Health insurance symptoms and conditions

Just to start of, I just got out of the emergency room for heart attack symptoms which I later found out were caused by my cholesterol med that I was just put on 2 weeks ago, Litportal. Well after looking this up on google and found out many people had the same affects I figured well if that made me have so much pain maybe I should look up Lisinopril w/ body pain. OMG, was I speechless. After reading the blogs I was sure that the Lisinopril was causing all my pain which doctors had diagnosed as Fibromyalgia after 8 years of testing. I was put on Lisinopril 8 years ago after my reg brand was not covered by my health insurance. Didn't think much at the time because it was suppose to be the no name brand of what I was taking. Well, it started off with weird things happening. Pain in my ankle and wrist like I sprained them. Shooting pain in arms and legs. Vision problems, numbness on one side of face, stomach pain, just feeling like crap. Months past then other weird things happening, not feeling like I slept at all even though I did for 8-9 hours, body aches all over, anything I did made me hurt. Then years past and it was everyday, wake up with pain and go to bed with pain. Not able to do simple stuff like play with my kids or go grocery shopping knowing I was going to hurt even more and that percocet was all that would relieve it. After 8 years of this I am totaling drained. Just cleaning my house kills me. Everything got even worse after the years and still gets worse. Going to the doctors knowing they think I am crazy and it's all in my head. Family members questioning my pain. I would always say, if you could be in my body for one day, just one day, you would know the hell that I have been through. But today, a new life came into me, after reading tons of blogs on the side affects of Lisinopril. I am just hoping that this is what it is caused from. I am 39 years old now, my 30's completely wasted, and do I mean wasted. To think that this has all been due to a little pill taken daily for 8 years. I thank everyone who has posted on this blog, because if it wasn't for you, I would have no hope. Now I do. And I am schedule for an appointment in 3 weeks to change my meds. What I thought I would have forever may soon be gone. Or at least some of it. Thank you.

I've been on and off singulair for several years. I had a horrible bout of bronchitis that then triggered bronchial reactive disease and I now have allergic reactions to certain chemicals (some spray deodorants, etc.) Singulair worked so much better for me than advair, I was thrilled to be able to talk and breathe. As a teacher I would sometimes have to stop the lecture to get my breath again and drink some water if I inhaled the slightest amount of chalk dust or something.

After reading the comments on this website I am going to discontinue taking singulair. I used to be this skinny person and never, ever worried about my weight. At the age of 37 I had a rip-snortin' major depressive episode with insomnia that had me miss 3 days of sleep (this is on no medication of any kind) and panic attacks and suicidal thoughts and impulses that I'd never had before. Imipramine was my first prescribed med (in 1991) and worked like magic. It cheered me up, calmed me down and made me sleep. I went from 135 pounds to 155 pounds in just several months. I finally got switched to effexor and trazodone, but there's really not been much weight loss. I'd hover around 150-160, but then with singulair added in the last several years I am 170 lbs. I can't believe I am a fat person now and do not over eat. I can't go off my psychiatric medication because it runs in our family and if I taper off I am...uh...crazy. My insomnia is tenacious when I am without medication and then that makes depression and anxiety worse. I never want to have a panic attack again.

I just ran out of my singulair prescription about a week or two ago. I am breathing and speaking fairly normally and my husband and I now have to pay for our own health insurance which is exorbitant and I just didn't feel like renewing the prescription in order to save money. I was pondering my weight gain today and just decided to google singulair and weight gain and I just can't believe it.

I have also experienced hair loss, but my hair is so thick it still looks basically the same. My husband and I have noticed over the last several years that I lose lots of hair after I wash it and there is a mass of hair in the shower stall.

