Unbearable side symptoms and conditions

The first few days were terrible for me, constant headaches and crazy mood swings. I'm on day 14 and things are starting to get better, except for the fact that i started bleeding yesterday (not spotting, period bleeding). My appetite is back to normal and my mood swings have calmed down quite a bit so I'm not as crazy (according to my boyfriend), but I do still have moments where I KNOW I overreact. I'm going to stick with Femcon and see how my body adjusts to it over time, hopefully the breakthrough bleeding will subside and I'll get back on track with my normal cycle. I'd say keep with it unless you're having unbearable side effects. Good luck to all of you! =)

i just started taking niaspan 500mg er. the second week i had tingling on arms and legs and then the burning itching,felt like i was having a heart attack,got a wash cloth wet my face and hands and legs then later got chills i thought i was going to have to go er room. finally it went away,called doctor she said it was just side affect take a aspirin well see. this is no fun at night to wake up to this.

hi everyone

i just thought i'd post about mirena post removal. i had mine removed 8 weeks ago after 6 months of unbearable side effects. i am now finding they are all fading away. the joint pains i was having in my hips knees and wrists was horrendous, so much so i was being tested for lupus and arthritis, my muscles were also tender and easily fatigued. these symptoms have slowly diminished and are now almost gone completely.

i had terrible gallbladder type pain but on both sides under my ribs, also now gone

i had headaches, now gone

i was impossible to live with because of my mood swings and irritability, now gone, just a bit more pms'y than i would have been prior to the mirena

constant bleeding and gross sludgy discharge, now gone

bacterial vaginosis, gone

unbearable tiredness. getting better

low libido, getting better

brain fog, getting better

hair loss, getting better

Ladies there are some things you should consider before raging out against your BC. First of all, and your doctor should tell you this, it can take up to four months for things to straighten out, but they will straighten out. Anything that means you should stop taking the pill now should be told to you by your doctor (in fact you have to sign off on it), so PAY ATTENTION. There are obviously other less serious side effects that aren't worth putting up with, like hair loss; call your Doc and say your going to stop because your hair is falling out. I had difficulty while on LoOvral driving: I would get body aches, become disoriented, and slowly pass out. When eating/drinking water didn't cure the problem, I immediately stopped the only change I had made - taking the BC. It isn't a listed side effect, just my bad luck with it. I hadn't had the problem before and do not have it with FEMCON. You need to use a little logic. If there is an unbearable side effect, stop and change pills, but please don't rage out (unless that's your side effect). If your worried about your OBGYN trying to give you an easy fix, ask your general practitioner.

I'm going to throw weight gain in right now. I haven't had any. Furthermore, I was told that I might by my Doc. It's temporary, may take several months but it will go away. Also, you body weight fluctuates up to five pounds a day, everyday. It depends on a lot of things ie. when you last went to the bathroom, when you last ate, how much water your retaining...

I suppose the first thing I should say is why I'm on FEMCON. I have alwasy had extremely regular periods (five week cycles - so cool), starting at age nine. In middle school I began to have very painful periods. In High School, the nurse would give me a heating pad and put me to bed for the rest of the day (other girls got 15 min). The pain was so bad I cried in my sleep. When I went to college my OBGYN started me on Yaz. I went about three months with no improvement what-so-ever, and a mild increase in my depression/anxiety. So I stopped, my cycle was now regulated to four weeks and never recovered. The monthly pain reduced to a lower constant over the next few months, but now had terrible spiking shooting pains, at one point I nearly fell down the stairs. Over the next two years a couple more pills were tried with no help and irritating side effects, none lasted long. I changed doctors. My new doctor, said he wanted to try me on a high dose pill tricycle to do a sort of hormonal reset. The jury is out but it seems to be on a good trend.

I have had several side effects with FEMCON. Or at least what could be side effects. I'm currently on a study abroad so any of them could be from an environmental cause, but I'm thinking not. The most irritating has been a pretty severe case of motion sickness, if it's moving and I'm in it, I get a severe migraine, which eventually makes me very nauseous (I don't throw up for anything, but this would have had anyone else I know talking to a toilet). That is steadily going away. The addition of a ginger tablet each day to keep my stomach calm didn't hurt any, either. Second most annoying was breakthrough bleeding and cramping. Starting in the middle of my first pack I got nasty brown breakthrough bleeding (varying degrees) and moderate cramping daily. Very aggravating when your cycle is three months and it lasted the whole time. This cycle I'm don't have either. I couldn't tell you if FEMCON is effecting my depression, but I did have a nasty spell the last time I saw my brother (then again he is my brother). I seem to be doing as well as I ever have since he left. I have some breast tenderness still, mostly in the nipples. During my first cycle it could be very painful, but now doesn't bother me much. Personally, I believed that I was rather insensitive (physically speaking) before, so this may now just be a normal level of sensitivity. I never really had a sex drive before but I've got a pint sized one now. Other short-lived side effects were: nausea, occasional dizziness (continuing, but I am more inclined to blame my diet of cafeteria food at this point), swollen fingers (water retention), heavy watery discharge (not an infection).

