Period pain symptoms and conditions

I am 34 and have never had children. Mirena was my only option. I have always had problems with my periods. They are very regular (28 day cycle) but extremely heavy, I always have clots, a lot of pain and I also have migraines just before or after my period.

My doctor told me that oral contraceptives would not work for me as the estrogen would cause more headaches (this is true I have tried all of them) and that Mirena would work well.

I had it fitted 4 weeks ago and I'm due for my first check-up on the 15th of December. So far it hasn't changed a thing. The insertion was uncomfortable but not as painful as I expected. I had major cramps afterwards but 2 pain killers helped. A week after insertion I got my period which lasted 5 days and I experienced more pain than I ever had before. Since the period stopped I have been spotting every single day and my next period is due on the 16th of December. I am already experiencing stomach cramps and had a migraine which I had to get medication for yesterday.

So far I'm not impressed with Mirena but its only been 4 weeks so I dont know whether things might improve. I'll give it 6 months and if nothing has changed I will have it removed. At least then I wont have to constant spotting! I'll just have to live with the migraines and period pain like I did before!

I have quite a few friends who have Mirena and they are all very happy with it so I guess you have to give it a try.

Ive been on Yasmin for 3 months by which time it shouldve already absorbed in my system. Im 17 and the other day after 3 months of feeling ok but being diagnosed with mild depression and a hormonal imbalance; feeling ok but a little skirmish and over the past week, I got into the shower and nearly passed out twice. This was unusual for me because ive never fainted before and Ive never been dizzy. I got half dressed on the ground opened up the bathroom door and yelled out to mum. If you've ever seen a corpse's face, that's what mine looked like. I wanted to cry coz i was so scared but no tears came out. My legs felt weak and i wanted to throw up and i had a huge headache that lasted probably two-three days; i had severe abdominal/period pain and I thought I was going to die. On top of that I had to miss the day off school and mum had to take me to the doctors. The doctor told me that it was all just to do with Yasmin so she put me on a new pill called Levlen ED. I was so scared and i wouldn't wish this on anyone. If it happens again to me i may have to see a gynecologist. Please if there is anyone out there that has had the similar thing can you please let me know? xx L.

Hi all,

I had my mirena out on September 11th, so almost a month ago! I persevered with it for almost three years but I had a hideous time with it: insertion was the worst pain ever; it felt like I had constant period pain; my periods never got any lighter but got longer - in fact for the past 12 months I had two periods a month. I had two scans to check it was in position, which is was (which is something to be thankful for)

I got forgetful, I was so tired which is unheard of, I had night sweats - convinced myself that at 31 I was having an early menopause! And the weight gain, wow. I have been swimming almost every day since Jan and not a single bit of weight loss, despite a very healthy diet.

Having it taken out was pretty uneventful. Ten seconds and it had gone. The bloating seemed to go within a few days, I wasn't tired, this could be psychological but I just knew I felt better!

In just over three weeks I lost 10lbs. Now of course this could be due to more exercise I have been doing, due to having more energy, but considering how much I was doing from January with no effect, it makes you think.

I know three or four friends who have it and LOVE it, guess I am one of the unlucky ones. The doc did ask (who was fine about taking it out) 'would you like another one?' No thank you!

Wow! I can't believe how many of us suffers from the pill from hell, Yasmin. I stopped taking it September 17 after 5 years and I'm worried as hell as to what's going to happen to my body now. But first things first. I seem to have gotten pretty much every side effect in the book.

About a month after starting it I got gastroparesis- paralyzed stomach- and I also became lactose-intolerant after 30 years of drinking a lot of milk. Go figure! I get a huge bloated belly as soon as I drink a little water even now. I have gained about 6 lbs that I can't shake no matter how much I work out and that has never been a problem before.

I had migraines from hell and headaches nearly every day the last few years.

I got panic attacks and was very nervous, had anxiety and it felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest. And that is SO NOT me or anybody in my family. And I know it was the pill cuz I had no reason to feel that way.

I had blurry vision at times. Fainted once in the mall for no apparent reason, I had never fainted before in my life.

I had no interest in my own life or in doing anything whether that was working, going to school, exercising, going out with friends, traveling, whatever it was I was not interested. Again, so not me. I could have died and I wouldn't have cared. I could have gotten a Ferrari and I wouldn't have cared.

I could sleep 10 hours a night, take 1-2 hour naps in the afternoon and go to sleep again at 10 pm, no problem. And the nightmares! Holy crap. Awful dreams about plane crashes, robberies and murderers EVERY night. Thankfully they seem to have disappeared now.

I have high cholesterol, through the roof actually! -no family history there either- and blood pressure is a little high but not too bad. My thyroid was a little elevated last time and the doctor thought it was due to Yasmin.

