July 4th
2009
4:21 AM
Now you guys have me all paranoid. Are any of you first time mothers because some of these things your are experiencing are also post childbirth side effects. Hair loss, when you are pregnant you stop loosing hair, those couple of hairs you loose every time you comb your hair, well they stop happening but you keep growing more hair hence the fantastic thick pregnant lady hair. Once you have the baby the hair that didn't fall out while you were pregnant finally falls out. Also if you are breastfeeding it can cause you to loose your sex drive, its your bodies way of preventing another pregnancy because pregnancy can make your milk supply dry up and then your baby has nothing to eat! My only symptom that sucks that I KNOW is from Mirena is acne and and that's because of the kind of BC it is, which is just something I have to deal with because its the kind I need that wont mess with my milk supply and my son comes first! I am having no mood swings or depression which is something, if someone's going to get it its going to be me, I was diagnosed depressed and bi-polar and an anxiety disorder all through my teenage years and I'm fine now, maybe a little anxious but that comes with having children!
I do also have back pain but I always get back pain when I have my period and well, I've been on my period for almost 3 weeks now so.. A lot of you just sound like tired over worked Moms.
PS: tiny 35 year old.. your 35, your metabolism slows down with age and with every child you have, you can't eat all you want anymore, I lost that ability with my first child before Mirena, you just have to exchange the oatmeal cream pies for carrot sticks, its what I do.
-- By mooreofcorrie | Reply | (2) replies | Private Message me
March 18th
2009
10:23 AM
My 13 year old daughter had her third shot on 02/16/09. Her first two shots did not seem to be a problem. She said her arm hurt really badly after the shot, and the next day she complained of leg pains she hadn't had before. Within a few days, she had a high fever with body aches like the flu, except it wasn't the flu. She felt better, but a week later she still had a low grade fever. She was tested and had strep throat, and was treated with anti-biotics. A week later she started having stomach cramps and diarrhea. It's now March 18th and she still has diarrhea. I think it's criminal this vaccination is being given to our young women. How on earth could anyone think "possibly" preventing HPV and/or cervical cancer is worth the risk of what my daughter and so many others are having to go through?
-- By rgstone83 | Reply | (5) replies | Private Message me
October 20th
2008
3:54 PM
I just started on topamax and it has done wonders for me i suffer from cyclic vomiting syndrome and have suffered for many years making my teenage years absolutely horrible in and out of hospitals all the time, despite some minor side affects i have my life back i can go on vacations i can spend the week end at a friends house without being scare i might end up in the hospital its an amazing miracle drug and i thank my doctor for finding it and prescribing me it.
-- By a1ka1inev0lc0m | Reply | Private Message me
October 6th
2008
11:14 PM
24 yr female diagnosed with PE and DVT. I have been on Warfarin since may of 08 and it has turned my world upside down. Weight gain (20lbs in 3 months), major hair loss, very bad acne, and memory loss. Not to mention i can't shave my legs or anything else for that matter with out getting major in grown hairs. I NEVER had any of these problems before. I am loosing muscle mass and feel as if I am a 70 year old woman. I don't know what to do but cry. The doctors keep telling me its not the medicine but I feel it is, my body is telling me it is. things are not easy, and it is affecting me I feel for the rest of my life.
-- By maggie14 | Reply | (6) replies | Private Message me
August 7th
2008
3:25 PM
Hi to all,
I wanted to take a minute to say Thanks to all who post and search for answers to this drugs confusing and serious side effects.To all who have taken the time to contact the FDA and file a report to help others.Dr.Sarah Sellers is no longer the person to contact at the FDA,she has moved on after concluding her end of the investigation on Singulair.If you have a serious side effect please still take the time to file on the official FDA site for adverse event reporting.In NY. state we are still searching for legislation to help with the notification process for these serious side effects.There are to many Doctors that still do not have a clear idea of the updated side effects,and are not reporting as they should.
