Instincts symptoms and conditions

My son is 7 yrs old with allergies and asthma. The Dr. prescribed it and the same day I had talked with a lady which her friends son just committed suicide. They were contributing it to Singular. A quick look up on the internet and I was angry with the pediatrician that the side effect was never discussed with me! After a very reassured conversation I said I would start him with 1/2 dose. I noticed nightmares started right away and I stopped. Asthma got worse decided to star again 3 weeks ago. He started twitching his head, flipping his hair that isn't even long. He was also complaining of stomach aches and not wanting to go to school (very unusual)! He has been off for a week now and is hopefully will not ever have any long term effect! Please follow your instincts and I will let his doctor. know what the side effects were.

My 12 year old son had a lactose intolerance and because he loved dairy - especially skim milk, mac and cheese, ice cream - we decided to help him with the intolerance side effects of diarrhea, cramps, gas - and try the store brand of lactaid. The ingredients were identical to the brand name. the pills & worked great for about 3 weeks. This past week, he had horrible stomach pains, diarrhea again and nausea, so bad he had to miss school. He had an appetite, no fever, but was assaulted with the side effects from taking the lactaid pills. I thought I was helping him, yet only the reverse! I am grateful to have come across this web site and shared blogs. Now I know how to solve my son's problems that caused so much suffering. In addition to the stomach pains, diarrhea & nausea, he also complained of bad headaches. As a mom, my instincts are correct and I attribute all of this to taking the lactaid pills. Thankfully, my son will not have to endure the horrible episodes anymore. Lactaid pills are banned from our home!

I am so glad I found this forum. I thought I was going nuts for the past few months I was on Mirena. I'm 31 years old and healthy. My daughter is 19 months old and I had Mirena put in back in Dec of 2008. Since I was BFing, I did not get a period until June. Since June, I've had cramping basically everyday, a few days a month I feel nauseous (which I've never had, even when I was pregnant), I'm hungry all the time, I'm exhausted all the time (even though my daughter sleeps through the night and I sleep 9-10 hours a night). My husband calls me lazy, but I swear it's the Mirena. I had more energy when my daughter woke me up all the time. I'm annoyed I'm not loosing any more weight since I force myself to go to the gym, but sometimes I feel like crap that it's hard to get a good workout. I also have zero sex drive. I called my doctors office about the cramping as a side effect 2 weeks ago, and the nurse said she never heard about it and would have the doctor call me. Of course, the doctor did not call me, so I just made an apt to get it out. The earliest apt I could get is in 11 days. I hope I last that long! I tried to pull it out myself but I can't feel the strings. I know remember my doctor saying she cut the strings. I was trying to just deal with the side effects since I love the effectiveness of the BC (I'm really fertile), but will take my chances with a pregnancy and use that as motivation for my husband to get snipped. To the rest of you out there, trust your instincts and if you notice something majorly wrong, don't let the doctors dismiss you.

My daughter is 6 and has been on singulair for 2 years. Anytime we miss a pill she ends up with a fever of about 100 and is exhausted. Within a couple of days of her medicine it's gone again. The doctors think it's a complete coincidence but I don't agree.

I had Mirena placed in August 2007. My daughter was born in February of '07 but I waited a while before deciding on what type of bc I would use. I never imagined all the crap I've been through was because of this IUD. I've wondered why after taking a shower, there's still an odor down there. I've wondered why the stupid little things most husbands do really enrages me. I've wondered why I have felt depressed...and now I know. Those are only just a few things that I haven't been able to explain since our daughter was born. I honestly don't know if I can blame the weight gain on the Mirena, but it's worth taking it out to see if a diet will actually work for me. I'm glad this forum is here and I wish I had found something like this before having the Mirena placed. I've also had a lot of yeast infections for no good reason which is why I decided to look up side effects of the Mirena and found that so many women have had all the issues that I've been having. I guess I just shouldn't have messed with mother nature. My husband and I still don't know if we're going to have anymore kids so I don't want to do anything permanent and I can not, for the life of me, remember to take a pill. So I guess it's going to have to be condoms for us until we decide no more and then we'll decide on something permanent. I'm sorry all of you ladies experienced these problems but I'm glad you have shared them because it definitely sheds some light on things for me. I will be making an appointment very soon to have mine removed. Thank you, ladies.