My memory may have been adversely affected by taking singulair. I thought it's just getting older. I am 55. It's been the last several years that I have started to have problems remembering things. I have always had to work with my husband in helping him remember things (it's been life long with him: he is an absent minded professor. He has a genius IQ, is an M.I.T. grad, is an excellent engineer and can't remember his mother's birthday, what plans we have for the week-end, no matter how major, etc. to save his life.) I feel like I am becoming more like my husband in being hopeless and helpless about remembering what's happening from one day to the next. It could very possibly be the singulair. There has been a marked difference in my memory over the last several years. It is embarrassing. I sub for the school district and once showed up on the wrong day at a school and another time didn't show up and they had to call me up and get me out of bed to go to work. I also teach piano and never used to forget who was coming when. Again, I don't know if I can blame this on singulair causing memory loss, but there would be times when someone would knock on the door and I'd be surprised to find a piano student standing there. I feel like I am getting Alzheimer's. My grandmother had it for 17 years. My mom has always been afraid of getting it but she is 80 and is just now starting to show signs of real forgetfulness. I explained to her what my lapses in memory are like and she is shocked to hear that they are similar to hers. My mind just will completely go blank. I will have this thought, get distracted, and just a moment later will struggle to remember the previous thought and there is just a void, peace, blankness, white screen in my mind. Maybe it is getting older, but maybe it's the singulair. Since I'm just recently off it I'm going to pay attention and see if my memory improves or if it is just old age.

Also, my joint problems have been nearly ruining my life the last several years. I don't know if this is exacerbated by my singulair use or not. Bursitis in the hips runs in my family like crazy. We re-sided and painted our house several years ago and my bursitis started to flare up and has been bad since then, but it's also about the time I started taking singulair. I had to quit a sales job this summer because my bursitis has become so bad. Sometimes I can hardly walk. It is nearly unbearable. I get cortisone injections every 6 months, but need it every 2 months. I wonder if my discontinuation of singulair will ease my joint pain? I'm going to track that as well.

For me: weight gain, hair loss, joint pain, some dizziness are possible side effects from singulair.

Thank you to everyone who has contributed to this site. I am never taking singulair again.

I researched mirena before going ahead and having it placed and was skeptical about all the side affects women were reporting. (I'm pretty much always skeptical about side affects and usually just attribute them to people psychologically making them up.) A friend of mine has had a mirena for over a year and loves it, has had no side affects and therefore lead me to getting it. Insertion was awful awful awful. I was extremely nauseous (you know face going white, sweating, shaking, that awful feeling) during the processes as well as for an hour afterwords, which made for in interesting car ride home. Anyways the insertion is the least of the problems. My face completely broke out with the painful under the skin cystic acne. I have NEVER had bad skin in the past and therefore thought I would not have a problem with mirena, boy was I wrong. I only had the mirena for two months because I could not stand the constant cramping, continual bleeding and the terrible acne. Needless to say I had it removed (removal is a piece of cake, literally 5 minutes NO pain) and sure enough my face cleared back up in about a 2 weeks. I feel as though this device is extremely different for everyone and totally depends on the individual. As a said before I have a friend who absolutely loves it. (I am 25, no children and I am awful at remembering to take the pill and therefore thought this was a good idea.) I say if your health insurance covers it, try it out for a couple months, if health insurance doesn't cover it I wouldn't even bother.

I started taking Yaz since January. I did have to stop taking it, however, when my mother's health insurance dropped me on my 22nd b-day. The first three months I experienced were somewhat positive. I think a lot of it had to do with the expectations I had for this pill to be wonderful and altogether amazing. When I finally got health insurance again in April, I couldn't wait to start taking it again. This time, the experience was much different. My skin, which had started getting worse while I was off the pill, stayed relatively the same. I still get the kind of pimples I used to get when I was wasn't taking it. I started noticing a few months ago that my hair was falling out...!!! I couldn't believe it. It's localized in the frontal region of my hair line. It makes me very self-conscious and worried. In addition to these exterior symptoms, I have noticed I have uncontrollable anxiety. Most of the time, it's hard for me to stop panicking about every minuscule detail of my life. When I'm not excessively anxious, I'm depressed. I don't want to do anything but sleep. I often feel hopeless and worthless. Probably the most disturbing thing that has happened to me during this whole ordeal is two days ago, out of no where, this strange feeling came over me and all I wanted to do was kill myself. I have NEVER had a suicidal thought in my life. It made me sick to my stomach and panicked. I've always been slightly anxious, but I feel like this is exacerbating things to an extreme degree. I'm so glad to read that I'm not the only one.

