Young woman symptoms and conditions

I am so thankful that our MANY voices are finally being heard I am grateful that the FDA is finally forcing MERCK to add a warning to its label, but we must still keep fighting until there is a blackbox warning on this medication. My daughter committed suicide after three years of hell on this medication. The world has lost a beautiful, fun, and highly intelligent young woman because MERCK is so concerned about its billions of dollars in sales from Singulair.

If you have had any side effects PLEASE REPORT TO THE FDA! It is up to us to make them aware of how devastating this medication can be.

My 12 yr. old daughter had her first gardasil shot last summer and her 3rd in January. She has been complaining of headaches, nausea, stomach pain, dizziness, confusion, as she put it 'she felt like an alien'. I just figured it was preteen/body change/that time of the month stuff and thought it would pass. She only complained of headaches a few times after the first shot, didn't even think of them being from the shot but then more after the 2nd shot, still didn't make a connection, and now it's an every day thing. This morning again the headache/nausea/stomach pain, crying from the pain and Tylenol isn't helping. I got her to go to school but after 2 hours had to go pick her up. She said it was worse. We will be back at the doctors for the 3rd time in 2 weeks. With the possibility of this being from the gardasil, I wish I had never gotten the shots. The not knowing, is this from the gardasil? will it pass? get worse? and what she is going through. No it's not worth it

2 1/2 years ago I had my Mirena IUD place. I had the normal weight gain and steady bleeding which were side effects I was warned about. Sure enough after 2 months or so my weight returned to normal and the daily bleeding stopped. In fact I haven't had any periods since, which I was really please about b/c that was the reason for having the IUD in the first place. I have 4 children and my husband is fixed, but my periods were so heavy I had a hard time dealing with my iron levels, so the Mirena was recommended. I have raved about not having my period anymore and the freedom it has provided.

However, recently I have been suffering major anxiety, to the point I am currently off work for 4 weeks. I am a stock broker so everyone is convinced its market related. But all along I have said I don't have more or less anxiety if the market is up or down. I just feel as though I have almost in a car accident and my body is in a constant state of "fight or flight". I have been placed on heavy med's to try and correct my current imbalance. These med's are very powerful, for the past 6 days I have been asleep of 17 hours out of 24. Anything this strong is obviously pretty powerful. I have been discussing my current condition with friends and saying my instincts tell me something else is going on. I've been suspecting that something else in my environment could be contributing to my imbalance. So i have been looking into my IUD. My first signs of anxiety were 9 months after having it in, but I treated my anxiety with exercise and healthy living and got on with it. Today I found a website with many women with my exact symptoms:*****
As a mother I have learned to listen to my instincts, and at this very moment I am convinced that my Mirena IUD has over time created an imbalance which is responsible for my current poor health, and tomorrow i'm getting it taken out!

Why does Singulair cause these symptoms? I am going to give my explanation which is only a HYPOTHESIS. This should not be categorized as any thing but an educated guess. This is not backed by scientific research because nobody will do any research that would appear to anger
Merck even if people are suffering in the thousands.

1. The original research that preceded the development of Singulair (montelukast) seemed to focus on the theory that asthma was caused by an unusual immune response to certain pathological stimulus. There are many references to the observation that a high percentage of asthma sufferers are people whose asthma is caused by fungus. Many people suffer from asthma and are told that they are allergic to dust mites. Dust mites can live only because the fungus aspergillus pre-digests the
food source that dust mites can then absorb. Other sources of fungus occur in the home due to dampness or problems with wood rot.

2. The body's immune system fights certain categories of pathogens such as bacteria and fungus by creating nitric oxide which kills them at the site where they try to enter the body. The mast cell is the immune cell that is responsible for the production of nitric oxide. Mast cells are found in the skin, airways, intestines etc. The mast cell is capable of many different types of biochemical functions that are designed to signal other cells or other chemical responses. When the mast cell knows that pathogens
are present and nitric oxide is NOT produced, then it signals other immune cells to be sent to the site of the infection. Thus in the case of asthma, it is known that excessive numbers of eosinophils appear in the airways and these cells create inflammation.

3. Singulair was developed for asthma and later allowed to be prescribed for other reasons. I believe that montelukast probably creates a source of nitric oxide that prevents the mast cell from signalling for other immune cells to arrive at the source of infection. I arrived at that conclusion from studying the chemical structure of montelukast, the chemical structure of the gene cysLT1 receptor, and the chemical structure of the cell wall of fungus which would be what the mast cell uses to determine "what to do in order to kill the fungus."

