Population symptoms and conditions

I am so happy I found this website, I have been taking Lisinopril for about 5 years now. I have been have dizzy spells or the tunnel effect for about 2 years now. I thought I was going crazy! I can't drive, sit in a meeting, or even sit through church and it's getting worse. I call my mother and just sit and cry thinking something is wrong with me. I'm so glad all of you came here to tell your experiences. I will stop taking this medication RIGHT NOW!!

I just want to reply to you and everyone else who is having difficulty with doctors acknowledging mirena side effects. I work in pharmaceutical research and what people need to understand is that clinical trials only test on samples of about 5,000 patients and the side effects observed in those people are the ones acknowledged in the literature your doctors are referring to. The problem with that is for a drug sample population to statistically represent the actual US population it would have to be at least 30,000 people. This is not feasible even for the most profitable big pharma companies. So once these drugs get to market, there are inevitably going to be people experiencing side effects not reflected in clinical trials.

That said, I had Mirena put in 6 weeks after giving birth to my son in August 2008. Pre-preg I weighed 132, at 9 months I was 173. I left the hospital weighing 152. When i got mirena inserted i had been loosing slowly due to breastfeeding, but I was loosing and weighed 145. By Christmas 2008 I weighed 155. So I started working out, circuit training 45 minutes, 5 days a week, and eating much healthier for 6 weeks. Like others assuming it was a change in lifestyle, stress whatever. I didn't loose a pound. After no success I cut down to less intense workouts but kept eating well. By June 2009 I was 163. At 132 lbs pre-preg at 5'4" I never worked out, I'm not kidding, ever and I was not a healthy eater, I just wasn't a big eater.

So August 10th 2009 at 168 lbs and fed up, I went to the doctor to have it removed. They insisted it was not the mirena, but if for no other reason I had to find out for myself why I could not loose weight, if i was still overweight afterwards then so be it, but I had to know.

I'm glad to announce that today September 21st, I have "inexplicably" lost 21 pounds in counting. I have not worked out like I did in those six weeks, brisk walks at the most,and I have continued eating healthy. I'm not advising anyone on what to do, I just know when I was contemplating getting this thing removed, I wanted to hear from someone who had actually gotten it removed. Also, I did not the emotional or dermatological side effects others described.

I have posted a couple of times previously about negative side effects, i.e. migraines, weight gain, acne, chin hair, eczema, lower back pain, no sex drive...and the list could go on. As a mature 36 year old woman I have educated myself over the past couple of years and can really only attribute all these issues to having the Mirena inserted 4 months after the birth of my daughter 3 years ago. Although at this time my doctors will not openly acknowledge these side effects, I am confident that one day they will. I encourage women to report adverse side effects to the FDA. It onlt takes a minute or two. Who knows, it may be the hormones or it may be the silicone plastic? It has to be something. It should also be acknowledged that some women, my very best friend for one, have had wonderful experiences with the Mirena. I really think it may just depend on the woman and her own body. I am having mine removed tomorrow after researching all of this for about 8 months. All I can say is, thank goodness. I am also scheduled for the Essure(permanent birth control). Food for thought for the older women in the group. Whatever each of you decide, realize you are not alone and you do not have to continue to feel the way you do if you believe that the Mirena could be making you feel so bad. Take care.

I've been using Yasmin for 2.5yrs now with no problems at all. I used Ortho-tri-cycline for 5 years before that with no problems either. I've noticed that my mood swings are very subdued, my periods are light and regular, my cramping is drastically decreased and I haven't suffered a single bad side effect. My breasts got a little bigger, but not sore or tender (I'm only a 32A so the boost was a pretty nice surprise). I had very bad subcutaneous acne that is gone now. Most of what I've been reading about are known side effects that is anyone is experiencing should definitely get off the medication immediately. Granted these side effects are severely downplayed and should be more obvious or at least brought to your attention by your doctor. But for those that are scared by these side effects, they are rare compared to the population that uses Yasmin. Just make sure you listen to your body and be open with your doctor. If something isn't right make sure you do something about it. There are other alternatives if Yasmin doesn't agree with you.