Letting your doctor know that good medicine is all about follow up on complaints,such as researching the singulair website to rule out that it may be the drug or it may not.Just dismissing the patient and prescribing another drug is how these drugs go undetected for so long.We want this to stop and only the unfortunate recipients of the horrors of this drug can make this happen.Again thank you for your efforts to change the system with follow through and perserverance.Our horror story is one of many and we want to help those who have survived the ravages of this drug, OUR CHILD DID NOT. Kate and Dave M.
July 7th
2008
8:05 PM
Well.... i have had acne throughout all of my teenage years and i thought that yaz would be the best way to control it even my dermatologist was saying how it should clear it up after 3 months.... i took it for 2 months and i wanted to kill myself... i gained seriously 10 pounds... i was hungry all the time i couldn't stop eating and i hate being hungry... i was depressed for no reason at all ... i was getting in fights with my friends? like that isn't me at all... even my friends were like do you think it could be the pill? it got me so depressed because i had gained 10 pounds in a month and a half .. when usually at school i lose weight from just walking around campus.. i normally have a very fast metabolism and for some reason now i can't lose the weight that i gained even though ive been off the pill for almost 2 months... !!!!! i really am hoping that this pill didn't mess me up .. because that would be sooo annoying! yaz was the death of me and i also noticed how my eye sight changed drastically .. i hated it! i hated that pill! it didn't clear up my skin at all!
-- By lollydolly12 | Reply | Private Message me
June 9th
2008
7:52 AM
Like everyone else, I am completely ecstatic I found this website. My son was born in Nov 2006, when I was 22, and I had Mirena put in January 2007. March 2007 I began to see a counselor because I was so severely depressed. I had terrible thoughts and was constantly crying/upset/anger/emotional. I had gained 50lbs with my son and still stand to lose 20 more that I can NOT get off. In February 2008 I enrolled in counseling again because my depression was so severe that I was at a point that I no longer wanted to be alive (but not suicidal). I have had times of depression throughout my teenage years but had NEVER felt like this. I kept telling my counselor that I didn't know why I felt the way I did but I just couldn't stop these feelings. I did counseling so I wouldn't have to take an antidepressant since I am not big on medicine but last week I scheduled an appointment with my doctor to get on an antidepressant. I just can't seem to get out of this horrible, angry, moody, emotional, depressive state for anything. I believed it was because I was a new mother and assumed my hormones have just been out of whack. Last night I realized that all my symptoms began a month after my Mirena was put in. I am calling my OB today to have him remove it. I'll check back and let you know if there are differences. I'm just afraid I've damaged my body and even more afraid what my son got from the IUD since he was breastfed for almost 18 months.
-- By eayeary | Reply | Private Message me
May 19th
2008
2:43 PM
In September of 2007 my then 13 year old daughter was put on Singular for mild asthma. At the time she was a straight A student, vice president of our school and a popular girl who's guidance counselor described as "the glue of her grade" because she was so well liked. In November she told me that she was struggling with advanced Latin and Science. She asked to drop down to on grade Latin so we did. In December her science teacher notified us that she had a C average. She told me that she thought she had ADD/ADHD and she couldn't keep up. At the same time she was having a lot of problems with friends at school and we just attributed it to being 14. 3 weeks ago we discovered that she is significantly behind in English and it was then that she told me that she is been having horrific night mares. She said that they usually involve someone killing her or her killing herself. She said that they were so graphic that she couldn't repeat it out loud. She also said that she would feel waves of anxiety that would come over her at school and she would act "witchy" to the kids in her class for no real reason. She said that sometimes when she is trying to do her homework she will read the same passage for 2 hours and still have no idea what it's about. She also said that the suicidal thoughts from her sleep happened during they day and that she had thoughts of her harming herself. Fortunately her pulminologist told us that this may be caused by singular and we immediately took her off of it which was 2 weeks ago. She has only had 1 "bad dream" not even a nightmare since. She had one anxiety attack 3 days after she was off it and she describes her moods as the "cloud lifting....slowly". Now, we have to pick up the pieces. Her grades have suffered, her friendships have suffered and most of all her self esteem is very low. I'm grateful that we found out the cause but I feel as if my daughter lost a year of her life and I worry that because Merck won't admit there are side effects we can't find out how long it remains in their system. Is anyone else concerned about the long term affect and has anyone pursued a class action suit to try to get this drug tested properly?
