YASMIN BCP side effects like panic attacks and depression

hi guys,

after reading all your comments i wanted to share my Yasmin story/nightmare.

i always took alesse, but I moved from canada to australia and when i ran out of my alesse i went to the doctor. he had never heard of the brand name alesse and said i'll prescribe you yasmin.

i don't know why i didn't argue more or ask more questions. i started taking yasmin just over 2 months ago. it started with what i thought were normal switching-over symptoms like nausea, extreme fatigue, and breast tenderness. then, the bloating and weight gain just got out of control. i was exercising more and eating healthier, yet i kept gaining weight. the first week of every new pack is the worst part, i am extremely sad, depressed yet almost numb like i just don't care...i am SO not that person!

the final straw was this week, i feel as though my stomach is going to explode from the painful gas and almost IBS-like symptoms.

i HATE this pill and i feel like it has completely changed me, like no other pill has ever done. i stopped taking it just today and i want to know when will i feel better?

Wow, I'm really surprised to read your experiences.

I'm on Yazmin, but I've not experienced any of these symptoms. maybe a little nausea and a headache here and there, but other than that, no problems at all! :$

i honestly hope you all can find a pill that works for you better than this one did.

Reading all of your comments helps me to finally not feel crazy! I've been at a loss as to what is happening to body. My OBGYN switched me to Yasmin 3 months ago and my life has fallen apart. Shortly after beginning Yasmin, I began to feel depressed, anxious, and irritable. My migraines (which had been under control) returned at a rate of 4-5 a week. I had trouble sleeping, snapped at loved ones, felt ineffective at work and was generally miserable. I never made the connection that it was the Yasmin! I finally refilled an old birth control prescription this month out of desparation. Hopefully things will improve soon:)

I was having a very long period so the physician's assistant (my doctor was not available) prescribed Yasmin. She told me to take 2 for the first day. I did and that very night I had a panic attack. Although at the time I thought I didn't know it was a panic attack. I thought it was a heart problem because I was having heart palpitations, and i felt like i couldn't breathe. That was the worst feeling ever. I figured it was because I had taken 2 of the pills at one time but the same thing happened when I took just 1. Yasmin really messed up my emotional state. I had panic attacks for 2 months. I still have them a year later, but they are once in a blue moon and not at all as bad as they used to be. I also often have an unsettling feeling. Thanks to 5htp and knowing that I can't actually die from a panic attack, I am doing much better. Needless to say I will never take Yasmin again or take a ridiculous dosage of any medicine.

Wow... I'm so grateful I found this forum (as well as many others along the way) but this is incredible. I'm only 19 years old, and Yasmin is my fourth BC pill I've taken in a period of only two and a half years. I take the pill to control my severe anemia, but it seemed like after a year or so my body would un-adjust itself from the BC pill I was on and then I'd end up having to switch to something else. I just started Yasmin about a month ago... and it is ruining my life.

Since beginning Yasmin, I have AWFUL stomach pain, and was just diagnosed with IBS this past week, when before Yasmin, I was totally fine and healthy. I'm not myself anymore, I scream and throw temper tantrums at my BF for the dumbest things, and it has made me more anxious than I ever used to be. I'm in the last week of the fall semester at college, and going through this anxiety, IBS trouble, and OH not to mention 2 periods back to back, I'm even more scared about doing well in school!

So, I think I'm going back to EstroStep, the original pill I was on in the first place. It gave me NO problems! No anxiety, no nausea, no weight gain (I actually lost weight on it) and no cramps! Imagine that.

Sincerely,
Erica

When I found this website, I felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. I've been taking Yasmin for two months now and in the beginning loved it! No bloating, skin cleared up, bigger boobs-yay. Then, in my third week of the second month I totally changed. I had severe anxiety, very irrational fears that I normally wouldn't be thinking about, constant over-analyzing, panicky feeling, EVERYTHING associated with anxiety. Then when I wasn't as anxious, I was feeling depressed because I didn't know why I was feeling this way or how to get back to "normal". I'm 24 years old, engaged, very positive and outgoing - I am a worry-wort - but never to this extreme. I knew this was not me. Finally after about a week of suffering from this and two break-down phone calls to my best friend and mom, I googled "YAthe same things -- they had irrational feaSMIN anxiety" and I found not only this website, but tons others with women saying rs, anxiety, nervousness, they didn't feel like "themselves." selas whatever as that sounds, that's exactly how you feel - you just can't feel like your normal self! It's been a few days off the pill, and each day gets better. I do still feel a little nervous in the morning when I get up, but by the end of the day, I feel a lot more like myself then I did last week! Now that I look back on the past 2 months, I noticed I was suffering from these side effect from the first month-just not to the extreme-nervouseness, loss of appetite(from the anxiety I was getting from being nervous), moodiness, LOSS of sex drive. I just can't wait for these synthetic hormones to get out of my system.
Thanks to everyone who posted a message on here! I don't know what I would have done if I had to take e!! ven just one more day of those feelings without knowing where they were coming from!!You can't live life feeling like that. I'm never taking birth control pills again! I'm scarred!

