I assumed was an unrelated problem is interruptions to my sleep pattern. I have been experiencing some occasional bouts of sleep paralysis, and which researching this, read that in normal sleep patterns, one is supposed to enter REM sleep (when dreaming occurs) after about 90 minutes. I frequently enter into dream sleep in as short as a 20-30 minute nap, which does not seem to be normal. Again, researching this, the only two explanations that came up were narcolepsy, which I obviously do not have, and that my normal sleep patterns are being interrupted "by medication." So I'm back to wondering if it's the Topamax. Has anyone experienced similar sleep symptoms?

extreme constipation, gastrointestinal problems, mood swings, weight gain, no energy,

I was on Yasmin for 3 months or so earlier this year, and ended up going off of it because of side effects, but looking back on it now, I may have just found out what caused my gastrointestinal problems that I've had since then.

I was put on Yasmin like a lot of other people because I was having really irregular periods - like, I would go 2 or 3 months without a period, and all of my periods were EXTREMELY heavy. My gynecologist put me on Yasmin as a first attempt, saying it was the least amount of hormones, it wouldn't screw me up, I'd lose weight, acne would clear up (now, I've never had much acne, but most of what I had actually was related to the make up I was using. Let's clarify that now).

It worked miracles for me for my period. I was completely regular, normal flow, exact amount of days, barely any cramps. After about 2 months, though, I started having... not really mood swings, but emotionally violent reactions. I'd overreact to things, I'd freak out about things - I wouldn't necessarily have panic attacks, but I essentially had mini breakdowns. For example, one day, I was in hysterics for 5 or 6 hours because I thought that registration for the next semester started that day, and I had missed getting into the class I wanted.

My parents made me get off the Yasmin, thinking that had to be the only thing that could cause them. They even went so far as to confiscate all the packages I had, knowing I had no way to get any more, just in case I tried to use it without them knowing (this makes me sound like an addict. They were just overreacting, though).

Within 2 weeks of stopping, my mood swings were almost completely gone. Looking back, there was some nervousness and depression in those months as well, but the emotional lability was the most prominent thing.

Now, around Summer 2007, I began having stomach and hip pains - the stomach pains around my period, and hip pains (I call them hip pains, they felt like a 1-inch diameter steel rod was being stabbed through my pelvis) with exercise. We assumed that the stomach pains were cramps, but as it reached into Fall 07 and neither went away, they simply got worse, we began to worry. We considered appendicitis, cysts on my ovaries, nothing turned up. Eventually we determined that the hip pains were probably due to my cyatic nerve being pinched, and figured that the stomach pains were associated, and went on with life. I dropped my dance classes, and the hip pains went away. The stomach pains continued to worsen, though.

They were still focused around my period, though, and I was beginning to have diarrhea due to the pain. These pains would literally tense my ab muscles so bad I couldn't move. Around the time I went on Yasmin, however, they got a lot worse. I was no longer just having diarrhea around my period, it was all month long, every bite I put in my mouth. It was worse around the period, however.

After I went off the Yasmin, though, the gastrointestinal problems have never gone away. I have been through nearly every test I could be put through to figure out what has caused such severe stomach problems. The cramps have all but gone away, but there are days where I'm so sick I can't even drink water. I had to do a non-academic withdrawal from most of my classes this semester because of how bad my stomach is.

Now, I'm not saying for sure that my stomach problems are linked to the Yasmin, but... let's just say there's a strong chance, and I'm going to my doctor and having them pull my records tomorrow.

My husband was having gastrointestinal problems for about a week. The PA at his primary care physician's office prescribed Levaquin for 7 days. Blood taken ½ hr after Levaquin started showed liver levels to be a little high. By the 3rd or 4th day my husband was jaundiced. Blood taken on the 6th day revealed liver levels dramatically higher. He is still jaundiced and liver levels are still at the higher level. Had ERCP procedure, CT scan of abdomen and MRCP, but no conclusions other than stricture of bile duct and possibly pancreatic cancer, although a mass has not been seen on any film. Has this happened to anyone else on Levaquin? Doctors want to try ERCP again and if that does not work then the Whipple Procedure which is major surgery to remove a possible pancreatic cancer that they have not seen.

Two days ago I took out my third molars (wisdom teeth), afterwards I took a prescription strength 600mg Ibuprofen with no side effects. I took another pill 6 hours later, and I have been having the worst upper stomach pain, much worse than the tooth ache ever was since then. I have been waking up with agonizing pain every hour for the past two nights, and I can't even take Tylenol for my tooth pain now since my stomach is so messed up (I tried and it cause horrible stomach pain).

