Yasmin and antidepressent

I have two side effects to discuss since I don't think there are enough warnings about mixing birth control pills and anti-depressants.
I had a miserable time with Yasmin and stopped taking it earlier this summer(after being on it 4 months with no relief from symptoms that go away for most). The anxiety and mood swings were just horrible within weeks of taking Yasmin. I had night sweats and backaches, headaches, leg cramps, fatigue that was unreal, total lack of sex drive...you name it. I even had my self checked for pre-menopause and I'm only 38! Immediately after I stopped it all symptoms went away within a week. I did discover that I do have some clinical depression that I've probably had my whole life. It was more severe right after I had my daughter in 2004. Zoloft was the worst anti-depressent on the planet...can't tell you how hard it was to get off of that drug. Started the Yasmin right after I got off Zoloft...almost went back on the anti-depressents b/c of the mood swings. Now I am seeing a psychiatrist who prescribed the lowest dose of Wellbutrin. Other than some dry mouth for the first couple of weeks and minor diarrhea, this antidepressent is wonderful...no more mood swings one hour before I'm supposed to take my next dose (like on Zoloft). I'm not hungry all the time and I can still actually feel emotions (unlike with the smallest dose of Zoloft). I think a good psychiatrist that can monitor how you're doing on your medication is the way to go if you suffer from depression. You should NEVER alter your prescription without talking to your doctor first...I also think that ob-gyn's have a responsibility to either refer you to a psychiatrist after prescribing post partum anti-depressents or follow up with you...especially when they also prescribe birth control pills at the same time (I was on errin aka jolivette before the Yasmin. I took jolivette while I was on the Zoloft)...I truly believe the birth control pills can counteract with anti-depressents and it shocks me that this isn't more closely monitored by the medical community. I have my life back now and I hope the same for the rest of you. Stephanie

Hello,

I haven't been on lately posting my symptoms because for the first time after 8 months of Post Yasmin Hell, I have started to see real progress.

After taking Yasmin for 7 months, I stopped and have been so so sick, it was unbelievable. Over 50 various Doctor visits and nothing at all could be found. I lost my appetite and 13 pounds, had anxiety and heart palpitations, nauseous all the time and just so so ill. I have never been sick all my life... never...aside from colds of course.

Nothing really helped... vitamins, food... nothing. If you really think about it.. . we ingested a POWERFUL horomone suppressent. How can we think that taking vitamins or herbs will solve the problem? Believe me, it might help a little... a very little but far far from the solution.

I notice that my worst symptoms were cyclic and each month I could be assured that I would get worse and going through this month after month with little improvement was taking a toll and I just wanted to literally give up already. The rate of improvement was ridiculous!! 1 % perhaps... less?

So then I told everybody my absolute last resort was taking an antidepressent because my general Dr. told me that it has been used off label to help PMDD which is a menstrual disorder. My other Dr. also told me it has been PROVEN to help gastrointestinal problems also.

I know most of you are scared and skeptical about taking another drug, just how I was. I kept saying.. I am not depressed, etc etc. I was worried about side effects etc. But after a while it came down to a point of.. I NEED TO TRY SOMETHING ELSE!!!!

So if Prozac has been shown to help with female horomone problems I should give it a shot and see if it will help mine, because believe me, it couldn't really get any worse. How can someone live through or six months of hell??? You long term sufferers know what I am talking about.

So I did a TON of studying on Prozac / Fluoxetine and found that this proven drug is the easiest of all the SSRI's as far as side effects and withdrawal. I also read that taking a low dose is just about as effective as taking a normal dose. For example, would you give the same 20 mg. dose to granny as well as Shaquille O' neal?

To give you the best news already: I have finally turned a corner and am starting to feel so so much better, month by month. Prozac has finally reversed this cyclic monthly hell. I had ABSOLUTELY no side effects because I researched and researched and realized I only needed a small small dose. I started at 10 mg. EVERY OTHER DAY. This dose is very low and yet very effective. The usual dose is 20 mg. daily.. which is too much.

My appetite started to slowly come back, my anxiousness went down. My general sense of well being became better and better. Yes of course, the monthly cycles would sometimes pop up once in a while but this time 75% better than before.