Like many others, I am so glad that I found this site. After becoming really depressed, having anxiety attacks, and being extremely moody, I wasn't sure what was going on. I felt like I was losing control of my emotions. Honestly the way I felt was worse then when my Mom died and that was one of the most horrible experiences of my life.

This drug made me feel terrible!

The reason that I initially did not think that it was Yasmin is because my symptoms didn't start right away but once they did start they got worse and worse.

I decided to stop Yasmin and I feel wonderful. I could tell a difference after just 2 weeks of being off of it...though I have been told that it can take up to 2 months to get it completely out of your system. It has been a little over a month for me and I finally feel like I am in control of how I feel again.

I don't know if there are withdrawal symptoms but my appetite has definitely increased and I feel hungry all the time. I have never experienced this before and I hope it goes away.

My Dr is recommending an IUD for me. Check with your Dr. it may be a good fit for you.

I am also a suffer of depression. Right now im 20 but i start taking Yasmin at 16 for my menstrual disorder. in the bringing of my teen years i suffer some emotional distress which seemed moral and when turned 16 things headed for the worst.

I started having panic attacks, had constant thoughts of suicide (whicht i evenually tried with no success which was God), I become a "dark child" as it's know, which is basically a teen who dresses like a goth with constant devient and self destructive thoughts.

I started self mutilating by digging my nails in to my forearms repeated tearing my skin (which i still have scars). I cried uncontrolably with stopping and i had many other problems

While in highschool a former boyfriend (who i was in the process of getting back with) was killed in the Richmond Flood and i jumped into an abusive relationship. I also developed an eating disorder

Recently, things have gotten much worse as far as my mental health. I've been feeling like im loosing control of emotions life school relationships everything. My fiancee and I have just postponed out wedding because of serious issues we were having with each other. Which now i believe i know way i was acting as I was.

For 4 years i've chalked my mental issue up to a bad family history of mental disease, my former abusive relationship, and my loose of a former loved one. However, its been to the point that I couldn't take it.

I attend VT so we have a very good free counseling center. Last night I decided that I was going to check my self in (something that would have been done a long time ago) I went on to the website to find out what I needed to do and there was a screening test to see if symptoms were compatible. Needless to say I was a perfect match for depression. The site then instructed to check medicates before coming in.

So i started checking. and there is was Yasmin caused depression. I'm hoping that stopping it will fix my issues. Since they are long standing I'm sure it will be tough to break through. However, after a month of being off of the pill I am going to visit my doctor and if symptoms aren't improving or haven't improved enough I am going to go back on my medication that I was on for a short period as a teen and then I'm going to go to counseling which I should have done a long time ago.

Forums like these help. Not only do you find information but you find people that you can relate to. That's how I found out what could be causing my problem and I think these forums have literary saved my life. So thanks to everyone who posts. You never know who you're helping

I stopped taking Yasmin about 4 weeks ago after finding this site and tons others filled with women getting the same horrible side effects I was getting. Thank God for the internet!!!! Around the third week of my second month I experienced extreme anxiety and panic attacks, paranoia (especially in social situation) loss of appetite, heart palpitations, occasional dizziness, my vision would be extremely blurry at times. I've never felt so out of control in my life. I'm 24, engaged, recently graduated college, an eternal optimist-people tease me for being so bubbly. I have everything in the world to be happy for. I admit, I can be a worry-wort at times, but when I started to feel this way, I knew something was wrong. I just couldn't snap myself out of it. It was the worst feeling I've ever felt. Anyways, after all of the research, I stopped taking the pill. Like I said, it's been about 4 weeks and I've been feeling a lot better. I do have occasional anxiety, but I can level with myself and control it. About two days ago, it started getting worse-not by all means as bad as when I was on the pill, but I got scared. I don't know if I'm just paranoid. I haven't gotten my period since I got off the pill, though my period was two weeks long in my months on the pill -ugh! I know I'm not pregnant - took a test. Has anyone experienced this after coming off Yasmin?? I'm guessing my hormones are just going crazy right now. I regret ever taking this pill. 2008 has definitely gotten off to a ROUGH start because of it. I just hope I can feel normal again.

