Retrospect symptoms and conditions

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!

How can I describe my thanks to this site and everybody telling their stories? Thank you oh soooo much!!!

My not so short story: Im on my second Mirena, in total now for just over 8 years. The first Mirena was all joy, periods stopped, no side effects whatsoever. Then I got the second Mirena after I removed the first after over 5 years (my gyn recommended keeping it in for longer but I didn't want to take the risk).

And for the past 2 years my ACNE problems started, first only one or two cystic acne once a month or a couple of small ones here and there. Nothing major. But for the past year, my skin / face makes me feel like a freak. So I went to the derm, got put on Accutane, more meds with a yard long list of side affects. Had to go of Accutane cos my right eye's sight deteriorated so bad I couldn't drive home at night. Went to my house doctor, he wanted to take me of the Mirena asap and refered me to a new gyn, cos mine moved away and I was stuck. But the new gyn did not want to take it out, but rather put me on a retinoid cream, cos it wasn't the acne that caused the acne.... yea right. So 5 months I gave this retinoid cream... I feel like a freak with my face, both cheeks inflamed red bumps under the skin, large cystic acne everywhere... sigh.

But during this 5 months I found a web site acne.org and here I made friends and read stories and hoping and praying, even believing things are getting better, but they weren't. If I look at pics I took of myself 5 months ago and now... sadly things are worse. My self confidence is gone, and I don't even want to have sex with my husband with the light on!!! And then last week somebody posted on the acne site some posts regarding zinc supplements, and I read and researched more on zinc and acne and found that your skin needs zinc to be healthy and having no zinc could be because of to much copper or copper toxicity. So then I researched copper toxicity and found some web sites with references to birth control.... and a bright light went on... and I found this site...

I am glad to say I saw my normal trusted house doc again last night, and made an appointment to have the thing, Mirena, removed first thing Monday morning. I have stopped using any meds like the retinoid cream for my face and cant wait for Monday. I just hope my face returns to normal quickly.... time lines anyone? I had no trouble with acne ever until now.... and Im 35!!! Udult acne my @#$ :)

My right eye now needs laser surgery to remove a layer or something, Im seeing an eye specialist soon, and this was caused by the accutane drying up my eyes so much! :(

I will report back to let other ladies know how it went and how I am progressing... thinking of taking a daily photo of my skin for reference purposes.

Pray for me please, I really need it....

C.

I've been on NR for almost 2.5 years. I have to say that I loved it at first. I have really loved it the entire time because I didn't have to worry about remembering to take a pill every day. But, in retrospect, I really think I have experienced a loss of libido since I've started it. I've had two boyfriends through the last 2.5 years and I've had libido issues with both of them (from a previously health libido). I kept thinking it was just me, but after reading through these testimonials, I am starting to think it is the ring. I've also had increased UTIs of which I NEVER used to get. Itching, burning, discomfort. Etc.

I have switched my diet in the past four months to that which is much healthier and natural (raw vegan lifestyle) so birth control in the form of pills/ring, etc. seems unnatural. I think I am going to go off for a few months and see what happens. I'll let you know how it goes.

So I just finished a 10 day supply (20 pills) of this stuff. I was prescribed Biaxin twice a day for 10 days to clear up a minor sinus infection. I had no idea that this stuff caused so many issues, but now I know first hand. This medicine gave me pretty bad insomnia. I could fall asleep but would wake up at 2am/3am in the morning and couldn't fall back asleep. Of course lack of sleep, then gave me anxiety and minor depression like I've never had before. I will never take this stuff again. Not to mention, the bad taste that's in your mouth constantly. In retrospect, I'll take a sinus infection anyday over the side effects of this medicine. Maybe it's okay for some people, but I'll never put Biaxin in my body every again. I took my last dose yesterday evening and I've been drinking tons of water ever since to try and get rid of this stuff as soon as possible.

I used sevoflurane to anesthesia patients for weeks, then for a week i was exposed to halothane, all the above in a unscavenged system and i noticed i have started back with headaches. I made the connection for when i had just started to use halothane for the first time, I used it for weeks and everyday I had headaches. I wondered why? Thought it would go away. Then I stopped using halothane and I started using sevoflurane since that was more available in my hospital. In retrospect looking back at the symptoms i had many months ago and the new recent exposure to halothane this past week and the return of similar symptoms. I am convinced its the halothane. Note this is working in an unscavenged system. I think groups need to run experiments on the effects of halothane on the health care worker in an unscavenged system.

