Point in time symptoms and conditions

42wmoses-
I know what you are going through. It is so frustrating to be on a birth control pill that causes annoying physical and emotional side effects. I would say to take a month off the birth control and see if anything changes. Try not to alter your eating or exercising habits too much because that will change the results that you can notice.
If you decide to stay on Loestrin 24, I'd suggest to keep a diary for a few months. Mark down symptoms on specific days etc. to later observe any possible trends that might be related to hormone levels based on the point in time of your cycle.
Also, Nuvaring is very new and new drugs should always be used with extreme caution. What I'm trying to say is, the full range of side effects (especially the long-term ones) have not been studied yet. It is impossible to know what it may cause down the line. Personally, I don't like the idea of a foreign object sitting inside of my vagina for three weeks out of each month.
I know only one person who uses Nuvaring and she has not had any issues with it. I guess it is just important not to forget that it is in there and must be removed on a specific date. Below I have inserted the COMMON risks/side effects associated with using Nuvaring (from the Nuvaring website):

The common side effects reported by NuvaRing® users are:

Vaginal infections and irritation
Vaginal secretion
Headache
Weight gain
Nausea

I am prone to urinary tract infections and vaginal infections so this is something I would never use. If you do not have a history of those types of things, maybe it would be something worth trying. Personally, I just feel as though putting something like that inside of your vagina for three weeks continuously while being sexually active can introduce a great deal of infectious bacteria into that area.

I hope that my opinion was at least somewhat helpful. If you are still unsure of what steps to take with birth control...I would suggest making an appointment to sit down with your gynecologist to discuss all of your options. They usually have a strong grasp on what is the best for each individual patient based on history, age, current health etc. etc. because of experience with many other patients on the same medications and the imense amount of research that physicians obtain on a regular basis.

Good luck!

Like many patients, I started out on a low dose of Lamictal. Eventually, I was taking 300 mg. This seemed fine for awhile. Then, I started feeling a bit down, so the doctor increased the dose to 400 mg. Increased dosage does not necessarily mean improvement in mood (bipolar). I began to experience a good number of the adverse side effects reported here, including excessive fatigue, gastrointestinal disturbances, cotton mouth and very bad taste in my mouth, muscle tension (particularly in my legs), forgetfulness and confusion, and sinus and chest congestion. At one point in time, I even had difficulty articulating words.

Though I did not suffer from rash, I have been up in the middle of the night with itching all over my body. I had a few episodes of mouth sores and one pimple on my chin. Many of these have improved since the doctor brought me back to 300 mg. However, they have not entirely disappeared. I continue to suffer from the excessive fatigue many of you have reported here.

I recently had a blood test and learned I have very low levels of Vitamin D and Vitamin B-12. I do not know if there is any relationship between long-term use of Lamical and these test results. However, I do know that low levels of Vitamin D can cause fatigue.

Though I am willing to follow through with further blood tests, I am beginning to understand why some people are tempted to discontinue their medications. I am so tired of being so tired and sleeping so much. When I finally get up, I am still tired and drag through the day.

Sometimes, I think I'd rather have a down day or two than take this medication. I should add, though, that my bipolar is not severe, and that I am only reporting how I feel. I'm certainly not recommending anyone discontinue medications for this or any other condition they may be suffering from. If I were to recommend anything, it would be to get a second opinion if one is concerned about his or her treatment.
If I were to make any suggestion to doctors, it would be this: more is not necessarily better. Send your patients for blood tests (mine were ordered by my M.D. and not by my psychiatrist). Increasing the dosage--at least of Lamictal--might result in a host of negative side effects. Your patients might then become disillusioned with their treatment and give up.

If anyone out there has suffered from B-12 and D deficiencies, let me know. I'll let you know what I find out.

And remember, most doctors are really trying to help us.

The only side effect that I have experienced with Lamictal (300 mg's a day), is memory loss. My short term memory is like Swiss cheese. Unless there was a major event, I can't remember what happened two weeks ago. Anything that is over a month ago, I will remember the event, but not which month it was in. I write everything down and I mean everything that I will have to remember at some point in time. I even have problems finding my way around my neighborhood if I'm under any amount of stress.
Other than that, the drug is great. I have no mania and or weight gain. It's really helped me a lot.

Ok, with all psych drugs, you're a damed zombie for the first 6-8 weeks. I know that & am willing to accept a little nausea, being a box of rocks mentally, and not being able to find my shoes for the first 6-8 weeks. If things continue after that point in time, I drop the med. Well, I dropped wellbutrin, and this is why:

The nausea never stopped. In fact, it increased.

The first few days, I thought it was just stomach upset. No big. Take with milk & bread. We all know that trick, right? But, it got worse. Days later, I started dry heaving on the way to class. This became a regular thing- walking caused nausea. Then it got even worse, standing still or sitting started to feel like I was on a tiny rowboat in a storm on the high seas. Extreme nausea, frequent dry heaving, unable to keep down food or water, disorientation (literally severe motion sickness on dry land). After dropping 15lbs & becoming dehydrated, I gave up for my own physical safety. I stopped taking the stuff. It took about a month to recover from the stuff.

Now, I have friends that wellbutrin has been a godsend for. But, this stuff really messed with me. So, be careful when taking it. Give it a fair shot. But, know thy body.

