Saved my life symptoms and conditions

I had been suffering from a lingering sinus infection that lead to having Epididymitis (testicular pain). My doctor gave me Levaquin (750mg)/day for 14 days. I read and check with the her about the drug. On the third day I woke up with a terrible itch on my legs. I took my dosage for the day at 7 AM and by 8AM I was in the ER. I had such a reaction to Levaquin that my blood pressure had dropped to 71/49. As soon as I started to feel the effects of reaction I took Benadryl. That saved my life.

All I can say is thank you ladies for posting all of this. I was on Nuva ring for almost 2 years. my boyfriend complained I was getting worse and worse in terms of my anger and mood swings. He called me a monster. Then days after my 20th birthday I experienced lots of itchiness and pain after sex so I thought it was a yeast infection. When I did not respond to over the counter meds I went to the hospital to get testing for STDS. When all the test came back negative I went back to my regular doctor two weeks later. Again, I was tested and a month later tested again. No one could figure out why I was having burning and itchiness with no other symptoms and all my STD test negative. Finally I gave up the ring and have been symptom free now for nearly 6 months. To this day the situation plagued me because the doctor swore I couldn't experience this from the Nuva ring. I spent a whole summer in pain because of this. Now I am birth control free but my boyfriend of three years and I would love to add to our family.

My 12-year old son has been high dose prednisone for his asthma flare ups. I know that the "moon face" is common. However, since using this prednisone, he has bad acne breakouts on his forehead, cheeks, chin and even in his head. He also has broken out in a rash on his neck. Common or uncommon? There seems to be nothing to help with the acne, either.

OMG.. THANK YOU ALL, I THINK YOU SAVED MY LIFE. Where have I been, why didnt I realize earlier... but yes, it must be true. I am totally convinced that Yasmin, in tandem with a severe emotional trauma (both of my parents died) caused me to almost kill myself (I was suicidal, and still can become suicidal when a depressive swing kicks in) I was -and to some degree still am- an emotional wreck and I JUST REALIZED upon finding this site that it is this goddamned pill to blame. I am sure of it, I know.... and am rather annoyed at myself since I was very reluctant to start dropping chemicals into my body about two years ago. But no, my wonderful gynecologist said it was essentially the only option to control my Polycistic Ovarian Syndrome... without it, I was a goner. Fine, I thought... and much much crying, anxiety, depression, lethargy, irritability later, I am stopping this s*** NOW. I will just have to find out another rememdy, preferably homeopathic, to deal with my condition. I mean... this is no way to live. I used to like sunny days -like most people- but have literally developed a phobia of the sun. Yes, I know it is wierd and irrational, but for the past year, the sun itself makes me anxious as hell, needless to say I overdo the hat and sunblock and my husband... well wonders what to do -he loves me dearly and has been understanding, thank God but I do put him through the ringer with, my mood swings are CRAZY... This pill is horrible, I repeat, horrible. I nearly lost my mind on it, and have become relatively unproductive, despite the fact that I graduated magna cum laude three years ago, was always active, extemely motivated, friendly, confident.... Now: the sun, my enemy. I also worry about dying, cancer... you name it, cant sleep either, and have splitting headaches almost daily. As others have mentioned, if anyone decides to head up a class-action, count me in. Please email me, I have medical documentation to back up several emergency visits to the psych ward due to suicidal depression. YASMIN WILL MAKE YOU GO NUTS. BLESS YOU ALL FOR PUTTING YOUR EXPERIENCES ON THIS SITE. We have to get the word out....

am taking lisinopril 10 mg, once a day, and celexa 20 mg, once a day for less than a week. initially, the two combined, in the a.m. caused severe nausea, diarhhea, horrible headaches, and double vision. needed to have clear head friday for important meeting at work, so did not take either--felt amazing! Felt I needed to take meds like doc said (doc saved my life after 10 years of undiagnosed diabetes with another doc), so tried switching the times up, taking lis in a.m. and celexa before bed. no side effects until i took the celexa--I didn't sleep. am going to try taking the celexa in the a.m. and lis in p.m. and see if that is better. my side effects seem to only be bad when taken in combination--except for being unable to sleep.

