Yasmin symptoms and conditions

I posted a while back about the symptoms I was experiencing from Yasmin. Well, I've been off of the drug for just about a month now. My libido has DRASTICALLY improved, my moods are better, and I am getting along with my boyfriend like I haven't in a long time.

The only problem I'm now having is that my weight is continually creeping up. I have been very busy with various things for the past few months (searching for and finding a new job & new apartment in a different state, going on a week-long food-filled vacation, packing, moving, unpacking etc etc). I thought that I was up a few lbs (3) as a result of being very busy and not having as much time to commit to exercise and eating healthy. Don't get me wrong, I have still been exercising and eating healthy, I just haven't been able to commit quite as much time as normal to these things.

In the past two weeks I have gotten back into my old routine and have been doing 60 minutes of cardio approximately 5 days/week and really not eating very much. Most days I have eaten a big bowl of oatmeal for breakfast and not been hungry until dinner. Since I've gotten back into this routine I have done nothing but gain MORE weight. Additionally, I have absolutely no appetite. My stomach looks poochy and my pants are getting tighter.

I have been able to keep my weight in the same range (127-129) since I started running, 4 years ago. It would VERY occasionally creep up to MAYBE 131, but I haven't seen a higher number than that until now. I feel that I literally LOOK at food and gain a pound.

Has anyone else experienced this? Could it be that my hormones are just adjusting? Honestly, I'd almost rather deal with the side effects of Yasmin than deal with gaining weight as a result of not being on it.

I stopped taking Yasmin over a year and half ago as i was getting thoughts of suicide and migraines, i spoke to my doctor who said that i was having an estrogen withdrawal in my 7 day break so she gave me oestrogen tablets to take in between. I don't usually take any kind of tablets, not even for headache so i thought this was stupid. So after a couple of years of taking it (oh and i forgot to say im from England were this drug hasn't been out long, i was used as a guinea pig, first to trial it at my local doctors) i stopped. Then the trouble began two weeks after stopping i got more headaches and started to itch my head on one side. The result was my hair fell out caused by alopecia, caused by body shock from coming off the pill, after that i developed Telogen Efluvium, which is another form of hair loss. I ended up loosing 50% of my hair all over. I had oily skin and severe acne.
So now i am now still recovering, i take Viviscal herbal tablets at £40 a month, to help my hair growth. But all this dosnt help the fact that i am still recovering, i do however see the light at the end of the tunnel and im just going to be patient.
I if could just get some time with the people who make this stuff and also spread the word, DON'T TAKE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have been on Yasmin for about 5 years. I have never had an issue. I am worried that everyone on this site is making Yasmin look bad. You all need to remember that not everything will work for every person, everyones hormones are different to begin with so when you add the pill to these different levels of hormones you will get different side effects. To the people with low sex drive, did you perhaps think that this could be due to depression or the aging process? Many women suffer from low sex drive, those on and off the pill. Your sex drive will not be consistent throughout life, mine dropped in my early 20s and now is rising again, it may drop again, it can also be due to stress. All that said if you're suffering side effects that you think are attributed to Yasmin, or any other pill, stop taking it! Not everyone's body will handle it.

i started taking yaz in June because ive tried almost every other birth control pill, and patch and my mood and depression seemed to be only when i was on one of these. I wanted to go on that mirana IUD however my doctor told me i shouldn't because i have not had kids, im not married and im only 19 however it seemed anything i tried gave me the same side effects. So they put me on YAZ instead, at first it was great shorter periods, little to no cramps, but now 5 months and i hate it. I live with my boyfriend now and when before my sex drive was high I have ABSOLUTELY NO SEX DRIVE LEFT AND IM ONLY 19, WHAT HAPPENED TO IT. And whats worse my moodiness has come back for example at the store today i lost it and started crying when they didn't have the coat i wanted to buy. I couldn't control myself i completely lost it. i don't know what to do with myself anymore. My emotions are worse then ever before i want them to put me on something that has no hormones my body cant take it. can anyone give me any suggestions.

I was only on Yasmin for one month. After 2/3 weeks of being on it I started getting really bad migraines. I've had a severe migraine now ever since I got off of it. Does anyone know how long side effects last? Does anyone have this problem too?
I ended up in the hospital twice for the headaches. After the bloodwork, and CAT scan I was discharged, but to this day (I stopped taking the pills during the second week of October) I am still in constant pain. It feels like something is moving in my brain (as weird as that sounds). I am now debating to call a neurologist.
If anyone has any type of help or advise please help me!!

