Mid cycle symptoms and conditions

My daughter had switched from the birth control pill Low-Ogestrel-28 after about 2 1/2 years (no side effects at all then a little spotting mid cycle) so she saw her primary care and the dr. told her that her body had become used to that paticular pill and switched her to Yasmin. The first month was ok and then in the 2nd month I noticed a big change in her attitude..she became very short tempered during the entire month and then when she was on the placebo pills (the days prior to her period) she really became a crazy angry woman. When on the other bc the week prior found her more sensitive and crying...such a total flip in her nature.
Then on the 3rd month the vomiting began...nothing major at first - random maybe once a week and always in the morning...after juice or soymilk. So you explain it away by saying that it's first thing in the morning and theres more acid on your stomach or she was hungry when she went to bed and it's from that. She began having headaches around this time also..Ok so she stopped having anything but water with her English muffin first thing in the morning and things evened out with the stomach thing - for a little while. She was incredibly tired and had a weird sore throat - killer sore throat - never had strep before (she's 20 years old...) she got an appt. to see a N.P. in the dr. office and she asked me to go...while we were there I asked not only the medical assistant but the N.P. (nurse practitioner) about the law commercials that I had seen regarding Yasmin..they blew it off as just a bunch of ambulance chasers wanting money and that it was safe and effective. They were adamant about it. Ok I dropped it..after examination the NP told my daughter that her lymph nodes were enlarged and she had A. strep B. Mono C.all of the above. Tests ruled out Strep but we had a winner on Mono. While she had the week off from work I noticed depression along with the headaches and also the stomach problems came back. Always in the morning, but it became every morning now..we thought she was hungry and she would eat and feel fine and then about 5 minutes after finishing her breakfast with only a small amt. of water to go along with it she'd have a period where for the next 15 -30 minutes she'd either throw up (and once doing this would feel fine) or it would work itself out and she'd be fine. It had gotton to the point I don't know who dreaded the morning more her or me. We are now in the 4th month of Yasmin and this began to happen every single morning and then toward the end of the month it would start being random at nightime..no vomiting but feeling sick - like it had begun in the beginning with the morning stuff. It came to head the other day- Saturday October 10th 2009. We had gone on a overnight trip to see her grandparents and we had to leave early in the morning (4 am) so she took the pill after having a little something to eat (no liquids) by 2:30 that afternoon she all of a sudden felt like she was going to get sick..and boy did she - violently sick - then again at 6:30 - violently ill- projectile and again at 8:30. I got on the computer and started researching Yasmin....and it all came together. I told her no more pill...she is in a serious relationship and was using Yasmin not only for the terrible painful periods that she was having but for protection so we needed to take that into account...she was safe and she is now off that pill. She did not take one Sunday (11th) or Monday (12th) and I cannot tell you how much better she is. This was someone who had lived with a constant stomach ache for over 4 weeks...we could outfit a pharmacy with all the otc meds I have bought - pepto, rolaids, gaviscon, maalox, YOU Name it we have it in regards to stomach distress..and nothing really helped. A burp and feel better for a little while but it was always there..that low lying ache in the tummy. She spoke with a friend that works for a doctor on Sunday and told her about the Yasmin and the woman couldn't believe that she had been prescribed that..she told her to get off it immediately (she already had) and that the dr. that she works for will not prescribe Yasmin or yaz to any of his patients. My daughter's personality is back. She is laughing and happy and a totally different girl. Headaches are gone and most importantly NO stomach pain at all. Completely gone. She can eat and drink and no problems what-so-ever. She looked at me and said "I can't believe I lived like that for so long, I had forgotten what it felt like to feel good - like me". She is calling a Ob/Gyn practice this morning and hopefully will be seen by someone today. What a nightmare. My heart goes out to those of you that have posted and have had much worse things besides what my daughter has gone thru. The FDA needs to do something about this !! What can we do to get this information to them? DO NOT TAKE OR LET YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS TAKE YASMIN OR YAZ - IT IS HARMFUL.