I was taking Lipitor about 15 years ago, and it worked great...My cholesterol went from total: 240, HCL 65 to total 60, HCL 6, yes 6. It has been 15 years and I can not get my HCL past about 25. This stuff is poison!
If that was the only problem I ever had, then no big deal...right...My muscles were destroyed! My CPK reading was almost 2000 and I ached constantly. Nobody should take this garbage, it is pure poison.

I am 39 years old and very active. I have been on Singulair for about 2 years now. I did not think I had any problems while on the medication because it did help my breathing. I am now on an antidepressant (Lexapro)which I began about a year after I began the singulair. My depression however started almost a year before I actually got on the Lexapro. I had alot going on in my life so I just equated my depression to that. However I am realizing now that maybe the singulair triggered my depression. I ran out of singulair two days ago and am experiencing withdrawal symptoms, extreme tiredness, stuffy head, and I had heart palpitations last night, which I have never had. The withdrawal symptoms are why I began researching the medication because I couldn't understand how being off of it for such a short time could cause such an effect. I was on Singulair once before about 6 years ago before I retired from the military while I was at Ft Hood before I deployed to Iraq. By the time I left Iraq I was on multiple medications, Singulair, Claritin, Advair, Emergency Inhaler, When I arrived in Iraq I became ill and listed my medications. They were in shock and took me off everything except Claritin and I was fine. It wasn't until I returned home I began the Singulair again. (Why? I guess I never equated it to causing my other issues until now), I am also taking Zyzal and Lexapro. I see now that every time I take the Singulair it leads to additional medications to other things. I am going to stay off of it and hopefully be able to wean myself off of the Lexapro as a result. Unfortunately I probably will still need to take an allergy medicine. Thanks everyone for posting this useful information. I have two kids 6yrs and 12yrs and I know now that they will never take this medication. They have allergies like me so it is very probable that eventually it would have been mentioned. The allergist/asthma doctor is adamant the 12 year old has asthma but I never gave him the advair that he wanted him to take because I did have side effects from that medication that I did recognize myself and my son is the fastest runner on his select soccer team and extremely athletic without it, no emergency inhaler needed or anything.

I, too, am trying to get off of Lisinopril. I am 49, and 10 lbs over my ideal weight. Went on the drug in December 2008, 2.5 mg a day. Since then, I have been depressed, tired, had a dry cough, sometimes a pounding heart and most recently, I am now losing my hair! And, yes, my bp is normal while on the Lisinopril. I have to say, that while I knew it was making me feel lousy, the hair loss was the last straw of side effects. I went on it at a time of high stress in my life and for now, life is calmer and my bp ranges between 135/80 and 145/90 when I am off it. Thinking of some natural, healthy approaches to lower my bp. Perhaps lose that 10 pounds and get more exercise. It is the worry of a high bp that makes the lisinopril hard to give up. The side effects though tell me it is bad for my body. I appreciate this website and reading about the experiences others are having while on this drug. I am hoping my hair will come back in if I stay off of it. Has anyone else had their hair grow back?

I just was given avelox for a sinus infection, I took it at 0930 am, I woke wanting to urinate and when I started to walk to the bathroom I felt this very strange feeling all over my body, very anxious, I ran outside the house to seek help from neighbors, I kept telling them I just had taken avelox and thought I was having a reaction to the medication. I became anxious, scared, had a lot of fear, jerking arms and legs, reaching out for things, crying uncontrollably. I was taken to the ER and given fluids, a clinical pharmacist was consulted but the ER doctor and pharmacist stated that my symptoms were probably not related to the Avelox because only 0.1 percent of the population suffers from it. Well I guess you an me are one of those 0.1 percent. I was released home and started to have the same symptoms so I decided to flush the medication off by drinking tons of water. I am not totally myself yet, but thanks God I only took one and look at the way I reacted only with one pill.

For all of you that has had problems with Yasmin or Yaz, I'm sincerely sorry. I'm really curious though to all of you, has anyone that read the leaflet that comes with the birth control box, have any problems? If you read that it may increase potassium which may cause serious heart and health problems so it would be good to get your potassium level checked before taking it. Side effects usually go away after 2-3months, has anyone have problems longer than that and ended up finding out what was the problem? I just wanted to know because my girlfriend is about to take it...and I wanted to know if one knew about the effects of this pill, and what precautions they had taken. Okay, thank you.