My son used a nebulizer 2 to 4 times a day every day from the time he was one and a half years old. When he had just turned three his doctor prescribed Singulair. It was like a wonder drug for us! It took care of his asthma and we didn't have to use the nebulizer any more. He's been on it ever since -- he's 10 now -- he also takes zyrtec and has a rescue inhaler that he uses maybe once a week. About every other year he requires a course of steroids and a week of regular nebulizer use. Also, for the past year he has also required a daily inhaled steroid.
Now, about his mood issues. My son has always been sensitive and intense, moody. The first time I became alarmed was when he was 7, and he told me he wanted to burn his hands on the stove to punish himself for forgetting his homework. I consulted a psychologist who evaluated him and said he was not clinically depressed. Since then he has had periodic "dark" episodes -- especially in the winter. He has said he wants to die. He has had crying jags over things that are upsetting (loss of a pet was the worst) but it seems excessive for him to be saying he "just wants it all to end." He has told me that he is always unhappy and that he hates himself. He has also had problems with moody acting-out with friends. He will brood about hurt feelings until he loses his temper and screams at the friend. I have worked very hard with him on learning to manage his emotions. He hit a friend at school who was teasing him. He accepted his consequences willingly and willingly wrote letters of apology -- he told me he thinks he has anger problems and doesn't want to be this way. And his character is that he is a sweet, caring boy who can't stand to see anyone hurt, but also can't stand to be hurt.
A couple of years ago I asked his allergist if any of the meds he's on are linked with depression. He said no. We have a family history of depression, and I thought my son had gotten the worst combo of all the genes.
Recently, this all got to the point that I decided he needed to see a psychiatrist and quite possibly take medication for depression. Before I made the appointment he had a check-up with his allergist. Going down his list of meds the dr. said, recently Singulair has been linked with depression, have you noticed any moodiness or sadness? My first thought was that I have, but that he's always been like this. My 2nd thought was that he has been on Singulair for most of his life. I said yes and that I'd like to try him off of it.
My son resisted going off of it. He has had enough negative experiences with asthma that he didn't want to risk it, but I insisted. I didn't expect to see any change, but I thought it was important, as I was going to take him to a psychiatrist to consider depression meds, to see how he did off of it for a couple of months.
Less than a week later, he had been in a wonderful mood -- to the point of being silly and giddy all evening -- for 3 days in a row. The kind of mood that I don't see him in often, and when I do I think to myself, "he should be like this more often." One evening he even realized he had forgotten to bring home a homework assignment. I thought, "oh no, here we go, his evening is ruined." But he talked through his options with me, looked a little uncertain, and said, well, okay, I guess I'll have to tell my teacher I don't have it. I'll tell her I'll make it up at lunch if she wants me to. That was it! He didn't mention it again. I didn't say anything about his mood, because I really don't think I can know anything after just a few days -- it could be coincidental. The next day, he said to me that he thinks being off the Singulair is "working." He has now told me that a couple of more times.
I am tentative, but amazed. Even if my son does have a predisposition to be depressed, maybe the Singulair was making everything worse, and things really can improve for him. I am afraid to be to hopeful. At the same time, I feel guilty for giving this medicine to him for 7 years without a second thought.
As an aside, my son has periodically complained of leg pains, that I always told him were growing pains.
I would love any feedback that anyone can give me. So far (these two weeks), his asthma has been controlled with pulmacort, zyrtec and albuterol, so that aspect is okay.

I am a 25 year old with Factor V Leiden and was told by doctors that the Mirena would be the best birth control for me since I can't take BC pills anymore. I had the Mirena inserted Nov. 2008 and am having it removed next week. I have had a horrible experience with it. My obgyn told me that the chance of experiencing any side effects was rare since the hormone stays in your uterus. The insertion was extremely painful which I expected since I have never had a child. In the past 4 months I have gained 15 pounds despite regular exercising and eating a low calorie diet, I have a constant stinky discharge, acne across my chin and sides of my face, my hair is falling out, I have no energy and am incredibly tired all the time, have been experiencing nightmares, and have sharp cramps that make me double over in pain. I am a newlywed and have never had any psychological issues. Now I am in therapy for anxiety and depression and after reading all the posts, I now am convinced that this is also a side effect of the mirena. I used to have a healthy sex life and now I have no desire to have sex or be touched by my husband with is causing tension in our new marriage. I was trying to stick out the side effects to see if they would go away since I paid so much money ($600) for the mirena. When I spoke with my obgyn about my side effects she said they were not caused by the mirena because the hormone is directly in your uterus. I am so frustrated! I feel like I have been lied to by my doctor. I am hoping that after removal of the mirena I will feel like my old self again!