I was a very healthy 23 yr old female. I cant believe that I finally found someone going thru almost what I am going thru. My name is Liane and My life changed on July 7th, 2007. I went to the hospital for frothy urine. They told me it was a UTI and gave me Levaquin for 7 days. I took it for only 5 days cuz ( I was allergic too) then were gonna start me on macrobid. Mean time my hands,face, and bottom half began to swell up. Me thinking it was from my period but this was different. I work in a jewelery store and once my rings that are a size 6 DID not fit at all I panicked. I had extremely bad back pain, high blood pressure. I did not feel same. On July 13th (Friday) I went to a hospital here in southern california and talked to a doctor and she said.."sweetie u don't have a UTI, I don't wanna scare u but I think that U have a Kidney Disease called Minimal Change Disease"!!!! WHAT!!!! Am I gonna die? She says no but come Monday u need to see a specialist and confirm. Now here is a Lasix pill to help take some of the water weight that u have gained away. Its already about 1:30am on Saturday the 14th. She says u will not sleep cuz u will be urinating all night. I said well anything to help me, i had went from a very healthy 5' 7" 155lbs woman, I worked out in the gym 5 days a week with my boyfriend who is a Police officer and bodybuilder for fun, so me swelling up and devastated me. I took the pill. and went to sleep. Nothing happened to me. That meant something was wrong. Later that day Saturday I felt BAD. My face kept swelling, blood pressure kept going up, heart racing. I went to E.R and told them I felt like I was gonna die, I think I have minimal change disease I need a specialist now. They admitted me for 5 days. My specialist came in and saved my life. I had a ultrasound and kidney biopsy and they confirmed what I already knew. I had Minimal change Disease. I ended up being allergic to Dilaudid, and compozine in the hospital. I was released on the 20th of july. and now began my treatments. 3 x's a day of Prednisone at 20mg each, simvastatin 20mg once a day for high cholesterol now, lasix 20mg once a day, and omeprazole 20mg once a day to prevent ulcers from the Prednisone., I hate the Prednisone. I broke out so much on my face. And its not pimples it bumps. I wake up every morning at 5a.m with nasty heart burn. then wake up every 2 hours after. Doctor told me to take all my meds at once and it helped a bit but still not completely. I too feel bloated in the mid section. I still suffer from edema in my legs down to my ankles. During the day gets worse but once I put my feet up and elevate them I'm OK. I have bad mood swings I don't know how my loved ones put up me. One minute I cry, 20 minutes I'm happy and wanna go out for a walk. This drug is gonna help me but then Do I really need to put myself thru this? But there is not other way. Just thought of sharing my story.

This website may not have saved my life, but it has certainly saved my sanity. Beginning in May 2007 I was prescribed Toprol XL for a supposed heart condition. I was instructed to begin with 50 mg per day and go to 100 mg per day after 10 days. Since I already had the 50 mg tablets, I simply started taking 2 of them together when I raised the dosage. On July 25 I ran out of the 50 mg tabs and filled a prescription for 100 mg tabs. Immediately upon starting the 100 mg tabs I began experiencing side effects which increased in severity daily. By Monday July 30 I was convinced I was losing my mind. Then I discovered this website, and read that many other people had suffered in the same way. What I have trouble grasping is why the same dosage had different effects. I tolerated the 100 mg/day dose just fine when taking 2 50 mg tabs, but the 100 mg was dreadful. I've checked the pills, and both the 50 mg and 100 mg are Astra-Zeneca products, not generic. The markings, shape and size are consistent with 100 mg tabs, so I haven't been inadvertently given an overdose. I immediately backed off the dosage, and am gradually going to reduce and stop the medication. I urge anyone who is having these problems not to stop at reporting them here, but also to contact Astra-Zeneca at www.astrazeneca.com, and to report them to the FDA's Medwatch website, www.fda.gov/medwatch. It may seem fruitless to contact Astra Zeneca, but they need to be made aware of these problems.

I am really hoping someone can help me with the side effect issues I am having after taking Prednisone to cure a tumor on my larynx.. I was on the drug for six months.. taking 60 mg a day. It saved my life and at the same time it was just about to kill me, I am not kidding. The horrible effects it had on my body was really worse than the tumor that was taking my life. It would have almost been easy to die.
But today I'm very grateful for the miracle it did on my throat. I did not have a voice for many years.. today I can sing and that makes it's a great gift.
I was wondering, after being on it for so long and coming off nice and slowly, should my joints be in this much pain? My body aches are horrible.. all the muscles hurt and that never seems to go aways. Is this normal?