The researchers who invented montelukast first had to clone the gene-cysLT1 receptor meaning that they had to be able to identify the gene and replicate it. Then by trial and error they had a find a "chemical"
that would bind (connect chemically) to the cysLT1 receptor. The theory would be that montelukast would take the place of the fungus or other pathogen and thus prevent the gene from reacting to produce the
responses that the sick patient with asthma produced. Merck says in the literature that montelukast binds with the cysLT1 receptor in order to prevent the mast cell from signalling the eosinophils to arrive in excessive
numbers that cause inflammation. I believe that montelukast is also causing the production of an amount of nitric oxide that is actually killing the pathogens that are present. For one thing, I would think that it
would be dangerous to incapacitate the immune system in that way without providing a way to kill the pathogens. I don't believe that the asthma response is just allergies to something like dust. Pollen from trees and flowers is loaded with fungus spores.

4. IF, IF, IF, montelukast does actually produce nitric oxide, then it does so by binding with the gene. Any place in the body where a molecule of montelukast encounters the cysLT1 receptor (a gene) then the corresponding molecules of nitric oxide are produced before the liver enzymes break the montelukast molecules up. Nitric oxide is TOXIC and
INFLAMMATORY. So let's look at the symptoms in regard to the location of the cysLT1 receptors. The location of these symptoms would not be places in the body where the mast cells normally encounter fungus or bacteria. The cysLT1 also has other functions in that it communicates with the cysLT2 receptors. Obviously, nitric oxide
should not be produced in these locations because of the signalling effect of nitric oxide on other physiological functions.

a. intestinal pain - the cysLT1 receptors are located in the small intestines
b. leg pain actually caused by vasculitis - cysLT1 receptors are found inside blood vessels- consistent with the fact that montelukast causes
Churg-Strauss
c. some people who didn't have asthma develop asthma - the cysLT1 receptors are in the airways
d. nightmares, depression, neurological damage - when montelukast penetrates the blood brain barrier probably due to unusual conditions of blood pH or electrolyte imbalance then nitric oxide in the brain causes neuron damage and excitoxicity

5. Why do some patients not experience side effects? Probably because genetically they are completely compatible with the model that researchers created when they cloned the cysLT1 receptor gene. I didn't not find any information about whether researchers knew that there are many different variations of this gene.

6. IF, my theory is even close to being correct, then why doesn't Merck do anything about researching these side effects. Maybe because nobody in the company knows how this drug works but the researchers who created it. All of the Merck literature is very vague about any biochemical information.

Again, this is just speculation and hypothesis. I have made an attempt to put this in simplistic language and therefore sacrifice scientific accuracy. But, I think that you will get the point.

SINGULAIR IS VERY DANGEROUS TO PATIENTS WHO EXPERIENCE NEGATIVE SIDE EFFECTS. DOCTORS SHOULD JUST REALIZE THAT
THOSE PATIENTS ARE NOT COMPATIBLE WITH THE MODEL FOR THE DRUG.

IS THIS SITE AN ANSWER TO OUR PRAYERS?

A little while ago less than two hours, after a very emotional, difficult battle with my daughter, we had yet another heart to heart to try to do better. At the end of our talk WE PRAYED for guidance to know how to help the situation. So I'm here looking for a link to her behavior fron the ADHD medication and I see someone had posted about Singulair side effects. I was floored! I have never thought that Singulair was not a safe drug. No doctor has ever mentioned any negative side effects to me regarding it. The more I'm reading about it the more in shock I am. Have I and her doctors been doing this to my daughter? My 12 1/2 yo daughter has been on Singulair for probably 10 years. She was a 28 week preemie and had severe lung issues so it was a needed medication. Her behavior has worsened the older she has gotten. Because of mostly anger issues and problems in school about a year ago she was started on ADHD medications. We are currently trying to find "the right one" . I feel so awful. Could all her misery have been caused by this little pill that was suppose to help her? Why has her pulmonoligist continued to give it to her although she has not had any serious asthma problems in years? I think I will stop all medications and see what happens. My daughter has also been on amytriptylin for about six months also for severe migraines. What do you think? Should I stop all of them cold turkey or gradually decrease one at a time? I would GREATLY appreciate any advise.
Thank you