-- By maryfromct | Reply | (10) replies | Private Message me
April 11th
2008
8:23 AM
My son is off singulair for two weeks now and is showing improvements. He was on it for 7 years and at the beginning we blamed it on steriods, even though his dose was low. When he went off the steroids, the behavior didn't stop. I questioned the allerist if the singulair could be doing it, but was told no, it doesn't have those side effects. I don't blame the doctors because they weren't given the info. He was extremely emotional, cried for no reason, had no confidence, didn't like himself. We on more than one occasion have told his older sister that when he hits his teenage years we would have to watch him for suicide, as his reaction to problems was sooo out of whack! He was on motrin for headaches 4-5 days a week(blamed it on sinusses). Unexplained stomachaches. These symptoms came on over years, not right away. I have always thought that the steroids had done damage because he took them when he was so young. Until the news reports hit, and I started reading other people's stories and doing the "OMG, that's my kid!", I never put the problems on singulair. I was still skeptical, but took him off. His symptoms immediately got 100x's worse for a week. But funny thing is, his headaches are gone, his stomachaches are gone and he seems much less emotional. The strangest thing is, EVERY night, he comes in to kiss us good night 7 or 8 times, and sometimes by the 7th time he is crying and can't explain why. This has been going on for YEARS, EVERYNIGHT, never a break. It stopped! Just stopped cold 7 days ago. Comes in once, says goodnight, leaves and falls asleep. I know this isn't a coincidence. After years of wondering what's wrong with my kid, now I feel like I've been poisoning my him for 7 years. I'm not skeptical anymore.
-- By lisa4 | Reply | (5) replies | Private Message me
April 4th
2008
10:52 AM
I have been reading these posts with a heavy heart. My daughter also has had the same side effects that have been posted. She is 12 now and has been on singulair since two. We now have traced her most severe behavior back to when she was nine and her dose was up to the 10mg.
It breaks my heart, that she has lost several years of a happy childhood. We have grounded the poor child so many times. We have grounded her from summer camp, basketball games, soccer games. We took her off the singulair on Monday and last night was the first time she has volunteered a I Love you in a long, long time.
-- By fst | Reply | (3) replies | Private Message me
March 31th
2008
3:48 PM
Some of these stories read like a diary of our life.our son went from a reasonably confident, happy, somewhat easy going 10/11 year old to a now 16 year old with no confidence, somewhat paranoid, dealing with depression and tremors so bad that he could not hold his pencil to draw a straight line in drafting. He often says he hates his life, can't see any hope for the future and feels he is a failure- he is an honors student with a nearly perfect 4.0 average, yet he is never sure it is enough.
some of it we put down to being a teenager, who had inherited hubby's fathers shaky hands. some we figured came from my dad and his troubles with ocd and depression. i have worried, cried, prayed, ranted and begged for things to be different for him.
what changed at 10/11 years of age? he started taking Singulair. at first a low dose but about 3 years ago the doctor uped the dose to full strength, the symptoms also escalated - however he had entered the teenage years and changes they go through.
the allergist last year,put him on Pulmicort and at that point did not need the Singulair but through a misunderstanding we kept giving it to him. hubby is a pharmacist and questioned it, he has never been wild about Singulair because he says it opens you up to infections.
which may answer a secondary question of why he has had more cases of bronchitis and has had 3 bouts with pneumonia, more since the dosage was raised.
i have to wonder if the history of depression in our family made our son more open to the symptoms and side effects of the Singulair. the suicide part of it really scares me as my uncle and aunt both committed suicide, we didn't need any push in that direction. we have talked extensively about it and he assures me he does not consider it an option.
i know some kids take it no problem, but this recent set of reports, and the fact that the FDA has changed the warning labels 4 times in a year, causes me to take notice for him
please pray that we can see some improvement as he is now off of the Singulair. I stopped mine last year due to recurring ear infections. now i am especially glad i did. i have felt very hopeful today that this may be an answer to prayer. two days off and he had a good day today.