I am 34 years old. I am a pharmacy tech. I have asthma and allergies. I have taken singulair pretty much every day since it came out on the market. I've had asthma since i was about 10 years old. I took theophylline as a kid. Steriods on and off especially during times when my allergies are bad. I still use Advair during the fall and spring. Every drug has a side effect. However breathing is pretty good damn thing. Do I have days when I feel low? Yeah. Do I sometimes have nightmares? Yup. Are "natural" products the answer. Not always. The fish oil that some of the posters are touting can also cause GI problems. Some of the natural products contain herbs and other plant derivatives that can be harmful for a child that suffers from allergies. Not proactively treating asthma can be deadly. Some of the parents are suggesting steriods as the answer - those can cause weight gain, growth suppression and can lead to a worsening of asthma.

Singulair has never made me feel like I've wanted to kill myself. I was more depressed and angry as kid when my asthma did not allow me to partipate in normal childhood things. I was sad and hated life when I couldn't keep up with friends at recces because I was having trouble breathing. You have to outweigh the costs with the benefits. I am more irritable when I have asthma flareup then I am on a normal day. For me, I choose to breathe. And singulair has been helping me for almost a decade.

I'm not saying the medication isn't causing these symptoms but maybe there is an underlying cause to your child's depression.

Any drug has a side effect. But without medical research and the medications that come with them - people would still be dying of simple diseases and we wouldn't have vaccinations. As a society, as a whole, we are a culture that looks to someone else to fix things and then blames the people who try to fix it. We need to stop being the "hot McDonald's coffee'" society.

I stumbled upon this site looking for side effects of a new BC I am about to start called Loestrin and after reading the horror stories about it, I was about to throw it out. I decided to look at the Nuvaring board because I was on it for 2 1/2 years and was curious to see what was said about it. Had I read this prior to starting the Nuvaring I probably wouldn't have given it a chance. I loved Nuvaring. It was so convenient and I had no side effects at all from it and my cycle was so regular and predictable. I had a yeast infection and vaginitis in the 2 1/2 year period but I don't think it was due to the ring. Unfortunately, I have to change BC to Loestrin due to Endometriosis symptoms that the ring wont help with so I searched it and was discouraged by the reports but now I feel better giving it a try after seeing these posts because I had no problems at all with Nuvaring. I would recommend trying it if you are looking for convenience and regulation.

Went off simvastatin in March, all pain went away within a couple of months, but muscle weakness in legs remained. In October, found out my cholesterol is sky high, over 325. So Dr. wanted to try Crestor 5 mg. Within 1 week, I had overwhelming fatigue, could hardly stay awake during the day and the weakness in my legs was getting worse. So I just went off Crestor. Frustrating!!

I had mine removed last month and still enjoying the NEW ME! I am so happy and cheerful now without the back pain and achy joints and anxiety attacks. Still getting rid of acne, chin hair and 40 lbs but WOW I am so grateful I found this site to validate that I wasn't losing my mind. There seems to be 1% of the population who have no problems at all with this IUD but for the other 99% of us ... BE CAREFUL and REMOVE IT ASAP! By the way, I still have not had a cycle since the 2 days of spotting after it was removed ... and the removal pain is ZERO compared to the insertion. I am also changing to a female holistic obgyn since my male doc refused to acknowledge my valid side effects - ARGH!!!

I took Lisinopril for five months. The dose was increased from 10mg to 40 mg per day. At my request my doctor switched me to Amlodipine Besylate. With Lisinopril I was tired all the time and had Abnormal hair loss. Within a week, after the switch, I was back to normal.
My daughter experienced the same thing. She was switched to Amlodipine
and is back to normal. It may take a while for the hair that was lost to come back in.

Why is it OK with the DR. if synthroid makes us gain weight?!!! I've been hyperthroid before and lost weight...why does the med make us GAIN weight...I've tried EVERYTHING....We must demand they do more research..something just isn't right..but what do they care as long as our blood work LOOKS right! We should have the same rights to meds that work as the rest of the population.