I just wanted to openly share that I got some very encouraging responses from women on this site and it makes me feel SOOOOO good to just have support. So, I wanted to respond in an open forum and share a bit more of my experience:

To the women who wrote me:

Thank you for your response. You have no idea how good it makes me feel to know I'm NOT alone. My doctor truly IS ignorant and I am promptly switching. When I told her about what I'd found on line she was sure that it was all made up. She said she also googled the Mirena issues that I had talked about and found plenty of women claiming the same thing, but she said that doesn't make it true. CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT??? I mean really, I had no idea there were women on-line saying this about Mirena, so how would I even know to make up the SAME side effects as hundreds (probably thousands) of other women?!?!?! She should realize that they call it "practicing medicine" for a reason! And my Mirena cost my insurance company $1000.00...hmmmm...makes me wonder how much of a kick back the doctor's get for pushing it off on people. And I say "pusing" for a reason. I didn't even mention before that the doctor who put it in (the same OB who delivered my 3 month old) sat with me for 2 hours "convincing" me that my concerns about the device were uncalled for and that I should "go ahead and get it". I should have followed my own instincts, but went ahead and did it because my doctor (and her nurse) were making me feel stupid for worrying about the possible side effects, of which I had no idea that there were SO many. They only lead me to beleive there could be pregnancy symptoms and ectopic pregnancy (of which i was worried about that the most because I had already had a miscarriage where they thought it was ectopic). But against my better judgment I got it anyway....

So, when I went to take it out, I went to the OB that I had seen for all my prenatal visits because I didn't want to face the doctor that had pressured me. I figured the first doctor wouldn't want to take it out after only 10 or 12 days. I also thought the other OB (who knows me better and knows I don't have a history of any of the symptoms I've described) would understand and give me better advice as to why it might be happening. But SHE TOO didn't understand and had NEVER even heard of what I was telling her. I mean, really, you should have seen the way she looked at me during the visit. I think she would have had me committed right then and there if she could have. And even though I left there feeling better inside myself, I still wondered if some how I had made the whole thing up in my head. But after finding this site and reading your experience and the experiences of many other women, I truly feel so much better about my decision. I'm SO glad that i didn't wait!

There is another symptom that I didn't post before because it's a very morbid one. I would be watching TV or taking a shower or browsing the Internet and all of a sudden I would have a picture of myself lying dead on the bathroom floor from suicide. This truly freaked me out because my mind never goes to thoughts of suicide, but it was during the near two weeks of having the Mirena and it was happening more times than I care to admit. It was awful! I didn't even tell my doctor that part. She surely would have had me leaving her office in a straight jacket then. I mean my entire experience on Mirena was like an episode of the Twilght Zone. CREEPY!

To ANYONE considering getting this SOB removed...DO IT! DO IT NOW!!!! It was well on it's way to ruining my life and I only had it in for nearly 2 weeks. If you just got it and you think that it's too soon for the device to be causing your symptoms...IT'S NOT! It started causing mine right away and it only got worse!!!! Get it out!!!

And thanks to the women who wrote me and encouraged me. I SO appreciate it!!! Like I said before, it's nice to know I'm in good company and I'm not alone. THANK GOD FOR THIS SITE!

Ive had the Mirena in since Dec 2006. It was going great for me too at first then i starting piling on weight significantly and i got cramps and now 2 years later i have sore lower back,tightness down there,weird feeling when i pee at the mo(bleeding and all too),cramping,heavy bleeding!!!!!!, and i also thought i had symptoms to do with pregnancy as well (just like when i was carrying my daughter but the docs rekon you cant get pregnant on this, just like the side effects). I got this put in me as im very low in iron and bleed heavily otherwise. The doctor told me this was the only one that had NO SIDE EFFECTS. Im going to the doctors next week to find out why i have been bleeding the last 2 MONTHS and have huge blot like things coming out too :( Maybe i should go by my own instincts next time and not a doctors. they don't seem to know everything.

my 6yr old daughter was put on singulair at the age of 4 she had a reaction to nuts and had the allergy testing she was put on singulair and claritin and nasacort .(so she has been on the medication now for 14 months) about 3and 1/2 weeks ago she quit eating we had her to the dr several times they said it was all in her head that she could eat if she wanted to.she was then put in the hospital for 4 days they did the scope down the stomach found nothing i took her off all her meds because i didn't want her taking them with no food in her. she came home from the hospital and i put her back on the meds as the doctor requested and within 2 days she was crying non stop hitting me and telling me that she wanted to kill herself and everyone around her.she was putting her fists in everyines face and was very angry.she would cry and tell us that she didn't know why she was so angry.we took her back off of the meds because we were treating her for the stomach acid from not eating and within 4 days she was like a new kid.she is now eating ..happy ..and doing good in school..this is the 3rd time this yr on this med that she has quit eating we were told that it was all in her head .after reading everyones comments on here i called her doctor today and he said it could be the medication but they would have to put her back on it to check and i refused.no more singulair or clairitin for my children

I had my Mirena put in Oct 20, now granted it has only been a week, i have not had any spotting since day 3. I am feeling fine! I have been on the pill for years and if you read up on almost any form of birth control the side effects are all generally the same. I am wondering if these issues people are having are just because they started birth control in general and non specific to Mirena. Hopefully the future is good for my use with Mirena because if am tired of the pill and the high dose of hormones.