-- By momofone | Reply | (1) replies | Private Message me
March 30th
2008
11:04 PM
As a pediatrician I write for Singulair every day.
The medication is for allergies.
Allergies cause a cascade of event that I will describe:
adenoidal swelling, leads to snoring + sleep disturbances. Poor sleep makes the child tired the next day leading to less attentiveness, hyperactivity and eventually acting out.
Almost 4 out of five kids with allergies have those subsequent symptoms, and more.
Over the years the child poor behavior his parents, teachers and peers respond of criticism/ ridicule, and punishments, cause the child to feel inadequate, embarrassed, frustrated and eventually depressed and suicidal.
Yes, Singulair does cause behavioral change but they appear within the first couple of pills, the rest is due to allergies and lack of medical care, i.e. sleep, Singulair, and Zyrtec deficiency.
Allergy shots cause 4 times the incidence of suicidally than Singulair, and Ritalin 10 times more.
Check it, it's true.
March 29th
2008
11:10 AM
My son has been taking singulair on and off since he was 11 years old, he just had his 15th birthday. The past 2 years of his life have been filled with depression and anxiety issues. We have been to countless doctors, hospitals, therapists and now a psychologist. When he is on singulair for long periods of time he would have mood swings, depression, stomach and headache issues. I have asked the questions to all involved with him are you sure that singulair is ok to take with the depression meds? They told me yes. They recently up his dose to 10 mgs and his depression got worse! He has trouble concentrating, sleeping, and feels the world is a bad place. He is a good student, he is in sports and was popular, now he is tormented by these feelings of depression and anxiety. He has been on and off homebound instruction for the past 2 year and I have had to use family leave time from work to help him through this. My husband and I have spent a lot of hours trying to understand what has happened to our son. I have stopped giving him singulair and I hope that in the near future we can take him off his depression meds that he has been on for 1 year. How long will it take till his mind and body are rid of this drug? Why did no one tell me that this drug needs to be examined to why my son has had these very serious problem. Teenage years are hard enough with out the added conditions that my son has had to experience. I want some answers and I will give everything that I have to assure that my son will get better. Please help those who have experience what we have with the answers we are all asking.
-- By lynn251 | Reply | Private Message me
March 27th
2008
3:50 PM
I almost stopped my car on the highway this morning when I heard the 10AM top story on our local CBS news radio station stating that the popular asthma drug Singular has been linked to thoughts of suicide.
My son started taking Singular approximately 5 years ago (he is now 10). We noted almost immediately a change in his behavior. My son was normally a very mild mannered child, yet when taking Singular he started experiencing severe mood swings, rapidly moving from quiet and happy to fits of rage ending with him saying he wished he were never born or that he were dead. We told his pediatrician about this observed behavior change, but she hadn't hear of that reaction before. I checked the Singular web site at the time, but I don't recall mood changes being listed.
My son is still taking Singular because it has been so effective at managing his asthma, nearly eliminating the need for Albuterol. We haven't had to make any trips to the emergency room since he started taking it, and he seems to stay much healthier.
I will be having another conversation with his Dr. ASAP about whether the risks outweigh the benefits, especially since my child will be moving into the normally volatile teenage years. The last thing I want to do is complicate things by risking increased volatility from the use of Singular.