So on top of having to treat the stomach problem, I can't take any pain medication for my teeth and I'm just miserable. I'm 25 years old and have never had stomach problems before, the first night I thought I was poisoned or something and I was dieing. I think the small label on the bottle that says "if it causes upset stomach, take it with crackers or bread" needs to be replaced with "it doesn't matter what you take it with, it can cause much more pain that you have ever imagined." Because it actually doesn't matter if you take it with bread, or inject it to yourself, the function of ruining the stomach lining is because of it's anti-inflammatory chemicals, not direct contact with stomach.

I read about it now, and apparently the deaths from Ibuprofen and Aspirin (anti-inflammatory pain medications) caused by gastrointestinal problems is about as many as deaths by HIV-Aids in USA*. I don't see any Ibuprofen awareness rallies though. I wish I had time to sue someone because I really really want to.

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This is my second day on Doxycycline.I was prescribed Doxycycline yesterday, for a sinus infection. I am on 100mg BID. my sinus infections are, well, I get on an antibiotic about once a year. This is, I believe the first time I've been on Doxycycline. Yesterday, the pharmacist warned me about being sure to eat with it. I took the pill, but did not eat enough food, and I had nausea. I did eat food with it last night, and did much better. Today I ate food with it, but I do notice that if I don't eat meals, I get very nauseous. Of course, the antibiotic has not kicked in yet. my throat is still sore,I hope it kicks in soon. I tend to rush antibiotics, and I'm a nurse, and know better.

Up until the end of August, 2007, I was on 20mg of Abilify a day. I weened myself off of the Abilify before my wedding on October 20. Then, I went on my honeymoon to Germany. When I returned from Germany, I could not sleep. This lasted for 3 weeks, until I felt like I had to go to the hospital to get knocked out or I would die. My family doctor told me to see a psychiatrist because I went off my meds without medical supervision. The new psychiatrist prescribed Seroquel for my insomnia. She gradually increased it until I was getting about 6 hours a night. I'm now on 500 mg, which I take about two hours before bedtime. I've noticed an increase in my breast size in less than one month of use. I've also gained about 5-7 pounds. Some days, I feel hazy during the day and some nights I have difficulty taking a deep breath. I am seeing a new psychiatrist tomorrow to see about getting off of Seroquel and on something else. Its great for insomnia, but the side effects are immediate and troubling.

I had been on Toprol XL 50 mg. for three years. In April of this year, I began having gastrointestinal problems. By May, I was sick just about every day with gas, bloating, cramping, pain and nausea. I was seeing a gastroenterologist practice almost weekly. Over the next five months, I had just about every test, scan, and scope there was to do to no avail. By June, I began having anxiety attacks simultaneously with the gastric episodes. The doctors could find no reason for the symptoms and I was referred to another specialist and tests that were ordered at a medical facility 50 miles away. I had also lost 38 lbs. because I was unable to eat without becoming sick. In November, I notice that my hair was thinning and my family doctor said that it could be from the Toprol. At that point, I discovered this website and began reading the postings. I cut the Toprol dosage in half after informing my doctor about it. In three days, I started to feel better. I also read more of the postings and saw that other were fine on the brand name Toprol but had problems with the generic. Click went the light bulb. Towards the end of March of this year, I had been switched to the generic. I began weaning myself from the medication and took the last dose on Thanksgiving. There have been some minor withdrawal symptoms but I am feeling so much better and have had no gastric symptoms for two weeks. Yesterday, I was actually hungry for the first time in months. I saw both the family doctor and gastroenterologist and informed them that they need to consider a patient's medications which unexplained illnesses arise. I can't express the gratitude that I feel for having located this website and thank everyone for the information that has been provided.

Hi Kim123,

Your story sounds like an exact exact replicate of my own. I stopped Yasmin in May 06, and until now am still suffering from it's effects. The first 4 months off were the absolute worse. I became an exact opposite of my former self. All of sudden, I would get SEVERE panic attacks esp. while eating.... I too lost 14 pounds and went from somebody who couldn't stop thinking about food, too somebody who absolutely detested and feared it.

I went to tons and tons of Doctors. The one thing that they finally found was subclinical hyperthyroidism with a tsh as low as .009. Finally in October of 06, after getting to the point of wanting to end it all, I gave in and took fluoxetine 10mg, every other day. I feared taking any more drugs because of what Yasmin did to me., but at that point it couldn't get any worse. At that point I finally started making slow, but steady progress. The fluoxetine helped a lot with the anxiety and also with my gastrointestinal problems. I researched many hours on the drug type and realized most Dr's prescribe to high of a dose and it is better to take the lowest possible dose to avoid the extra side effects.. Btw, I never had any side effects from the drug.

The first four months, I couldn't eat anything. I had chest pressure, tightness, difficulty swallowing/ sometimes breathing, anxiety, panic attacks, all day nausea, chills.