Our story is so similar to many of the others posted. I am including it because it adds to the data. Our 12 year old son has been on Singulair since age 7. Prior to going on Singulair (although I did not make the connection between these two events until this week..) he was an easy-going, happy, delightful boy. During the late fall of first grade he started developing strange behaviors--obsessive hand-washing, kicking our pediatrician, saying the water was poisoned. He is continuously irritable, moody, easily annoyed, impulsive, self-critical and has difficulty modulating his attention. He has had a few incidents where he has said he wants to die, he is worthless and a loser. He continually apologizes for his behaviors and is extremely remorseful, but then goes and does it again. We have seen so many specialists, spent so much money on counseling, have tried neurofeedback, Adderall, alternative supplements (eg omega 3's)...the list goes on. His issues have been like a part-time job for me. I never made the connection to Singulair, because the pediatrician and allergist assured me that Singuair had virtually no side effects. Right after the New Year (2008) he had a few days where everything seemed to go right for him-- moodiness disappeared, did his homework agreeably, seemed truly happy for the first time in a long time. In retrospect, I am guessing it is because we forgot to bring his Singulair on our vacation, so it was out of his system for several days. Now that we've tossed the meds, I'm hoping that the side effects are short lived...and we see our old son again.

As for the individual who wrote that we may be ambulance chasers, I can promise you that any money I receive in a successful class-action law suit would go towards helping other families avoid the pain and suffering our son has gone through. I consider myself an educated & well-informed parent and yet I was blind-sided by the medical industry.

I was put in this med about 6 mos ago in order to protect my Kidney, I had a transplant years ago. My BP was already low in the mid 120s/85-90 and this has dropped it to 120/80.

However on starting this med, I suffered many of the flu-like symptoms to the point where I was out of work for a couple of days. Since then, I have, in retrospect had malaise, depression symptoms, occasional shortness of breath and a general lack of energy.

And last night, the kicker, I was with my new girlfriend for the first time....yep, no work, at all, which led me to checking out the net for symptoms of the meds I was on.

In July of 2005, I was prescribed 14 doses of Levaquin 750 mg for a bad case of viral pneumonia and mononucleosis. After two days of insomnia, I developed extremely painful feet, especially the bottoms of my feet. Last month (Aug 2007) I was diagnosed with Avascular Necrosis of the Hip, and just had my right hip replaced (total). At age 45, I am fairly young to have developed such an ailment and other than July of 2005, have been healthy and active my entire life. In retrospect, I am beginning to wonder if Levaquin caused my avascular necrosis, as the doctors are at a loss.

Hello,

I read about how YAZ birth control pill affects the body and psych and I am now scared. This is my 2nd day of YAZ (I've never been on birth control pills ever and I am 27 years old), it's all new to me but after reading all these negative posts about Yaz I don't know what to do. Before the birth control pills, I was depressed, annoying, serious weight problems - 210 lbs :~~((, low energy, low libido, always tired, terrible migraines every 2nd day, ridiculously increased appetite and excessive hunger, hair where it shouldn't be, menstrual blood clots, excessive cramping etc
I have all these problems for 3 years now and now that the family doc. put me on YAZ birth control pill I am even more scared - mainly of more weight gain, it would be a tragedy for me, I am fat enough already and what's worse I can't lose the weight, exercise doesn't help, diet doesn't help, NOTHING. Will YAZ birth control pill worsen my already tragic condition? I just don't know what to do and what to believe ... I appreciate any advice or help you can give me ... Thank You to all!