I am so relieved to read all of your posts knowing that i am not the only one who becomes an entirely new, sad, pained person when i tamper with BC. I have been on the Nuvaring for 2 weeks now and am experiencing some weird chest pains. at times it feels like i'm being kicked or squeezed in the heart, and other times it feels like i have air blocked in my chest. i am so fed up with this toxic ring already i just threw it out 5 minutes ago. is it bad to stop a birth control mid-cycle? i hope not, i really wanted to wait the next 8 days to end the 21 day cycle, but i cannot wait that long. i am miserable. what bothered me the most about reading all these posts, aside from the fact that so many females are suffering due to excessive hormones, is that it seems to be a common thing for doctors to write these problems/complications off so damn quickly! there is enough evidence on this page alone to suggest that nuvaring has serious negative side effects, and yet when i went to urgent care today, none of the doctors seemed to be concerned with my chest pain and possible relation to the new birth control. our medical field is fucked up.

my mirena experience was a nightmare to say the least. i had it inserted about 1.5 years ago and finally had it removed last week. the insertion itself was a nightmare. i passed out. i had horrid pain but then was fine within a day or two. the following week, i near passed out. then, i felt lightheaded for about 6 weeks and was convinced it was mirena. i went for my followup. I was feeling better so i decided to keep going.

in the "getting used" to period i had very painful breasts. eventually i had a painful breast lump that stuck around for a few months. off to the doctor for mammogram and ultrasound. they found it was not the bad kind of lump. it cleared up in a couple months.

about 4 months after insertion, i had a couple of near passing out incidents. off to the doctor again - this time for EKG, echo cardiogram, holter monitor. all normal. they suggested i had either panic attacks or vasovagal syndrome.

i also found that i was extremely alcohol sensitive. one drink was a huge problem for me! (in retrospect, i believe the near passing out and alcohol sensitivity were due to becoming hypoglycemic. it turns out progesterone is tightly coupled to insulin response! who knew!).

my next problem was cystic acne. this is really bad acne that goes deep in the skin and is impossible to get rid of (never had that before!). so i was off to the dermatologist.

oh and did i mention that all this passing out ended up giving me terrible anxiety? so now off to the shrink.

overall, it has been 1 year of a near constant feeling of lightheadedness, numerous near passing out / vasovagal type of episodes (probably due to low blood sugar), anxiety about passing out, throbbing head feeling (which i just realized is a migraine), unable to sleep through the night, mid cycle cyst pain, terribly tender breasts just before my period, did i miss anything?

now, let me mention that all the doctors to whom i mentioned that maybe mirena is the cause of my problems said "nah, that is not it." i also mentioned blood sugar and no one bought that either - "nah, you are too physically fit, eat too healthfully, and your blood test from last year is normal."

finally, the psych nurse believed me. she said to get the mirena removed since it appeared all my problems started after the insertion. if it was psychological or if it was physical didn't matter. just get it out!

i've had it out about 6 days now and i would say i feel 70% better. the throbbing head sensation at night is gone and i am sleeping much better. the lightheadedness is improved. i feel much less hungry than i did on mirena so i can only guess my hypoglycemia is improving.

only time will tell if my problems were caused by mirena!

I'm feeling the same as many of you ladies on here- it's certainly breaking my heart for all of you too. If we had known then what we knew now....
I got my Mirena about 6 months after the birth of my daughter and then spiraled into some serious depression. I'm so horrified now thinking back about how angry and ungrateful I was to my husband- I returned everything he gave me for Christmas in an angry huff. My behavior was awful AND it wasn't me. Over the next two years I had serious mood issues felt pregnant all the time (I even took to buying those dollar store tests so I could relieve my suspicions each time but not spend a fortune). And then there were the headaches. I had always had hormone related headaches (a few a month) so they weren't really new to me, but it got to a point where I was having so many I went to a neurologist for help - he asked me to chart them, I fund I was having 14 to 16 days a month with pain. I think the "off" days were just off because I was still under the influence of the pain drugs from the day before. My husband and I were planning on a third anyway- and suddenly I really wanted this thing out! I took it out, here I am, 9 months later- headache free!!! 9 months of no headaches and the "freedom" came within days of removal. I have now been trying to get pregnant for 9 months too- my period returned immediately after removal (the one perk I loved of the Mirena was no period) unfortunately, I can't seem to get pregnant. This, from a woman who seemingly got pregnant just by her husband looking at her. Literally, 3 cycles pre-mirena, meant 3 pregnancies for me. We had to be seriously careful- I'm terrified that this thing has now caused me to be infertile. I have been tracking my cycles watching for my ovulation and I can't find it despite having a regular 28 day cycle. Don't get Mirena- it's just not worth it

