New york times symptoms and conditions

Wow. I had Mirena insertedin March 2009, following two years of horrible periods following my third c-section. I would have a heavy period for an average of 10 days, then get two weeks off and start again. They originally tried giving me Depo Provera - BAD! I was losing blood clots the size of my fist for three months!

At first Mirena seemed ideal, though I don't need birth control - I had a tubal ligation with my c-section. The periods were just awful! They inserted the mirena during a D&C and hysteroscopy because I also had uterine polyps. My hair is falling out (my thyroid has been checked, thank you);I have acne on my face and back; I am growing hair on my face; I am irritable; my back hurts; I am bloated; I am gaining weight even though I am on a reduced calorie diet, gave up drinking wine AND run two miles a day; I have yeast infections; sex hurts and I bleed nearly every time I have sex; I have a low sex drive now; I bleed when I exercise or go for a walk; I have ruined every pair of panties I own, and I am still having 14 day long periods. No longer heavy periods, but 14 days of bleeding, then nine days off before starting again!

I had a doctor's appointment yesterday and told him all of this: his responses were that the spotting and irregular periods are likely for the FIRST YEAR (WHICH IS NOT IN THE FINE PRINT INCLUDED WITH THE MEDICATION!!!) and that doctors can't find or treat the cause of heavy periods and bleeding, only treat the symptoms.

We need to band together to demand that women's health issues are taken seriously. It is not acceptable to have a doctor say that the cause of these problems doesn't matter. Treating the cause should be the primary goal, not peddling drugs or covering up symptoms! The New York Times ran an article yesterday recommending Mirena as a solution to heavy bleeding in women! This is not a solution. And neither is a hysterectomy - I am only 31.

I posted a story on January 16 about my 16 year old daughter who turned out to have Factor V Leiden. She went on Yaz and nearly died a few weeks later. Factor V Leiden really is very common. Especially if you have Scandinavian blood or red hair. But it affects all races and ethnicities at lower levels. If you want to read more, the New York Times had a good article on February 24, 2008. It was about the decision whether to get a genetic test before going on birth control. B. A.

My daughter was 16 when her GYN started her on Yaz. She was 5 ft 3 and 100 lbs. Non smoker. No risks. She went on the pill because she was having heart palpitations and extreme fatigue that correlated with her menstrual cycle. The idea was to level her hormones and see if that would level off the physical problems. Within 6 weeks she suffered from a pulmonary embolism. Because she was young, everybody though it was just pneumonia or inflammation of the lining of the lungs (pleurisy). Then her leg swelled up and turned blue from a clot (DVT). I found it fascinating that everybody at the first hospital, during the helicopter ride and at the second hospital all had EXACTLY the same reaction . . . They all said, "you just started taking the pill, didn't you? Probably one of the new ones like Yaz." Apparently, these new 'third generation' pills are worse than the old ones when it comes to clots. It turns out that my hubby's history of blood clots should have been a clue that my daughter has a common clotting disorder and YAZ triggered it into action. The clotting disorder affects up to 10% of Swedes and that is where my hubby's family comes from. Up to 5% of all Caucasians in the United States have Factor V Leiden as well. I notified the FDA and highly encourage everybody else to do so as well. The doctor are not required to file a report unless a patient dies. My daughter is doing better now. If any reporters are reading this, please contact me. B. A. ***** If you have ANY family history of problems that might be due to clots, avoid the third generation pills.

Go to New York Times, Business section 4/15/2008 "Merck Studies Ghostwritten." Excellent article on fraudulent studies. Also reported on abcnews.com today.

Those of you who are suffering from muscle achiness should tell your doctors that this is now a recognized side-effect of statins. An article published in the October 1, 2002 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine concluded "Some patients who develop muscle symptoms while receiving statin therapy have demonstrable weakness and histopathologic findings of myopathy despite normal serum creatine kinase levels." Similar problems are recognized by the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association adn the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Their findings are cited in Jane Brody's column in the New York Times (December 10, 2002).
I experienced intense muscle achiness in my legs while on generic lovastatin. Interestingly, for me, this disappeared when I switched to Lipitor.