My dad had an anaphylactic reaction to avelox. Twenty minutes after taking the medication he became flushed and itchy. His face swelled. My dad is a physician and knew that he was having a reaction to the drug but did not know how severe it was. He had a nurse administer a depo medrol shot when in fact it should have been epinepherine. He ended up turning blue and passing out several times until oxygen could be administered. These events took place in his office. When he was in this state of shock, his collegues gave him an EKG and evidence of heart ischemia was recorded. His blood pressure dropped drastically. He was rushed to a hospital where they gave him benedryl and steroids. Thankfully he has recovered without any tissue damage to his heart or brain. Even though he had this reaction, he still feels that avelox is a great drug and that his reaction although extremely life threatening is rare. 1 in 30,000 people will develop this adverse reaction to avelox.

This medication has saved my life. I am in my mid 20's and have been taking Toprol for 2 years. Ever since 9-11 I have had a hard time keeping my anxiety under control. I tired a number of anxiety medications but Toprol was the only thing that could keep my heart rate under control.

When I forget to take the meds I experience an elevated heart rate. It goes away shortly after I take the next dose. After being on this medication for so long I've started to notice minor problems with weight gain, low energy, and depression. I think now that I have my blood pressure under control it's time to start ramping down the dose.

Talk to your doctor before you get off this medication. I quit cold turkey once before and my blood pressure skyrocketed.

I was on Yasmin 2 different times. After 6 months of being on the pill, I ended up in ICU with acute Gastrointestenal bleeding with no known cause. I went off Yasmin-no more problems. I went back on it 4 years later (not knowing the connection) 6 months after taking it ended up in the hospital with acute GI bleeding. This time I stayed on the pill, still not putting it together. Then my real nightmare began. I almost died from Anemia, I kept having boughts of bleeding, anxiety depression, hypoglycemia, you name it. I wanted help from the DR.'s no help. I wanted help getting off the pill because I was scared. I finally took the plunge, and it was like going to HELL. I would not wish this on any living thing. I became so overtaken with either deep depression, or anxiety, it is only by the grace of God and a few friends and family I am here today. I spent thousands on tests 4x in the hospital, couldn't work, or work out for the pat 3 years. I use to run 3-5 miles a day, and work physically about 6-8 hours everyday. They say the fact I was so healthy saved my life. I have since gained 25 lbs, had Fibromyalgia symptoms, chronic Fatigue symptoms, adrenal gland problems, and never have had another normal period, and now it is gone. No sex drive, vaginal irregularities, lost my hair (it grew back thank God), still have issues with unknown causes. It has been 3.5years since I started the pill, and 2 since I went off it, This pill is straight from Hell. I believe it is ruining women. We need to unite to get it off the market. Has anyone else had their life severily damaged from taking this pill. Words can not express enough the horror I have experienced and the continued pain emotionally, physically and mentally I must go through as I believe and hold faith for full recovery. Let your Doctors know what is happening so they will stop pushing this evil drug. PB

hi kim123.
sorry i was not around yesterday,my youngest has just gone off to nursery school so has been a bit manic. as the Guest below seems to think we should not use this forum to chat (even though support is a MAJOR part of why people come to this forum) i will email you personally.

hi,guest 35696.
sorry if the above remark sounds rude,it is not meant that way. i understand what you are saying,that new people come here to find out if their symptoms are linked to yasmin and all they can find is personal chit chat and not a full list of symptoms,but i have no idea how to set up a forum for all the ladies here that find just chatting to other sufferers helps.this site and chatting to people on it literally saved my life. if you know how to do it then please let us know. a lot people seem to post side effects on the other page (yasmin forum) that is where i initially found all my symptoms.
once again sorry if the above sounds rude it really is not meant that way but i am passionate about this site and helping support the newcomers as they did when i was a newcomer and nobody understood me and how i was feeling. i am a computer idiot so have no idea how to start up a forum,if any of you ladies out there know how to do it please post on here.