2 1/2 years ago I had my Mirena IUD place. I had the normal weight gain and steady bleeding which were side effects I was warned about. Sure enough after 2 months or so my weight returned to normal and the daily bleeding stopped. In fact I haven't had any periods since, which I was really please about b/c that was the reason for having the IUD in the first place. I have 4 children and my husband is fixed, but my periods were so heavy I had a hard time dealing with my iron levels, so the Mirena was recommended. I have raved about not having my period anymore and the freedom it has provided.

However, recently I have been suffering major anxiety, to the point I am currently off work for 4 weeks. I am a stock broker so everyone is convinced its market related. But all along I have said I don't have more or less anxiety if the market is up or down. I just feel as though I have almost in a car accident and my body is in a constant state of "fight or flight". I have been placed on heavy med's to try and correct my current imbalance. These med's are very powerful, for the past 6 days I have been asleep of 17 hours out of 24. Anything this strong is obviously pretty powerful. I have been discussing my current condition with friends and saying my instincts tell me something else is going on. I've been suspecting that something else in my environment could be contributing to my imbalance. So i have been looking into my IUD. My first signs of anxiety were 9 months after having it in, but I treated my anxiety with exercise and healthy living and got on with it. Today I found a website with many women with my exact symptoms:*****
As a mother I have learned to listen to my instincts, and at this very moment I am convinced that my Mirena IUD has over time created an imbalance which is responsible for my current poor health, and tomorrow i'm getting it taken out!

okay ladies, I'm not sure what you all are experiencing since I'm not a doctor. But I will tell you that a huge amount of your symptoms can either be age related or post baby related. I have four children ages 15, 6, 5, 3.
The beginning stages of the Mirena granted are not pretty and can last for months. I was having a terrible time with my periods and was out of commission for the first three days of every cycle each month. I have had my Mirena for almost 2 years now and am going on 41. I had to wait it out for about 6 months before seeing any huge improvements. I will tell you this, over eating and NOT eating a healthy diet of fruits and veggies will aggravate bloating and mood swings. You could have these with or without the IUD. I never lost my hair unless I was 3-6 months post partum.
A diet rich in potato chips, bread, meats and cheesy pizza will show on your hair skin and nails. The typical American diet will leave even your special guy moody. As we age the expectation is that we will always feel 18 and I have had to come to grips with how my body ages and how I take care of it. A new baby whether it is your 1st or 4th will cause unwanted fatigue. I still struggle with fatigue because not everyone sleeps thru the night including my hubby so my sleep gets disrupted a lot. There are several things you can do to help your Mirena work for you and not scare you. I NEVER lose my sex drive unless I fail to exercise even a little each week and have fought back with a super charged diet. I'm not perfect at it but boy does it ever help. Sugar has a HUGE impact on your hormones and fatigue level. Limit it. Got to bed as early as you can and avoid late night TV. Don't give your precious zzz's to some silly show that won't help you be a better person any way. Get moving and add a little (or a lot) of weight training to your days- your sex drive will soar and your body will thank you. Pray for wisdom. God will help. Sometimes he uses fatigue to slow me down and focus on what is really important. Granted not everyone can handle an IUD. But if you try a little self care and be patient you might find that it works for you. I had heavy bleeding and at my age the doc said I got it just in time because from 40-50 I could expect more of the same. I am grateful for it because I felt like I was dying every time I had a period. A little fatigue is worth the benefits. Keep in mind that even your little ones get tired. They need naps and they are kids. We need rest in the afternoons too. It's okay to stay off the phone and rest a little if you can. My energy drainers are TV, negative people, talking on the phone too much, eating too much especially when I'm not really hungry, the wrong foods when I do eat, and not getting sleep or exercise. Start small and see if over time it doesn't make a big difference before you throw in the towel. Blessings to all and especially the new mommies.