I snap at everybody and think that I don't love my husband when I actually do love him a lot. He has put up with me being so unbelievably bitchy for 5 year. Bless his soul!

Since I started Yasmin we have had sex about 1-3 times a year. I'm NOT kidding. I haven't wanted anything to do with sex.

I have heart palpitations at times. Shortness of breath just walking up the stairs in my house.

Dry skin no matter what cream I use. Major hair loss.

I went off Yasmin once before and didn't get my period back for over 6 months so I just started taking it again like an idiot cuz I wasn't planning to have kids then anyway.

I was never happy, never sad. Mostly mad or irritated, no problems there.

What else? How many hours do you girls have to read my post? ;-)

To sum it up. Yasmin has destroyed my life for the past 5 years but I was to blind and scared to get pregnant before that I just didn't care. And not caring about my own health was surely caused by that rotten pill too.

What can I expect now that I'm off the pill since 2 weeks? How long before the hormones are gone from my body? What can I expect and when does it get better? Can I go to the ob/gyn after 2-3 months if I don't get my period and have them give me something to start it? Or would that be bad? What about the weight, should it go up or down? Acne? Hair loss? What else? Have you had any medical problems that you needed medicines for due to Yasmin? How long has it taken you to get your period back? And most importantly; can this pill make me infertile???

If there is a class action lawsuit I want to be in it!

II have had ibs diarrhea for the last 8 years (so practically the whole of my 20's) and it has been so bad for the last 6 years that I have hardly been able to carry on living a normal life. I suffered panic, anxiety, really violent mood swings, obsessive compulsive disorder and felt petrified about going anywhere. I stopped taking it in December 2007 and my diarrhea gradually improved week by week. I felt within 2 days like a cloud had been lifted and my moods felt so much better. The diarrhea has really improved and I have now been 2 months without a single episode, after 10 years of it everyday. I have spoken to a specialist at the hospital about the pill causing diarrhea and he had never heard of it.

I am also really angry that this was not even listed as a side effect of this pill. Please if anyone out there if suffering with ibs d and can't work out what is going on - please try stopping this dreadful pill. My temper is better and the ocd that came out of nowhere has gone. I have been through hell with this pill and if it wasn't for reading an article on the internet about Yasmin, I wouldn't have stopped taking it. I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that Yasmin caused me to suffer diarrhea every day. I will never ever take another contraceptive pill in my life and from now on I don't care if i have period pain. 'm just so glad to be rid of it.

I’ve had two goes at taking Yasmin first time at 23, I had all of the above symptoms a breakdown and big anxiety attack which has never happen to me before so that came out of the blue, I was suspicious about the pill so I stopped taking it after that.

But silly me about at now 25 years old second time around I thought maybe it was me and not the pill but the second time has really confirmed it for me. I’ve suffered worse depressed suicidal thoughts sadness and not to mention no interest in sex all… these things have really affected my relationship with my partner and friends.

I am angry with myself for trying it again worst mistake… but now I guess its confirmed for me ill never be putting any type of birth control pill in my body again its not natural and not good for you.

And I will also mention I was on a totally different pill during high school because I had very bad period pain and my doctor recommended it and looking back now, I was at that time a very hostile and depressed girl everyone thought I was going through teenage adolescence and worried about me… but I now believe it was the pill because I never understood why I hated the world so much at school. Now I know that I will never put my children on these types of contraceptives and I hope other mothers think twice.

i have been taking yaz for about a month. i'm not taking it for birth control purposes, but because of period pain and irregularity. i was taking another low-dose birth control on which i had awful side effects of breast swelling, tenderness, extreme moodiness, and a complete lack of sex drive.

so far i haven't had the side effects of my previous pill, but i am definitely moody. i find myself getting upset a lot easier, crying for no reason, and being more aggressive and sensitive about things when i am normally not. i feel very different emotionally on this pill. i've decided to give it one more month and if things don't balance out, i'm going to go off it. what makes me feel worse is this winds up getting taken out on my family and boyfriend, and i don't want it affecting our relationship. also, i am having some sexual side effects, like an inability to physically get "excited" when this has never been an issue before.