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?

this pill SUCKS!!! i started taking it for mid-cycle pain as well as cramps. I also heard it would clear up any acne I might have. I didn't have much, but as soon as i started taking it, i broke out severely on my back,chest, and face. My contacts won't sit right on my eyes, my hands started to peel, i'm moody, i still get cramps! this pill is NOT worth it. it only seemed to help with bleeding. It's almost as if i don't get a period, and believe it or not, i hate that whole concept. I'd rather be in pain, and drug myself up than be on this horrid pill. Don't do this to your body. I'm stopping.

After being on YAZ for about 7 months and realizing how it was harmin my mind and body, my doctor told me to stop taking it immediately, even though it was mid-cycle. he put me on Loestrin24fe because "there has been a much higher success rate with a lower dose of estrogen" NOT IN MY CASE!

i started taking it on a Tuesday, it is now the following Monday and i have already experienced:
harsh aches and pains throughout my body, unbelievable mood swings from cryin until my eyes hurt for NO reason to sitting and talking calmly within 5 minutes of each other, once again a complete lack of sex drive which i *just* recovered from with YAZ, not being able to eat yet having extreme weight gain??? my stomach is completely round when i have had a 6pack for my entire adult life and my jeans will not get past my thighs anymore, my skin and hair are oily and i have broken out worse than i did when i was a teenager ...

and the BEST one yet! Severe Panic Attacks during the night to the point where i am terrified to sleep because of waking up hysterical and actually "feeling" my dreams. i woke up from a nap yesterday crying uncontrollably because i was convinced i snapped my spine/neck because i dream it, felt it snap and HEARD it snap in my dream. it is all too real and i am on lack of sleep AND not eating for a few days.

Needless to say, i have stopped taking the pill as of last night. i am hoping to get back to normal in about a week because i clearly cannot function like this. I missed a gorgeous Easter day yesterday because i was having a low grade panic attack ALL day and couldn't eat or even talk to anyone.

i am not going to let another bc pill ruin my life this year. its not worth it but i must ask, where do i go from here? i am concerned about getting an IUD because my body seems to have every side effect possible with any type of birth control but i think the IUD is my only option besides complete abstinence.

Ive been on Yaz for one week and by the third day, I started noticing I was tired more than usual. The days that followed got worse and worse! My symptoms include: Fatigue, Irritability, Chest Pains, No Sex Drive, Dryness, Nervousness, Acne, Insomnia, Increase in Appetite, Loss of Focus, Pulsating Headaches, Short Temper. I worry about quitting mid-cycle but these symptoms are unbearable and thats a risk I don't mind taking. I mean after all, who wants to live like this? NO ONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Im quitting TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

First few months on this pill went fine. On the 4th month I started with the spotting. By the time the 5th or 6th month rolled around I would have my period it would stop for a few days and then start again at mid cycle. I was getting two periods per month. This month I started spotting on day 15 and now 9 days later I'm still bleeding. I need to be on some form of birth control pill to control extremely heavy periods. Ok so I don't have the extreme bleeding anymore but I have my period all the time. I could live with spotting but this is full on break through bleeding. My doctor wants to try something new but I feel like a guinea pig. I just wish there was some pill that came with a guarantee. :(

I found this web site whilst looking for information on the mirena coil and acne. I had mirena number 2 fitted 6 months ago at 46 years old. I had a few blemishes at 40 but didn't relate it to the coil, thinking that age and my hormones were to blame. My second coil which was fitted in June was painful to fit. I have felt pain in my hip on and off since and have bad acne on my face (cheeks). I have suffered dreadful mood swings over the years which I have always put down to my inability to cope with 2 children and a husband who has high standards. My skin is awful and I have to say that clear skin was always an attribute before I had my coil fitted. I am exhausted all of the time and snap at what I recon must be mid cycle.

