Yasmin and horrible experience

Hi ladies... I'm not surprised that you folks comprise most of the posting population considering the fact that this drug is prescribed to you. Well I'm quite interested in this drug and I do prescribe it to my patients however I am surprised at the magnitude of side effects listed here. I am based here in south-east Asia and I do prescribe Yasmin to my patients and I rarely here of these side effects. Perhaps this can be contributed to the fact that it (Yasmin) is available here under a different brand name however consists of the same chemical position. I am interested in the ones available in the U.S. Does anyone know how I may go about purchasing them. You can contact me personally on ****** thank you.

Like many of you on this forum, I am glad to have found this site! First though, I would like to say that I understand not every one taking Yasmin experiences the same side effects. I understand that some women probably have wonderful experiences with this medication. However, it frustrates me that while some women might have good experiences with this drug, I think the potential for SEVERE side effects other women could experience should be much more emphasized and researched. The pamphlet inside the Yasmin packaging briefly touches on what they advertise as rare side effects that overall outweigh the benefits of this drug. I think many of the side effects listed on this forum are not even mentioned in the packet. Personally, I believe I have had a horrible experience taking Yasmin for the past 8 months. It is very frustrating to take a medication that advertises itself to help symptoms (such as MOOD SWINGS) and in fact, causes many of these horrible symptoms in some women! I am so sick of the multi-billion dollar prescription drug industry (which seems severely under-regulated by the FDA.) Has anyone seen the fancy Yaz birth control commercial? You know, with the "we're not gonna take it" song? All those skinny models prancing around in a PMS-free world??? OMG PLEASE!!! I can't believe it has taken me this long to realize all of my horrible symptoms have started and only worsened during my time on Yasmin. I thought this pill wasn't related because my skin looks beautiful, I haven't had bad cramps anymore, I've had light periods, and my boobs have gotten bigger. Sounds great, huh? But since taking Yasmin I have also had such horrible mood swings I can't control myself. I feel like a completely different person. I've become extremely impatient, irritated by everyone on this planet, I can't concentrate, and I have looked so bloated at times several people assumed I was pregnant. My self-esteem is ridiculously low, I hate myself, my mirrors, and I accuse my loving boyfriend of the most ridiculous things. I don't see how he even puts up with me! I have become so depressed I rarely want to go out. I'm EASILY offended by the slightest comments and ridiculously paranoid. It is also very hard to go out when many of my clothes (even my "fat pants" do not fit anymore!) I have thought I was crazy, almost quit my job, left my boyfriend, and seriously wanted to kill myself. I'm aware that many of these symptoms could be caused by other things, but honestly, I have contemplated so many other potential causes (such as major depression) and I realize every thing has started during these past months I've been taking Yasmin. I am 21 years old, I do not smoke, and have generally great health. I feel entirely overwhelmed...I honestly don't know what to do.

Hello,

I read about how YAZ birth control pill affects the body and psych and I am now scared. This is my 2nd day of YAZ (I've never been on birth control pills ever and I am 27 years old), it's all new to me but after reading all these negative posts about Yaz I don't know what to do. Before the birth control pills, I was depressed, annoying, serious weight problems - 210 lbs :~~((, low energy, low libido, always tired, terrible migraines every 2nd day, ridiculously increased appetite and excessive hunger, hair where it shouldn't be, menstrual blood clots, excessive cramping etc
I have all these problems for 3 years now and now that the family doc. put me on YAZ birth control pill I am even more scared - mainly of more weight gain, it would be a tragedy for me, I am fat enough already and what's worse I can't lose the weight, exercise doesn't help, diet doesn't help, NOTHING. Will YAZ birth control pill worsen my already tragic condition? I just don't know what to do and what to believe ... I appreciate any advice or help you can give me ... Thank You to all!

Hi. I just wanted to let everyone know what has happened since I stopped taking Yasmin 4 days ago. (I only took it for 2 months.) I'm still having heart palpitations, feeling of a lump in my chest, and still a bit dizzy at times. My ears kind of feel like when I'm on an airplane coming in for a landing when the dizziness comes around. I'm also still having an occasional urge to cough. I still have shortness of breath and it's very noticeable when I'm talking and saying a long sentence. I thought the symptoms would really decrease but it seems to come and go. I feel the palpitations more frequently during the evening hours. I don't know why that is though. All of this makes it really hard to concentrate a work. I was reading one blog that said to take extra magnesium and zinc. Has anyone tried that and is it effective?

