Nutritional supplements symptoms and conditions

So glad to read this here. I have wondered the past year what is up with my face?!!! I have had problem skin in the past and been able to get rid of acne and worked so hard to have nice complexion after acne issues. Then I started to get huge breakouts, giant cysts all on my chin and lower part of my face...and they hurt and they won't go away and have scarring and always 2 or more huge cysts happening, get rid of one finally and another pops up or pops up AGAIN in same place! And I too have felt depression and fatigue, so unlike me. I have always taken various nutritional supplements and I eat healthy, and this is just not me. I wondered if it was the femcon.Only thing I have changed in past year as I have scrutinized every aspect of my life wondering what the heck is going on! I'm done with it.My face is a trainwreck.No more femcon for me.

I just had the Mirena removed after 2 years with it (finally connected the dots that it was causing all of my health problems). I've had it out for 6 days now, and I feel so sick. Every night, around 5 p.m., it feels like really bad morning sickness or flu (do hormones fluctuate naturally around that time?). I'm a working single mom (recently divorced...scared THAT might not have happened if I weren't so emotionally damaged by the Mirena), and I can't just take it easy and ride it out. When does the nausea stop? I've read that it's taken some people a YEAR to get over the side effects after having Mirena removed. I don't want to feel like this for a year...what can I do besides the nutritional supplements, etc? I need to function! Please help if you have any advice (or at least let me know if you felt this nausea and when it went away.) I appreciate it!

Lisinopril robs the body of Zinc. I have been viciously researching this med and I found that a lot of symptoms posted here are zinc deficiency symptoms. Maybe a zinc supplement will help especially with the hair loss.
Signs of Zinc Deficiency
• behavioral and sleep disturbances

• dandruff

• delay in wound healing

• diarrhea

• different kinds of skin lesions such as eczema, psoriasis and acne

• growth retardation

• hair loss

• hang nails

• hyperactivity

• increased allergic sensitivity

• inflammation of your nail cuticles

• inflammatory bowel disease

• loss of appetite

• loss of senses of taste or smell

• loss of sex drive

• mild anemia

• pre-eclampsia (toxaemia) in pregnancy and post-natal depression

• pre-menstrual syndrome, disturbance in your menstrual cycle

• reduced fertility

• skin dryness and rashes

• white spots on fingernails, transverse lines and poor nail growth

I am a 35 yr old male and have been taking lipitor about 7 yrs. I have a genetically high cholesterol and it has been up to 275. On lipitor its around 175. Over the years I have been on this drug I went from being a normal weight and active to pretty much lethargic and sedentary due to lack of energy and gained ~50 lbs. I couldn't sleep. I got random nausea and fogginess in my brain to the point I could not remember how to perform my job. I usually had minor aches and was bloated. the past year everything has gotten much worse. For a year now, I have been getting large rashes on my body that itch severely and no medications have worked to alleviate them. I found out recently from my doctor that I have a genetic marker in my cholesterol that makes me 3 times as likely to have a heart attack. Its a portion of the cholesterol, i think its called LDL-b or something like that. Anyways, My doctor prescribed zetia to help with my cholesterol since the lipitor wasn't doing it alon. I begin feeling very sick when taking the zetia and after a week or two stopped it. The problems didn't end. As long as I remained on the lipitor, the problems seemed to continue. Its like the zetia released a dam of problems. I stopped the lipitor 4 days ago and have noticed that I feel energy coming back to me and the rash is starting to go away, but I ache severely all over. My shoulders, forearms, and legs are so sore and painful that I can't do anything about this except sleep so I don't feel the pain. I am also very weak feeling and I notice stiffness in my fingers and my grip is very weak compared to how it normally is. I have nausea and stomach cramps and constipation. I feel miserable. I notice its worse in the morning and gets a little better towards the afternoon. I typically took my lipitor in the morning. I do not know if there is a relationship here. Please advise on any help you can provide.