I have been feeling most of these symptoms for a while but thought it was just in my head or that I was going through early menopause but I am only 38.
Immediately I gained weight in my stomach area which made me mad but I dealt with it. I have have really long periods where I used to have a 3 day period. Now I have anxiety and mood swings where I just feel like being mean. I hate how I am to my husband, mom and kids. I feel like I can't concentrate and I can't remember a conversation that I had 2 days ago. I really feel like I was deceived of all these bad side effects. I just called to have this bitch removed and the nurse said she has never heard of any bad side effects. I guess I am one of the unlucky ones. I also exercise and diet constantly and can't seem to lose the extra weight I put on. It's so frustrating when I try so hard.Now I am a little nervous about getting it taken out. I plan on taking a xanex b.c it hurt so bad when I had it put in! I also am a little nervous about what birth control to use next. I don't want to deal with hormones again. It's not worth it. Also the sex drive is very low for me. I really wish I would have seen this blog ahead of time. I would NEVER of had the mirena inserted and I wouldn't have wasted a year and a half of my life on being miserable!! I'm getting this removed 9am on Friday!!

I am a loving mother of a 5 1/2 year old boy. He has been on Singulair for over 3 years. In this past 3 years my son has suffered in an unspeakable amount. He came down with Rota Virus and was hospitalized at 2. He then came in contact with Pneumonia in the hospital while he was there. They automatically put him on Singulair, Zyrtec, Prednisone, and antibiotics to treat the pneumonia. Since that day, my son has gone though more tests than I have in my entire life. He has had asthma, sinusitis, leg cramping ( to the point he cannot walk for 2 years), IBS, Acid reflux,(they gave him laxatives for a year that made things worse and addicted to them also), stomach pain, constipation and diarrhea back and forth. He also got Erythema Mulitforme TWICE, while on this drug. All of which the doctors said could NOT be caused by Singulair. He has had several Upper GI's and CT scans. Along with Barium enemas, several hundreds of blood tests, and many many pokes and prodded that were not necessary. All since he has been on Singulair. He now has frequent bathroom trips, depression, confusion, and anger outbursts. He also has to go to the restroom every 5 minutes. He has had genital swelling, and many other aches and pains. None of which his "doctor" ever said could be a result of Singulair. I am 100% sure it was!!!! He currently has anxiety and emotional sporadic issues causing problems in school The teachers and counselors say that it is so strange because there is no TRIGGER and the outbursts are completely inconsistent. His preschool teacher and director are sure he has ADHD. Well, we had him tested and he does not have any part of it. He has no learning disability what-so-ever. So that brought me back to square one. He is in a positive loving enviroment. How could he be depressed and want to hurt everyone around him? He cannot sit still. He cries and says he is 'stupid" and "can't think" like the other boys. He has nightmares and cannot sleep alone. He is scared of everyone and everything. So, as I sit here crying, I realized that this has all been a reaction of his "medicine" Singulair. He never should have gone through all of those painful tests, only to prove they couldn't find anything. So many treatments and sound full advice speeches from his doctors. How could they be so naive and selfish in the life of my son?

When I called my pediatrician of 5 years, she told me that " parents that have children with behavioral problems will LOOK for something to blame their problems on." She also said "drug companies only put side effects on their labels to PROTECT the drug companies. (as she laughed at me) They are not always valid". Then she said "if you take you child off of Singulair you will be playing Russian Roulette in his life." Then she said that all children around 5 or 6 go though this emotional time in their lives." She told me that if I take my child off of Singulair that she would no longer be a part of his health regimen for his asthma. She told me to see a Pulmonologist for further treatment.
Who is paying who? This is my son's life???????? I decided to go with my mother-gut instinct and get him off of this medicine. No matter what. He has been a different person since. He is currently going though a lot of side effects and withdrawals (leg pain, insomnia, hic-ups, emotional distress) but every day is getting better. How can the drug companies say that this is a "wonder drug?" There are more reported side effected patients then clinical studied patients! How can a "medication" that stimulates the brain not be connected to other problems? This "medication" interferes with the bio synthesis and action of LTs and has been marketed as NOVEL medication against asthma and allergic rhinitis. Who the hell is playing God here??? The pocket books of Merck or our over PAID "doctors?" Who pays the price? Our children? Or us. Thank god I found this before it was too late. I would not be able to withstand the pain of losing my son due to their lack of scientific evidence. They are lucky I am one of the smart ones. I will not settle for less than Justice for the drug companies and their paid "doctors?" You all end up in the same place. HELL

There are 18 million people on this drug. Most of them are children. Please save a life if not your own child's life. Thank You

extremely depressed after a week of taking levoxyl. Also face is swollen, eye swollen and red and face and eyes burn. These were the same symptoms after taking synthroid after a week. What's next? I am close to being suicidal after having survived lung cancer, surgery, chemo and radiation. To get another primary cancer and have things slide downhill after such a remarkable recovery, I can do nothing but cry after making the decision to have a cancerous thyroid removed that could have served me for years and years since it was such a slow growing cancer. I should have followed my instincts and just left it alone. Now all I want to do is lie on the couch and cry.