Took Avelox - one dose - two years ago for a chest infection. Within two hours, experienced acute weakness, dizziness and bizarre (and frightening) sensations of falling/collapsing/sinking. Changes of vision and loss of acuity of hearing followed. In the ensuing days, severe neck pain, inability to regulate body temperature (feeling constantly cold), involuntary muscle movement, acute diarrhoea, confusion, low blood pressure, low oxygen levels in the blood, crushing chest pain, slow heart rate required hospitalisation. In retrospect, I would have to say that those first few weeks were terrifying not just for me but for my husband and small children. It took several months for these symptoms to resolve completely. The peculiar sensations in the neck persist intermittently. In my opinion and experience, Avelox is a dangerous drug, which should be withdrawn from use immediately. Notably in this episode, the specialist/consultant who prescribed the drug refused to accept that Avelox caused any of these problems. The GP was far more aware of this drug's potential to do damage. I would strongly advise that anyone visiting this site never, EVER, give fluoroquinolones to anyone in their family. Wishing good health to all who have been damaged by this drug. MM

I have been taking lisinopril for about 5 years for hypertension (160/110). I first started at 10mg, 20mg, and now at 40mg daily for the last couple of years. In retrospect, I have noticed momentary bouts of short intense vetigo. Recently, as in the last week, the frequency of these bouts of vetigo have increased to 4-6 times a day and intense fatigue and headache has crept into the equation also. I will talk to my doctor regarding this, but would be really interested in exploring the holistic approach to hypertension management and get off the lisinopril.

Hi ladies! I am in complete shock at what I am reading on this site! I thought I was going crazy but now I know I wasn't and I am not alone!!! I was on Yaz for two months and in the first month, I noticed that my libido went from moderate (sex 3-5x a week) to completely non-existent- like a light switch. Then at the end of my second pack, which was this past week, I experienced breast tenderness, non-stop headaches (bordering on migraines) and my abdomen was extremely bloated. Also, throughout this past month, I have noticed my joints have been achy and my muscles have been sore. I have been weak and tired all the time on top of feeling anxious and restless. These premenstrual symtoms are completely uncommon for me to have. This past month in particluar has been oddly confusing and almost like an out of body experience. Now, in retrospect and after reading about others' experiences with Yaz, I am convinced that all those symptoms were/are side effects of Yaz. I hope this posting is helpful to some, in the same sense that other postings were helpful to me. Good Luck!
Kara

I came across this site last week after finally getting fed up with vaginal dryness/painful intercourse that my obgyn couldn't explain. (She put me on yeast infection medicine..but obviously, that wasn't the problem.) It hit me all at once that my weird, very uncharacteristic crying spells (ex. unable to complete sentences without feeling like tears are welling up)....to extreme anger and a flared temper....to a recent fainting/diarrhea spell...to overnight changing my feelings completely on having children, to hating my job!! (I mean really...my feelings are ALL over the place.)I've never been one to blame things on others or for this matter, a pill. But I realized that a lot of my strange personality changes may really be attributed to the Yasmin. I have had insomnia for the last 4 months...which I've also never ever experienced before. In general, I've become a worrier and feel all around numb and no love for myself or my boyfriend. And for no reason. It's putting a real damper on our relationship actually. I told him about this site and explained what I've been dealing with...silently for the most part because I thought it was just me. So I guess we'll have to wait it out....I started taking Yasmin in November 2005...and now in retrospect...can start adding up small changes to my personality starting back in Feb. 2006. My last pill was this Friday. I'm day 6 off Yasmin and have my period this week. I am not going to go back on the Yasmin this weekend. (after my period ends) I'm afraid to go on any hormonal birth control because of the way this affected me so badly. In a way, I feel like I may have never been "myself" around my boyfriend. We started dating in Dec. 2005, and I had started it a month before. Does this make sense? I had been on OrthoTryCyclen a long time ago....and remember when I moved to England...I got off of it and felt as though my feelings in general went from black and white to colorful and vibrant. I think I'm going to explore non hormonal options from here on in. I've done some research on IUD's. In particular, the copper IUD.
Anyway, sorry for the ramble ladies. My point is to say thank you for speaking up. I come and look at this site everyday to just remind myself that I'm not alone. And that I can look forward to feeling myself again one day. And mostly, that feelings of butterflies and happiness will come back to my relationship with my boyfriend. Who is simply wonderful. Just a fantastic guy.
Keep those chins up ladies!
Vicki