KMJ
07-30-08

Well, this site has been interesting. I have been on Lisinopril-HCTZ for a few months. It has been going well but then I started taking Advocare Nutritional Supplements and, wow! I thought I was going crazy. Irritable, depressed, anxious, etc. Anyone know what we should not take with this drug and if the combination could have possibly caused my anxiety or if I really am psychotic!? No, I know I'm not and the thoughts and feelings I had were NOT ME. I hate to not be able to take something that will help me through herbs adn supplements and didn't think there would be a negative effect but I do believe I was wrong. In the past few months while on the drug I am very irritable and depressed but thought that was just due to my messed up life!

I had my left lung fill with fluid and collapse after radiation treatment for Breast Cancer. The lung was drained with Thorocentesis and I was hospitalized for a week and put on prednisone - 40 mg reduced to zero in 1 week. I experienced symptoms of heart attack as reaction to reduction from prednisone. When it was determined by enzyme testing in hospital that heart not damaged I was sent home with prescription of prednisone starting at 60 -10 days, to 40- 5 days, to 30 - 10 days, to 20-10 days. The cumulative effect of these doses was all the side effects mentioned by others, loss of emotional and physical balance, stability, swelling, moon face, insomnia, depression, crying, stomach pain, constipation, etc. I dropped myself to 20mg for 9 days but on the 8th day had recurrence of lung pain and feared possible fluid build up through tissues damage/leak caused by radiation - they are calling it pleurisy or pleural effusion. (It was also determined that I must be on constant oxygen and sleep on oxygen as my breathing capacity is below 88 off of oxygen.) Dr. found not enough fluid to drain without risk to damaging my diaphragm so upped the prednisone again to 30 for 14 days. Using pain and shortness of breath as a measure of lung condition I must not dampen pain now but suffer it to monitor my lung so as to avoid trips for constant X-rays. I continue to suffer from prednisone and it has disabled me so that my normal life cannot be resumed in any way. I want to get off of it, but after reading these reports, I am very worried - supposedly the steroid is allowing my radiated lung to heal, but if that is not happening I think the steroids are possibly more life threatening than the lung - in any case, what life? What other choices do I have to survive the damage done to me by radiation?

Thanks for the update Davenport 4! Today is day 3 following removal for me, and I have a few things to report. First, the morning after removal, I swear it felt like my back "unlocked." Felt good to be able to stretch again. I still have back pain, but have begun to stretch my back to help strengthen the muscles, and today, the pain is almost gone. I'm also still experiencing swelling, but it seems to be improving little by little. I continued spotting, but I would likely have had more spotting anyway since I was at day five of my period when it was removed. And I also have flu-like (well, more like hay fever) symptoms and constant headaches, still a bit fuzzy and lethargic, but definitely more energy. I've begun running up the hill with my dog every day. Still need the occasional nap, but have slept soundly throughout the nights. I've continued to do more research, and was frustrated when I kept reading about the benefits of progestin treatment...I hate being one of those who it doesn't seem to help. The synthetic progestin used in the Mirena is Levonorgestrel. All synthetic progestins produce side effects, including weight gain, headaches, and there's some concern about it's effect on bone density loss. Even Mirena acknowledges that they're not sure how or why it works. I feel like a lab rat. There are natural progesterone treatments available, and micronization (crystalizing progesterone) appears to help absorption; however, even natural progesterone has side effects. These are hormones...not nutritional supplements. From what I understand, some of us are more sensitive to hormonal imbalances by introduction of external hormones, and it's just a matter of finding a doctor who's willing to work through natural options. Think I'm going to try a diet high in natural progesterone (broccholi, for example) and exercise to combat this crazy time of life. Will keep checking back.

Hello.

I was started on Prednisone on Saturday (3/15) for Bronchitis. So far I have taken 40mg, 40mg, 30mg, 30mg, 20mg, - I am to take 20mg for two more days than 10mg for three days. I also just finished a Z-Pack of antibiotics and am taking Mucinex and Ventolin HFA...

