IF YOU'VE EXPERIENCED ANXIETY WHILE ON YASMIN, PLEASE READ THIS: ...

IF YOU'VE EXPERIENCED ANXIETY WHILE ON YASMIN, PLEASE READ THIS: I started Yasmin back in Feb. 2004, and started experiencing extreme anxiety & panic attacks a few months later. I didn't put two and two together until October 2004, when I finally discovered this website. I was so relieved to discover that Yasmin had caused my anxiety (also some depression, and some OCD tendencies), and that I was not just losing my mind. I stopped Yasmin immediately, thinking the problem would just go away, but unfortunately, it got worse before it got better. The first three months off Yasmin were hell on earth. The anxiety was unbearable. Then after three months, the anxiety got significantly better. (FYI - it takes 3 months for a BC pill to clear your system. Coincidence? I think not.) After that, I still had some anxiety, usually really severe around the time of my period. I tried anxiety programs, relaxation CDs, deep breathing, etc., some of which helped, but the anxiety never completely went away. I resorted to taking Xanax as needed. I know my story is very similar to many of yours, so I wanted to share with you what I've learned since then: As time went on, my anxiety got better & better. I usually just had it around the time of my period, and in some social situations. Then, this past Spring, a dear friend of mine (who I met on the forum, by the way) found a doctor who did some tests on her hormone levels & discovered that she had no progesterone. He told her that her own hormone imbalance coupled with the hormones in Yasmin, caused her to have her anxiety problems on Yasmin. He prescribed her some NATURAL PROGESTERONE (not the synthetic stuff), and she started feeling so much better! Seeing her drastic improvement, and admitting to myself that after two years my anxiety wasn't completely gone, I went to the same doctor. He did some blood work & guess what? I had essentially no progesterone as well. He put me on natural progesterone too. I am taking 100 mg. in a capsule form each night. I cannot tell you the difference I have felt. I feel normal again. Think about it - the hormones in Yasmin obviously caused our anxiety. Doesn't it make sense that the problem is inheritently hormonal? I have been helped so much by the ladies on this website, so I wanted to share my story so that if just helps one person, it's worth it. Go to a doctor in your area who specializes in natural hormone management & see what your levels are. In my case & in my friend's case, our anxiety disorders have been the result of a hormone imbalance, one made significantly worse by Yasmin. I hate to see so many people resort to anti-depressants & anti-anxiety meds, when it may be that all they need is to balance their hormones. Best wishes to all of you. Please hang in there, life does get better!