Hi, I am just after coming off Yasmin 5 days ago...
I 've been on it for 5 or 6 years and it's just really the last year, especially the last few months that I feel like I just can't take it anymore... Previous to taking Yasmin, I had never experienced any period pain, however when I started taking Yasmin the period pain started and got progressively worse from then. The last few months I have been all over the place when I get my period, awful pressure pains in my lower abdominal and emotionally up and down every few minutes, half an hour, I could literally be in great form, and then I'd just get really quite and I can't even tell whats wrong with me because, I feel, there's so many hormones in me my mind does not know how I feel.... Anyway, i refuse to take it anymore, but now I am left with the dilemma of what form of contraception to use and also experiencing very bad back pain and light headaches....If anyone has been in the same situation or has any suggestions at all, they would be much appreciated.....!

i had my mirena for a year and i got it removed 3 days ago. the first 8 months was fine and i had no periods and no side effects apart from about a 10 pound weight gain. in the last 4 months i have been losing weight successfully and ive lost about 22 pounds so i couldn't really complain!! but about 5 months ago my hair started falling out and i had really bad acne. the worst thing was the pain in my abdomen. it was like the worst period pain you could imagine.
i had to get up in the middle of the night to take painkillers and sex was too painful. i was tested for infection and given 2 lots of antibiotics. this gave me approx 5 pain free days before it all started up worse than before. i had an ultrasound scan and they discovered a rotting lump attached to either my uterus or my ovary. this they attributed to the hormones from the coil but what was more worrying was the fact it was in the wrong place!!!
3 days ago i was very ill with severe pain, fever, going hot and cold and shaking and vomiting. my doctor removed the coil straight away and it was rotten with infection. i am again on 2 lots of antibiotics.
i feel a lot better, my acne already clearing up and my stomach is flatter. ive lost 4 pounds already but my abdominal pain is still there. i have started bleeding but it is quite light and i hope it doesn't last too long.
even though im not out of the woods yet i feel like a weight has been lifted from me and i hope im back to normal soon.
im thinking of making a complaint to someone as i think a lot of my problems stem from the fact it was fitted in the wrong place.
good luck to you all. many of my friends have a mirena coil and have no problems! i think they are the minority though!!

I have been on Nuvaring for 11months and wasn't on any birth control previously. I was prone to migraines before going on Nuvaring and they worsened to the point of 3 days straight in bed, but my doctor told me it wasnt because of the ring. And I'd never had a UTI before and had a LOT of them in the first 5 months. I also got depressed and really emotional, and I am not usually very emotional or moody. If I skipped a period, I would get period pain and symptoms but no bleeding anyways, and when I didn't skip them, I had crippling period pain, and have also gone up a clothing size since being on it. Lately I realised I had a really decreased libido, so I removed the ring and got the mother of all UTIs. Now 3 weeks off it, I'm getting headaches and absolutely no libido so I'm not sure if it is still the effects of Nuvaring, but I'm defiantely going to try something else

I have had the mirena out for about 6weeks now and I feel better than ever! I had had it in about 2years and was experiencing acne, period pain, low sex drive, tender breasts, mood swings, depression, joint pain.

Its almost all gone! Still have the odd weird joint pains-in my fingers, but its getting less and less frequent and my skin is clearing up at last. My sex drive is back to normal. Well, better than normal and it atually feels good when my boyfriend touches my breasts. this had been a huge problem for me. I am not using any hormones and to be honest I never want to again. I will just use condoms until they invent a non-hormonal contraceptive which is effective. If I have to, I will carry on using condoms as long as I have to. Hormones just mess up my system, esp. mirena.

(SIGH) well, with great relief i can say i'm not alone in the war against BC pills and side effects. the weirdest things started happening to me when i began taking yasmin - the 1st night i got my period after taking it i has THE WORST period pain EVER!!! so bad that i popped a mersyndol and no lie, within 30mins my sister was driving me to the emergency ward - i literally thought i was dieing. Anyway, turns out i had a MONSTER of an anxiety attack and a (viral) ear infection at the same time... GREAT!

at the time i had no idea what was causing my 'so called' spazo attacks - i just thought i had some horrid ear virus which would last a couple of months and clear up (the docs agreed). when it didn't start clearing up i started seeing docs on a regular basis, paying thousands for all sorts of tests even did the whole allergy testing thing thinking i'm seriously intolerant to something but to no avail... 4 years later and i'm still struggling with the following symptoms: dizziness (and i mean ALL the time), it's more like being lightheaded not so much dizzy spells, nausea, bloating, sore throat, tired/no motivation, weight gain 8 kgs in 3-4 yrs, i'm 29 (female) so i guess my body thinks it about to have babies... pressure headaches, ear ringing, my sex drive has packed up and left town, blah blah blah, i could go on... anyway, last month i went off yasmin (only cos i ran out) and spent 4 weeks al'natural. i got my period only a couple of days last and last sun i went back to the doc for gen exam and thought while i'm here i'll get a script for yasmin again... took my 1st pill on mon just gone - i can't tell you how rotten i've felt this week, i just thought it's prob pms or something no joke, everything has come back new and improved - now the dizziness is worse 10 fold, the bloating horrid... i've had a headache for 3-4 days now, constantly running to the loo. i feel like a TOTAL wreck!!! my husband thinks it's just women's stuff... pfffffft!!! he noticed i've been edgy all week and keeps asking 'what's up with you' and me thinking it's pms or something kept saying 'nothing honey' - well thanks to everyone who posted here i now know better!