I was really disheartened to see so many people having bad side effects with their Pill. I have been on Yasmin for 2 years and have not had any really bad side effects. I had a loss of appetite at first, but I didn't mind it too much as I needed to lose weight, but after a few months, my appetite came back. I never had an issue with my sex drive, never had any mood swings, or any of the other issues that some of you are having. One consistency I did notice was that women with the worse side effects were taking Yaz, the low hormonal version of Yasmin.

Also ladies, keep in mind that a lot of the side effects listed by the company as well as the ones you have experienced are common with many other BCP's. Hell, I took ortho try cyclen and the most horrible experience. And let's not talk about the many women who took Ortho Evra, which just came out recently. There is now a lawsuit against the company who produced it because of the side effects.

Everyone reacts differently to different medications and to different pills. There are many women who have had nothing but wonderful experiences, others have had horrible experiences. But again, it is like that with every pill.

TO GUEST 36372,
Your post really annoyed me. I am sorry that you find the new forum annoying but you know what this is the only website that has helped me. When I found this website I was just about ready to end my life. If it was not for these woman on here telling their stories I would have thought I was just going plain crazy. There is a BIG difference between side effects of a medication and a whole life altering experience, which for us is what it was. A horrible experience. People on this site are going above and beyond to help each other out. If you are looking for just side effects well go search somewhere else if we are Annoying you so much. And just so you know that is why Sarah started the forum, so we can still be there for each other without annoying petty people like you. YOu make me ill after reading all of our post and having the nerve to say we are annoying. Maybe I am being rude right now but personally I don't care, you didn't have to attack people that are just here supporting each other. I hope for you, you don't have to ever encounter what we are going through. Because any person that was, would not sit there and call us annoying or have a problem with our conversations. Sarah is not advertising anything or making money from this. She is doing this from the bottom of her heart. On the lighter side maybe I am starting to feel better because your post really irritated me and for the first time in awhile I actually felt like speaking my mind like I use too. Well thanks for that.

Dear worried,
Hi. I am writing to you because you sound like my wonderful caring mother, I too have had a horrible experience with yasmin. However, I am 33 yrs old. I took birth control pills for 14 yrs. with no side effects have been through 2 pregnancies and restarted the pill with no problems. I have always, and my mother would tell you this, always been a Happy go lucky person...until I started to take Yasmin Sept. of last year. I switched from ortho novum to Yasmin because the ob I went to see thought it would help with some stomach problems I was complaining about (turns out I had low Iron and just needed some Iron supplements) but I had already started taking the Yasmin.. so I stayed on them. Let me tell you this... I am a registered nurse, have been for 14 years, I was self confident, self assured and always self reliant.. until I took Yasmin. I started to get panick attacks, which I NEVER ever suffered from my entire life. I became depressed, moody, insecure, and scared to death, these symptoms were only things I had read about out of a text book, I thought I knew what depression was from nursing school books, boy I had NO idea how bad it could be. I really thought I was going crazy. It took me three months on that pill to finally realize it was the pill! I only stumbled upon this realization because I ran into another aquaintance who had a bad experience with Yasmin, and had friends who also had bad experiences with Yasmin. She described the same symptoms I and your daughter have experienced.

Being a nurse, I have dove head first into literature and books on hormones. I have also spent Lots of money on tests and doctors visits, many of whom tried to put me on anti-depressants. But I would not take them, because I KNEW my body. I knew I was NOT depressed with life in general. I KNEW that the Yasmin and all of its horrible side effects was what was making me depressed and anti depressants would not help my underlying problem. Dont get me wrong, lots of women on this website get some relief from them, and if that works for them thats great, but I stuck it out, and it took a while but finally the depression lifted and I began to feel more like my normal self. I know your wondering how long?