-- By wilsoniii | Reply | (1) replies | Private Message me
December 18th
2007
6:27 PM
Hair loss! My hair was falling out by the handfuls after about 5 months on Yasmin. It first I had no idea that it could be the BC, since I have never had any side-effects like that from any other kind. I stopped taking the pill immediately, but my hair still falls out! I've been off Yasmin and any other BC pill for over a year now, and my hair is still falling out! Help! My Dr. is completely ignorant and telling me that he's never heard of any side-effect like that. I also have really bad acne. I had thick hair and completely clear skin before I started this BC pill. What the heck is happening? I had all my hormone levels tested as well as thyroid, and those are fine. Any ideas? Anyone else having this problem? Anyone found a cure? What is going on, and how do I get my hair back?
-- By eknowlen | Reply | (6) replies | Private Message me
June 27th
2007
5:46 AM
Im from Cork,Ireland.I was put on Seroquel to treat my Body Dismorphic Disorder.I have really disliked the way i look for years.Hated the way i look in fact.I was very badly bullied all through my school life and teenage years because i was very heavy at that time.Needless to say i ended up hating myself with a passion.When i left school i went on mission to lose the weight and i lost about 6 stone by eating healthy and fast walking.I can't tell you how proud i felt and iv never felt proud of myself in my life.Then the effects of my teenage years started to creep up on me.I needed to face them.That was a very,very painful time and to make a long story short i got severly depressed and BDD set in.And guess what?I was put on a drug that put the 6 stone back on again and even more.Even though the Doctor's have noticed this they have continued to keep me on this drug.Every time i bring up the issue with my doctor's there response is 'Oh you need to watch the diet'.Now I tell you, I DO NOT eat alot nor do i eat rubbish.And this drug is ment to make me feel better.Now how stupid is that.
-- By sambrown | Reply | Private Message me
Singulair (8) Mirena (3) Yaz (1) Synthroid (1) Yasmin (1) Seroquel (1) Gardasil (1) Micardis HCT (1) Warfarin Sodium (1) Topamax (1)
September 17th
2009
2:59 PM
WOW!!! I wish I would have had access to this site sooner!! After 5 LONG years-yesterday I finally got my Mirena removed! I was asked if I wanted to get another one placed yesterday-I took a pass on it! I was told I could always change my mind & to give them a call when I was ready. After reading this & realizing my own side effects I WILL NOT be getting another one. I too have had some, if not, most of these side effects-but I only related the moodiness & weight gain as my only side effects from the Mirena. I'm always tired, all I want to do is be in bed all day. I have many LOW days-and sometimes any stupid commercial on TV would set me to tears-NO JOKE! Any little thing would set me off like a mad woman! And the headaches!-Oh the headaches!! My hair has been falling out a lot over the past few years (I'm talking small handfuls-daily!) I thought it was just due to the stress in my life. Since my last child-5 years ago, I gained 35 lbs that I CANNOT seem to lose, & once again-I thought it was just stress.My face has been breaking out-which I thought was INSANE because what I didn't have to put up with my teenage years-I now had to deal with. I would also too get night sweats, but just figured it was due to me being overweight. As far as the insertion-I can't really complain. I had very little cramping, & my period went away quick. The first 6 months was just occasional spotting, and after that they completely went away. It didn't affect my sex drive. But for the past 2 years-it's been haunting me that I hadn't had a period-(it's seems funny, but after 10 years of having it every month, & then for them just to not come at all-I never got used to it). I think the past 6 months have been the worst. I kept getting yeast infection that would go away w/treatment, but 2 weeks later, it was back. I had also been getting SEVERE cramping from time to time. They would only last through that day, but a few days later they'd be back. You figure I would have gone to get it removed, but reason for not having it removed was because this was the best method I had used, & didn't want the risk of having a pregnancy that we were not prepared for. I considered the other IUD (the copper one?), but my sister had worse problems with that one-extreme weight gain, cramping & periods lasting more that 2 weeks! I also considered the shot, but involves to many trips to the gyno-so I'm back to an older method........THE PILL, until we decide on having another child, or not to have any more, I am comfortable with the decision that I have made. I hope this helps some of you going through these same experiences I have gone through. I look forward to a Happier Tomorrow! (even w/the periods) =D
-- By chabelita211 | Reply | (1) replies | Private Message me