So for all of you who like me made the mistake of taking a powerful horomone altering drug Yasmin and still not getting better, you may need to try Prozac because I am proof that it does work. Don't be afraid of withdrawal or side effects because the low dose you need will cause none of these... ask your Doctor. It is not only used for depression because believe me, I never had any depression issues at all, but Yasmin caused my body CHAOS, and no vitamins can really help that kind of mess. Prozac is helping by pushing my horomone system back to it's normal activity as well as helping my digestive system AND my overall well being.

I was just like all of you, coming back month after month because just when I thought I was getting a little better, the bad cycle hit me again like a truck and I thought I would never get better. I avoided Prozac because I thought it was bad and that how can an antidepressent help me? I was wrong, Prozac has been the ONLY thing that has helped my cycle get back on track. Ladies who are still long term sufferers of Post Yasmin hell, read up on Prozac and it's off label uses of treating Pre menstrual dysphoric symtom, as well as digestive treatment.

Also, although SSRI's are all in the same class, they can have very different effects on individuals. For example just because Zoloft didn't agree with you, that doesn't mean Prozac will do the same thing. The ignorant DR. probably gave you too high of a dose as most Doctors do.

The best way of finding out is starting on a low dose. You should see no side effects at all. Well the one side effect that was welcomed was a sense of calm and sleepiness. So much better than the panic attacks...

FYI. I have realized that Yasmin has hit me XTRA hard because Yasmin has a high dose of ESTROGEN, and my body before Yasmin was the opposite... testosterone high! I am ultra fit, love working out and don't possess the typical estrogenic female body, meaning I don't have big breasts or typical softer female features. So being on Yasmin really changed the dynamics of my body.

Again, if any of you have similar symptoms of me and is a classified long term sufferer (6 mos. or more), my sincere advice is to talk to your Doctor about Prozac and give it a shot at a low dose. There should not, I repeat should not be any side effects and you should start to get better month by month.. and this time at a much faster pace.

For eight years I was on Ortho Tri low - no problems until my doctor suggested I change because of the length of time I was on them. I have been taking Yasmin for 4 years now and have had the following side effects which I did not contribute to the Yasmin until I am now looking back after reading these posts:

When I first starting taking Yasmin I had a SEVERE personality change. I used to be a go-getter, confident, aggressive, hard worker, perfectionist, never procrastinated, and an over-achiever. I didn't understand why, but I just stopped caring about how far I got in my career, whether my house was clean, etc. I thought I was just depressed or something? Although I didn't really feel depressed, but more of just a lack of motivation. I started to get diarihea and then an anxiety over being depressed or "not normal" I finally went to the doctor after losing a bunch of weight and he prescriped be with an antidepressent. I never took the antidepressants because I really wanted to try to deal with the issues myself before going to that extreme.

Four years later I'm the same way. I've never been the same since, although the diariahea has subsided. I thought I had just changed when I met my now husband, until I found this site and have read some of these posts and realized it was also the exact time I started taking Yasmin.

Over the last three years I have developed anxiety and a needy, clingy personality, a total anxiety and irrational fear of losing my husband. It started to get so bad that when my husband was away I would get sick to my stomach and at times vomit and become fatigued or have irrational thoughts and panic attacks that I had no control over. It has disrupted my relationship enough that I started to see a therapist and the stress of it all has had horrible side effects on my body.

I am wondering now if this was all because of Yasmin? I am 28 years old and never have had a history of depression, anxiety, etc before this.

I also now have dark spots on my face around my eyes and on my cheeks and forhead, which I new were a side effect of the birth control. I asked my doctor if switching to some other brand would help and he said that any birth control can have that effect if you are in the sun. I just decided if I wanted to be on birth control that I had to start wearing sunscreen while in the sun.

In the last two years I have been to doctors and ENT's for a ear infections and sore throats, which they contribute to allergies. That was something I never had before either. I've never had allergies in my life, but doctors would insist that I had developed them. I never would have linked this to my pills, but I am now!

I found this site only because I was thinking of soon having children and wanted to find out what effects of discontinuing the use would have on my body. I wish I had found it 3-4 years ago!!!

I am going to stop taking Yasmin and maybe birth control all together. I'm afraid switching to another pill would just cause a whole new slew of problems, because lets face it, there is nothing natural about them.

I only hope that I can recover and I thank god for such a wonderful husband because I know at times I was unbearable to deal with: fighting, crying, feeling depressed and insecure. All things that are NOT part of my personality 4 years ago. Hearing that it could all be from my pill is both encouraging (that there is hope for me to stop this behavior now) and heartbreaking that I have basically lost the last 4 years of my life.

Thank you to all who posted to this site!