If your pill isn't right for you, you'll know pretty quickly. If you get side effects, read the reference packet. I don't recommend reading all of the piddly side effects (ie. headache, nervousness) before hand because you may cause yourself to get them. The mind has a lot of power over the body, if you worry about side effects your just might get them as a point of mind over matter. Do not ignore anything, side effects for most BC are the same, if you've read one packet you've read 90% of every other packet. If you think your having a side effect that's dangerous deal with it immediately, if it isn't listed in your packet - go to the ER or call your Doctor on the spot. If your having one of the generic temporary ones (or worsening of a previous condition), the packet is a good place to look to see if it's normal. If you aren't happy with your BC talk to your Doc. Be smart and give things a chance to normalize. I hope this note can be helpful to people.

I urge anyone who is still taking Yaz at this time to IMMEDIATELY stop. Regardless of where you are in your cycle, just stop it and fight out the after effects of coming off it. Your body and mind will thank you ever so much in the years to come. I have been off Yaz for only 10 days, and am still feeling a bit up and down, as I assume it will take a few months for my body to regulate and get back to normal. It's such a frustrating thing, waiting to get back to normal, hoping, wishing, that everyday will get better and you'll be that much closer to being fully free from Yaz and the unbearable side effects. As women, we must take action against drugs like this, I wish that there was a way to get the word out more and more about this drug and other bc pills. Today I actually saw a commercial that was about 'saying no' to the pill, and freeing yourself from the 'pill'. The first commercial I have ever seen in promoting alternatives to the birth control pill, and emphasizing taking control of one's life by NOT taking the pill. There needs to be more and more ads and constant awareness out there about the effects of drugs like Yaz. Thank goodness for this site, even though reading these horrible experiences that you've all gone through on Yaz, it gives me hope and comfort to know that I am not alone, and that I and we, can get through this and return to the fabulous women we know we are!

I went on the nuvaring because I was having side effects from taking the pill, I was depressed and anxious all the time so my Dr. put me on the nuvaring... i put it in November 26, while i had it in i experienced cramping and pain during sex from time to time, the depression lifted, however, my period started on December 7th, after only 2weeks of having it in, it is now December 19th and it still hasn't stopped. its a lot heavier than normal with a lot of clotting. The last few days Ive been thinking that i was getting sick because Ive bee feeling so tired and weak, then today at work i got extremely dizzy and lightheaded,
So now i get to go back to my doctor and tell her that another BC isn't working for me.... *confused*
Is there any effective BC that doesn't come with unbearable side effects!?!?

I have been taking 150 mg Wellbutrin SR twice a day for about a month now. It has lifted and stabilized my mood to a lifesaving degree. I feel like I have "me" back and my life back after suffering through a very deep depression for approx. a year. My only negative side effects are a bit of cystic acne, which I haven't had since college (I am 45 now) and breast tenderness all month long rather than just before my cycle. I have started using Proactive for the acne and it is working well. I guess I'll just live with the breast tenderness if it means having my life back! I have also had a few positive side effects, namely, my libido which was completely dead has started to re-emerge, and I am eating less, although I haven't lost any weight yet. (I used to have a compulsive desire to binge and that has waned.) I have more energy but whether this is due to the Wellbutrin or just ot being in a fog of depression, I can't say. Overall, Wellbutrin has been a very positive medication for me. I have used Prozac and Zoloft in the past and they neither worked as well on my mood and also had many unbearable side effects (weight gain, loss of libido, inability to orgasm to name a few). I'm hoping once I have been stabilized for a while the doctor will allow me to lower my dose and perhaps then the breast tenderness will go away.

I took paxil for 6 years. IT takes a bit of time to start working, and for your body to adjust to it. So if you recently started taking it, and are having those symptoms, keep taking it. Your body will adjust. It really was an amazing drug for me. It eased my anxiety. However, when I stopped taking the paxil, it was terrible. The doctor gave me a plan to wean me off the medication. I still had the most unbearable side effects. I couldn't get out of bed for 2 months,felt nauseous all the time, was insanely dizzy constantly, and an emotional mess. I was also incredibly anxious. I wouldn't wish the symptoms I fely being taken off the drug on anyone. They were the worst feelings in the world to have to cope with for 2 months straight. So, as great at it was while i was on it, I would never recommend Paxil to anyone because of the way i felt when I was taken off of it.