oh, forgot to mention, after having my HUGE panic attack, the doc prescribed by 5mgs of lexapro daily and i've been taking that for almost 3 yrs - not sure if that's even good for my poor body...? helps with anxiety but purely masks the symptoms, hasn't cleared up - even the psychologist gave up cos she couldn't work out what was causing the anxiety... PFFFFT doctors... honestly!

good luck to everyone and head up guys, i know it's a painful process but eliminating the cause can take FOREVER and still i may neveer know what caused it...

I had the Mirena fitted and taken out the next day. The actual fitting was not as painful as I had expected, and all ok for an hour.
Returned home and started to get cramps and some spotting, then my abdomen swelled and was extremely bloated ( I thought this was just like the period pain that was described from having it fitted) however it went on and I couldn't work, just sat and ached and hoped it would improve. Then I noticed red marks on my stomach and went back to the Doctor. They told me that I had an allergic reaction to the hormone in the Mirena.
After 20 minutes of it being taken out I was feeling so much better, after 4-5 hours the red marks were fading and the bloating was slowly going. I also felt really depressed, and had spinning moments when I felt like I was about to faint. But I have also had levonelle (the morning after pill) which has the same hormone, but with no side affects what so ever.

Hi Ladies,
i have had a mirena since Jan 2007. I have had continual spotting and have to wear a pad all the time. I was told it would settle down it hasnt. I have like period pain in the front and lower back, which at late, is getting worse. I think it is only natural to expect that when we place a foreign object in our bodies PLUS add the hormone that the possibility of having problems is likely. My advise,... lets make our partners step up to the plate and get the snip snip!! We were pregnant,got sick, gained weight, developed stretch marks, breast feed, gave them kids...NOW ITS THERE TURN

I just took my first of six shots 2 days ago. I'm already experiencing a general hot feeling, hot flashes and insomnia. I'm worried after reading these posts. ... My doctor did not explain the severity of the side effects prior to recommending the drug. Should I continue the treatment? My endometriosis only effects my life during my periods, and have no symptoms while im not menstruating. However, my period pain is so severe it impairs my ability to function. What do i do?

This Yasmin pill seems to be not all its hyped up to be.

I am on my third pack now, and although it has taken away my period pain, I get prolonged periods (longer than 8 days!!), and my mood swings are unbearable.

Also, I don't know if this is just me, but when I go out into the sun to get a tan, I develope a very patchy tan. And it seems to go dark above my lips and on my chin. It looks terrible. I have never had this before, I am naturally olive skin coloured, but ever since I started this pill .. my self esteem has dropped.

I must note tho, I have lost about 4 kg since starting it... that can't be a bad thing.

Thats all.

The Mirena was inserted in June 2004. All was good until last Summer. I started to put on weight, I went from a size 8 to a size 12. so I exercised even more and reduced my intake of carbs and fat. In fact I changed my diet, more veg and fruit. I have always had a great metabolism, but I have none at all. I thought it was a tyroid problem, but doing some research, where I seem to have the same symptoms that I had with the Depo, it made sense. Thus I am having it removed in August after my honeymoon. Unfortunately this all happened whilst getting married, so not happy. I would rather put up with periods, then be the fat person I have become. My husband had the snip, so birth control is not a worry. I know it is different for each person, we are all different afterall.. Good luck to all

hey.. this isnt really a side effect more like a search for some answers. my girlfriend has been taking yasmin for 2months now.. and we have been having unprotected sex for those to months.. 2 weeks ago she had light bleeding for about 4 days, which she thinks could have been her period. but apparently she was early. and it is also apparent that yasmin does cause some mild bleeding between periods. so she assumes it could also be that because usually she suffers from bad period pain and during those 4 days she had none. she is due for her period today but hasn't gotten it. she is suffering from nausea, the degree varies but she says she has it the whole day. her feet have swollen a bit. shes moody and irritable. in short she has gotten all the symptoms of early pregnancy except tender breasts and the missed period. i know the pill isn't 100% effective. whats bothering me is that these early symptoms of pregnancy are also side effects of yasmin (checked on their site at the list of side effects as well as reading up on forums such as this one) and we are now unsure if she is pregnant or not. we are just waiting to see if she gets her period within the next few days and before doing a test. has anyone else experienced this while on yasmin? is this common? im really worried about her, shes not doing to good. has been feeling like this for 3days now. if anyone can give me any feed back it would be greatly appreciated