Let your body heal from child birth before you get Mirena, that is my opinion. I didn't get Mirena until my son was over a year old and i haven't had any crazy side effects, at first the bleeding and spotting for about a month and then my period stopped. i love it so far and reading some of these comments i realized the common theme in them is that many of the women have had problems got the Mirena right after having their child. i really think your body needs time to process all the hormone changes and get back to normal before you add birth control to the mix.

Has anyone experienced difficulty swallowing solid foods? My son has been on it for 2-3 years and this issue has just developed. Not sure if it has to do with the Singulair or not. He's had an Upper GI and no physical problems show up. He is 11 years old and the allergist says the mood swings are due to his age, not the medicine. He has been really down and cries at the strangest things.

I started Adoxa (generic form of Doxy) about 2 weeks ago for a cyst. About 5 days after taking the med, I was swimming and my hands had the weirdest sensation... After I got out of the pool, my feet were on fire as were my hands. Thought I just had gotten sunburn, though I don't normally burn. A couple days later, I had a severe tingling/burning in my fingers and toes. Couldn't sleep because of the pain. This lasted 2 night and I stopped taking the Adoxa. Went to Urgent Care because the burning was not subsiding and and my toes and fingers were EXTREMELY sensitive. I couldn't even open a pop can. Dr. said I had Periphrial Neuropathy and it is not a side effect of the Adoxa that I was taking. Told me I had symptoms to a bigger problem. I have been off Adoxa now for 4 days and the tingling/burning/sensitivity has all gone away! I know that it is the Adoxa and will not ever take it again!!! Remember to trust your instincts when you take medications!!!!

I took this medication as a malarial prevention whilst traveling through India.
Never EVER again. My boyfriend had suffered from depression in the past and we had heard bad things about Larium in relation to anxiety and insomnia so we specifically asked our doctor for the malarial tablets with the least amount of side effects associated with that kind of stuff. He reassured us that there was no record of Doxcycline ever having caused those sorts of effects.
So off we went- we followed the instructions exactly and began our trip.
A week or so into India I began to notice shortness of breath and stomach pain- I put it down to typical India travelers upset and thought no more about it. A bit later I began to suffer moments of anxiety that were really out of character ( I've never suffered from anxiety or depression). I'm very well traveled ( I work in the travel industry and have traveled extensively in the Americas, Africa, Australasia and se Asia) and so although this was my first trip to India- i knew my anxiety had nothing to do with India itself. ( people kept telling me this but I loved India)
It came to a head on a overnight bus from Goa to Hampi- I was feeling really anxious, sweating and clammy, I couldn't sleep and my breathing was really tight. Eventually I had a full blown panic attack that was almost like a out of body experience- I couldn't see and I couldn't breath. The whole bus had to stop ( embarrassing!) at 3am in the morning. Eventually I managed to get back on and make it to the next town ( although not as far as Hampi) so we could take stock.
I was petrified and had no idea whatsoever what was going on. It never occurred to me it could be the malaria tablets as we had been so clear and our doctor so confident they didn't have these kinds of side effects.
I was worried about being on buses, trains even planes again since I didn't know what caused the attacks and I was terrified another one would happen. I had no valium or any other sort of thing that might have helped. In the end we had to cut our trip short and make it back to Mumbai - In Mumbai I suffered from another two panic attacks- one where I could see the walls closing in in our cheap hotel room. Shortness of breath, tightness all through my body, hysteria, blurry vision - it was awful! And also this ongoing pain and upset in my stomach.
I ended up cutting short a RTW trip that my boyfriend and I had been saving for for over a year and coming home to Australia 2 months early.
It was devastating and I still had no idea what was causing it. Finally a friend said her doctor had mentioned sleeplessness and anxiety as a rare side effect of this drug when she was taking it for some problems to do with vaginal bleeding and spotting. I started searching on the internet and was amazed to find loads of sights with people experiencing heaps of the side effects that I'd been told were never a problem with this drug!
Obviously Malaria is really serious but if I had been properly informed I could have made the decision to come off the drugs and look at alternate medication. For now - Im taking the risk of no malaria tablets at all for my next couple of trips (to Borneo- so not a major risk anyway) and will actually research much harder before taking anything again!

