Panic attacks and depression from YASMIN birth control pills

I would just like to give an update further to my post on 29/04/09.

I stopped taking Yasmin after finishing a pack at the end of November 2009 and can honestly say that I do feel so much better for it. I wasn't sure how soon I would see an improvement if it was in fact the cause of my depressive moods, panic attacks etc, but it wasn't too long (perhaps a couple of weeks) before I started to feel like my old self again.

When I was on Yasmin I had the almost constant feeling of impending doom and like I had nothing to feel happy about, but now it is like I have been set free from all that and generally have a more positive outlook on life. Obviously things like work still make me stressed at times, but it doesn't bring me down so hard anymore, and now I feel like I can really look forward to things that are coming up in the year, unlike last year when I felt down even though my wedding was just around the corner! My sense of humour has returned and I finally feel like I have the power to be happy.

Yasmin also totally killed my sex drive, which obviously then completely defeated the object of even being on the pill! But now I definitely do feel like my sex drive has had a boost. My partner didn't seem too keen for me to come off the pill but nonetheless said it was up to me and respected my decision. We have been using condoms since and so far so good! I didn't know how long it would take for my body to get back to normal and for me to have a normal period, but my last period on Yasmin was 24/11/09 (I think) and I have come on today, 08/01/10, so just over six weeks for me.

I would urge anyone on Yasmin who is having any feelings of depression and anxiety to finish the pack you're on and then have a break, whether temporary or permanently. Personally I can't see me ever taking Yasmin or any other form of contraceptive pill again, because the benefits for me have been so evident, but as well as my state of mind being better it is no doubt also beneficial to give your body a break generally if you've been on the pill a good few years like I was.

I wish anyone experiencing problems the best of luck.

long winded, but my first time writing about it... just need to vent :/

I am currently taking Yasmin and this is round 4. I don't really recall rounds 1 or 2 being so awful, but my last run (ending aprox 3mo ago, lasted 5 months and it was just as terrible as when I was taking the shot Depo. My aunt was hooking me up with free pills, since she was taking a break (mind you, this is the aunt that the whole family called crazy, gee wonder why *cough cough Yasmin*). I took them for 5mo (that being round 3), but moved out of state and couldn't get the hook up anymore. A family friend wrote me a script for Yaz 3mo ago and I felt way better emotionally. I took Yaz for 2mo and stopped because 1. The doc was concerned about the blood clot studies and 2. my second pack of Yaz gave me a month-long period. I knew Yaz was too light anyway so he wrote the new script out for Yasmin instead (round 4). Big mistake.

This is my second week on Yasmin. Like I said, first couple times I was on it (average 6mo's), I really can't remember bad reactions because I was diagnosed with anxiety disoreder when I was a teenager. Whatever symptoms I was having at the 1st or 2nd time around, I must have just chalked it up there with anxiety... When my aunt hooked me up with her pills, I noticed two drastic changes - 1. she was becoming much more normal, calm, cool, collected and 2. I was becoming a monster. I disregarded my insanity, however, since I was in the process of quitting my job and moving out to state to move in with my bf. I left an awesome job, left my fam and friends, had to join the massive pool of jobseekers, and on top of it all I was moving in with a bf for the first time. Naturally, I figured that all my symptoms of anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, crying at the stupid things on tv, not wanting to go out and make new friends, NOOO motivation to workout, look for a job, even keep in touch with people back home... list goes on... I figured all that was due to the move and the stress of it all.

I have been dealing with stress my whole life and in the years that I stopped taking Yasmin, I never once had a panic attack, I felt like I had control. My first month living with my bf (about 4 months into Yasmin, round 3) I had 2 panic attacks. We almost broke up and I felt worthless, not because of him, but because I felt weak and like I had no control over my emtions. I felt like a crazy person - put me on a ferry to Shutter Island. I took one more free pack of Yasmin, that's all I had left from my aunt and soon switched to Yaz.