I have been off this pill for 6 days...was taking it for 11 months and I feel horrible today. My side effects while on this pill where:hair loss, complete loss of libido, vaginal dryness, headaches, muscle pain and twitching in my legs, rash on my breasts that was very itchy, nervousness, bladder problems: constant need to urinate and feeling pressure in my kidneys. The list goes on and on. I am scared coming off these pills, I have had dizzy spells all day and feel very nauseated, I have bad cramps. I stopped the pack mid-cycle and I have been bleeding fully since yesterday. I am so scared of whats going to happen next.

Buyer beware. Was fine the first time I took it, which was for a total of 1.5 years. When i took it out after realizing my mood was different on it, i got amazingly bad breakouts that, nine months later, still remain. for some reason i chose to begin it again recently and have had shortness of breath, increased anxiety and depression, NO sex drive, trouble having orgasms, trouble sleeping despite extreme fatigue. have had night sweats, etc. it's mid-cycle and i just took the damn thing out and hope this nightmare subsides. NEVER AGAIN NUVARING, or any other hormonal birth control for that matter.

Girls, I thought I was going crazy until I started reading all of these posts on the side effects of Yasmin. I have been off and on different types of pills for 15 years and have NEVER experienced anything like this. My breasts hurt so badly I can't even touch them, I have gained weight, am bloated, EXHAUSTED and so moody and off sex that my husband doesn't know what to think anymore. All of this after only 12 days of this nightmare pill. My doctor and another gyno friend told me to "ride it out" until I finish the pack and go back on Yasminelle (I live in Europe, don't know if it exists in the States), which I was on until last month. I cannot fathom taking this for another 10 days but am also worried about stopping a pill mid-cycle.

I have found all of this so surprising since I am quite healthy and have never experienced side effects from anything before (though it should be said that I have never taken tons of medication since I am rarely sick). I am also really active, always out and about, doing a million things at once and while I get tired like everyone else I am used to long, active days. Since I started this pill I have been going to sleep at 9.30pm and getting up at 7am!!!! And I'm still tired when I wake up!!!!

I have several girlfriends who have been taking Yasmin for years and absolutely love it, so I thought something was really wrong with me. I actually considered taking a pregnancy test though I think it's highly unlikely since I was on another pill last month and had a regular period two weeks ago.

I just can't wait for this all to be OVER. Something is wrong with this pill and my body.

I've been on Yasmin for maybe 2 cycles, before I went to my doctor yesterday to see if I could stop it mid cycle.

side effects that I noticed (or had pointed out to me).
-severe mood swings, severe decrease in libido, general fatigue and depression, vaginal dryness, soreness, itchiness, it feels almost painfully tight?, my tits became monsters that increased at least a cup size that wanted to escape my shirt (my boyfriend appreciated this part, but they were very painful), general bloatiness/weight gain, binge eating (I normally don't have much of an appetite for anything, and forget to eat in between, school and work)

Is there anyone out there that has had severe chest pains, particularly in the sternum region, on the ring? I've had mine out for two days after weeks of RAGE and back pain...along with chest pains and heart palpitations. Just hoping the chest pain and pressure will subside.
Thank you.

I've been a pill taker for twenty years (maybe more). I switched to loestrin FE in November. I realize that any bc takes the body some time to adjust but this has been pretty brutal. I gained 12 lbs and I cannot get it off no matter how much I work out and/or don't eat. I'm depressed too yet I have a beautiful life. My doctor says you sometimes need a year for your body to adjust to a new pill... I don't know if I can wait that long. My kids think I have lost my mind because I cry so much. I too think irrationally a lot more than in prior years. I will ask my doctor about this next week. It seems like this pill might have serious effects on the thyroid? Most of the symptoms described are also associated with hypothyroidism.