Here is our daughter's story, and believe me the tears are pouring down my face as I am writing this.
Our daughter, who had completed her series of 3 vaccinations has been experiencing considerable hair loss. Her first shot was in May 24, 2007, the second on July 26, 2007 and the third and final on November 27, 2007.
Here are the other specifics....our daughter was 13 turning fourteen.
She has had every blood test imaginable to rule out the obvious which may cause hair loss such as thyroid disease, polycystic ovary disease, diabetes, and the list goes on and on. Everything came back negative. We even have a future appointment scheduled with a rheumatologist this coming November 08. We have seen the Endocrinologist and two dermatologists (a scalp biopsy proved negative to any infection, disease, etc. Granted, she had a typical amount of stress during the school year, as any young teen would, but nothing to cause this. Everyday our daughter says to us, "you should see how much hair fell out in the shower today". She's so afraid to brush or comb it because of the extreme shedding. She literally, to date has half the amount of hair she had one year ago. Let me tell you she had beautiful hair. The hair loss is becoming quite visible at the forward part of her scalp. This has been devastating, hair is everything to a teen. (to anyone this is devastating) We must also mention that her periods have been totally out of whack. She went 6 months at one point without one. It finally came back, but it is so sporadic, getting every two weeks, at times extremely heavy, etc...
She also complains of intermitent dizziness. We are reporting this to Merck today (the Co. who makes this horriffic vaccine), along with the FDA. If anyone else is experiencing anything close to what we are, we all need to pull together and make the public aware of what's happening so we can prevent this from happening to our loved ones.
Please share your experiences. Feel free to write me if someone you know is going through this same tragedy.

My daughter began taking Singulair in 2003 for asthma and allergies. I slowly watched her deteriorate from a lively, intelligent, and outgoing young woman to a depressed, withdrawn and self-mutilating person who said that she hated herself and everybody else in the world. She was an athlete, a straight A student who had received an academic scholarship to college, she was fluent in German and had been teaching herself Japanese, and she was a staunch supporter for equal rights for children with disabilities and gay and Lesbian teens. On February 3rd, 2007 my daughter hung herself after working at the local community center. I no longer recognized who she had become. I have a degree in psychology, my father is a retired police officer, and my mother is a retired R.N. We were all trained to recognize the symptoms of depression and suicidal thinking, but we were never able to connect it to the medication that she was taking.We must all ban together to prevent other people from suffering the way that our loved ones have! Educate everyone that you know about what Singulair can do to you. They are still prescribing this drug to people without any notification of what the side effects are.

I definitely could relate.
i like nuvaring. It is the first birth control i've ever been on. i started it when i was 28 - just gotten married..
the only thing recently that have made me doubt it is that i heard in the news that some young woman have suffered blood clots and just die.
But im also reading the other birth controls effects and they are pretty wild as well..
the only side effect so far after 2 yrs and a few month is about 10lbs heavier.., i had mood swings my first week of being on it., occasional headaches when my period is about to start which lasts up to 4 days, low sex drive ( but i still manage to have sex and enjoy it), some dry moments ( i use to be a fountain) so it is different but eventually it goes back to normal. ( harder to have orgasms.., )
so overall nuvaring has worked for me. I just pray it continues to do so.. now i feel like there's no point in switching right now especially - going through a career change.. now is not the time to try a new one just because i hear someone died ( although that 's a pretty good darn reason).
Eventually my goal is once i start having kids God willing.. that i can stay off all these darn drugs and either tell my husband to go tie his dingy or condom it is.. its so not fair that we have to put all that crap in our bodies.. and then we wonder why we have certain weird complications.. "Lord take care of all us..we are just not trying to have 15 little kids running around...".. the researcher..