What a night,6 months off singulair life was so good,until last night,a complete set back,insomnia night terrors, panic and anxiety all over again,could it be this drug causes flash backs,i am so frustrated and once again seething in anger at the suffering my son has endured ,and to think it may not be completely over devastes me.Any one else had reacurrances

Hey to All.
I know that the ALA study got everyone upset and I am happy we all emailed her.We all pretty much got the same response from Heather,defending the study and the integrity of the results.If only this investigation would conclude!
The Merck company contacted our Senator and indicated there was a conclusion and then ,they never got back to her before the weekend.I will have news early in the week.Please everyone just keep on voicing your concerns by reaching out any way you can.Sometimes it seems unbearable and I have to take a break with the communications on this website but,I continue my communication with my local contacts and the FDA.
I would love quick results and everyone would love this to get the publicity this story deserves but,if you look at how far we have come getting attention focused on this drug it is amazing.
This website has been here for years and people have complained and nothing has been accomplished until now.Our system is so broken it will take time to fix it.Drugs get approved everyday and when they are put out for multi use,the population benefit -risk ratio changes and there is little oversight on this matter.
The problem is much bigger than just notification of updated side effects,which indeed is why our son died from this drug.It is reporting adverse events to the FDA and the drug company and following up on your report.We can only fight within the system of the government that is in place at the moment and push for change to take place in there programs.
This is what has take place as of this year,The FDA's new 'Safe Use "iniative(which when it gets further developed will increase our partnerships with physicians as well as patients) and the July 2008 AAM report" Education in Safe and Effective Prescribing Practices" which aims to address the education of the next generation of physicians on how to best use medicines.This may help in notification practices and over prescribing but, we want the drug companies to lose the unprecedented control over the clinical research and and evaluation of there own drugs.What other company in the USA, gets to self regulate.Change will come ,we have asked for accountability by having a signature exchange when new and updated side effects are found.Full disclosure of all reported adverse events to doctors from the company representatives,with signature required upon full understanding of the benefit -risk ratio change. A prescriber should know all the good and the bad about a medicine they have chosen to dispense,if not then they should not be able to dispense it.If we were not knowledgeable about selling mushrooms and we sold the poisonous ones ,because we did not take the time it would take to educate ourselves about them,would we not be legally responsible for our actions.
Accountability is what we are asking for and maybe the candyland doctor prescribing practices would stop.They seem to ,not have a responsibility to their patients and the company has no responsibility to the prescribers,so who is responsible for our safety?
I will keep fighting for real change and all you people must do the same ,make an appointment with your representatives and have them contact our Congress representative of NY,maybe with enough onboard we can get the legislation we need to put a law in place for proper notification practices.Kirsten E. Gillibrand Member of the US House of Representatives 120 Cannon House Office Builing Washington, D.C. 20515
This is how change is made ,if you want to help please go forward and do this and don't stop until they listen.I am always willing to do whatever I can,it is physically exhausting and sometimes I just have to step away but, my daily review of this site has not stopped and my fight will continue.Dave and I sit here and our hearts just break for all but, we need people to push their Representatives they do work for the people just remind them of that.Any one with questions or that wants to communicate via private email just ask for my email address or phone number or leave me yours and a time and I will be sure to contact you,Kate M.

For all of the poor girls who are searching "mirena experiences" because you are looking for a sure thing contraceptive-
This site is only for people who have had BAD experiences. Read them all if you want, but take into consideration they are the 3%, or whatever number, that had problems. None of these women deserved it, asked for it, needed it, or wanted it, but unfortunately their bodies responded to it in such an ugly manor.

Here's my experience so far....Had it inserted 8/06/08. Insertion was fine. Felt that speculum more than I could feel the actual insertion of the mirena.
Slight cramping afterwards...not immediately-went home and for like 20 minutes had cramps lighter than my period cramps.
For the first week bled lightly, second week had an actual period, week three and week four just spotting. The doctor told me this can go on for up to six months...kinda worth it if you think about it.
No acne problems so far, my hair is fine (and trust me, if my hair was thinning, falling out, or anything like that I would take the mirena out!), muscles and joints feel like they did before pregnancy, still breastfeeding (I know that they say that the mirena will make you produce less breast milk-tell that to my breastfed 13 pound 24 inch long 2 month old. he would disagree)
My breasts are a little tender and at first I was slightly bloated (less than if I were on my period) but that has subsided. Abstained from sex for a month after insertion per my doctor's orders, so I will come back and post if there were any problems with that...NEXT WEEK! yay!
Know that I understand the side effects could show up later.