WOW!!! I am so glad i decided to google Yaz. I actually stopped taking Yaz 3 days ago. Not because i felt i was having problems...but because i just no longer need birth control. Little did i know that it was the cause of a lot of my problems. I was diagnosed with Anxiety disorder at 18 and i am now 28. I stopped taking antidepressants about 2 years ago. I have been doing great! then i started taking Yaz...UH O! all of the sudden i was having mood swings, anxiety attacks, headaches, dizzy spells...ugh i thought i was loosing it! of course i related it to my anxiety disorder and fugured i just needed to get back on meds. Surprise, surprise my doctors said the same thing. I even asked "Could it be the new birth control i am on?"..DOc- "O no, Yaz is great ...no anxiety side effects"...
So of course i listen to my doctor and continue the pill. I got back on prozac (I really didn't want to) but what else could i do...i was going crazt and my doctors said YAZ had nothing to do with it...UM HELLO!!! did they research this drug?????? Obviously not..it says right on the website "May cause anxiety" UGH!!!
I just stopped the Pill 3 days ago and i am hoping that all these problems go away and i can eventually get off Prozac as well. THe only major problem i am having now is that i stopped the pill mid cycle and now i am having a really HEAVY period. i never had heavy periods before :(... I am hoping that this goes away and all goes back to normal...
CAN ANYONE TELL ME IF THEY TOO HAD A VERY HEAVY PERIOD AFTER STOPPING YAZ?????????
AGAIN THIS IS NOT NORMAL FOR ME..NEVER HAD A PROBLEM WITH HEAVY PERIODS!

THANK YOU,

I have been on aviane for 4 months and i hate it! I have all the side effects: headaches, nightmares, acne, fatigue, mood swings, depression, anger, long periods, weight gain, rage, etc.... I could list alot more! I am so glad I went on this page because now I know its the pill and I'm not going crazy. I have had such a horrible experience with this pill that I am stopping it today mid-cycle just to feel "normal" again. I cry for any reason, I'm mean to those I love and I feel like I should be going to therapy. I've never had acne before and now I get a pimple and its there for weeks! I have gained weight even though I work out 5 days a week and I am so lathargic that its a battle to stay up past 9pm. I think this pill should be taken off the market. I was on yaz before and stopped because I experience break through bleeding, but I want to get back on it. A liitle spotting every now and then is much better than feeling insane!

I had my Mirena for 18 months (12/07-4/3/08). My Doctor urged me to keep it in and when I finally went to get it removed, I had retained the strings and the pain when he dilated my cervix was so painful I had to get anesthesia to get it removed.

After about 6 months of the iud, I started experiencing heart palpitations and shortness of breath. And for the last few months and even two weeks post removal I am experiencing shortness of breath at rest. And tightness in my chest. It's very scary. ALSO, I only have heart palpitations mid-cycle (ovulation) and during my period. And my shortness of breath gets worse during that time also. It is painful to exercise bc I can't breathe, I actually got a bronchial inhaler from my doctor and it's helped SO much during exercise. I would be yawning and have so much extra saliva and after 50 running paces I'd have to stop to rest because my chest would be so tight and burning. I was tested for asthma and do not have asthma. That isn't to say I don't have exercise induced asthma. I never ever had problems before this Mirena.

I haven't had any hair loss or trouble sleeping that I can pinpoint either. Mostly I looked 3 months pregnant and haven't been able to drop 5 lbs. I'm ideal weight for my height and have cut out most sugar and limited carbs and nothing has changed even with exercise. I DO notice that I was soooo nasty and couldn't control my temper. I can't positively contribute that to the Mirena but I'll see as time goes on and this wears away.

I wouldn't advise the Mirena to anyone. Not with all these women and myself having the same effects. The Dr tried to tell me that it couldn't be the Mirena causing heart palpitations but I'm 28 years old and entirely healthy.

