Supervision symptoms and conditions

I am 31 years old and was placed on Yaz to control unexplained and abnormal bleeding (I read the "Packet" my doctor should not have prescribed Yaz for this reason.) I am guessing the Yaz rep was the most recent visitor to his office. Anyways, I began to feel "off" after being on the pill for about 5 days. It was Easter and I could not feel the joy of the family gathering. I just wanted to sleep and not interact with anybody. By day 8 I was feeling EXTREMELY depressed. It was so depressed, I feel for my own safety I had to go to the hospital, I feel so depressed and emotional sad that I was fighting not to kill myself. I went to the ER and given Ativan to calm me. I stopped the YAZ that day (The ER doctor believed it was the Yaz). It took 7 days for Yaz to get out of my system...during that time I was taking Ativan and under constant supervision by my husband. I could not go to work (I am a teacher) and the School psychiatrist called me daily. I am currently on an Anti-depressant (prescribed by my physician, who is not sure if it was the Yaz that caused this.) I know myself and I was NOT myself on this pill.

I am a 25 year old graduate student that began taking Topamax for migraines after I was involved in a bad car accident. I started taking Topamax in April of 2008 and by July I could barely formulate sentences, couldn't remember simple things like where I parked by car (in front of my apartment) and my family member's names, simple math was impossible, I was always tired but could never go to sleep, had numbness in hands and feet, and was very moody with suicidal ideations. I was then referred to a neuropsychologist to assess any possible brain damage from the accident since I was now having cognitive problems. They tested me for brain damage where I was diagnosed with Severe Brain Damage, I was reading on a 8th grade level, did math on a 4th grade level, needed to begin speech therapy immediately and my doctor felt I needed direct supervision at all times. I was initially told by my neurologist that the medicine would help with the migraines but would "make my thinking slow". That was a huge understatement. I was a 4.0 graduate student in the middle of my program and I suddenly couldn't perform basic daily activities. I have been doing much better since coming off the medication. I have the migraines less frequently but they are still pretty bad. I have regained most of memory, reading, and math skills back the rest is attributed to the car accident. I wouldn't recommend this medication to anyone and I think it should be taken off the market because it almost destroyed my life and had me and my family worried to death about a condition which symptoms were clearly being exacerbated by Topamax.

My wife who is 49 years old was prescribed Ambien to help her sleep she has Phybromyalgia so she is in a lot of pain and so sleep has been a fleeting thing. on Feb 12, 2009 she took it for the first time I work 11-7 and woke her at 8:30 am and didn't notice anything out of the ordinary until she came into the living room around 1:00 pm and appeared to stumble slightly this in it's self wasn't a big deal people trip all the time. It was the fact that she caught herself on the end table grabbing it and hesitated for a few seconds then turned around and carefully shuffled backed to the kitchen holding onto the hutch for balance. I asked her if she was ok she said yes but I could hear in her voice she was scared. I went to the kitchen and asked her again then she told me that her whole left side was numb and tingled. I asked her when it started she said it was that way when she got out of bed at 8:30 am. I told her she should have said something right away but she said "I thought it would just go away". I told her get your coat I'm taking her to the hospital. After spending a night in the hospital an MRI revealed that she had suffered a very mild STROKE. The taking of Ambien the night before for the first time to me was more than a coincidence. Her attending Neurologist said that there should be no lasting effects and the numbness and tingling would go away in time. Although even after telling them about taking Ambien for the first time the night before none of them thought much about Ambien being a possible cause for STROKE. I suppose I should consider her lucky as it could have been devastating. I would not recommend anyone taking this drug even with their doctor’s supervision.

I am a 33 yr old male with Cystic Fibrosis. I started prednisone in 2006 and as of 2009 i have never been off of it.This drug has destroyed my body. I was under weight when i started, at 130 lbs. I am 5'9'' so i admit that was thin,but know i am at 170 lbs. This has had an effect on my relationship with my girlfriend since i met here when i started taking it. It may actually help me breathe better,but I am not sure. I have decided to stop it myself. I will do so slowly,but i am sick of the way i look and feel. This may sound silly to some but i just hate being in this state. I look like a pregnant woman playing a trumpet. I wonder how long it will take me to look like me again? Good luck to all of you. BK.