I have head pressure, dizziness, and weird visual disturbances. The problem I am having is my breathing feels WORSE on the Prednisone??? Is this possible??? I feel like I am losing my mind. I have insomnia and am extremely jittery. I have never taken Prednisone before - but want so badly to breath better - but it is not helping and in fact seems to making the problem worse?

Has this every happened to anyone? Please help I am so frightened.....

Thank you

I have been taking Advair 500/50 for about two years ( I am now 60 years old,) to help control my allergy related asthma (that only presented itself when I had to take steroid eye drops for glaucoma.) While I had the hoarseness, dry mouth and occasional mouth sores, they seemed livable compared to uncontrolled asthma.

One morning about a month ago, when I was taking my normal AM puff, I suddenly felt as though a giant sledge hammer banged down on my head - pounding me into the floor - almost losing consciousness. Then, I experienced pounding, racing heart that felt as though it might jump out of my chest. I turned white and gray - my family and I thought I was having a heart attack.

I was terrified to take another puff - thinking it might be my last. Two days went by, when, I decided to experiment by taking a very light puff, barely taking any into my lungs. (I had been further scared by warning about suddenly going off steroids.) My doctor was out of the country and no one wanted the liability of advising me.

One hesitant puff of Advair caused the exact same pounding - heart jumping and racing reaction. I decided right then that I did not need further evidence to "pound into my head" that Advair was now toxic for me.

The odd thing is that my doctor seems to discount my experience by saying I am the only person this has ever happened to (implying there must be something wrong with me!) When I asked about the dangers and appropriate process for suddenly stopping steroids, she pooh-poohed my concern saying there are no side effects from inhalers with steroids. (Several nurses recently told me that was not necessarily true. Who knows what to believe!)

I have stopped Spiriva and Advair and have scheduled an appointment with a doctor and nurse practitioner who use diet, exercise and nutritional supplements to help treat asthma. A friend has gone to them for several years and is now off all asthma medication, has lost about 50 pounds, has improved health and looks 10 years younger! I can only hope this works for me!

I am also writing Advair manufacturer with my experience;copies to FDA. I can only wonder if there are others as 'rare' as me? If so, let it be known. thanks

I

WOW!! am I thankful for this site. My 73 year old mother was given a 5 day, 750 of Levaquin for pneumonia yesterday. She is to see another doctor tomorrow for setting a date for surgery on an abdominal anyrurism. She has taken 2 doses and is feeling really down not even wanting to talk. I was told by a friend that the drug family Cipro is really bad so I decided to check out this one and I am so thankful. I just got off phone with mom and she is not going to take anymore. She is going to double up on her nutritional supplements especially MAX GXL which will help with the cellular inflamation and magnesium to get this Levaquin out of her system as quickly as possible. Again thank you

I have been having initial success addressing the lingering side effect of "twisting" or "turning" or "pushing" sensation in the stomach/middle abdomin by adding chromium (about 200mcg with each meal) to my other nutrional supplements for combatting the lisinopril-caused problems. I will make another status report later on...

The other most helpful nutritional supplements I've found so far are: calcium/magnesium, zinc, and manganese (and now chromium). Given that they are all minerals, I did think to try a multi-mineral at one point, but it made me feel sick after a week or so; also I have tried a zinc/copper since copper is one of the nutrients whose absorbtion is said to be interfered with by lots of zinc, but that made me feel sick too; just the wrong proportions for that stage in my recovery, I guess.

I agree with the posting below that said that taking lots of just one mineral can put your system out of balance. However, the lisinopril did 1000x better job of putting my system out of balance, and lots of zinc for a number of weeks helped tremendously with the lingering cough, so the suffered imbalances were worth it (at the time I didn't know about manganese and chromium).

In general, I have found that to get a theraputic benefit from one of these trace minerals (zinc, manganese, or chromium), I have had to get close to its established upper limits. Eventually, I hope to get to a point where an oridinary multi-vit/mineral is sufficient for me.

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