I also felt when I was ovulating that I was having contractions. My Dr kept telling me it's not supposed to help cramping but won't make it worse and I must have said 100 times that I NEVER HAD CRAMPS before in my life. My ovulation/periods were always very uneventful and painless. And the pain I had during ovulation and my period wasn't traditional cramping. It was a wave of extreme sharp shooting pain that would shoot down my thigh and I'd actually do careful, controlled breathing during that pain. The pain would be so intense I'd stop in my tracks and grip whatever was nearest to me while standing perfectly still and doing breathing exercises.

Also, I should note I have never been pregnant before and my midwife that I go to now was saying that my body could have been trying to expel the iud bc I had never had anything pass through or in my cervix before and that the pain during ovulation and period could actually have been my uterus contracting because it was trying to get the iud out!

I hope that the chest tightness and shortness of breath go away. It's very alarming.

Hi, I started Yaz about 2 weeks ago. I am already on Zoloft for minor depression and anxiety. Stared Yaz the sunday I started my period. First the moodiness started, then the headaches. I thought I was getting sick with a cold because I had razor blade pain in my throat that I ended up attributing to Reflux. Went to the doctor to get meds to treat that. The pain went away then I got a metallic taste that I couldn't get rid of. Went to the dentist and nothing was wrong with my fillings. I thought I was going crazy because then I had vaginal itching and odor. I wasn't have a full period but I never stopped bleeding from my period when I started the pack. After finding this website I stopped mid cycle. This has scared the crap out of me. I know I haven't been on it for long, but can anyone tell me if they have stopped in the middle of the pack and how long it took for your period to be on a normal schedule again.

My Mirena Removal....
So i posted here a few weeks ago after I found this site. I had EVERY side effect listed and was so freaked out that i immediately made an appointment for removal.
For those of you reading and wondering what the removal is like..
Well, NOTHING like the insertion. I was so so nervous and it was over before we actually started. The DR was surprised that i was back in his office to have this removed. He then proceeded to do an ultrasound to be sure it was placed properly before removal. And yes, all was OK on the position of it. I explained to him my reasons and he looked at me like he had never heard this before. I honestly can not imagine with all the women he sees that NONE of them have complained. But...as I was getting dressed afterwards, I took a good look in his office. There was Mirena literature ALL over the place. In fact, that was the ONLY thing he was advertising. Not to mention...they made me pay up front with the insertion back in Nivember...billed my insurance and I still have yet to receive my reimbursement. Oh yeah, and that...they charge more than the actual Mirena costs, then they bill your insurance for the price they know they will pay and the DR then makes about $150 profit. Nice.
Ok, back to my side effects post Mirena. The removal was not painful at all. I did spot for about a week- nothing too heavy but it was clotty and def there.
A couple of days after the removal it felt like I was coming out of my skin something terrible. I figured this was my body adjusting to the lack of hormones. I also had some headaches.
It has now been 2 weeks and the spotting has disappeared. I also can see the bloating of my stomach is starting to go away. It looked like I was about 4 mos preggo while I was on it. I also have an increased sex drive. And sleep-- well let me tell you, I have not slept this good in a very long time. I am actually sleeping more than 6 hours now and the night sweats have also discontinued.
I can't believe EVERY time I come to this site and look up Mirena ALL the people that have posted their experience as being negative. Yet, the DR looks at me like I am crazy! I have been seeing him for years and I have never complained about something like this. I really am so happy that I have it out and wish I would have done my research on this prior to insertion (which was one of the most painful things ever!)
So..for those of you out there that are either contemplating having it inserted...I say NO WAY. And for those of you out there that are nervous about the removal or not sure..I SAY YES, DO IT! For our bodies to be reacting this way, it is clear to me that it should not be inside of us. Listen to your bodies...they really do speak to you and let you know when something is not right. Forget about the DR saying it is safe or he has not heard of any of these side effects...YOU be the judge.
Good luck! And I promise it gets better once you get that lil' demon out!
Mona