Get the heck off this pill when you can! Do NOT let anyone, your doctor or anyone else, tell you to take it. 3 weeks were horrible enough coming off of Yaz which was bad as well. Here is the list of awful and unbearable side effects that they you get from this chewable pill that has iron pills as the last week:
Headache, fatigue, moodiness, depression, anxiety, feeling jumpy and scared easily, nausea, constipation, night sweats, facial and body acne, stomach pains, anger, irritability, oversensitivity, etc. I am a happy and laughable girl and have been brought down by this pill. I feel like I can't breathe and have a constant lump in my throat! I have cried at the drop of a hat and my finance has said that I am different. This is supposed to be best time of my life planning my wedding and I am miserable! HORRIBLE PILL- this should be taken off the market ASAP!

hi I'm 28 yrs old and have been diagnosed with endo. i have been taking the Lupron shot since August 07. I'm only suppose to be on them for a year. 2 weeks after my 1st shot, i started getting severe headaches w/ nosebleeds. also, I'm so exhausted all the time. after my 2nd shot i started passing out with severe headaches. i told my doc about it and she took me off the shot til i got a cat scan which came out normal. at the beginning of February 08, i was back in the er room 3x in a matter of 48 hours, thats when an ob/gyn at the hos. gave me another shot of Lupron. since i got this 3rd shot, i started having severe migraines and passing out again along with extreme exhaustion. I'm very angry my doc won't do the hysterectomy. she says, I'm too young. but the shot sends u into perimenopause, whats the difference. i was taking the hormones as well before my doctor took me off the shot but they made me really, really angry all the time. when the doc at the hos. gave me the shot, she didn't put me back on the hormones. this shot is suppose to help me but instead its ruining my life. i have severe headaches and exhaustion with the shot and severe pain without the shot. i don't know what to do. I'm not suppose to have any pain after i get off the shot for up to like months or years i was told. the shot started to where off at the end of January and i had to get it again in February when i was originally suppose to take my 3rd shot. i still have pain in my stomach, it just makes it tolerable. my other side effects r: mood swings, hot flashes, night sweats, no sex drive, extreme nausea, depression, stomach pains, swelling in my stomach, weight gain, and of course severe headaches. this is effecting my life so much. i do not recommend getting the depro lupron shot to anyone. of course everyone is different, but if the shot effects u like this, i recommend u not taking it. i will not be taking my next 1. i will be calling my doc 1st thing tomorrow morning cuz i passed out Friday with my 6 year old daughter here and no one else. i have been so afraid of this happening with my kids here and it has happened. as a mother u don't want your children to have to go thru something like that without no one else around. has anyone else had these side effects? i can live with most of them, but i can't live with the extreme exhaustion and severe headaches with passing out. thank u for listening.

Ok, I took this because I needed to feel better fast for a weekend with all my guy friends. I am a single girl and I was actually HOPING to come out of this weekend with a boyfriend outta one of 'em...so I wanted to be over my yucky cold/flu symptoms so I could have a good time! Ok...I was NOT feeling well after the third day, my stomach was killlllling me, and I wasn't over my cold stuff either. So by the weekend I was finally feeling a little better but I had started having diarrhea and (even worse!) TERRIBLE GAS. I should have just stayed home, but I went on this roadtrip anyway. I was thinking I would be able to hold it until we stopped, but I started having terrible gas buildup and I just had to release it or I thought I would get sick. Ok, let me just say that we had to pull the jeep over so one of my friends, the really cute one that I liked, could throw up. It was terrible....and even worse they all knew it was me. In my opinion, the slight relief I got from my cold was not worth the tradeoff in side effect. So thanks to my Z pak experience, I was called "Hell Raiser" and other nicknames the rest of the weekend. I will not be using this product again.

I've been using the NuvaRing for a year and have had the least amount of side effects than any other birth control I've ever tried. I've used Ortho, Yaz, and Depo, all of them had unbearable side effects, and the Ring has been the best for me. Hormones mess with everyone's mental state, but if you're feeling depression on the NuvaRing, the method where the least amount of hormones get into the blood, you're going to have problems with estrogen containing birth control and depression. Good luck to everyone. Depo is bad for people with migraine, but it doesn't have estrogen so it's not as bad for depression. Also, it's important to note that if you're going to notice side effects from a medication, such as headaches and nausea, it will take 5 or 6 days for the side effects to take effect. So if you notice something the next day, current medical convention says you can't blame it on the medicine you just started the day before.

I've been on Yasmin for a few weeks. I'm not experiencing the unbearable side effects that many of you are, but I've started having sharp cramps (similar to what it feels like when you get a Pap smear) and spotting, which I've never had before (I've been on Estro Step and Lo Ovral, both of which mad me fat and totally psychotic). Does anyone know if these sharp craps and spotting will lessen, or is this standard?