I've also experienced some of the other symptoms mentioned by other women (inexplicable hunger, etc.) I've also been experiencing chest pain when I run to the point I need to stop running for a moment.

I'm done with Yaz.

Ok a lot of the women on here seem to have already had a kid or kids. I'm 25 and havent had any yet. I smoke and am on adderall for add, which are both risks for strokes blood clots and heart attacks. So I have to be on something with little to no estrogen. I am horrible with taking the pill, and heard horrible things about the shot, mainly weight gain.

So my gyno suggested an IUD, Mirena, saying that since there is only a "small" amount of hormone in it, that I would barely have any side effects. And I have crappy health insurance and was so happy that they covered it. I was like ok little side effects and good for 5 years and FREE! Awesome! Gotta be a catch.........I figured the catch would be the painful insertion or something.

So the first weekend with it in, I went camping. At our campsite, with no real bathrooms mind you, horrible sharp pains, like worse than your worst period ever. I had only been spotting a tiny bit. When i woke up it looked like a murder scene. Blood all over. I went home and took ibuprofen and used heating pads. But for about a month, the cramping continued. They started to decrease in pain and started to happen less and less and I was so relieved.

second month. cramps stopped, but everything else started to hit the fan. First and foremost, my hair. I have thin straight hair to begin with, and I used special strengthening shampoos and conditioners to prevent breakage. So on month 2 on mirena, I noticed my brush was accumulating more hair than usual. My shirt would be covered in hair every time i brushed. Then I started to look at the hairs.....they were falling out, not breaking. By the root. Then I started to freak. Because my adderall kills my appetite, I never really ate. So I was thinking, could be a vitamin deficiency, thyroid problem, no idea. Then I googled mirena and hair loss and I found this website as well as hundreds of others where women would post their side effects. And almost every one mentioned losing hair. i have not had any kids, I know that if you are preg or have a child you can lose hair. I got my thyroid checked, its fine. And Im taking 1-a-day vitamins for women, fish oil pills, you name it. Oh, and after all my hard work losing 50 lbs, I gained 10 lbs back already and Im not even eating too much more than I did before. Its mainly my belly and face.

Ok aside from appearance there are other side effects driving me nuts. I also have really bad anxiety already, and it has been a million times worse. So much worse that I had to up my anxiety medicine. Mood swings? Try Mood Rage. I feel like Im on a steroid. I nanny for 2 2-year olds. I used to have infinite patience, which is a major requirement if you're working with children, and now snap easily and have to go in the bathroom and calm down, but I usually just end up crying........

Cant concentrate, going to be bald by Halloween, and am gaining weight that I cant lose. Panic attacks and short temperament and almost feeling bi-polar. Also killed my sex drive!

This is my third month. thought I could just suck it up but Im losing more hair every day. I feel guilty at work when im never in a good mood anymore. I feel depressed, ugly, and bloated, fat, crazy...........oh I forgot to mention pimples. never had em. now i get em on my face, shoulders????? and back.

Im obvis. getting this demon ripped out of me, and when my gyno is finished doing it, I'm going to be giving her a nice punch in her face.

I started on Yaz after having my first child last June. It was great, but now due to all the lawsuits I'm a little nervous about trying it again, plus it's pretty pricey even with health insurance. So, after I ran out of samples of that, I decided I wanted to take the shot. With the shot, I bled for almost 6 months and I decided I wasn't doing that either. It wasn't spotting, it was bleeding. So, the dr. gave me some loestrin samples to help regulate my period until the shot was up, it worked then. I don't know if the hormones aren't strong enough in this pill or what the deal is, but I spot constantly, I have periods before I'm supposed to, I cry ALL THE TIME, I honestly have no desire for life half the time. I work in a nursing home, and my residents are very needy on the unit i work, and there are times that I have to walk away from them for a few minutes just to gain my composure. I also have a 15 month old and its definitely affecting his and I's relationship. I'm getting ready to start my 3rd pack without the shot being a factor, and I honestly don't know if I will continue to take it. I would much rather risk getting pregnant or having an allergic reaction to the condoms!