Hi all
I am a 24 year old, quite anxious person and have had problems with panic attacks and anxiety on and off for the last 5 years, although I generally stay on top of it, manage a good job and I have a successful long term with my boyfriend who I live with and love very much.
I was on Yasmin for three years and never thought I had any problems with it - although looking back maybe some of the anxiety that I experienced then was linked to it. The numerous GPs I spoke never made this connection so I would never have suspected it.
Anyway I came off Yasmin a year ago, as I decided I wanted a break from medication but any changes would have been disguised by another medication I was coming off at the time which gave me really bad withdrawal symptoms.
I went back on Yasmin ten days ago and today I feel terrible. I have been waking up at about 5am, wide awake and anxious and this morning had a very upset stomach due to the severe anxiety. I tried to go to work but on the bus I had the most awful depressing, dark anxious thoughts and could NOT get them out of my head. I felt terrible and came straight back home.

There is no way I am taking the pill tonight, but I am a bit worried about stopping it mid cycle - does anyone have any experience of doing this and what happened?
I also really want to know how long it will take for me to feel back to normal - can anyone give me an idea?

Thanks for your posts,
Really think they need to warn people more clearly on packaging...

Jem

Thank god for the internet-I don't know what I would have done if I had to feel the way I did from taking Yasmin any longer without knowing why. I took Yasmin for two months. In the third week of my second month I suffered from severe anxiety and panic attacks along with irrational fears and obsessing on random thoughts that wouldn't normally bother me. When I would somewhat calm down, I would then feel so depresses because I didn't know why I just couldn't go back to feeling like myself. I am a worry-er, I admit, but never to this extreme. I was so nervous, I had no appetite and the anxiety really began to take its toll on me physically. Now that I look back on it, I was more nervous than usual in my first month, I have lost my sex drive, I have had small dizzy spells and blurred vision, random pains in my left lower abdomen area, but I never put these all together. When I found not only this website, but tons others with women writing about all of these side effects, I already started feeling like myself again. It's been 4 days off the pill and I still get a little anxious, but nothing like it was last week. I can't wait for this stuff to get out of my system. I did take the pill at 7:45 every night and I do notice I'm more nervous in the morning when I get up and by late afternoon, I start to relax and feel more like myself. Synthetic hormones are not natural and I really feel like we shouldn't put this stuff in our bodies. We are messing with scary stuff. God only knows what would have happened if I had to endure any more of that physical and mental pain!

This is the second posting of mine about the Nuva Ring. I went off the Nuva Ring last Sunday as you can read in the other posting. I got my period yesterday unexpectedly (which wasn't too much of a shock because my body is going to be "off" for awhile from not having the hormone intake). I just finished my regularly "scheduled" period 1 week and 5 days ago....so now i've had 2 periods in the last 2 weeks. I've had some minor headaches pretty much every day...i dont usually have to take asprin or anything, but they are noticable. I woke up this morning and my period had been so heavy last night that it soked through my underwear (using a tampon) and that hasn't happened since i've been on any form of birth control (about 5 yrs). Anyways, just thought i'd update anyone who was wondering about some symptoms of taking out the ring (mid cycle). Anyone have questions about it.....ask!

I was recommended to try NuvaRing by a friend who has been using it for years with no problems. Wtih a long history of intolerance to the pill and having come off Depo Provera after 5 years (because of the osteoporosis fear and severe vaginal dryness) I opted for the NuvaRing given it's low levels of hormones. At first I had a lot of cramping and discharge which my Dr said was normal. Since then I've had all the symptoms listed below...have even been having expensive cardiac tests because of the heart palpitations (my blood pressure remains normal) which my Dr says are not related to the NuvaRing. She has recommended I take anti-depressants for the extreme anxiety I have started experiencing (and have never had before). Having read these posts this morning (woke up with severe cramping mid-cycle) I've now removed the ring...hoping that my doing so my symptoms will recede / decrease. But...I'm now out of hormone related options for birth control. My Dr has recommended the Mirena IUD which my sister has and is removing due to side effects from that. Any other ideas??????