i feel AWFUL reading this. i have on the ring since 16. im now 21. i cant believe how i dealt with this mess for 5 years!(and is now just realizing like TODAY now realizing). Before i continue, the ring usually fall out when when its MIA(missing..). When you poop or pass gas ur lady mussels pushes it down(like givn birth). Also one time i started having pains like my period was coming.That meant i needed a new ring. I just bought one so i knew it hadn't "ran out". I checked myself for the ring. It was gone. Lets just say i found it under the bed from the night b4 lol. i say this b/c they don't get lost in you. neither does tampns but this is NO JOKING MATTER. I know that i WAS a happy OUTGOING energetic young woman. I have thought to myself several times why aren't i going anywhere? It seems for that last few years my life's story is really basic and it includes the following:
random moodiness, fits of crying coming out of no where, terrible PMS symptoms , increased irritability with my boyfriend, white lumpy discharge toward the end of my 20 something days when its time be replaced, itchiness sometimes ,i was told i had bacterial vaginitus last Wednesday , random painful stabbing sensation in the vaginal area,but i haven't really experienced increased dryness during sex, major lack of sex drive, painful breasts and or extreme swelling of the vaginal walls during and after sex. I will tell you guys a SECRET if u twist the nuva like a bow. it will perfectly sit inside you w/o moving and u wont feel a THING! that's how i stopped mine from sliding around. i also noticed when i have it like that no spotting or NOTHING until its time for a new one...
I found this sight by looking for nuvaring lawsuits and i found much more than i bargained for. I never put all of these symptoms together b/c i was a teen and going thru teen things. I am a grown woman and i realized something IS wrong. This isn't me. My sudden outcries and fits of rage wasn't enough for me to realize bc it is hormones that i was taking and i expected that. The headaches and wanting to sleep all day was surely coming from work and school & in my alone time my family and friends thought i was too busy to be bothered... And i was! Sulking in my room about nothing for hours. Now i reflect back as i type. I am more depressed that i missed out on fun and business opportunities b/c of this and didn't even see it coming.i so badly want to go "natural" but i have never been preggo and don't want to be now bc when i do get preggo for the first time i wanna plan my pregnancy. My friends call there babies "patchbaies or pillbabies" b/c that was the method they were actively using at the time!PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE!:Does anyone out there know of anything better? ****** if you do.

This is the first time I have actually looked up side effects to NuvaRing. I have been on it since March of 2006, so about 2.5 years. I never really noticed side effects, and I have been to the doctor more than once and told them about the same side effects that have been discussed here. They blamed it on lack of vitamins, lifestyle changes and other random facts of life. Maybe that is the cause of my problems, however, why would they all happen at once???

Until today, I was soooo happy with NuvaRing, and I still am. I am just more aware of why I feel the way I do....It is soo easy to use!! I would NEVER remember to take a pill everyday, I would not like the patch, and the shot wouldn't go with me very well either.

Seems as if every birth control has side effects...here are mine from NR

EXTREME fatigue..
I asked my doctor about this. It has been going on since January. I sleep for 13 hours a day and am still exhausted. I cannot get enough sleep. I am a 20 year old that used to lead a pretty active lifestyle, but it seems the last few months that I have slowed waaaaaaay down. It isn't like me. I usually stay busy

Weight gain
I can accurately say that I have not been as active as I was in the past...but in one year I have put on about 17 lbs, and no matter what I do, the scale keeps climbing....I joined a gym for about 4 months, and I didn't lose a single pound. Before, I was able to LOOK at a treadmill and get in shape, now I spend an hour a day on it, and it does nothing for me.

SEVERE Headaches...with sensitivity to light and sound
I have not had this bad of headaches. EVER. It usually starts in the back of my head and moves to only one side. My doctor told me to wean off the caffeine. I did and they are still there. I drink no caffeine daily and I still am getting these terrible headaches. I work at a casino, so sometimes it really interrupts my daily life, with the lights and sounds and everything.

I AM ALWAYS THIRSTY!!!!!

I have NO sex drive
My boyfriend and I used to have sex every single day when I just started the NR, but now I NEVER want to. I have to pretend that I want to have sex, just so his feelings are not hurt. Sometimes I even catch myself thinking "is it over yet??" That is SOOOO not like me. I was an animal the first few months I was on NR. Now I have no desire.

I feel as if I am just living the motions of life sometimes instead of participating in it. Like I am just here everyday, not always feeling what is going on around me. I am semi moody, but nothing out of the ordinary. Week 3 of the ring is ALWAYS emotional, but the week before my period has ALWAYS been like that. I find it very normal.

My periods are WONDERFUL. I used to have a full 7 day period from hell. Now they last only 3-4 days, and I can basically tell you when I am going to start to the hour. It is AMAZING.

All in all, I love NR still. I am not going to stop taking it yet. I am just glad I found this site so I know the reason behind all of these changes in me. I have never put two and two together....that NR was causing all of these things...but now I know it could be. Or maybe it isn't. Who knows, but as long as I keep an eye on symptoms, I think I will be okay...