Just hope that you don't end up like me and many other people with no health insurance and the doctor telling you your IUD has to be surgically removed because the strings have disintegrated. And before they refer you to surgery they will try to remove the IUD anyways with a hook while opening your cervix.....and let me add you will be given no anesthesia, your legs and arms will go numb and you will scream because it is the worst pain ever. And then you will finally blackout because you can no longer handle the pain and when you wake up you have to be driven home and put to bed because you cant find your composure for the rest of the evening. And it really sucks having to fork over $3000 to the hospital to have surgery when you have no insurance and cannot be insured due to pre-existing conditions.
I have not had the surgery yet, and will keep you all updated..... but does anyone know if we have a case for a lawsuit here?? I'm wondering if we could all get in on filing one. The Mirena has ruined my marriage, ruined my self-worth, ruined my body, given me anxiety to no limit, and now is costing me nothing but time and money with trips back and forth for 2 months now to the doctor and hospital just to try and have it removed.

I've been on Wellbutrin XL 300mg for quite some time now...coming up on 2 years, I think? I think I took the brand name drug at first, but for most of the time, I've taken the generic BUPROPRION--different generics from different companies, even. But this last refill, the pharmacy had switched to BUDEPRION for the generic. Bupropion and Budeprion are NOT the same!

Today is my second day on Budeprion and I feel like crap. Jittery, shaky, diarrhea, peeing constantly ("polyuria"), heart racing, nausea, nausea while hungry, hot-and-cold, and now worn out from a day of all that! My psychiatrist is on maternity leave but I've got a call in to her office to get it switched back to brand-name. Thankfully I'm in grad school, and under my student health insurance, the copay is the same for brand or generic.

Why Budeprion is considered a generic of Wellbutrin, I don't know. Wellbutrin is bupropion. This Budeprion stuff is a different chemical composition and is absorbed by/released into the body an entirely different way, from what I've been reading. When is the FDA going to get its act together???

i had my mirena inserted 2 1/2 years ago after i had my 4th child. I just had surgery to have it removed it had moved and went through my uterus. Very painful, this is after having very horrible eczema and hives all over my hands and feet. I can't use my unless i have gloves on because of the blisters and they are permanently scarred from the eczema which we think was caused from the mirena because i didn't have it until about 2 months ago when i started other symptoms. Then i found out that it had went through my uterus which required laparoscopic surgery to remove and to top it off no health insurance so what i thought was going to be a less expensive birth control just cost me about 30,000.00 including doctor bills!!!!

I started taking YAZ for PMDD two months ago and it has helped so much. It has seemed to mess with my menstrual cycle, though. The first month I took it my period started on the second day of the white pills, I had light spotting a couple of days before that and now I am on my 2nd month and I am on my third day of white pills and no period and no spotting.. no sign of period so far. I seems to be messing up my cycle... ugh!

Any thoughts anyone?!

Hi There :)
I went to the doctor 2 days ago and was prescribed alesse, but the pharmacy gave me aviane instead, as my mom's health insurance only covers generic brands. Now I have a 3 month prescription sitting in front of me, and after reading about all of these negative experiences, I don't know what to do! this is my first pill (I'm 17 - 18 soon) and I really don't want any negative side effects. My main reasons for going on the pill were skin problems, and that I have horrible cramps that put me out of commission for 1-2 days every month.

I recently got on Mirena in December 08 after having my second child. Before my cycles were a little irregular but not to the point where I was paranoid, and they were also very heavy. Well, getting on it I was spotting continuously from the insertion until about April 09. (4 months) I haven't had a period since then. Lately I've been feeling extremely bloated, my back has been killing me, I'm having gross feminine problems - which I'm reading is somewhat common with this. I don't feel like being intimate with my husband, I just feel so old and worn out. I'm just turned 25 about a week ago, and my kids are 3 and 9 months. I just don't have the energy to do anything. Oh and the cramps that have started lately are just killing me. I was so paranoid I was pregnant that I've taken tests because I haven't had my period and I keep thinking I feel movement.
When I signed the paperwork at my gyno's office it said nothing of what people have written. The reason I chose to get on Mirena was because my health insurance coverage was ending (I still have no coverage for myself) and I figured, "Hey, this thing lasts up to five years. How convenient!" I'm really thinking about seeing what the cost would be to remove it because it just isn't worth the pain.