To the lady with the sore breast... mine were agony pre menstrually and just plain huge the rest of the time. i agree with you saying that it feels like engorged breast like when you were breastfeeding that is exactly how mine felt. they were solid and shiny most of the time!!!
i have been off yasmin since june 06 and mine are much better now although i still get a little discomfort premenstrually but they no longer feel lumpy and hurt just with a t-shirt touching them.i used to cringe if my kids wanted a hug as they were so sore. apparently evening primrose oil is good for breast tenderness.

sarah

On January 17, 2006 I was prescribed 500 mg of Levaquin for 10 days for a sinus infection. I was told to take the pill before I went to bed. That night I was extremely restless and could not fall asleep. I would start to fall asleep and then my body would "jump" awake again. I also woke up in the morning with nausea. I would force food down my throat. I lost my appetite and no longer craved foods I used to. I was having very earlymorning bowel movements. I had pain in my arm for a couple of days. I have never felt so crappy from being on a drug! After seven days on Levaquin I called my pharmicist and told him I felt like I was dying and he told me to start taking the pill in the morning. I did and felt a little better. Nevertheless, my nausea never went away in the morning. I would have tremors in the morning and was always cold. Finally, in April I started to have night sweats and lost alot of weight. In May I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety. I started on 10 mg of Lexapro and started seeing a psychotherapist. I was fine for about a month and then my nausea came back.

In November 2006. I was put on 40 mg of NEXIUM which has saved my life along with increasing my Lexapro dosage to 15 mg. LEVAQUIN NEEDS TO BE TAKEN OFF THE MARKET NOW! I STRONGLY BELIEVE THIS DRUG CAN RUIN YOUR LIFE AND KILL YOU!!!!!!!

Recently, my phisician gave me some samples to take home for a lung infection. Was at Sams club getting the rest of the prescription filled and I took one of the 500 mg Levaquin she had provided.

Within seconds my inner lips felt funny, then started tingling and felt very odd. Sat down and sneezed about 40 times in a row. Face started to swell, eyes were sending out streams of tears, and blisters began to form on the inside of my mouth. I could not talk -- throat was closing. Very panicked, I croaked out to the pharmacist I was having trouble. Throught the fabric of my pants he injected an "epinephrine" pen dose, called 911 and (a first) ambulance ride to an ER. Had incidents of belng unable to take in air, or breath in or out, and was given more injections of epinephrine and I don't know what else. It was so scary. In the end I would say -- That pharmacist surely saved my life.

hi,dejay78.
my heart goes out to you. i was exactly the same with the same fear that i had gone mad and was going to end up institutionalised. i also have 2 children. i started taking yasmin after i stopped breat feeding my youngest. i fed her for 1 year and did not have a period in that time.my doctor suggested yasmin to get my hormones back into whack,in fact it did the complete opposite but i didn't realise it at the time.i was on it for 6 months and all seemed fine.my skin cleared up,i lost a little weight and my periods were light and regular. Then i started to need to pee more.i had major IBS symptoms,then the panic attacks started,then came the constant anxiety,i was terrified all day every day. i had terrible unthinkable thoughts. i became scared i would do something awful like hurt one of my kids,i knew i never ever could but the thoughts in my head made me think i was mad and unstable. i couldn't go out and became scared that i would be raped or attacked if i left the house. i couldn't sleep or eat or function at all i just cried. i had aches,pains,numbness & tingling,i thought i had a tumour or cancer or something horrible. My doctor told me i had an anxiety disorder,i thought that was odd as i had never had a problem before but i accepted his diagnosis,i asked whether my pill could cause this as nothing else had changed and he just laughed and said no. the pills he gave me for the anxiety made me worse to the point that i actually wanted to die,i had had enough as i thought i would never recover.......then i googled yasmin and found this site and it literally saved my life! i read as you are now about all these poor women with the same experience as me. i stopped taking yasmin and started to feel better within a month. i have been off it now for 7 months and while i am not 100% yet i am well on my way there. The anxiety gets less and less every day,the scary thoughts are a thing of the past as are most of the other problems. i promise you dejay78 you are NOT going mad,your hormones are just so messed up that they are making you feel that way. take a good multivit,some B6 and some magnesium and think positive thoughts always! distract yourself,keep busy,sing dance and laugh.i know you don't feel like it now but it will get better. if you need any more help or advise or just someone to share this awful pain with you are always welcome here,there are so many wonderful women on here that will support you and understand you.

i wish you all the best.

sarah

I have been on and off of prednisone for the last 3 years- very high doses starting at 120 mg a day- the side effects are nightmarish- extreme weight gain, rashes, infections, moon face, mood swings- if there is a side effect i have had it. The good news is though the side effects are temporary and eventually the weight does come off. I have idiopathic anaphylaxis- also with known allergies to medicines, food and the enviroment. As much as I hate being on the drug- it has saved my life everytime- have faith things will get better- just surround yourself with a good support team-