My daughter, who is 22 yrs old now, has been on lamictal since January (seizures which came out of the blue after being ill for 2 years) this year. She ended up in the hospital for most of February with vomiting and diarrhea. She was first diagnosed with celiacs, then gastroparesis, all the time the neurologist is telling us it ABSOLUTELY CANNOT BE THE LAMITCAl...now, she has had some twitching and the doctor increased the lamictal from 100mg 2xs daily to 150mg 2xs daily. Well, the diarrhea, which she's already on all kinds of stomach/bowel medicine, never really resolved but now with the increase is worse. I just called and will take her back on Friday, but think we need to find a new doctor, Good luck to everyone. and God help us all.

Very prone to thrush mouth-even after brushing and gargling, weakness in muscles, Doctors do not know the affects of taking Advair for longer than 6 months

what happens when you take children off this drug cold turkey? my doctor said it was ok to do that. but this am my son (he's 4) woke up (day 2 off drug) and started screaming that the lights were hurting his eyes...and ran around turning all the lights off. i sat up and watched him sleep all night. I'm flipping out. what has this drug done to him and thousands of other children? will it go away now that they are off? anyone else have withdrawal issues?

Been on it for almost 5 years, 400 mg a day. Don't know what the official word is on long-term use, but I have had the following problems: recent weight gain and long-term extreme exhaustion/fatigue. Although I haven't changed the dose in years, the fatigue seems to be getting worse. I am on other meds, so I don't know if it is for sure the Lamictal causing these effects, but there is a good chance. I'll see as I lower the dose, under doc supervision, of course. Take care, all.

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'm 31 and a recovered cancer patient (in remission since 2001). I've been trough it all. Surgery, chemo, radiation, BMT's, you name it. I currently suffer from three separate sleep disorders, as well as hypothyroidism. As you can imagine, I've grown to become very in tune with my body. And, having gone through everything I have over the years, and having taken all kinds of medications, I have never experienced such dissatisfaction and such a high level of negative side-effects as I have with Toprol XL.

My primary care doctor, who is also a cardiologist, put me on Toprol XL to treat an elevated heart rate -- as a result of all my past health issues, my auto-regulatory system is, as he puts is, “just messed-up now.” He started me on 50 mg a day. Immediately, I experienced trouble breathing: I woke one night and felt as though I was drowning. Over the course of about 8 months, he's lowered my dose to 12.5 mg a day. And, for a while, that seemed to be OK. But, recently, the trouble breathing has returned.

I'm at a point now where I'm afraid to go to sleep -- the moment I lie down, I find myself gasping for air. All day long, I have a constant wheezing. I can't go up a flight of stairs without needing to sit down and catch my breath -- I feel as though I'm about to faint from loss of air. I spend most of my day with a sensation of being suffocated. I cough frequently, but it gives me no relief.

I have noticed other side effects. Notable is the weight gain. I've never in my life weighed more than 145 lbs. I’m 163 now. I was blaming the weight gain on the thyroid, but I'm on a fairly high dose of that medication, and I've yet to experience any loss of weight. I'm gaining, despite only eating one meal a day. I attribute this weight to the Toprol.

Also, I have been experiencing moments of extreme anxiety -- this is very unusual for me. I also want to say that never once during all my dealings with cancer did I ever experience depression, and that right there should give you an indication of what type of person I am. Yet, now, since being on the Toprol XL, I find I lack the energy and desire to do much of anything anymore.

My doctor seems very quick to dismiss my concerns, telling me, "you need to give this medication a chance." I think 8 months of my life is enough -- I have lost all patience with this medication, and I'm just about losing it with him, as well. I didn't survive cancer and all the other complications that came with it just to have my life brought to a total standstill by a single medication. This is so infuriating.

I'm making an appointment to speak with my doctor right away. If he continues to insist I stay on Toprol XL and ignore my concerns, I will tell him I no longer feel comfortable with having him as my primary care physician. I want my life back.