Ok, I have to say I'm glad i did my research first and came across this site! Just yesterday i met with my gyn to discuss Mirena/IUD's. I'm in a monogamous relationship and not looking to have children right now. Condoms are a pain and I don't want any more hormones in my body so, no Pill for me. I'm not a candidate for Paraguard because I haven't had any children (FDA hasn't approved that one for women who haven't, only women who have had children). He kept pushing Mirena (I'm sure there are some motivation$ for him behind that too). I'm hesitant to put any more hormones in my body than i already have and all these posts I've read are exactly the reason why. I already suffer from depression (being treated with meds) and IBS (w/constipation). I also just lost about 25lbs recently that was bc related weight. There is NO WAY I'm willing to deal with weight gain again! MISERABLE! I can imagine how all you ladies feel and i know it's not good. All these bad side-effects far outweigh the benefits if you ask me. I've reached my conclusion: I'm not doing this to myself, I'd rather use pain-in-the-ass condoms than deal with hormonal bs. Thanks to all who posted!

I feel so relieved to have found this website. I am going to call the doctor and have my Mirena removed ASAP! I have been experiencing many different random health problems lately. Which is strange because I am an extremely healthy person. My husband was laid off from his job and we lost his health insurance, so through all my symptoms I have just been suffering through it because I couldn't afford to go to a million doctors and have a million different tests run to find out the source of my symptoms. It started with itchy hives on all of my joints, elbows, knees, knuckles, toes and fingers. Then a symptom I had gotten during my pregnancies called PUPPP which is basically ugly, little, red bumps that ooze a clear liquid and itch like the dickens on my hands, fingers and legs. Then a big knot developed under the skin on my right wrist. The pain started on top and started radiating all the way around my wrist. Then the numbness, tightness and pin-prick pain occurred in my fingertips, then my hand, then my entire arm went numb from the elbow down. I also had horrible pain in my reproductive area on two different occasions that had me doubled over in pain. It felt exactly like contractions. I also have been bleeding every day for several months. Not enough to call it a full blown period, but bleeding every day. Some days, blood streaked mucus, other days full on blood clots would drain out of me. I've has horrible back pain and have been very fatigued even when I am careful to take care of myself. I also am naturally a very optimistic person who can handle bumps in the road of life, but lately, even though I hate to admit it, I have been down-right depressed. I have lost interest in all my interests, have a hard time shaking off life's set-backs, find myself on the verge of tears a lot, and basically have just wanted to pull the covers over my head and not wake up until I can just feel like myself again. Then last night my lips started to tingle, numb and swell. Then the same thing happened again tonight. I told my husband I am just falling apart and don't know what's wrong with me! I have never had any health problems before and now it's a new symptom practically daily. He said he had been doing some research and that he thought I was allergic to my IUD. I immediately Googled "Allergic reactions + Mirena" and found this website. It is such a relief to know that I might actually have an answer to all my problems. I can hardly wait for the doctor's office to open in the morning, I want this thing out right now and I want my life and ME back!

i had the Mirena inserted in Feb '09. first off, it hurt very badly going in. On my way home from the doctors, i was cramped over and swearing from the pain.

CRAMPING every day (mainly in the morning and seem more severe when dehydrated from booze the night before. BLEEDING everyday, all day- not much but always there. WEIGHT GAIN- i have always been skinny and felt skinny- but now I have weight in places I never had it before- even my one ankle looks swollen. I lost my job (b/c i blew up at my boss) and have been real lazy and tired ever since, but after reading these other comments, may be related.

I admit that I have been sexually active (unprotected) with more than a couple people since, which is an IUD no-no. BUT I was tested for IUD infections before it was inserted, and ordered a sonogram which showed a swollen ovary and cists (which I have always had cists and no problems like these) I was on the DEPO SHOT for the past 8 yrs, the pill was horrible- pains related to blood clots so thought the IUD would be safer with less trips to the doctor. When i lost my job, i lost my health insurance.