Oh my heavens, I had no idea this site was even here. THANK YOU!! I was given Levaquin back in April 2006 for a urinaty tract infection. At the end of a family vacation in Florida I was feeling ill. I have been in the hospital 48 days, 3 hospital stays, including being transferred to Jefferson in Philadelphia, where they saved my life. I developed C Diff, a severe intestinal bacterial infection that I am still fighting over 4 months later. This is the second time I have had this infection. I was hospitalized with it in 2001 also, and just realized that I had been on Levaquin for a UTI then too. I know of at least two other people who have become ill from this of late also.
Yes, we need to get this medication off the market. I almost died twice before being sent to Philadelphia while in my local hospital. I will take NOTHING without talking with my Philly Dr. now. I had to go back to Jefferson again this past week because I'm sick again with the same symptoms. I'm only 59 and spend most days in bed, or at least near a bathroom. I've had so many test that I cannot count them anymore.
Thank you for letting vent this.

This site may have saved my life! I, too, experienced a nightmare due to Yasmin, and if it weren't for reading all of your stories and feeling your support, I'm not sure what would have happened. I don't know any of you, and yet you have all been so supportive to me! I watched myself go from an outgoing, friendly, mellow person to numb, anxious, and completely different person altogether. I began Yasmin in July 05 and in hindsight, I recognize how I slowly became a different person. Here are the side effects I experienced:

stomach trouble - nausea, diarrhea, nervous stomach, loss of appetite

dizziness

general weak feeling - especially in my legs

frequent urination/dehydration

extreme fatigue - I realized I hadn't gotten a good night's sleep in a year because I would always interrupt my sleep pattern because of having to go to the bathroom up to 4 times a night!

hair loss

dry mouth/extreme thirst

extreme moodiness - also numbness. I have always been a compassionate and caring individual and I found myself thinking that any emotional situations were stupid and that I was "above all that" touchy-feely stuff. NOT me, at all!

irrational thoughts/grim thoughts - in my research about Yasmin (and the Pill in general), I found that when your brain is lacking the appropriate levels of seratonin, you experience dark/grim thoughts about loved ones and yourself.

anxious panicky feelings

NO sex drive - and I had a very healthy sex drive prior

I simply attributed all the side effects to other sources, because I had no idea that a little pill could change a person so much. Then about 5 weeks ago (late July 06) I had my first panic/anxiety attack. I was convinced that I had snapped, and didn't even know what it was at first because I've never before struggled with anxiety/stress. It was one of the darkest, most frightening experiences of my life. I decided to google "Yasmin and anxiety" and found this site. I thank each of you for being honest about your experiences. I saw myself in many of your stories.

I quit Yasmin immediately, but then made the mistake of going back to another pill (Ortho-Cycen) that I had been on for 5 years previous to Yasmin. My Yasmin side effects weren't going away as quickly as I wanted them to, so I went to the doctor to make sure nothing else was wrong with me (I had thyroid tests, diabetes tests, etc.) She said that she was 99% sure that ALL of my symptoms were directly related to a hormone imbalance due to the pill. She said that even though I went on another pill that had been okay in the past, that my body had just reached a threshold and couldn't handle any more hormones. I have decided that I will never go back to a hormonal contraceptive method every again. It compromised my health and personality way too much! I'm working now to get my body its health back.

I've been off any form of BC for 2 full weeks now (after being on BC for 6 years straight) and I'm noticing a HUGE difference in my personality, my general health and wellbeing and my outlook on life already. I'm still not 100%, and understand that I won't be for awhile because my body needs time to sort itself out hormonally, but I do see a major improvement. I'm hoping that within 3 months I'll be completely back to normal. I have tried the vitamins that many of you have mentioned: I'm taking One-a-Day Womens, and supplements of B-complex, and one that includes calcium, magnesium and zinc. I've also tried Valerian (herbal remedy - I bought it in pill form), which I take when I feel an anxiety attack coming on, and it really helps! I feel calmer/better usually within a half hour.

I want to thank you all for posting your experiences. You have each made a difference in my life, and I hope I can do the same for someone too. I didn't even consider adding my experience to this site until I realized how much you all helped me. You are all in my thoughts as we each attempt to leave this awful pill in the dust! Take care, and again, thank you!