If any of you have any questions I have been on NR for quite a while, so feel free to email me at ******

I'm so happy I found this site. I was on Ovcon 25 for 3 years and was given Femcon last week at my annual exam and was told it was the same makeup as Ovcon. I can't believe the effect its had on my body after only 7 days. I'm an extremely happy, sexually active young woman and I have been crying at everything and anything and have NO sex drive. I've been on the pill consistently for over 10 years and have never had side effects like this. Nausea, fatigue, mood swings and anxiety are other strong side effects that I've noticed. I'm stopping Femcom today and will wait until next month to start my old brand. My boyfriend, friends, and family will be so thankful!

I've had my Mirena in for about a month now, and honestly, it hasn't given me any problems. Of course I had cramps in the first week, and spotting for the first 3 months or whatever...but I can truly say that I love this birth control, and I hope not to get the negative side effects like most of these women. If you are considering the Mirena for birth control, talk with your doctor. If you have problems, talk with your doctor...if you're pissed off because you feel like you wasted your money, maybe you should take a second to think about it...neither you nor your doctor can look into a crystal ball to find out how something will effect you. But please, if you are considering the Mirena, don't decide against it because what a bunch of middle-aged women (with less than healthy reproductive systems) said. I'm 20 years old, and this IUD is a blessing.

I AM A 55 YR YOUNG WOMAN. I AM VERY ACTIVE , FIT , AND LOOK
1O YRS YOUNGER THAN MY AGE. I DECIDED TO GO ON ZOCOR 5 MG
BECAUSE MY CHOLESTEROL WAS 250. I WAS CONCERNED AND THOUGHT THAT WOULD BE THE RIGHT DECISION. I HAVE HAD DRY FLAKY SKIN ON MY FACE AND GET VERY DIZZY. I HAVE DIFFICULTY
ALSO WITH BLURRY VISION. IF THESE ARE THE SYSTOMS I AM WILLING TO GO BACK TO THE HIGHER CHOLESTEROL AND DEAL WITH IT. GLAD TO HEAR ABOUT ALL THE OTHERS WHO HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THIS MEDICATION AS WELL. NO MORE ZOCOR FOR ME!!!
I HAVEN,T EVEN FINISHED MY 90 DAY TRIAL SUPPLY.

I took my 16 year old child off of singulair 6 weeks ago (3-28-2008). She started taking it 11-17-2003. She became dark, depressed, grades dropped, dropped out of dance and cheerleading, started cutting her legs with razors, stomachaches, headaches, anxiety attacks, trips to the emergency room. 6 months of fluoxetine given by her psychiatrist. Nothing helped her be happy again. Sad and Dark young woman. NOW: She smiles a lot, and is eating diner with the family. No headache or stomachache for a month now. She is sleeping better. Before she said that her mind would not stop thinking. She is taking pictures again and even asked me to order her book called "Understanding Exposure" and is talking about taking a class on digital photography at NMSU branch university to start on her college electives now. She is out more and even has a part time job at an ice cream parlor. Just lately I have stopped checking the trash for waded up tissues with blood (from cutting). Chris, I have had all her medical records sent to her primary Doctor and we are very willing to open them up. You have to have a child suffering to understand where we are coming from. The most dangerous place on earth is standing between a mother and her child. Singulair took our children from us and maybe changed them in some way forever.