I'M NOT SURE if i should have the IUD REMOVED????? seemed like the best thing for me, but not sure how long I can go on like this and can't afford further testing.

Please share any advice or similar problems. thank you.

Well reading all of this is very scary to me. I'm 23 years old and have never had a kid and have never been on any birth control before. I thought it would be a wise decision for it since i'm starting to get serious with my boyfriend and we have sex, but he never ejaculates in me...mostly because he cannot ejaculate from sexual intercourse the only way is thru oral or a hand job (sorry for the TMI lol). I have an appointment on July 1, 2009 to get the Mirena in place. My OBGYN doc told me Mirena was the best thing for me because I am on high blood pressure medication. I've always kind of had my doubts about this type of birth control and she didn't really explain the side effects that much, she just gave me the little pamphlet about it which of course makes it sound like the best thing ever. I am going to another place to have it put in because I have no health insurance and they do it for free. Well...I had to have a consultation with that doc and she did explain the cramping and it may hurt when it's put in, and the spotting but that's it. I almost kind of felt like I was pressured into it. After about 10 minutes the doc was like ok lets get you set up. I'm having very very serious thoughts about calling and canceling this appointment. I like who I am now and I think I would rather risk it and use a condom than ruin my life. Thanks for the help everyone.

Just want to survey everyone and ask for responses for the following 3 questions:

1. how long did you keep your Mirena and if you no longer have it, why did you have it removed?

2. how many of you had your thyroid checked? who's came back abnormal? what were the levels?

(I'm a medical student doing research on this one since I believe the levonorgestrel affects our thyroid hormone. My TSH was elevated to 5.2 which is considered "subclinical HYPOthyroidism". This was mid cycle when my natural progesterone AND synthetic progestin were cumulatively high. When I had it rechecked 6 weeks later (around my period when any natural progesterone level is gone) it was normalized at 1.5. So I think that the P+P screws up our thyroid and can throw us into a high TSH and "hypothyroid state". The opposite effect may be true during menstruation and we can become HYPERthyroid for a few days... hence the really bad anxiety?!)

3. where is everyone from? perhaps we can have support group meetings?

Please help me. I have had the Mirena for a little over a year now and I have been miserable ever since. I just yesterday one of my very frequent depressive states. I has become so bad that I often think about hurting myself. I am very petite, 4'11 to be exact and I have never weighed anything over 115lbs. I just recently went to the doctor and I weigh 147lbs. I have always eaten healthy and I couldn't explain my weight gain. It has become so depressing I refuse to take pictures and I no longer want to look in the mirror. I have horrible headaches and my periods are longer. I am now going through a divorce and I don't have a job or health insurance. I really need to take the Mirena off but I don't know what to do!! Every day that passes by I keep getting more and more depressed. I am afraid for myself...help me

I recently started taking Loestrin 24 Fe on Tuesday. I have been on it for four days and I'm not the biggest fan. I already have anxiety to begin with, and taking this pill makes me feel like I'm going crazy. I have a panic attack as soon as I step out of my house. I've also noticed I am really irritable and get bad headaches. I feel like I'm having a different side effect everyday though. Yesterday was pretty weird. As I was lying in bed, it felt like my left arm just gave out. The skin got tingly and tight and it hurt to make a muscle. I started sweating really badly and my heart rate increased. I got a drink of water and was able to calm myself down. I'd like to talk to my doctor about switching to another pill but I'm thinking that maybe this is just the hormones releasing? I don't have health insurance either, so that's also keeping me from trying to switch pills. I haven't gotten my period in over a year and I'm 19 years old. If anyone has any insight on this, I'd really appreciate it.