First, thank you for your posts and providing me that extra push to stop taking this pill. For the past 5 months I've been on Yasmin. After the first few days I experienced dizziness and increased anxiety. I spoke to my pharmacist (in retrospect this makes me laugh) and he suggested I continue for a month to see if the side-effects subside. And they did. And sure enough my skin cleared, I lost some weight and my periods became quite light. Yet now, near 5 months later, the side-effects have resumed. I'm lightheaded, am having trouble with blurriness and am very anxious. Overall I'm feeling disconnected and a bit manic. Yasmin is the ONLY drug I am on. I actually am dedicated to an organic lifestyle and have for the past year injested almost all things organic. And so after reading your posts I realize that these feelings are not a function of being a "woman in her twenties" balancing stress, work and home, but actually a chemical reaction to the ONLY prescription or non-prescription drug I injest.
Now I pose the question - do I look for a replacement or give my body a break from BCP all together (I've been on them for 10 years now?) And can someone please confirm what alternative medications they took after stopping this pill to help bring the body and mind back to equilibrium? BComplex?
Thank you
Jacquelyn

I've been taking Singulair for almost 7 months, during which I have been only singing its praises. My asthma symptoms completely vanished and my seasonal allergies have been very much under control. However, I'm beginning to notice a pretty constant state of lightheadedness and just in the past few days there have been times when I thought I would faint. In retrospect, I've had a great deal of trouble sleeping through the night. I've also started to get some skin itchiness that I never had before. I'm going off Singulair right away and see how that makes me feel.

My wife is just coming off of a severe reaction to Levaquin. She spent 10 days hospitalized for a mastoid infection and was on two IV antibiotics, one of which was Levaquin. Following hospital discharge one week ago, she continued with oral 500mg Levaquin until today. Following consultation with our Doc, she ceased use.

For the past several days, she had been feeling something was wrong. She was not getting well and feeling better. She continued to feel more and more fatigued, began having severe mood swings, confusion, etc.. Last evening and night was the worst. She began seeing 'bugs' when closing her eyes and about midnight began having severe, uncontrollable, muscle tremors all over. These stopped after a time.

In retrospect, we believe she was having a degree of adverse reaction for days. The last straw, over-the-top, only came last night. She already feels better and it has been only a little over one day since she took her last dose of this medication.

We realize Levaquin is good for most and had been around a long time, but it sure was not good for her. It is so important for a patient to be aware of what can happen with this drug so that early signs of trouble can be recognized.

I took the nuvaring last year for about three months and then broke up with my boyfriend. We got back together recently and I decided to try it again. My first period since I started three weeks ago has changed dramatically. Although I no longer have the horrible cramps I used to have, they have been replaced by a dramatic decrease in appetite- I have to force myself to eat once a day during this period. In addition, my mood has changed in a severe way. I have become highly sensitive and easily angered at the smallest of things. In retrospect, last year during the months I was on the nuvaring I experienced 3 fainting spells- which is highly unusual- and as abovementioned broke up with my boyfriend. I didn't make the connection untill now but I think the ring had a lot to do with all that. I plan to stop using this month.

I am a 45, male and I recently experienced a severly torn bicep muscle and a friend mentioned to me that it could be related to degenerative muscle loss from Lipitor. After reading all the articles posted here I realized I have been suffering for 6-7 years.

I have had, ringing in my ears, muscle cramps, disabling lower back pain, skin lesions, swollen neck to the point I can't look up any more, anxiety, depression, racing heart beat, weight gain and high appetite and chest pains. Over the years I have had several of the episodes you all have described and I attributed them all, AND SO DID MY DR. to something else.

The muscle tear in my bicep seemed wierd since I have been to the gym regularly for 2 years. My wife thinks I'm a hypochondriac for complaing about every little pain, but in retrospect it must have been the Lipitor.

At a recent check up all my numbers were great, and I remember my Dr. telling me that the benefits of this drug out weighed the side effects, but I would like to see the proof.

Would anyone recommend a less side effect laden drug?

Was taking Sudafed for about 5 days for a nasel infection, along with Nasonex, and Calrenex. Though in retrospect, this was probably too much medication. But the day after I started taking this, I immedietly began to get feelings of anxiety, worry, fear, nausea, headache and dizziness. After 5 days of this hell, I stopped taking all medications, and probably never take Sudafed again. It has been about 2 days since I stopped taking the meds. and I am still recovering from their harmful effects. I dont know which is worse, having the nasel infection or dealing with the side effects of the drugs. I still have nausea, and slight head pressure.