I got the Mirena after my 2nd child in April 2007 at the age of 25. It was very painful and I can handle pain I had just done completely natural child birth to a 9 pound baby. I bleed for the first three months. With really bad cramps!!
However until seeing this website I never realized that all these things that have been happening to me are probably from the Mirena. The last 6 months I have been having anxiety attacks, dizziness, headaches, mood swing, acne, and I have been so tired I thought I was pregnant, now after today I believe it is from the Mirena. I am going to call my doctor and have it removed!!!

basically, this was my experience with the paragard:
1. Dec 2004 - Paragard iud was placed post-partum after my 2nd daughter was born. i was breast-feeding, and had no noticeable symptoms until Nov 2005.
2. Nov 2005 - had my first period since my daughter was born. it was heavy and crampy, but i thought "i haven't had a period in 2 years, so this is the price i pay..."
3. Each period hence was heavy, long at 6-7 days, and cramps were intense. again, i just decided that i could manage.
By the end of 2006, my periods were so bad that my husband and i decided i had to see the doctor.
4. Jan 2007 - saw the doctor about removing the copper IUD. she said that the paragard should not be causing such bad symptoms, and since i was did not want to get pregnant, she decided we should try to control the symptoms with birth control pills and Prometrium. I did not want to try Prometrium since I was unsure of how I would react to the hormone. she believed that i might be suffering from severe pms, called PMDD. note that i loved and trusted this doctor - i had some complications during my 2 pregnancy, and some problems post-delivery, and she was attentive, personable, and caring. i was very comfortable and trusting, so i listened to her recommendations. i tried yaz, yasmin, and 2 other pills over the next 3-5 months, but was extremely nauseous and sick with all of them (plus break-thru bleeding).
5. Feb - September 2007: i started having pre-period symptoms of nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea, abdominal cramps, severe fatigue. the first 2 months that i had these symptoms, they were so bad that i believed that i had an intestinal virus - same cramping, throwing up, and bad diarrhea, plus this was BEFORE my period. I then made the association between my symptoms, and the fact that they occurred 3-5 days before my period, and then they would subside about 3 days after my period started. my periods were still long with heavy bleeding.
6. September 2007 - was having same symptoms, but started 7-10 days before my period, and they were so bad that my husband had to take off from work to take care of our 2 girls each month (i stay home with them). i went back to the doctor during September, and was told to modify my diet (no white flour, sugar, low fat, high protein, lots of water) and to try some vitamin supplements since i didn't want more medications. she again recommended taking 100 mg Prometrium to help ease the symptoms. I asked to remove the IUD, again, and she said that "before she took out something that expensive, she wanted to make sure that something else was not wrong" - I was shocked at her statement, but agian I liked her and trusted her, so i went along for the sonogram.
7. October 2007 - In the meantime, I was desperate, so i took the vitamins and Prometrium, which sent me into what i can describe only as a psychotic episode. i had severe emotional outbursts, i was irrationally angry and irritable, and had absolutely zero patience. i am usually a smart girl, and in my normal "mental state" would have associated that the Prometrium had caused this severe reaction, but I was no where close to my normal state of mind, and i just thought that my physical symptoms were now affecting me mentally.
8. LAte Oct 2007 - BY this time I am so down and really ready to get my life back. I am still sick with nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, severe abdominal cramps, severe fatigue, and now my abdomen stays sore and tender through the whole month. FINALLY the doctor calls with the ultrasound results. she said that there were 2 small ovarian cysts - and i was relieved - i thought that FINALLY, we were getting somewhere - but in the next sentence she said that she didn;t think that they were responsible for my symptoms. i was deflated - and at such a loss of words. i listened to her tell me how she thought that i had IBS, and that she was going to refer me to a GI doctor. i know that IBS is a catch-all category of symptoms that some doctors throw on people they can;t diagnose. and remember, i was just a few days out from recovering from 1) having a severe personality reaction to a drug, and didn't know it was because of the Prometrium - i thought i was going mad, and 2) i was just getting over being sick before my period - AGAIN.
I finally called her back a few hours later and left a message with the nurse "since she doesn;t think that the cysts are causing the symptoms, could we please remove the copper IUD?" i never got a reply.
I called my niece who is an RN at a respected women's health center in NC and cried a lot and told her what was going on. she got me an appointment with a doctor there for mid nov 2007.
10. Mid Nov 2007 - tell the NC doctor my medical history, and she says "we need to get that IUD out". in less than 30seconds it is gone with minimal discomfort, 25% of the abdominal soreness and tenderness is gone within 24 hours of removal, and completely gone within a week. THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME IN MONTHS THAT MY TUMMY WAS NOT TENDER OR SORE!!!
i have a follow-up appointment for mid Jan 2008 with the NC doctor and possible placement of the Mirena
11. Nov 29, 2007 - have my first period in over a year where i am not sick etc - it is heavy and a bit crampy, but is shorter in duration.
12. mid dec 2007 - i start to suspect i may be pregnant, but think that we have been cautious, and my period is probably going to be irregular with all of the crap that has gone on
13. jan 5 2008 - yep - i'm pregnant!! but that was ok - we wanted another anyway.
14. jan 7, 2008 - catch the respiratory flu that has been going around and stay VERY sick for 4 weeks, and i just know that something is unusual - i can't eat i am so sick and am so weak that i shake whe i stand up - call a new local OB doctor and see them.
15. jan 30, 2008 - have miscarried the pregnancy
16. April 2008 - the new ob doctor places a mirena
17. first of may 2008 - my husband is asking if i feel ok, that he has seen similar but much less severe symptoms in my mood as when i was on the Prometrium. i have never had acne this severe on my face, neck and back - it actually hurts and i have some scarring even though i have not picked at it.
By the way, my new local OB told me that HE WILL NOT PLACE PARAGARD COPPER IUDS FOR HIS PATIENTS BECAUSE THEY WORK BY CAUSING INFLAMMATION IN THE UTERUS.
however, he also said that i shouldn't have any issues with the mirena, and now i am starting to wonder if i am going slightly mad...
i want my life back...
i now realize that there is a side effect to EVERYTHING that you put in your body...
i am terrified of getting pregnant right now even though a few months ago i was excited about this wonderful possibility...
i am now talking to a counselor to try to work out the events of this past year+ so i can move on...
i feel like my voice was NOT heard or even acknowledged...
the reality is that WE are ultimately responsible for our own well-being, both physical and mental, and that doctors do treat with preconceived notions about the way health should be and how medications and devices should work...they listen to pharmaceutical reps and not their patients...
i don;t know what to do about birth control now...i suspect the mirena is making me feel this way, but i am terrified of getting pregnant, i can't take birth control pills, and am hesitant to put any thing else in my body that is a chemical...however, i have no libido anymore (my poor wonderful husband) and i use to enjoy the closeness and intimacy of being with my husband...
i don't know how this affects your decision about the copper iud, but i just caution about 1) be careful with sex after the mirena is removed and 2) be mindful of anything that we eat or place in our body.
i do know that i could not find any other information from women who experienced my symptoms, but i find it very difficult to believe that i am the only one who experienced this.
lots of luck, and thank you for sharing your experience with the posting site! it has helped me make an informed decision about removing the mirena, and i hope that the information here will help you make an informed decision about the copper iud.