Let me just say that with all the reading and information I have gathered this is my best guess..
There are many different bcp, and some have more androgenic (male hormone effects) and some have more estrogen effects. There are many different types of women with different body chemistrys for example lets take
Curvy type-full breasts, no facial or body hair, more body fat (Has more estrogen in her chemistry)
Althletic type-althletic build, more muscular build,prone to facial hair, has some body hair (Has more testosterone/androgens in her chemistry)
We all have estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone in our chemistry, but based on the woman own personal chemistry, each of our bodies seems to be different in how much we make and which is more dominant.
So if you give an athletic type person, much like I was, an estrogen based pill, which is what Yasmin is, then it only makes sense that you are going to feel bad. Because this is nowhere near your bodies normal. When I was on the ortho novum, a more androgenic pill, I never felt any of the HORRIBLE symptoms I felt on Yasmin. And guess what, on the yasmin, my breasts grew larger and my facial and body hair dissappeared. It sounds like a good thing but its not, I also lost muscle mass, got itchy dry skin, dry hair, wrinkles, and soo much more I could go on and on.
The thing that seems to be the trend with me and the others on this website is that for some of the girls you get immediate relief when stopping the yasmin, for some as well as myself, you get relief and then it goes down hill again, especially the week before and sometimes on your period and this will cycle month after month and it is a process that takes several months. If this happens she will get discouraged and depressed again, some of the symptoms will come and go, but keep reminding her she will feel better.
My hope is that because your daughter is so young and producing so many hormones right now, her hormonal balance will get right back on track quickly. For those of us in our 30's and up I believe it takes much longer because we do not produce as much of the hormones, including the "mother" hormones like DHEA which converts into testosterone and progesterone, because we make less and less of this hormone as we enter our late 20's and early thirties and age. This may explain why it takes some of us so long to feel better and others feel better right away.
It may also have to do with how long you have been on it, but Im not sure.
Another thing, and Im sorry to write a book, but I have also learned that bcp work by first bottoming out ALL of your natural hormones and then replacing them with synthetic ones (the pill). When you go off the pill, as in my case, your hormones I believe bottom out again and then your body has to replace them again. This can be more difficult for an aging woman.
One more interesting side note:
Testosterone is responsible for a whole lot very important things in your body. Sex drive being one of the main ones but it is so much more than that. If you read any book on testosterone, Suzanne Somers The sexy years is a good one you will find that it is so important for all of your body organs, the mind, and even in aging. I know that I feel a hundred years old when mine is low and only when it starts to go up did I start to feel like my old self.
Also, they have found that testosterone which is suppressed during pregnancy, sometimes does not come back up after birth in some women. Some women need a boost to get it back up and I wonder if this is what brings on post partum depression. The bcp can do the same thing after being on it a while the body may forget how to make it.
I think anyone still having side effects after stopping the pill should get their hormones tested and see if they are low or high in something. Keep in mind that hormones are about balance. Once your hormones are completely balanced again you will probably start to feel better.

So I think your daughter feels better because she stopped the Yasmin and I would not go on any bcp for a few months and then see how she feels (keep taking the vitamins and eating well and lots of water) she may even be able to quit the lexapro. I would definitely suspect the pill if the depression started when she started taking bcp (whatever type) Probably due to hormonal imbalance which she will probably get from any pill. There are other options out there besides bcp. I hear marena (sp?) is an implant in the uterus that releases progesterone (to block pregnancy) but the hormone does not circulate the blood system. She might want to check out other options with her OB.
Anyway feel free to write back. I hope this helps some of the other women on this site as well. We are all just trying to understand what is going on with our bodies. And please ladies, all these "weird" symptoms you keep writing about and asking do you think this can be related to the pill? I think YES. To all of them. Because knowing what I have read about hormones and how important and intricate the balance achieves in our bodies to maintain our health and sense of well being, then yes messing with this balance can wreak havoc of all kinds. Each body is responding in its own different way and it is going to take time to get back on track.
And YES mood swings are a BIG part of it. The hormones seem to go up and down. Not a steady climb as this can be discouraging at times!
I wish you all the best and keep your heads up. It will get better.
Last but not least the Yasmin is the only bcp that has dsrp in it (the diuretic part of the pill) I cant quite put my finger on it but I feel this "unique" part of this pill may be the part of the problems we all experience. Im sure its why some of the girls on this site have to urinate a lot as that is what a diuretic does. I would not recommend this pill to anyone.

I went on Yasmin a few months ago. I too had the anxiety/mood swings/low sex drive. It is so good to read what everyone has said b/c I now know that I wasn't crazy.I have a husband at home who wasn't helpful and a very active wonderful 2-year old that wasn't getting my full attention b/c I was fatigued all the time (This past month I filed for divorce). I saw a therapist in May b/c I felt angry, sad and hopeless all the time and didn't know how to deal with it. He wanted me to see a psychiatrist and possibly go back on anti-depressents. I was totally against that b/c of the horrible experience I had with Zoloft and with getting off of Zoloft (nightmare!) this past January. The other major side effects I had were night sweats, headaches, backaches every morning and leg cramps. You can imagine what the night sweats did to my sex life! One week after stopping Yasmin the nightsweats, headaches, backaches and leg cramps went away and I started enjoying my time with my daughter. I had been on another birth control pill before the yasmin. It was a progesterone only pill and I'm now wondering if that is what caused a lot of my problems as well (have had the night sweats since I went on the pill in 2004). I can't get the past 2 years back, but I'm wondering how life could have been without being on birth control pills.