I had a severe poison ivy/sumac reaction and slowly the swelling in my face reached the point of affecting my breathing, so I had an emergency treatment with Prednisone. This was my first experience with this drug. (I am not one to use allopathic medicine unless it's an emergency.) The first dose was shots, then I was put on a "med pak" of methylprednisolone, to be used for 5 or 6 days, tapering down the dosages day by day. By the third day, I began to find the side effects increasingly intense. I had had a mild headache, some chest pressure, funny bone aches, stomach/liver aches, as well as sensations of spacy-ness, floating feelings, difficulty focusing my eyes at times, and my attention, etc.; but the chest pressure was what worried me most. It was all on the left side. I eventually called the doctor because the pressure and discomfort was beginning to become severe each time I took a pill. He agreed to let me stop the prednisone. I had about 2 days left of tapering to one a day, but couldn't stand to take anymore. It was beginning to feel like a life or death situation! (My rash is flaring a little now, but not seriously. I am using alternative remedies as well, and things don't seem to be reversing to where they were, thankfully.) I had missed quite a bit of work, and did not feel like myself. Yesterday was my 2nd day off the pills, and I stayed home to work on flushing my system of the prednisone. I felt like I was going through withdrawal. Today I feel much more like myself. I know now that a lot of the "sickness" I was feeling wasn't just an allergic reaction to a plant--I was sick from the medicine as well. In fact, I think it was more the medicine than the poison ivy that kept me out of work. I appreciate the use of something like prednisone in emergency cases...it may have saved my life...but from now on, I'm going to do whatever I can to avoid having to ever use this drug again. It was clearly very damaging to my body. I hope I was able to eradicate it enough, and was not on it long enough to cause any permanent damage. I have not noticed any more pain in my chest since stopping the medicine. (I may, however, insist that my doctor run some tests to make sure there isn't damage, although the damage might not be something they could easily measure at this point. I have no history of heart problems, and a stress test a few years back came out great.) I would seriously encourage anyone who has to use prednisone more than a few days to look for alternatives, or insist (to your doctor) on alternatives (that hopefully won't be worse). This drug is VERY, VERY toxic and dangerous!! I'm very aware of how my body responds to what I put in it. A lot of people aren't as in touch with their body's responses, and may start on a roller coaster of treatments as things come up, not realizing that the problem may have to do with their medicine. I believe this is the case with a lot of the elderly who frequently end up taking pills to remedy the symptoms created by other pills! Good luck to everyone, and God bless us all!!!

I, too, have suffered side effects from Prednisone. Being severly asthmatic, have been on "bursts"...which consists of taking beginning dosage of 60 milligrams a day for three days, then tapering off.

Have also had massive doses of this blankety blank drug while hospitalized for asthma.

Before the onset of adult asthma, I weighed 105 lbs. Now I weigh 200 and have that "pregnant" look. I have warned all I know not to pay attention to me while I am on the drug...I become argumentative and overly assertive and thank god, I have not become physically agressive.

My feet and ankles swell to twice their normal size as does my fingers, face, etc.

Appetite is completely out of control...eat, but never fell full while under its' influence.

During taper-off times, I have absoulutely no energy for days...even walking to the bathroom is a chore...weak and exhausted.

I now use an steroid inhaler. Supposedly, this does not enter your system, but I question that....how can it not enter your tissues and your bloodstream, if it is entering your lungs? And the same side effects are there, though not as severe, and not as easily apparent. I have gained another 10 lbs, and find I am depressed because of more weight gain and breathing is more difficult because of the extra weight.

I suppose I should be thankful it has saved my life, but the quality of my life due to this drug has been severly affected.

Can you tell I hate the stuff?

We can send a man to the moon, but science can't or won't (for whatever reason) find an effective alternative drug...sigh...

MEDICATIONS.COM MOST LIKELY SAVED MY LIFE! THANK YOU! My doctors also refused to help me despite my pleas that something was indeed wrong with me while taking Yasmin. I have now been Yasmin free for 11 months. My side effects STILL consist of dizziness, nausea, headaches, eye floaters, and extreme panic episodes right after my period in the mornings (although they are not nearly as bad as they were).

Silke, I tried Valerian root pills instead of Clonozepam at my last attack. It worked wonderfully!

I NEVER HAD ANY HEALTH PROBLEMS AT ALL BEFORE TAKING THIS PILL.