After a difficult pregnancy and emergency C-section, my husband and I decided that Mirena was the best answer for us to prevent future pregnancy. After insertion of Mirena at 8 weeks post-partem, I experienced non-stop bleeding for approximately three months. I never thought the bleeding would stop. Once that stopped, I only had three very light, spotty periods in the remaining 57 months of use. I have had a lot of side effects that I a lot of you have already mentioned. In five years of use, I have gained 70 pounds. Other side effects I've experienced are cystic acne, greasy hair, extreme fatigue, constant lower back pain, pain during intercourse, no sex drive, depression, anxiety, and mood swings. In 2004, I paid over $700 to get Mirena. After five years of use, I called to schedule an appointment to have it removed during my annual ob/gyn exam. The nurse told me I would have to pay $200 dollars more to have it removed. Our health insurance did not cover the insertion of the device and they do not cover the removal either. Needless to say, my husband removed it last night. The removal itself was not painful although I did experience a little cramping afterwards. I did not have any bleeding either. If 5 years ago I would have known what I would experience in terms of side effects, I never would have gotten Mirena. My husband recently had a vasectomy which cost only a $25 co-pay. The insurance covered that!! I guess we should have checked into that 5 years ago. Hopefully my health will get back to normal now that the device is out.

Unfortunately I've had to stop the Lupron injections. I lost my job and with that my health insurance. I am wondering can anyone tell me when I can expect my period to start again?

November 6, 2008 was my last injection and it was a 3 month dose. It is May 2009, I am 39 years old and I have not yet had a period. My fibroids ae back to their large abdomen filling size so I am very worried.

Not having insurance or adequate funds has reduced me to the internet for research first before venturing out to a doctor as a "self-pay" patient.

I started Nuvaring several months ago, but had to stop due to health insurance changes with work. I never had a problem with it before. Now I am back on it for "month number 1". It's completely different. I don't bleed, but I've really had to give up eating breakfast, drinking anything besides water in the morning.(and even with water it's hit or miss) I get terrible stomach pains. My skin also seems to break out more. I'm not sure if anyone else out there gets this. I don't think it's normal, but at the same time, I don't want to run to my doctor for every little thing. I just wanted to know if anyone else is experiencing this particular symptom. And what you did to stop it. I am also experiencing slight mood depressions, but then again, it may subside after a little while. I am just not sure what to do. I don't want to switch, because I really like it, but I am just not sure if it's best for me anymore.