Yasmin is the absolute worst!!!! I cant stress that enough. I had been on Yasmin for 2 years and my Dr. switched me to Femcon. I cant even explain how bad it was. Depression, mood swings, headaches, anxiety.......... And now after two years I finally felt like myself again. Yasmin gave me crazy head ached, anxiety, and intense emotional moods swings for no reason. My friends though I was loosing it.

Now Ive been on Femcon for 6 months and its amazing. Theres no weight gain, my skin looks totally amazing and clear, plus I didn't experience any breakthrough bleeding.

In general, you going to want to stick to monophonic pills not triphasic (ortho tricyclen triphasil). The monophonic pill lead to less breakthrough bleeding and estrogenic side effects like mood swing and breast tenderness.

I have also heard its the best for womans with PSOC and its side effects.


I think Femcon is the miracle pill! Plus my breast grew one full cup size with no weight gain. : ) Im telling you its a miracle and I really feel like myself again, happy and upbeat! Good bye depressive yasmin hello HAPPY FEMCON!!

:D :) :D

I will repost this so other woman can read about better options!

I have been on Yaz for only five days and have had serious anxiety everyday, I was hoping this was just a temporary side effect but now after reading other feedback about this pill I"m thinking I should stop taking it. I'm nervous now about trying anything else.

Okay I just want to do a little post for some of us who have had good experiences - I began my birth control experience 7 years ago with ortho-tri-cyclen. I went CRAZY. Sobbing hystarics, boobs went from a B to a D, weight gain, etc. So my Dr. prescriped Yasmin.

I have been on Yasmin for almost 6 years and have NEVER had ANY significant problems. I LOVE it! (I know message boards are usually full of negative comments, so I just wanted to post something positive for those that are scared!) The only things I can say I had are: some vaginal dryness, and I never really took off the weight that I gained with the Ortho.

I am going off of the pill today. I am getting the Paragard IUD next week. This is not because I am unhappy with Yasmin, but because I think 7 years of taking hormones is long enough. Looking forward to losing some of this weight!!

All in all, what it comes down to is that you just have to take the plunge and see for yourself. Unfortunately since every body is different, reading other people's experiences won't tell you how YOU will feel.

I have taken birth control off and on for 4 years. I have also struggled with serious headaches and anxiety/depression. Recently, when I started taking Yasmin to treat endometriosis, these side effects slowly got worse until they reached the point where I couldn't go to work, I didn't want to get out of bed, my headaches were once a day for 2-6 hours. I wasn't myself. I started to think back and made the connection between birth control and these symptoms. I quit taking the pill entirely and within 3 weeks its as though I'm a different person... I feel fantastic. My gynecologist says it sounds like I was "intolerant" to the pill. I am not saying there is anything wrong with Yasmin, simply that I wasn't aware (as many women aren't) that not all women can handle birth control or any type of hormonal manipulation. I had NO idea that such a common and seemingly mild medication could change your body like that. Always second guess and understand that pharmaceuticals are no joke!

I have been on Yasmin for 7 years and was like a commercial for it. I LOVED it! Then, three weeks ago I was suddenly hit with a panic/anxiety attack. I have never had this experience before and I am 32. I am a stable, level-headed woman and couldn't understand why this happened to me. Then, the chest tightness and heart palpitations wouldn't go away. I felt a "sinking" feeling, naseaus, crying, the whole works. My family was freaking out because this was so "not me". Well, after all my Dr tests came back great I decided to go on my sugar pills early to try and see if that would help me. Wouldn't you know I was feeling better 72 hours later! I never suspected Yasmin because I had been on it so long without problems. My symptoms started 72 hours after starting a new pack and ended 72 hours after stopping that pack. Coincidence? I don't think so. Then, I found this site and was blown away by how many people this has happened to. I'm not 100% myself yet, I'm still a little scared, I think, that those horrible feelings will come back but I'm getting better each day. I'm actually considering seeing a counselor about it because it was so tramatic an experience.

I started taking yasmin 7 weeks ago and have been almost constantly nauseous since (only three nausea-free days in a row), plus my migraines have been weekly since then. Incredibly anxiety, as well, and deepening depression for no reason that I can identify. I'm being treated for clinical depression, so the depression and anxiety are a problem, no less the loss of productivity from the nausea and headaches. I can't even begin to imagine how else this is affecting me. Certainly my libido's gone for a loop, and the difference in my sexuality has a quite severe effect. The main reason I suspect yasmin for all this is because I had a very severe negative reaction to the patch when I tried that for all of ten days - cramps, severe mood swings, complete irrationality. So I wonder if it's likely that I may not react well to any hormonal contraceptive?