Virginia

Hi Everyone,
First of all I would like to thank everyone for their posts because wihtout them, I would not be where I am today. I had been on Yasmin for 4 years and it has taken that long for me to notice that it has been destroying my life piece by piece. I had become severely depressed and had thoughts of suicide. I had numerous side effects including zero libido, dizziness, muscle weakness, panic attacks, anxiety, rapid heart rate, thirstiness, dry throat, eye twitches, massive hair loss, dry coughing in the middle of the night, crying for no reason, inability to cope with any kind of stress, scalp sensitivity, migraine headaches, and hopelessness. I was impossible to live with and nearly lost everything including my family. I'm happy to say that I've been off Yasmin for a month and a half and my outlook on life has dramatically improved. Most of my symptoms have subsided. I do occasionally have episodes of anxiety but they are less frequent. Stopping Yasmin has saved my life and my marriage. THIS A DANGEROUS PILL AND THE FDA NEEDS TO PULL IT OFF THE MARKET. I work in a hospital and cared for a 22 year old female who was taking Yasmin. She had massive pulmonary emboli with a pulmonary infarct and nearly died. There are so many other birth control pills and methods to choose from. There is hope after Yasmin and it only gets better. I'm living proof. I was able to get pregnant immediately after stopping Yasmin. Please don't wait until your life is ripped to shreds because of this pill. Just get off it after you complete your current pill pack. The road ahead will be challenging but it will be worth it. Make sure to drink plenty of water and take your vitamins. I highly recommend yoga during detox off Yasmin. I've seen a therapist and she told me that she "didn't buy" my Yasmin story. That's ok. I know the truth. Don't worry. This storm will pass. I wish you all the very best.

Rare but occasional leg cramps. Acid reflux due also in part to inherited condition. I have been taking advair for about 6 years. It has saved my life. I can breathe well and be active like never before.

Normal weight gain due to stress factors, probably only in part to advair --folks, weight gain doesn't come solely from advair--you have to put the food in your mouth in order to gain weight--so you are over-eating and advair is only part of the problem. A good solution to weight gain is to read up on nutrition, for example, MACROBIOTICS, a food philosophy relying on lots of whole gains, natural fiber is good fo filling you up, beans, etc. --and try to improve what you are eating. Avoid sugar, it is the coccaine of the food world and SUGAR CAUSES HEADACHES (migraines).

Also, it is NORMAL to gain weight as you age. Especially for women, because the added weight pulls on your bones, causing a good kind of stress that causes the bones to bulk up just as you are approaching menopause.

Learn to be happy eating foods that are good for you, and you will weigh less and feel better.

Although advair may have some problems and may not be for everyone, its benefits enable me to live a normal life and it works well for me, the benefits outweighing the negatives. A hundred years ago, or even maybe only 40 years ago, someone like me would have had little chance of living to be 50.

I am 24 years old and have suffered from Irritable Bowel Disease for 22 years. I have taken prednisone 4 times in my life, but I always had to take high dosages for a very long period of time and then the weaning period lasted for months. In 2004 I had such a bad flare-up of Crohn's that I almost didn't make it. So I say Prednisone is my necessary EVIL.
I gained 40 pounds and was a MONSTER with my mood swings. The lasting side effects have been hard for me to handle.
The Prednisone cut off blood to some of my bones which now are dead and very painful as a result. I am having major knee surgery in a week and a half because of this (which is called Avascular Necrosis). I have AVN in both of my ankles, both knees, and most likely in both wrists. I will most likely need a Total Knee Replacement, but because I'm so young my doctors are trying every other type of treatment first (otherwise I would probably end up in a wheelchair by my 50s) I am in constant pain. I had never even heard of this as a side-effect until 2004 and after I was already on a high dose for a month.
I also have cataracts from taking steriods.
I feel MUCH older than I am. I have battled a disease for 22 years but the side effects of Prednisone are harder for me to deal with.
Although prednisone essentially saved my life, I wish I would have been more informed of ALL the possible side effects.

actually any side effect is worth it to me. This has literally saved my life. I have had nunerous injuries, especially a bulge on a disc in my neck that dr.'s won't do anything about until it herniates. I literally couldn't do anything without pain, and even doing nothing my pain was excruciating. I was admitted into the hospital do to thinking about suicide. I was put on this 1200mg X 3 and trileptal and a sleep aide. It changed my life. I still have pain but it doesn't debilatate me as often.