Here's a question- What are we supposed to say to our doctors to take this seriously and stop treating it like it's in our heads. Should they check our hormone levels? Have any doctors or nurses ever posted here?

1st post 4/3: 8 year old boy with suicidal ideation...now 7 days off Singulair. His teacher reported to me today that my son is not the same child that he was 5 days ago. She stated that she hasn't seen him this happy or enthusiastic since the beginning of the school year. This was UNSOLICITED.
I told her that I took him off of Singulair last weekend. Unbelievable. My husband and I are still in shock.

This is in response to Bachaman ~ Ok, everyone has a right to their two cents...even you. However, there are a couple of major differences between your OPINION, and what is happening to people with CHILDREN. We as adults all know how we feel when we take a med and feel differently from it. Children do not!!! And as adults, we do not know what our children are going through from certain meds. Myself along with many others have not even associated Singulair with our childrens behaviors. We always selected other avenues to take (ie: age, personality, changes made in their lives, etc) I am happy that Singulair works for you! But, you are an adult!!! There are certain drugs that should not be taken by people under 18 due to the body and brain still developing and they could be too much for their little bodies to handle. Look at ANY over the counter med and see the dosing instructions are very different for different ages and body weight. Everyone knows there are risks associated with taking any med. However, most of us trust our dr's, and don't question them when they prescribe things for us or or kids. Be glad you haven't had any problems, but don't sucker punch those of us that has! No amount of money in the world will change any past, so to call people ambulance chasers was a hit below the belt. From the sounds of it, you are not a parent. And if you are, your instincts aren't funtioning properly.