My 13 yr old daughter was put on Singulair along with Asmanex and Clarinex for her asthma about 6 weeks ago. Everything seemed to be going very well at first and her symptoms were starting to get controlled. I started noticing after about 3 to 4 weeks that her temper and attitude were getting much worse. Anyone with children this age knows what I mean but this was like a 180 degree turn for her. Her actions were becoming totally out of character. Before I knew it she would cry and get highly upset over the least little thing. Week 5 came around and things totally bottomed out. She came home from school and WAS NOT HERSELF. Made comments about how she hated her life and it was not worth living. Later that evening we had a big argument because I was telling her nothing was worth saying that. She went totally out of control and I had to physically restrain her to calm her down. It appeared everything was better so she went to her room. I went down to check on her and she calmly told me that she had taken advil and tylenol pm and things would be better for her forever now. We went to the ER where they made us wait for at least an hour, then finally took her back. She had to drink two cups of charcoal and was poked and prodded repeatedly. They did a catheter to get a urine sample. She was very cooperative but also was in a complete daze so who knows. The poor child couldn't even lift her head up when she started the vomiting to get rid of the drugs. It was very upsetting and sad. Her heart rate and blood pressure went very low and I really thought in the back of my mind that this was it. Finally, after several hours she started coming out of it and they sent us home. The next evening when she was starting to really come around she proceeded to tell me how she had been seeing a man walking around in her bedroom at night and she was afraid to go down there. Breaking down and crying telling me about all of the horrible nightmares she had been having recently and didn't know why. I thought what am I dealing with here? This just isn't her. Three days ago I heard about singulair in the news and looked it up on the internet. OH MY GOD THIS SOUNDED LIKE US!!!!! I immediately had her stop taking it and the next day phoned her asthma specialist who agreed she should stop now. We are going to watch her for two weeks and see if any symptoms return and then decide if she needs something else or will be fine on just the Asmanex. As a side note, she also mentioned being unable to concentrate in school (unable to do even the simplest math problems) and that her brain felt confused or like something was missing. She said this had been bothering her for several weeks. I know it was this drug. They really need to take this off the market NOW and stop flirting with disaster. The only reason I posted this was to let others know they are not alone.

I am a 43 year young woman and have been on birth control for quite some time. Since they tell me I am approaching middle age, my OBGYN changed my BC to YAZ. After about 1 1/2 months, I was experiencing severe neck pain. I could not get comfortable and thought I just had to change my pillow. I went to my Chiropractor - nothing seemed out-of-sorts. The pain would still not go away. After another month, I became very ill. I had a wicked headache that would not go away and was very sensitive to light and sound. My husband came home from work one day and found me quite confused and slurring my words. He took me to the hospital and to make a long story short, I had (have) a blood clot in my brain. Now I realize I am "older" and am on other medications (none that were new to my repertoire) so there is a slight possibility that it could have been a combination of things. However, I find it hard to believe that this was just a coincidence. Maybe I survived to spread the word...

P.S. I am a non-smoker.

I have been on and off BC for almost 7 years. I started taking the Pill when I was only 16. From then on I fluctuated between a normal teenager and young woman to a crazy, depressed, bloated she-monster. I went off all hormones for about 11/2 years, and I tell you, it was like someone had lifted a veil. I had the sex drive of a 13 year old boy. I ran two marathons and felt like i was on top of the world. Recently, with a new boyfriend, I had a pregnancy scare and so I decided I'd jump on the BC bandwagon again. WRONG IDEA!! The instant I started the pill, those old depressed crazies came back. So, what did my doctor do? Told me to go on the NuvaRing. HAHA!! Not even three days into it, I'm already feeling exhausted, limited sexually and I have a rash on my face. Enough is enough..Hormones are the worst things to mess with, especially when you are so young. This country needs to stop being chained to the pharmaceutical companies and start opening up their eyes. There are reports of animals being affected by BC. Seriously, check it out. It's scary!! I'm going to go to my doctor and demand a change. I'm looking into IUD's. Take a look for yourself. And not Mirena...that still has hormones. I'm talking the old fashioned piece of plastic "T" that will last for 10 years!!! Ladies, do what's best for you, but honestly enough is enough. Don't be a slave to the worst group of people since the Railroad Barons of the 1800's!!!

I have had the Mirena for 4 years, had it taken out yesterday. I experienced PMDD, no libido, weight gain, depression and severe dry eye syndrome starting approx. 6 months to 1 year after getting the Mirena. I never had tied the two together and all of my physicians knew that I had the IUD. I have finally gotten some answers after seeing a hormone specialist this month. He explained that the Mirena contains progestins, they are synthetic forms of progesterone. I am now on oral Micronized progesterone and feeling a bit like a cloud has been lifted. I had never experienced depression, breast pain or loss of libido in my life.
I liked the Mirena because I didn't have to think of birth control as I have two children an was 34 when I got it. Now I am 38 and regret not listening to my body closer and questioning my symptoms sooner. I urge any young woman having similar symptoms to have the Mirena removed and see if it helps. If you don't have positive results in 3 or 4 months you can get another! I think progestins could have negative effects in some and positive in others. For now I choose the bioidentical progesterone route and will follow up in a few weeks with how things are going.