Now again, EVERYBODY will experience something different. We are interfering with nature. Birth control is one of the most unnatural things we could do to our body.

Again, since this site commonly comes up when searching the mirena, I want for women to know that it might work for them better than it did for others.

53 year old female who has taken "F" for almost 2 years - the past two months was the generic version. Have noticed a gradual onset of joint pain and heart palpitations, but am not one to see a doc unless I feel like I'm dying... So I wrote it off to aging. (-:
A friend recently mentioned that she had heard that Fosamax causes bones to be brittle, which caused me to wake up, look around and see what people are saying and what new articles or research are out there. Yeah, sure - there are lawsuits. Not a surprise in our litigious society. More importantly, however, are the comments from real people. Thanks to you who've posted your experiences!
I stopped the drug several weeks ago and seem to have an increase in joint paint. But I'm not going back to Fosamax! Also interesting to me is that around the same time I stopped the drug, I experienced an uncharacteristic downward shift in my mood/mental state. Not sure if there's a correlation to the drug or not...
It is reassuring to see some comments from people who indicate they feel better after weeks/months of being Fosamax free. I am a "gym rat" and very fit/weight appropriate. Weight training and nutrition will be my treatment of choose for osteopenia for now. With time, I am confident that the symptoms I'm experiencing will subside. And any future ailments for which I am prescribed a drug will be very carefully researched by me beforehand.
Be careful out there and stay informed!

I've had some issues with Lisinopril also, headaches, back aches and some dizziness. Just wondering if is normal for a drugs to have all these posting of people having issues ..maybe is only 1% of the population and I am one of the unlucky ones?

I had been on Sulfamethoxazole-Trimethoprim for ten days when i had my allergic reaction- i went out for a run Saturday evening and about thirty minutes after my return i started breaking out into unbelievable hives and excruciating itching at this point it was only on my arms and i put some anti-itch gel on it to get better went to bed and woke up around 2 am with my lip completely swollen out i then took benadryl which controlled the itchiness- going into Sunday the hives got so bad i could hardly move my hands and then the hives spread to my feet which made it literally unbearable to walk- i have never experienced anything like this! I felt like a cripple i was hardly able to move- luckily i had a packet of steroids previously prescribed to me started taking them and immediately started to feel better i woke up Monday morning around five am and the hives had almost vanished- then when i got up to go to work on the drive in the hives were back and stronger than ever it was horrible i was driving in traffic watching my arms and hands swell in size and itching unbelievably out of control- managed to get some benadryl in my system and another steroid- made it to work- throat started closing in on me started wheesing couldn't catch my breath- ended up in the emergency room- this has been the craziest thing that has ever happened to me! The ER doctor told me that 40-60% of the population is allergic to this antibiotic- YET ITS STILL ON THE MARKET!!!!! I seriously thought at time i might die- this was the most excruciating experience i've had- and if i lapse the time i need to take my steroid the hives come back soo fast-The doctor said it can take a week for my body to metabolize the antibiotic out of my system- the lesson i learned here always do your own research on any medicine the doctor gives you to take- just bc they prescribe it doesn't always mean its the best i mean up to 60% of the population is allergic to this- had i known this i would have asked for a different antibiotic! In my case i think that it took my body so long to have its allergic reaction due to the fact when i went on the antibiotic to fight an ear infection i was also prescribed a steroid and i believe the steroid was fighting off my reaction and keeping it at bay until i ran out of that....Also anyone having this reaction DO NOT TAKE ASPIRIN OR IBUPROFEN/ADVIL THIS MAKES THE REACTION WORSE- IT IS REALLY BEST TO JUST TAKE ALEVE!!