I was prescribed Yasmin for contraceptive purposes and for help with painful periods as a result of endometriosis. I was originally prescribed Dianette and I had a very severe reaction to it and became very ill as a result. It took nearly two months to recover after many doctor and specialist visits plus medication to right the problems caused. Needless to say, that was a really nightmarish experience.

After the problems I had with Dianette, I was then prescibed Yasmin, as I mentioned above. Initially, it seemed like a wonder drug, firstly because of my horrible experience with Dianette and secondly because it transformed my life after suffering from excrutiating periods and severe PMS since the age of 11. It really gave me a new lease on life by having dramatically reducing PMS, painful periods and making my periods much lighter, although it has not reduced the amount of time I have a period for which is one week.

However, although I cannot knock the benefits it has provided in regards to my problematic periods, it has had unwanted side effects, some that actually took over 6 months to crop up. At the beginning, all I experienced was very sore breasts and although it felt like it would never go away, it did after about 4 months.

The other problem that came up was an insane weight gain for no apparent reason other then taking Yasmin. Until taking Yasmin, I had a very stable weight for many, many years - really since I was a teenager. I have always been very, very careful with what I eat and exercise to keep myself healthy and trim. Although nothing else changed other then taking Yasmin, (in other words I ate the same and exercized the same) I gained about 30 pounds in the space of about 6 months, much to my shock and horror. I have reduced my food intake dramatically since the weight gain but the strangest thing is that it makes no difference whatsoever. My husband and I are constantly amazed at how much I have done to try to battle it with no luck. It is so depressing.

The other thing I noticed is that I consistantly put on and losing 7 pounds of water weight from morning to night every single day which is really weird to me. In other words, in the morning I am always 7 pounds lighter then I am in the evening. I went to my GP to ask him if I should be worried and he said it's not dangerous to have such dramatic water retention but it's as a result of side effects from Yasmin. I also went to him because I have been suffering from depression, anxiety and general weepiness since going on Yasmin. He said he wants to see if it goes away on it's on when I come off Yasmin in a month, otherwise he'll prescribe some sort of antidepressants to help me.

Finally, the other side effect I discovered is that Yasmin is a contraceptive in ways that I never imagined. In otherwords, my sex drive is totally dead and gone. This kicked in about 6 months or so after being on Yasmin. It is the strangest thing as I always had a very healthy libido, and yet now I never have any desire or any thoughts about sex at all, and this has been the case consistantly for the last 6 months.

I have a very good friend who got married and went on Yasmin the same time as I did and we recently discussed our experiences on Yasmin and discovered we have been suffering from many of the same side effects. She has even put on the same amount of weight as I have despite not changing anything in her lifestyle. Needless to say, I will be coming off of Yasmin when I finish the pack I am on as I am fed up with the side effects and my husband and I decided it's a good opportunity to try for a family.

Tried Yasmin for one week, 3 days into experienced extreme moodiness , depression and stabbing head pains.Stopped taking it right away- A week later still have break threw bleeding- that almost seems to be getting worse. When will this end?? I couldn't even imagine taking this for months, What a horrible experience.

Hi Ladies!
I like many of you have had a horrible experience with Yasmin. I was on Yasmin for 2 1/2 years. I didn't realize while on it that all of my problems were due to this pill. I have been off for three months now and I am slowly, very slowly getting better. I was just curious if anyone out there has had disturbing and irrational thoughts while getting off? I have been having a hard time mentally. My anxiety is also terrible. I am very emotional because I have no clue where any of these thoughts are coming from. Well, I hope to hear some feedback. Also, how long has it taken for this dreadful pill to get out of your system? I am so happy I found this site. Thanks again!

The number for Yasmin is 888-237-5394. Ladies, I have already called once to tell them about my horrible experience! Please call and let them know so we can stop other girls from having the same problems as us!!! I would also mention to them about the site. They need to know this needs to me taken off the market, its really screwing peoples lives up!