I have only been on Toporal for about a month, 50mg/day. My B/P is now stable, but I am having intermittant chest pain that travels down my arm and into my jaw. I am a 50 yr old female in good shape. I can say that I feel some anxiety daily and that is not normal for me. I have not noticed a weight gain, yet my doctor called today to tell me my potassium levels are too high. Has anyone else experienced this from this drug?

I think I maybe just figured out the answer to these symptoms you guys are describing, with mood changes and nightmares?

From Merck Frosst website:
The team finally chose quinolein as the basis for their compound, because it has affinities with the LTD4 (leukotriene) region.

Quinolein - elsewhere it has been listed as a seratonin inhibitor...

Also, is Quinolein related to Quinine (a malarial treatment that causes nightmares and psychotic symptoms?)

What do you all think?

I want to reiterate that I am simply stating my personal experience with Yasmin how I felt on it what concrete factors I discovered with my hormonal balance with both salivary and blood tests, which both stated I had low testosterone. There is indeed a lot of controversy over salivary testing for hormones, one website will tell you it is the most accurate reading, while another will tell you it is unreliable. The same can be said for blood testing. As for bioidentical hormone replacement the same goes for this issue. Some will praise it others state it will do nothing for you. I think all of the women on this website are well aware of how adversely a drug can react in your body and are cautious of anything they will continue to put into their bodies, myself included. I am simply trying to give some insight into the root of the problems we are experiencing having experienced them myself, so that they may find knowledgable medical professionals who can help them make informed decisions regarding their health. Note that I do not encourage anyone to take anything without the direct supervision of a skilled physician, as is the same route I am following with my doctor.
Thanks, BitterRN

#30157- I wanted to quell your fears about Zoloft. I started taking it about a year ago (when I turned 30). I take 50mg and feel great. I was very anxious and depressed. This stuff is like gold- I can't believe I ever survived without it. Before Zoloft I let anxiety rule my life, I couldn't focus on my job..it was a nightmare.
I don't remember what that was like now. Give it a try, I think you will find that you waited too long and you will be glad you tried it.

Ativan is VERY addictive. As long as you are taking it with the supervision of your personal doctor, then there's nothing to worry about. I believe that the doctor has to give another kind of antianxiety medication every after 3 or 4 months so this will not have any addicting effects. Be VERY careful because if you are using it for too long and you try stopping the intake, you will definitely experience withdrawal symptoms. The withdrawal syptom's severity depends on how long and how much you taper the usage of your medicine. BE very careful on consuming this drug.

I was prescribed 5mg a day of this drug,I read on this web site about all the bad side effects it has , I spoke to my Dr and he assured me that taken in a low dosage is ok, it is only when you are in the very high dosage that you have side effects,I am taking it for arthrittis, the dosage I am taking has already made an improvemnet on my condition so I will continue with it but under supervision from a specialist.
Prednisone may not be for everyone but it is working so far for me.

I read in the UK version of side effects that you do have to be under doctor's supervision to come off advair (which should tell us something) to watch for adrenal gland problems. (I don't think some doctors even know what they are prescribing and what the side effects are! I'm not that cynical, to think they might be getting some perk and don't care.) I go back to my doctor after 6 weeks after coming off advair. He gave me Proventil and I have an epi pen in case I need them. I haven't needed them. But, I know I have a long way to go.

Those discontinuing Effexor should ONLY proceed with doctor supervision. I weaned myself off Effexor after a five year therapy and I spent thirteen weeks with side effects which kept me home unable to do much at all. Some side effects are shocking sensations in the head, dizziness, agitation, moody or violent behavoir, among others.I still have some recurring problems after seven months, none of which are related to depression. In my opinion, this is a very dangerous drug for some patients.

I am on my 6th day of Levaquin, 500mg for treatment of a sinus infection,... and have experienced no side effects whatsoever. My sinus infection is clearing up nicely...and I also have taken Allegra D, motrin 600mg and a multivitamin with no consequences.however I would do some research on the type of vitamins you're taking as some may prevent the proper absorption of Levaquin into your system (iron). I recommend Levaquin under the supervision of your doctor, but as with all medications you must be aware of the side effects.,and this anti-biotic may be one thats not for you.