Yaz still made me feel a bit emotional, but there was a noticeable change. My friends back home said they could notice a happier voice, my bf and I weren't fighting, I didn't feel so jittery, nightmares went away, and I started dancing around to house music again. Then the spotting came, and that doc wanted me to get off Yaz.

So here I am at week 2 (round 4)... I am shaking, no reason. I am emotional as all hell. Workout? Ha! I can't even focus on a book. This evening my bf and got into a huge fight, one of 1000 in the last 2 weeks. My irrational emotions want to say it's because he is a jerk and I am right and birth control isn't controlling my brain, just my uterus. But let's be honest... I know what I felt last time, and I know what I feel now. I'm totally settled in to our apartment and the new city, yet I am feeling the same blues and jitters as I did 4 months ago.

One of the posts said she adopted animals and wanted to give them back, which was highly unlike her true self. I can totally relate. I just got 2 kittens and they are awesome beyond words. They have been here for almost 3 weeks, and my day 2 with them was so sad, because I felt like I could not give them a happy home. This is the worst feeling in the world.

I am borderline wanting to get off bc altogether, but getting preggers doesn't sound like fun right now. I'm so done with having a cloudy head, no motivation, lack of self-esteem, depression, anxiety, sheer bitchiness (I could be on reality tv right now), and this awful emotional rollercoaster. I miss being a happy-go-lucky girl and taking things light heartedly. Don't know what pill or form of bc to go on next, but as soon as I get my period and finish this pack, I am done with Yasmin and similar pills for good.

I'll update my post in a month and report changes if I see any. Hopefully they will be for the better. Thank you girls and any annoyed boyfriends for posting on here, it really helps a crazy girl feel a little better, lol. Best of luck to all!

ps Can they just come out with male birth control already? I think it is a conspiracy lead by men to avoid having to go through all this bs and realize we're not crazy, it's just the pills we take that make us crazy.

I am actually so happy that I found this forum online.
I am 20 years old and have been taking Yasmine since I was 15.

I have been taking Yasmin birth control for almost 6 years now and I haven't really felt any of the side effects until recently. I at one point switched my birth control to Alesse because Yasmin was not helping with my cramps during my period. When I switched to that I instantly became very suicidal and depressed. That was about 4 years ago.

I have been feeling perfectly fine until about 2 months ago. I have found myself crying every night whether it be about something that is actually upsetting me or something that I shouldn't even be crying about. I find myself making the smallest things into the biggest problems. I constantly feel that I am worthless and that I don't even want to be on this earth. Although I get these rush of emotions which can last a few hours I will completely switch moods if a positive thing occurs.

Until recently I didn't think anything of it. I thought I was just being a stpid girl, constantly crying over boys and whatnot. Or even feeling that because I recently graduated college that the thought of having to hop into reality could have had an impact on it.

It wasn't until this past Friday night when I was drinking heavily and came home to my mother and just started crying and getting very suicidal in front of her that I realized maybe there is something wrong with me? Maybe I do need to seek help for depression.

Tonight it happened again. I was sitting here listening to a slow song and all of a sudden I just started crying. I decided enough was enough and that I would look online to see what the symptoms for depression were. I then realized that I may have Atypical Depression. I will be very upset and confused if one negative thing happens, but if a positive thing happens it's a complete switch of mood and I am happy and it was like i was never upset to begin with. Then when reading the symptoms of depression I read somewhere that your birth control can have an effect on it and so I figured well hey let's look up anything on Yasmine and see if this has happened to other people.

To my much surprise many differen forums and internet pages popped up about Yasmine. This one was by far the best because I got to see that there are other people out there who are going through what I'm going through. I'm not the only one going through this. I have decided that it is time to make a doctors appointment to get myself checked out for depression and I am almost 100% sure that I will be switching my birth control.

I'd like to say thank you to all of you who wrote on this forum wall, you may have just helped me save my life and get me back to where I should be.

It is comforting to know that I am not the only one who has dealt with issues as a result of Yasmin.