First of all, thank God I found this web site. I have been on Yasmin since July of 2004 because my doctor thought it would have less side effects. The second month was rough, but then it seemed better for a couple of months. The past three months have been steadily getting worse. I made an appointment with a counselor, because I thought I was losing my mind. I was anxious and worried constantly about everything, couldn't focus on work, couldn't sleep through the night because my mind was going in circles. I obsessed over crazy things like why my boyfriend didn't call when I thought he should and then worried and questioned everything to the point that I made him have second thoughts about us. Who would want to make a lifetime commitment to someone that is such a mess. I had lots of headaches and fatigue too. The really scary part is that it came on so gradually that I didn't even realize it could be the pill until this month when I took the first pill in the pack and had a horrible day. I was anxious and couldn't turn my brain off. I decided to look into things and found this site. I just wish I had found it months ago. Hopefully I can repair the damage done to my relationship and help someone else avoid the same horrible experience. I have been off of Yasmin for one week now, and can't believe the difference. I am not completely back, but at least I feel sane and was able to enjoy the weekend with my boyfriend instead of obsessing about what could be wrong. Beware, the first few days are rough. Night sweats and sleeplessness get bad, but now I am sleeping again. I have never written to anything like this, but it helped me so much to see that it wasn't me, I had to do the same for someone else.

I would like to start off saying that I have been on Yasmin for almost a month. I know it isn't very long, but I have seen women posting who have symptoms after only days of being on it. When I first started them a few weeks ago, I did have some nausea, and mild cramping, but it seemed to subside after about the first week. Other than that I haven't had any side effects. I think this just goes to show that everyone is different, and these pills interact differently within each person's system. I was prescribed Yasmin for birth control and debilitating PMS symptoms, and I hope they continue to work well with my system. I was hesitant at first about using any hormonal methods of treatment, but my OB/GYN explained to me that most women who have bad PMS have a hormonal imbalance, and BCP are a good option because they override your bodies natural hormone production, by supplying a constant amount at regular intervals. (So you posters who say you don't want to put extra hormones into your bodies, you really aren't, because your body stops producing it's normal amout to compensate for the pills.) So if you are having a horrible experience using these pills, then I agree you should seek an alternate brand or birth control method, but for all potential users of this brand, it isn't fair to say it is a horrible, awful, dangerous pill for everyone, because it may just be right for some of us. Try to keep an open mind.

I found this website and it was truly a God send. I have been taking Yasmin for over a year and in that year I have gradually expeienced the following: horrible horrible anxiety (times I couldn't leave the house), numerous panic attacks, nausea, stomachaches (so bad I was told I had IBS but now I wonder), headaches, dizziness, heavy clumpy periods, irritiability, moodiness, shaking hands and overall depression. I honestly thought I was losing my mind. I was a social, happy go lucky person with NO medical problems before I started taking Yasmin. I have a great job, great group of friends & family, fantastic boyfriend and all around happy life and there were times that I would rather sleep the day away than spend time with any of them.
I came across this website and I cried b/c I came to realize that everything that was happening to me could be cause by this pill. I immediately called to make an appt. with my doctor. She told me to finish out my last pack and we'd wait and see how I felt (meanwhile I had to also take anti-anxiety pills b/c it had gotten so bad) I took my last pill 5 days ago and I feel better - I am about to get my period though so next week is my true test of whether or not this pill caused all the terrible feelings I have had over the past year.
I will definitley post an update but I wanted to post my story b/c I found everyone else's expeiences so comforting - knowing that I was not alone and it wasn't just a coincidence that some people on the same pill had the same side effects. GO SEE YOUR DOCTOR if it is unbearable - I am taking a break from any hormones for a while. This was such a horrible experience for me...
Hugs to everyone who is feeling any of the terrible side effects - you are not alone!!

I foundthis website and it was truly a God send. I have been taking Yasmin for over a year and in that year I have gradually expeienced the following: horrible horrible anxiety (times I couldn't leave the house), numerous panic attacks, nausea, stomachaches (so bad I was told I had IBS but now I wonder), headaches, dizziness, heavy clumpy periods, irritiability, moodiness, shaking hands and over depression. I honestly thought I was losing my mind. I came across this website and I cried b/c I came to realize that everything that was happening to me could be cause by this pill. I immediately called to make an appt. with my doctor. She told me to finish out my last pack and we'd wait and see how I felt (meanwhile I had to also take anti-anxiety pills b/c it had gotten so bad) I took my last pill Saturday and I feel better - I am about to get my period though so next week is my true test of whether or not this pill caused all the terrible feelings I have had over the past year. I will definitley post an update but I wanted to post my story b/c I found everyone else's expeiences so comforting - knowing that I was not alone and it wasn't just a coincidence that people on the same pill had the same side effects. GO SEE YOUR DOCTOR if it is unbearable - I am taking a break from any hormones for a while. This was such a horrible experience for me...

My skin became terrible with this pill. I have never taken the pill before and have always had clear skin however with yasmin I broke out in some wierd excema around my eye area. Also, extreme breast tenderness, moodiness, and generally not feeling myself. I have also been spotting for 21 days straight. This was a horrible experience and thank god its over now. Im never taking this pill again.