Ok, with all psych drugs, you're a damed zombie for the first 6-8 weeks. I know that & am willing to accept a little nausea, being a box of rocks mentally, and not being able to find my shoes for the first 6-8 weeks. If things continue after that point in time, I drop the med. Well, I dropped abilify, and this is why:

tardive dyskinesia

The disorientation, & nausea wore off by week 8. I was still not as sharp as I normally am. But, no big. I'll take a 2 point drop in IQ to not drive away the people I love with my bipolar. But, the tardive dyskinesia messed me UP. I was using it in conjunction with Lamictal. I had increasing motor function difficulties. I had to give up my fine detail painting and needle point. Fine, again, willing to sacrifice to keep those I love near. But, the tics got worse. Facial twitches, then severe feet & arm twitching. It got so bad that it became dangerous to drive. I couldn't deal at that point. I stopped taking it cold turkey. I had a blazing migraine & nausea for a week & a half, then my tics stopped, the headache stopped. I was back to how I was before on just lamictal.
I know this drug combo is a miracle for some. And, if it is, that's utterly awesome & I congratulate you on finding something that works for you. But, this very much did not work for me.

Hello Ladies, I am also a victim to Mirena. I am a married 30-year old women with three children and have been with my husband for 15 years. I have never felt the way that I feel today with the Mirena. Like most of you I didn't want to tie my tubes, but is very sure that I do not want anymore children. I figured I would try the Mirena for five years and then see what I want to do at that point in time. My list of symptoms are headaches, severe fatigue, bloating, cravings, acne, mood swings, dizziness, memory loss, painful intercourse, depression, nausea, vomiting, weight gain or loss (weird), thinning hair, severe backaches and cramping, pregnancy symptoms like not being able to brush my teeth without gagging and the feeling of a baby kicking inside my belly, lack of sex drive and last very little appetite for food. I thought I was going insane until I found this website. Thank you all for posting your symptoms you may have saved my marriage and my children from hating me. My mood swings are ridiculous, I mean down right MEAN for no reason. My husband and I have decided to have the Mirena removed and he will get a vasectomy. He said I have been through enough and God knows I didn't want to try anything else. So thank you all. Also for the young lady who works in the health field and has only had the Mirena for "I'm 21, relatively healthy, and never had children. I work in healthcare and see people react like this all the time-no tolerance to pain, and just wanting an excuse as to where some of their "pains" come from" discuss your issues if any after a couple of months. I hope you don't have any problems. But I know for a fact that before the Mirena I too was a healthy women who had never taken medication not even to have my three children. So I think I can handle pain very well. These symptoms are real at least for me. But good luck with you. To all the other ladies, follow your gut instinct. You are the only one who knows what your body is going through and can correct it. I will follow up once I have had the Mirena removed. Thank you all.

I am 25 and I have endometriosis, and every side effect of yasmin that you all have is what i have been experiencing with endometriosis, the only difference is that i have a perfectly normal cycle, its either 28 - 30 days no more no less but still i'm not getting pregnant. I started taking Yasmin about a week ago and to date i have no symptoms. I think what happens is that we search online for information about these medication and what we read freaks us out and we start making our bodies believe that we have these symptoms, in-fact we are constantly looking out for these symptoms. when i read up on endometriosis i wanted to become pregnant so bad for the first time and i would make my self feel pregnant because i would go to these endo forums and read peoples symptoms who got pregnant with endo and i would find myself looking for those symptoms and then my body tricks me into thinking i have all the symptoms they describe on the endo sites and at the end of the 28 days my period arrives in full force as usual. but i schedule my self to take yasmin around my lunch time where i guarantee i will have a bite and i notice that with any pills if you do not eat while taking it, it can cause nausea, headaches. I know that it is very possible for people to get side effects from these medications, but i think we need to relax a little and take our minds off them and put our trust in God and let him take charge, pray everyday, and i don't mean pray for your problems, i mean give God thanks everyday for what he has done in your life and for waking you up because God already knows your problems, he just wants you to show acknowledgement for all he has done. This is the path that i am trying to take to overcome my endometriosis and just hope that one day he will look deep in my soul and help me and women just like me with menstrual issues, and help me and my husband to concieve our first child. the only side effect i am looking forward to while on Yasmin is falling pregnant at some point (you know how some people mistakingly fall pregnant on BCP's well i am looking forward to that) (smile)

I am a 30 year old woman who has been on Toprol (25 mg) for a week now. My doc prescribed it for mild hypertension and rapid heart rate. So far, I have had terrible indigestion and other "digestive issues", as well as difficulty sleeping. Fatigue and frequent urination (especially at night) have also plagued me for the past week. I have been taking my BP and heart rate readings every day and have yet to see a noticeable improvement. After reading all of the posts on this page, I am extremely nervous and wondering if I really need to be on this medication

Hi,

My son has been on a very low dose of lamictal, 15mg for bipolar and the other day woke up extremely lethargic, said he felt very tired. He went to school but after an hour I had to pick him up, he was extremely tired at this point trying to sleep on a chair in the doctors office and he fell twice. He then said that everything seemed very dark and he complained of visual disturbances for two hours. We ended up in the emergency room and he had an EKG done and blood sugar checked, all was normal at this point in time. He is coming off his lamictal and I have been told he has had a rare side affect, anyone else experience this, I would love to hear from you thank you.
concerned Mom

I've been on Advair for about 3 years. Started out on 250/50 and was able to reduce down to 100/50. I've had the yeast in my throat, bad leg cramps, have constantly had to watch my weight (which I thought was from my quitting smoking), have joint aches and pains, and no energy. I have at one point in time had the ulcers in my mouth (not as bad now). Racing pulse..always over 100, sometimes up to 120. So, I'm going to get off of this stuff. Does anyone know the effects if you just totally quit? I'm thinking about reducing my dose to once a day first instead of totally quiting. Any input would be appreciated.