I was excited to learn that my doctor would allow me to get Mirena as I have never had any children. He said that it would be more uncomfortable but besides that there was no reason I should not have it. I was 22 when it was inserted and I still don't want children for a long time, if ever. I had been on NuvaRing since I began birth control but I was about to lose my health insurance so I thought this was the best bet. I started putting on weight and I attributed it to the fact that I had just lost a lot of weight and after a few months of getting too comfortable at barbecues and holidays, it was catching up to me. I got that pair of pants thinking it would just be til I got it back off. I started exercising more than I ever had and was eating well and nothing. I started getting down on myself. I tried to explain to someone that it wasn't the way I looked, it was how I felt. I said I never felt so heavy, like my body was dragging at all times, and I've been heavier than this in the past and didn't feel this awful. I kept attributing it to one thing or another, the worse it gets the worse I eat and now it is by my own fault. I was getting depressed around the holidays and usually love everything that comes with it, yet was happy to work this year. I've been avoiding everyone. I've had the worse cramps I've ever had. I can tolerate pain...piercings, tattoos, the whole shabang. I was literally doubled over that it would stop me in my tracks. I usually avoid painkillers as they give me nausea but even after taking muscle relaxers and ibuprofen I could barely function, in fact I was happy to try to sleep it off. I have been bleeding for well over a month now, when I usually only bleed for a few days. When I wasn't "bleeding" I was spotting which was actually something even less appealing. The only headache I've ever previously had were after wisdom teeth extraction and I now get headaches almost everyday. I'm rambling, but I could go on and on. I've been so tired that I drag all day but I can't sleep. It's been suggested that I might be anemic and I try to eat well and take vitamins and nothing is helping but caffeine which just makes my mood swings worse, and like I said I try to eat well. I don't drink soda and have a sensible diet (outside of the past few months getting worse and worse anxiety about my weight). I'm not a cryer and have found myself sobbing while "PMSing" if that's what you call it when you feel like there's no more "pre" because it's almost constant, and saying that I know these thoughts are absurd. A year ago if something was wrong I'd have taken aggressive steps to improving my mental health. I love everything in my life. I've got a great job and everything, but something just doesn't seem right. I heard a lyric that said something along the lines of, "Everything's right but something's still wrong." I actually found myself telling someone, "I'm not sad anymore. I've just accepted that I'll never really be happy...at least I won't allow myself to be for long." I just haven't felt myself in a long time. I've had the worst UTIs I've ever had, more than one but one that was almost enough to encourage me to have it removed then. Again, I attributed it to something else. I had been on vacation and since I had recently had it inserted thought it was natural, considering that a-little-more-frequent-sex-during-vacation-thing. I work with mentally ill patients, who seem to be comfortable saying just about anything that pops in their heads and they have commented, not only on my weight, but on my facial hair. I mean I don't have a mustache growing, but my normal peach fuzz is turning into peach furr. I've had absolutely no sex drive, none. Not to get too personal, but I usually thoroughly enjoy masturbating. I don't even enjoy that. I actually forced myself one day when I was feeling down, thinking my lack of it was affecting my mood due to hormone levels. That's about the only thing I want to occasionally do, again thought the lack of sex drive was due to body issues but now I'm not so sure. My man actually told me one day he thought I was being more aggressive at one point, but it was because as he was getting intimate I almost had to force myself to get it over with (nothing against him). He comes near me just to hug me or sit near me and I pull away. I know I've rambled and rambled and rambled. However, I just didn't put all of these things together. I thought this might all be in my head, stress, etc. etc. Just reading this gave me so much hope. Like I said, I've barely been said anymore. I've been able to say that I'm happy with a frown on my face...I know everything IS right in my life, but it hasn't FELT right in a long time. Thank you all for this. I will be sure to come back and note the aftermath when I have it removed. I don't have insurance anymore, but I am going to see what I can do about getting it removed as soon as possible. Just for a comparable point, last year at this point in time (pre-Mirena) I was at about 133 pounds. I had leveled out at about 140 and been steady for awhile. I had Mirena inserted last November and now, in mid-April, I am a little over 160. I will be calling my doctor today. I thank you all again, so SO much. I hope this helps someone else as much as it did me.

My husband has been taking Geodon for about 3 years now. He's a paranoid schiztophrenic (gee, that was a surprise to me finding out a few years into our marriage when his old meds just stopped working) and the Geodon really controls things. He hasn't lost any weight (unfortunate, actually, he needs to lose a good 60 pounds) and he sleeps just fine. He also tried a few other meds, risperadol amongst them, but this is the one that seems to work. Thank goodness we have excellent health insurance through my work, I can't imagine how some of you are managing without it. :(

Hey all! Just want to say it's really important to remember that every woman reacts differently to any given birth control pill, and it's best to just try it yourself... BUT!

After two years on Yasmin, I went off BC due to losing my health insurance and being unemployed (yay, recession!). Finally my parents agreed to pitch in and help with BC since I used it for PMDD, acne, regulation, etc... the doctor prescribed me Avianne. Of course I read about it online and heard all the horror stories, but I tried it anyway.

Within that one month that I used it, I gained TEN pounds. Granted, this could be my body adjusting and water weight and bla bla bla, but I was not okay with it. My face broke out like it did in junior high. I was angry all the time. I felt like I was permanently PMSing for the whole month. When I began bleeding, it was THE heaviest period to date. I spent the day at the E.R. because of all the clotting and nastiness (sorry about the TMI, but really!) I told my doc about all these side effects and she gave me Ocella, the generic for Yasmin. While watching my diet, I have lost eleven pounds this month, the acne is clearing back up, my stomach doesn't stick out like it's pregnant anymore, and overall I'm feeling a lot better. (But, I have also read some bad things about Ocella, even though it is the same chemical make up as Yasmin, but it is what it is...)

Then again, Avianne might work for some people! It just all depends, and there's no way of knowing until you try. Just remember that you can always switch. Nothing is permanent. I think we have a great outlet online to talk about these pills. Hang in there, everyone! You'll find a pill for you... maaaaybe not this one, though. :)