I'm a 53 yr young woman, Prescribed a 2 week dose of Prednisone 1-1/2 weeks ago for continued ear infection and vertigo. Now the headaches are worse, feel like a vise grip is tightening around my skull, vertigo is worse, I'm having hot flashes and night sweats and feel like my blood pressure is rising. I want to just stop taking them but have been told this could be dangerous as well.

When a class action lawsuit is filed, let me know....this drug should be taken of off the market immediately. We started all of this with an OB/GYN that prescribed this “miracle pill” and now have had to go not only to our primary doctor, but also a psychiatrist, gastrenologist, college campus counselors, psychologists, psychiatrist, and the campus medical doctors; All the while, accumulating enormous doctor bills. All the doctors say, "No, Yasmin won't cause those problems" (except the college campus doctors..wonder why? Hmm.. could it be that they are not in private practice?)....well, I beg to differ. Everyone needs to give this website to their doctor so the doctors can hear from the patients that have taken this drug, and not listen to the pharmaceutical companies that are pushing this drug to be the "miracle pill". Maybe if enough people complain and go to the media, we can get rid of this drug!
My daughter who is 18 was put on Yasmin because of irregular periods, hormonal imbalance, etc. We were told it was the new “miracle pill”. It will make you loose weight, regulate your periods, clear up acne, you name it, it will fix it. Yeah, right.
She started taking this pill in March 2007. She was off at college but called to tell me she was experiencing horrible headaches, behind the eyes. She complained about her stomach hurting, but we just figured it was the stress of freshman year at college. Then she said she got where she couldn’t eat when she went to a restaurant. When she came home in May for the summer, I noticed a total personality change. For example, she was always a neat freak, and now she wouldn’t clean her room. The first day when she drove home, she started crying she was so mad about the traffic. Yes, she has always had a little road rage, but this was ridiculous.
By June, not only could she not be in crowds, like at a restaurant, but now she is having full blown panic attacks and IBS. We called the OBGYN and they said, “Yasmin won’t cause this, go see your primary doctor”. I knew that the only thing that had changed with her was taking the YASMINE. I knew it had something to do with all of this so I “Googled Yasmin” and this website (http://www.medications.com/se/yasmin) was the first one I looked at. All of her symptoms matched everyone else’s! I am so glad we found this website, it explained everything and I had her to stop Yasmin immediately.
So we went to the primary doctor, explained about the Yasmin and how we thought it was the culprit of everything. Of course this doctor also says, “Yasmin won’t cause that”. We told him to look it up on the internet and see how there are over 3000 complaints on this drug, more than any of the other drugs on the market.
Besides the emotional problems she starting having, her pulse and blood pressure was sky high, so he puts her on medicine for that, and puts her on an anxiety medicine and sends her to a psychiatrist. She is very thirsty all the time, and develops IBS. She can’t eat without having pains in her stomach. So, now we’ve have gone from having just irregular periods, to all of the above, plus a psychiatrist.
The psychiatrist doubles her medicine (and puts her Pamine for the IBS) because the panic attacks are gone, but she still is having a lot of nervousness, anxiety, can’t sleep at night, crazy thoughts, worrying all the time, etc. A month later he changes her medicine again, to Effexor. The first 2 weeks, she does okay, but the packet doubles the strength after 2 weeks. It takes 4 weeks for it to take full effect. Right after she doubles this medicine, it is like her senses are on hyper-mode. She can taste everything that is in her food (chili powder, seasonings, etc…), taste the metal in water, and she can hear someone’s phone vibrating, in another room.
Then she goes back to college at the end of August 2007, and it’s horrible. The Effexor is having bad, bad side effects. We called the psychiatrist that she was using at home and he doubled the dose. That was the worse thing they could’ve done. The side effects were worse than ever. I had her to immediately go to a psychiatrist on campus. She told him the whole story and he believed her! Needless to say we switched doctors. He then lowered her dose back down to ½ a dose and hopefully can slowly get her off of all this medicine.
The newest thing she has developed is being hypoglycemic. The campus psychiatrist sent her to a campus medical doctor and he told her that they would get to the bottom of this. He tested her for everything under the sun. Low blood sugar is the only thing they found. But, she hasn’t taken the Yasmin since May. No telling what the results would have came back like if it was done at the time she was taking Yasmin.
Thank goodness she has counselors and doctors there at the campus that believes that Yasmin can cause all of these problems, and are working with her. From what I have read from the people that have used this medicine, although most doctors do not agree, Yasmin takes like 6 months to get out of your system. I think I am going to believe the testimonials of the people who take this medicine, over a doctor who prescribes it.
If everyone goes to the media, their doctors, the FDA, congressmen, and make them aware of these horrible effects, surely we can get this drug off of the market! Does anyone know a class action lawyer that would pursue this? For my child to have to go through all of this is ridiculous, not to mention costly. What do we know of the long term effects this drug will have if it is doing all of this when you first start taking it?
If you have the same concerns as me about this drug, and would be interested in looking into a class action lawsuit, please email: ****** I would be interested to see how many would want to pursue this.