To a small population of people, this drug has an immediate detrimental effect to mood. In my case it caused a strong urge to commit suicide within 5 hours. The doctors all said it was impossible. I was inclined to believe them since these drugs are not meant to be effective for days after treatment initiation. However, my reaction cannot be ignored or dismissed.
The prescribing physician (Robert Moffat, MD in Longmont, Colorado) suggested I try it again because he was so certain it was my problem. I did try it again, and I had the same reaction. And so I filed a complaint against him.

Incidentally, I was not taking this medication for depression. It was for nocturnal panic attacks.

I am not saying people should not try it. I just suggest that FOR THE FIRST 24 HOURS WHEN YOU TAKE THIS MEDICATION YOU SHOULD NOT BE ALONE. It probably works great for some. Also see ******

My Dad,a 78 year old highly functioning man, was admitted to the hospital last Wednesday evening, June 25, with a case of bacterial pneumonia. They gave him his first dose of Avelox, at 10:00PM. Twelve hours later, he was hallucinating, agitated, had an irregular racing heartbeat. He also had severe tremors, shaking. They gave him more medication for his heart and transferred him to the cardiac unit. They put him on a blood thinner, heart medication. Tested his heart and examined his brain. All tests came back negative. Thank God my father's heart is strong, or we probably would have lost him. 3 days later, I was on the internet researching Avelox, and noticed immediately that all of his problems were side effects of this drug. My family notified the doctor immediately and demanded that they switch my father's meds. The doctors did so reluctantly. They had never heard of these kind of side effects related to Avelox, even though it affects almost 3% of the population. My father had his last dose of Avelox on Sunday. Today, Tuesday, he is still having some "visions" and is confused. I don't know how long it is going to take for these side effects to disappear. The doctors are no help. This medication has caused my father and family severe stress, and prolonged his stay in the hospital. It has cost the insurance company extra money, since they had to do unnecessary testing on my father to try and determine the cause of his symptoms. He was also given additional meds that he never would have needed if they had just prescribed Zithromax from the beginning. AVOID AVELOX - IT COULD KILL YOU!

HEY PSYCHMEDMAN TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK and get off your high-horse. If you listened to patients instead of trying to tell them whats wrong with them and you know better, you will help them. It sounds to me like your more interested in showing everyone how smart you are than making people well. Just because your body doesn't have adverse effects, and even if the majority of the population doesn't, does not mean that people are making this up. I have no other medications, never been treated for any mental illness, and I don't believe I have one, but I have had a physically debilitating condition that no doctor has been able to diagnose for over a year. I have resisted taking anything for a "mental condition" because I know that is not what started my trouble, but I allowed them to treat me for it now because after being in this situation for a while, I am feeling a little depressed.

I did not even think to go anywhere to see about any side-effects or suspect the Bupropion that have have been taking for just a few days until a nurse (yes there are other medical professionals that disagree with you, I know this must be a shock) told me his opinion was that the drug's side-effects out-weigh the benefits, and how surprising, the recent headaches, lucid dreams/nightmares & joint pain I HAD ALREADY EXPERIENCED, NOT SOMETHING I READ ABOUT FIRST were being experienced by others on the same drug. I am not you, everyone's chemestry is different, and different drugs affect us all differently. I hope that you change your attitude and open your mind a little more so you can be more helpful than arrogant.

I will not be taking this drug again at any dose, for any reason. I was only taking 75 mg for 2-3 days and I had these side effects.

I do want to say to anyone thinking of going off this or any other mind altering drug DO NOT GO OFF COLD TURKEY especially if you have been taking it long term and or high dosages as this can be more harmful and dangerous than the current effects, it may cause a psychotic episode. If you want information to back this up, you can see for yourself where several medical journals have been sounding the alarm on several of these drugs at:
http://www.drugawareness.org/ .. don't be put-off by the intro video if you like me are not a Michael Moor fan, I'm not and I still think he is off on a lot of what he says and does, but on some of what he is saying on this point I cannot ignore the statements by medical professionals relaying the findings of academic research, but much of it is unpopular because I believe, the people who have had good results are much like our friend PSYCHMEDMAN who thinks his experience is going to be everyone else's too.