Now at almost a year off, the chest pressure and swallowing problems ceased. The nausea ceased though depending on my cycle I still cannot eat too much and sometimes feel ill after eating. The anxiety is much less and the chills went away. So even after a year off, I still cannot eat as I used to, but I did make progress and so will you.

Kim, it's probably going to be a long hard journey back to health as all of us on these boards now. The one thing that keeps me going is knowing that eventually there will be more good days then bad... and that one day I will have my health back and that I will never ever take for granted again.

Best wishes, and God bless.

Jen

Hello,

I haven't been on lately posting my symptoms because for the first time after 8 months of Post Yasmin Hell, I have started to see real progress.

After taking Yasmin for 7 months, I stopped and have been so so sick, it was unbelievable. Over 50 various Doctor visits and nothing at all could be found. I lost my appetite and 13 pounds, had anxiety and heart palpitations, nauseous all the time and just so so ill. I have never been sick all my life... never...aside from colds of course.

Nothing really helped... vitamins, food... nothing. If you really think about it.. . we ingested a POWERFUL horomone suppressent. How can we think that taking vitamins or herbs will solve the problem? Believe me, it might help a little... a very little but far far from the solution.

I notice that my worst symptoms were cyclic and each month I could be assured that I would get worse and going through this month after month with little improvement was taking a toll and I just wanted to literally give up already. The rate of improvement was ridiculous!! 1 % perhaps... less?

So then I told everybody my absolute last resort was taking an antidepressent because my general Dr. told me that it has been used off label to help PMDD which is a menstrual disorder. My other Dr. also told me it has been PROVEN to help gastrointestinal problems also.

I know most of you are scared and skeptical about taking another drug, just how I was. I kept saying.. I am not depressed, etc etc. I was worried about side effects etc. But after a while it came down to a point of.. I NEED TO TRY SOMETHING ELSE!!!!

So if Prozac has been shown to help with female horomone problems I should give it a shot and see if it will help mine, because believe me, it couldn't really get any worse. How can someone live through or six months of hell??? You long term sufferers know what I am talking about.

So I did a TON of studying on Prozac / Fluoxetine and found that this proven drug is the easiest of all the SSRI's as far as side effects and withdrawal. I also read that taking a low dose is just about as effective as taking a normal dose. For example, would you give the same 20 mg. dose to granny as well as Shaquille O' neal?

To give you the best news already: I have finally turned a corner and am starting to feel so so much better, month by month. Prozac has finally reversed this cyclic monthly hell. I had ABSOLUTELY no side effects because I researched and researched and realized I only needed a small small dose. I started at 10 mg. EVERY OTHER DAY. This dose is very low and yet very effective. The usual dose is 20 mg. daily.. which is too much.

My appetite started to slowly come back, my anxiousness went down. My general sense of well being became better and better. Yes of course, the monthly cycles would sometimes pop up once in a while but this time 75% better than before.

So for all of you who like me made the mistake of taking a powerful horomone altering drug Yasmin and still not getting better, you may need to try Prozac because I am proof that it does work. Don't be afraid of withdrawal or side effects because the low dose you need will cause none of these... ask your Doctor. It is not only used for depression because believe me, I never had any depression issues at all, but Yasmin caused my body CHAOS, and no vitamins can really help that kind of mess. Prozac is helping by pushing my horomone system back to it's normal activity as well as helping my digestive system AND my overall well being.

I was just like all of you, coming back month after month because just when I thought I was getting a little better, the bad cycle hit me again like a truck and I thought I would never get better. I avoided Prozac because I thought it was bad and that how can an antidepressent help me? I was wrong, Prozac has been the ONLY thing that has helped my cycle get back on track. Ladies who are still long term sufferers of Post Yasmin hell, read up on Prozac and it's off label uses of treating Pre menstrual dysphoric symtom, as well as digestive treatment.

Also, although SSRI's are all in the same class, they can have very different effects on individuals. For example just because Zoloft didn't agree with you, that doesn't mean Prozac will do the same thing. The ignorant DR. probably gave you too high of a dose as most Doctors do.

The best way of finding out is starting on a low dose. You should see no side effects at all. Well the one side effect that was welcomed was a sense of calm and sleepiness. So much better than the panic attacks...

FYI. I have realized that Yasmin has hit me XTRA hard because Yasmin has a high dose of ESTROGEN, and my body before Yasmin was the opposite... testosterone high! I am ultra fit, love working out and don't possess the typical estrogenic female body, meaning I don't have big breasts or typical softer female features. So being on Yasmin really changed the dynamics of my body.

Again, if any of you have similar symptoms of me and is a classified long term sufferer (6 mos. or more), my sincere advice is to talk to your Doctor about Prozac and give it a shot at a low dose. There should not, I repeat should not be any side effects and you should start to get better month by month.. and this time at a much faster pace.