I am 21 years old, and I started taking Yasmin at 18 (June 2008). I am currently switching to Alesse because of my knowledge of the current lawsuit against Yaz and Yasmin in Canada... along with the accompanying side effects that I have experienced.

When I first starting taking the pill I didn't really notice any changes at first. After a few packs I noticed my skin was clearer, my cramps subsided, and I was feeling great (no weight gain either). Then I started getting irrational and paranoid... got upset with my boyfriend for no reason, etc. I also started feeling more tired and bored, and experience nausea on a regular basis (luckily no vomiting).

This continued for about two years. Then it got worse: I blanked out a few times (very lightheaded, vision fades, blackness, on the floor, and a flood of emotions to follow). I experienced severe migraines (no auras), numbness in my back, neck stiffness, extreme tiredness, boredom, anxiety (anxious about work, school, life), lack of concentration, lack of interest, lack of motivation, increased laziness, increased moodiness (wanting to cry all the time for no reason), and lack of appetite, and occasional spotting.

These symptoms are still occurring (specifically the anxiety depression symptoms), as I still have about 7 pills left in my current Yasmin pack, but I look forward to trying Alesse (generic Aviane) (has anyone else tried it? Specifically, how it has affected depression and anxiety?). I feel like I am going crazy! I am glad I made a step in the right direction by visiting a counsellor at the university (free). He is the one who told me about the controversy around Yaz right now and recommended Alesse. I hope it works! I am sick and tired of being sick and tired.

Thanks

So glad I found this thread , the last 4 months on Yasmin and before that Yas to regulate my periods and stop breakthrough bleeding and I have been severly anxious and depressed just before each period then in the last three months completely irrational and very nasty to my boyfriend, accusations, breakups, abusive behaviour.  I figured the link to Yasmin when I spoke to friends with the same reactions.  Stupidly I had forgotten that the pill has had this effect on me before.  Just stopped taking it and now looking to get a Mirena put in instead - I hope I get back to normal soon - my relationship however is probably over as he couldn't cope with my mood swings :(

I totally hate Jasmin.  I started around 2 months ago and tomorrow is my last pill of the second pack.  I started to feel very down and not myself at all. I have even felt paranoia, making irrational decisions, feeling depressed and totally down, thinking that life is not worth the effort.  I knew something was not right. But now that I tie the knots I realise that it all started with Jasmin.  I have made people very angry at me because of my irrational emotions lately and my change of mood....  I will stop this pill right now, it is ruining my life, for real and not sure how to explain to those around me the cause of my behaviour.  I feel soo stupid!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!......  

I have just started taking Yasmin a fortnight back. Right from the first couple of days I have been feeling extremely wretched. I already have a history of depression and anxiety but have been considerably in charge over the past 3 years. However after these pills I have suddenly been hit really hard. Severe depression, numbness, complete lack of interest in things, anxiety attacks, worrying, dull body ache, listlessness and weakness have taken a heavy toll on me. The doctor constantly denies that it's because of these pills. I'm feeling very frustrated. Its only through these forums that i realised that the doc might not be true. 

MY GF just took her life shortly after they put her on this pill for PCOS. This pill is the devil. IF YOU START GETTING EMOTIONAL OR DEPRESSED GET OFF THIS PILL OR ANY HORMONE PILL.

I agree, yasmin makes me feel depressed beyond belief and I feel like im genuinely loosing my mind. I spend the days on my own crying, feeling angry, hopeless like my life has no meaning and completely ignoring all the things i have to do for uni, such as writing essays and revising for exams. I go into a self destruct mode like no other. Yasmin is meant to be the best for your skin and at the age of 20 im fed up of having problem skin - i still get acne - but it is NOT WORTH  THESE HORRIFIC SIDE EFFECTS. I have never felt so down in all my life. Stopping taking it as of now. Hopefully i can feel like my old self again soon. NEVER going back to yasmin again.