Silke
Hi, BitterRN again. I dont believe your gyn either. What you are coming to realize is what all of us in the medical field already know, and its scary, but all doctors do not have the same knowledge in all fields of medicine. That is why experts always push second opinions all the time in hopes that the second time you will run into someone who has more knowledge and experience in your particular problem. I know this because I see it everyday, please believe me, and EVERY WOMAN ON THIS SITE PLEASE KNOW THIS: A doctor is only as good as he continues to strive to be. As far as hormones go a gyn has limited knowledge about them exept that the normal ranges fall between here and here as printed on the lab report, if your labs fall in the normal even if normal is 0.3 to 4.4 if your lab comes back 0.3 well thats normal right? BUT IT IS NOT NORMAL, normal for an 80 year old maybe, but not a young woman. So only if that gyn has taken a particular interest in hormones, gone to many seminars, read many books about them, interacted with experts on hormones, will they even know to flag this as abnormal and further investigate it. They will tell you everything is fine and by process of elimination its all in your head. ITS NOT. Even being a nurse I was told this and it infuriated me. Thats why I seeked Dr after Dr until I found one who could help me. Rarely do you find a Dr. who will say hey Silke, Im just not sure about these labs or Im not really an expert on hormones so maybe you should seek out another opinion or sometimes they really think they are right because thats what they have always told patients for the 20yrs they have been practicing and so your just depressed or crazy, but we all know that medicine changes rapidly, year to year, so if they dont keep up, they just keep treating with "old methods", because thats the way its always been done.
Sorry to get on my soapbox Silke I just get so frustrated! That is why I gave you the name of that Dr. in Spain because I knew that he was an expert on hormones. I know Spain is far!:( I even tried to google Dr's in Europe who are experts in hormones with no results.
So yes when you call your doctors office ask for copies of this lab report (You have a right to your medical records) they may make you sign a release for them and go to the office to get them that how they do it in the U.S. Anyway tell them you want a copy of ALL of your lab reports from this visit AND the visits where you had the labs done a long time ago. This way we can compare what they were last time. I would even be willing to ask my doctor here if she thinks your levels are too low and maybe you should get another opinion. She may even have some leads of Dr.s there who can really help, as she attends many seminars where experts gather worldwide.
OK Silke, Ill let you go, sorry for the long post....again:)
BitterRN

I had a total thyroidectomy last year...long story short, after about 4 months my surgeon said the scar was turning into a keloid ( I now wish I would have just left it alone) So he recommended kenalog injections. I had 3 total over a 3 month period. After a few months the scar had severly indented & it looks horrible...when I swallow it looks like my throat is mangled inside. I hate it & I don't think there is anything I can do about it. I wish I would have been advised about the possible side effects!!! I can 't stand that people stare at my neck when I talk to them...it's very depressing. Not to be so vain, but I'm a young woman!!!

Dr. Melmed in Texas injected my breast with kenalog after an explantation surgery. Now even though I am a young woman, my breast skin is forever damaged. It is discolored .. red and purple and thin! I cry nearly every day about it. He NEVER even mentioned he was going to do this to me! All I thought he was doing was taking the implants out!
Dr.s MUST inform their patients about the up and down side to kenalog injections. AND TELL THEM if they are going to use them!!!

I just started on prednisone recently for ulcerative colitis. I'm a 20-year-old female college student. The prednisone seems to be working great for the ulcerative colitis. I've been kind of nauseous. My question is this:

I've heard that one of the side effects of prednisone is weight gain. However, I've been so nauseous that I've lost weight. The strange thing is that event though I've lost (a small amount of) weight, I *look* fatter, especially in the waist. And it's not all just oversensitive-young-woman's body obsessiveness; even my pants fit kind of tight in the waist What's going on? Is this water retention? Is there anything I can do about it?