Red rash, gastrointestinal problems, and headaches

The chronicles of my nightmare:

First of all.... I have been on Yasmin about 3 years... I have been batttles for "3 YEARS" with being dizzy, fatigue, vaginal dryness, chronic yeast infections, chronic discharge, mood swings, panic attacks, anger issues, anxiety and stress, trouble sleeping at night, loss in sexual desire, depression, constint fluctuations in my weight (I swing 13 pounds), and gastrointestinal problems.... I have been to every doctor and tried every medication known to man.... (Well almost).... I started testing for thyroid disease cuz my mother has grave's disease... At first I test for hyper (Got put on meds), then went to hypo, then they thought it was hashimoto's thyroid disease, until I tested back to normal and have been normal for about 2 years now even though I have been feel all wacked out. But, during this wholefiasco I had been making regular visits to my OBGYN to see why I am in so much pain from sex and why I have cronic yeast infections.. (Visited two to three times a month to be exact)... I've takin dyflucan (yeast infection pill)... no less than 24 times... Never helping me, so I became immune to that, then we trying creams, which gave me an even worse yeast infection, then we tried a homopathic approach ("biotic acid sappasitories")... Which made me so inflamed and in pain tha I have had the same irritaion/ yeast infection for the past 6 months.... Where no one could help me and the most the Gyno could tell me to do was don't have sex or use tampons for a whole month, which I did... and it didn't help one bit... I tried everything from eating large amounts of yogurt (Which is quite painful cuz Im lactosintolerant).... I tried not shaving my gential area, shaving my genital area, changing body wash, changing detergent, not having sex, and changing lube.. Literally have tried everything... Then, they start sending me to different doctors.. They want to send me to an internal medicine doctor which told me the route of my problems was sleep and that would make everything better... SO, he gave me Xanax.. Which turned out to make me very angry, verbally abusive, and still could not get a good nights rest... Then, he told me I have to go to a physiatrist... Which I am still waiting on to see next month.... I thought all was lost and I would permanently be in pain forever until I thought I would give the practice of gynocology one more chance. Before my visit I decide to do some research on the one medicaton I take..."YASMIN".... I came to this very site and the testimonials blew me away. The side effects that many women were complaining about, were the same exact things that I was going through. I read every single page and went off to a new gyno doctor to explain my situation. She was the best doctor I have ever had.... She immediately said stop taking birth control! She also recommended taking a large about of vitiamins ( like calcium, vit. B complete, and vit. c)... She also said to take warm salt and olive oil baths to overall bring back the nature anatomy of my vagina. She also could'nt stress enough.... DON'T SHAVE! She said that the hair is there for a reason and shaving brings all sort of bacterialinto the fragile vagina... On other thing she said was to use a condom made out of something else, not rubber, latex, or goat skin... I forget what it's called... So, now that I have the knowledge from the doctor and this web site, hopefully my nightmare wll be over soon... I finish my birth control pack in a matter of days and I can't wait to start feeling better after 3 years!!!!!! I never knew that something as simple as a little pill can turn your life upside down and have your dragging for years.... Thank you so much ladies for all your help.... I really could have never found this out without you guys.... I hope I helped someone out there with my story... Has anyone else experienced this kind of horrific nightmare?

I took Lisinopril for almost seven years. The changes and build-up of symptoms were very slow and insidious. I simply was not feeling at all well, and this had been a slow progression over the years. When I found this web site, and read the multitude of symptoms people were experiencing from taking this drug, I was shocked to realize that I was experiencing a majority of those symptoms except those associated with gastrointestinal problems or mood disorder. Also, after being on Lisinopril a while, I had experienced an episode of Asthmatic Bronchitis which required hospitalization and extensive use of inhaled medications. Then after coming here, I immediately stopped all the medications, purchased Sherry Roger's (M.D.) book Detoxify or Die and have followed her protocol (specific nutritional supplements, infrared sauna and coffee enemas) for three months now to begin the process of detoxifying the prescribed chemicals and lifelong chemical food additives out of my body. When I discontinued the Lisinopril, the coughing was gone in two days; there are still times I feel heaviness in my chest mostly on humid days, but I am convinced I have had no lung problems that were not brought on by this medication. It has taken longer for my strength to start coming back, but even that has happened now, so instead of having to brace myself by hanging on to the walls in order to walk from room to room, I can walk two miles up and down hills easily now---all in three months off this poison. LiSINopril contains the word SIN for a reason: it is sinful to profit from human health needs by selling toxic poisons masquerading as prescription medication. I now believe had I continued taking this medication, I would eventually have died of it because of compounding debility to lung functioning. This stuff is scary.

After taking mestinon for about a year, I've started having severe gastrointestinal problems. How have others handled the side effects of this drug?