I've only been on Yasmin for about 8 months but I do not like it. My dr originally prescribed it because I have issues with adult acne and I was taking the bc pill anyway so she thought this would work for me. Well, it definitely cleared up my skin but it also made me very depressed. I didn't know it at first except that I noticed that I had just lost interest in everything since I started taking it. I could care less about sex, work, hobbies. I just wanted to stay home in bed all day if possible. It was really weird because I've always been someone that loves to go out with my husband and now I just had no interest at all. Now that I've read this thread, I am thinking that it's the Yasmin. I'm going off it today and hopefully things improve.

I am so confused and upset.  I read all of your comments and I am convinced that this is exactly what is happening to me.  No Dr.  not my GP, Gynae or Psychologist believes me so I almost decided to just accept that I should be on anti-depressants.  I have several side-effects from what I believe is due to Yasmin.  I have been taking it for little more than a year now.  I once had very thick hair, but I pick up bunches of hair daily.  My eyes are so dry that it is almost unbearable to wear my contact lenses that I have been wearing for 14 years.  I have severe lower back pain, which no one can explain.  The mood swings however are the worst.  I have a history of anxiety due to PTSD two years ago, but I never in my life experienced what I am experiencing now.  I get so scared, have severe panic attacks or get into a rage of aggression due to the smallest upsets.  My bloodpressure during these fits get up to 157/110.  During these times I usually hurt myself (hitting my hand against the wall, etc) and I'm not even fully aware of it, because I am so angry.  I also had such severe muscle cramps that I would cry because it wouldn't stop for almost half an hour.  Rediculous.  I cry over the smallest things and became very obsessive and paranoid.  I am tired almost all the time.  I went of the contraceptives 2 days ago and I'm trying to avoid taking anti-depressants.  I just pray that everything will return to normal soon, since it seems like if you have a psychiatric history everyone just thinks you are crazy.  Best of luck to all you women out there

 

Wow, thank you for this post, I completely relate to it and was wondering whether it was me just going crazy or if Yasmin (only thing I've changed recently) could be making me like this. I definitely got a little bit low towards my period but since taking Yasmin, I argue with my Boyfriend all the time, feel ugly and have absolutely no self confidence. Going to stop immediately. Thanks so much for your post, it has seriously helped. Good luck :)

I have been on Yasmin for under a week and the mood swings i am getting is unbelievable. I was prescribed it for my acne, however i cannot believe how moody iv become. Every little thing is starting to piss me off and i feel so lonely as well :(

This usually evens out for people--in fact most everyone notices weird mood swings when they start any hormonal bc--so it might be worth it to try to focus on something else and wait it out but obviously, if it gets so bad that you're suicidal or persists for more than a few months you should switch to a different bc.

Keep in mind, you are better off switching DIRECTLY to a different birth control pill if you're planning on staying on hormonal contraception because otherwise your hormones will be even more negatively affected (worse mood swings and depression) if you stop birth control and then wait awhile to start it again, as it's not good to **** with your hormones like that.

To understand why this is you have to understand that birth control stops your body from making its own estrogen and progesterone and instead relies on the synthetic hormones in the Pill. When you stop the pill you suddenly have no estrogen and progesterone coming in anymore and your body and peace of mind suffers for it and struggles to start making its own hormones again. It takes a while to get steady but if you're just planning on going on a different pill then do yourself a favor and don't wait (it does NOT give your body a "break" to go off and on b-control every few months!).

I absolutely DISAGREE with you. The problem lies not in iine particular brand of pill, but in EVERY SINGLE TYPE of hormonal birth control, be it pill, ring, patches, IUD. It's pointless changing brand of pill in the hope of finding one that your poor body can tolerate, because all hormonal birth control is POISONOUS for the body.

I HIGHLY advice every woman who experience negative effects from HBC to stop it immediately and NEVER again to take it. I've been studying the effects of hormonal birth control on women for many months now and I can assure you that they are DISASTROUS on the body.

So, stop it, throw the packet as far away as possible and label it "poison" in your mind. Also, do not expct the medical community (i. e. your doctor) to aknowleddge the dangerousness of the pill: they are paid to sell the pill and would rather swallow three bottles of vinegar than admit that the pill is a poison.