I am so glad that I found this site. I was beginning to feel like I was losing my mind. I have been on Yasmin for only 2 months but have been experiencing many of the side effects mentioned- fatigue, chest pain, irregular heartbeat, anxiety, dizziness, and flu-like symptoms. I had these same symptoms when I was on Yaz last year. I wound up going to the hospital for shortness of breath and chest pain. The doctor thought it may be blood clots, but after testing he diagnosed me with bronchitis and asthma (I am 26- never had either in my life). There is definitely something wrong with these pills. I do have anxiety and currently take Xanax. But I have not had panic attacks like this since I was on the pill last year. Sometimes I need to think about breathing to catch my breath and lately it had been hard for me to sleep because my heart is racing. My periods have been lighter and my migraines less severe, but it is not worth it to continue on Yasmin.

I had been on Yasmin for about 2 years and it was great. I had no adverse side effects. My periods where shorter and lighter and I did not have the horrible cramps I had before getting on the pill. I loved it. Then about three months ago the pharmacy switched me to the generic, Ocella, which the pharmacist insisted was exactly the same, but beware it is not! I have gained about 15 pounds, I had to go up a whole bra size because my breasts are so swollen, my breast are tender and ache most of the time, and as of right now I have been bleeding badly for two weeks and I have never bled when it wasn't time for my period. My OBGYN said the generic was most likely the cause. I know the generic is cheaper but do not take it. Yasmin is well worth the extra money. I am getting back on it immediately! A lot of people do blame the pills for stuff that would have happened anyways. So do not be scared to take Yasmin. Everything isn't for everyone but it was good for me. It's done it's main job which is to keep me from getting pregnant and isn' that the reason most of us take birth control for? So put up with a few side effects, at least you don't have a baby to deal with!!!

I have just bought a pack of Yasmin for birth control and heavy periods but haven't taken any yet, nor have i ever tried BC pills before. I suffer from severe migraines daily it ruins everything i do and my GP's have been completely useless they don't even ask me any symptoms about my headaches and refused to let me see a specialist. The only thing he did was tell me I need to go on painkillers indefinitely which does not appeal to me at all.
I am now wondering if i should take Yasmin or not after reading all these bad reviews especially concerning migraines. Has anyone with constant migraine found a way to help them? Please let me know as im desperate to know what it feels like to not have a migraine.

I have been on Yasmin for a little over a year now. At first I really liked it. I had a horrible time with tricyclen and the effects on my depression and emotional instability ended up ruining a really great relationship. Shortly after that relationship ended, I stopped taking tricyclen and started seeing a counselor. Everything was great and I felt like myself again. I had lots of self-confidence and self-love. When I went back on the pill because I started taking Yasmin. My face cleared up wonderfully and my boobs (which are already an A cup) got even bigger. Both of those things were great benefits to Yasmin. Now, a year later, I'm finding that I'm starting to feel the same way I did when I was on tricyclen. Bouts of depression, anger, suicidal ideations, anxiety, and feeling unmotivated and apathetic. My current boyfriend and I are long-distance now, which might be having even more adverse effects on my emotional state. I am considering going off of it. I've felt this way and it's simply not worth feeling miserable and self-loathing all the time. Other side effects I've felt while on Yasmin are: dry skin, especially around my vagina. I always require lubrication now before sex, which was never a problem before. Also, supposedly being on hormone pills can change the actual morphology of the cells on your cervix. This change makes me bleed after having sex. Not much, but enough that I notice. My physician said this was not a concern though. Altogether, I just don't think my body and my emotions can really handle being on birth control, and I feel as though a lot of people out there are experiencing the same problems!! If you're like me, please let me know of a pill that is working for you!

OMG I am so glad I found this side. I have just started taking Yasmin.

Previously I was on Mercilon and found that I got very nauseous a few days before my period was due (this happened a week ago on Friday) so I asked the doctor to change my pill and he prescribed Yasmin. I have IBS and last Wednesday I had a several attack (I was on my period as well). I then started taking Yasmin the next day. By Saturday I had to spend the day in bed as I felt so sick. I actually thought I was going to be sick. There is a bug going round work so thought it might of had something to do with that or my IBS. IT started to clear by the beginning of this week, but even now my stomach feels like someone has kicked me, I just cant eat (the thought just turns my stomach) and I feel sick ALL of the time. Today I realised that this is most likely due to the Yasmin. I am going back on Mercilon as of next month. I decided I would rather put up with one day of feeling sick than all the time! The doctor and the pharmastic told me to continue taking Yasmin till my period but I just cant do that. I am not covered this month anyway because I changed mid way through my period so I might as well not take it and be careful for a month.

My sister takes Yasmin and has no problems at ill but its the worst one I have ever taken. I had problems with Dianette as well but my body cant take the high Oestrogen levels. I think it is weird how a pill can work for one woman and not the next when effectively they do the same thing!

I have been taking Yasmin for two months and have severe chest pain, a pain under my breast, diarrhea, and feel lazy.

Hi
Again just like many of you ladies out there i am so glad i came across this website. I have been taking Yasmin for the last 2.5yrs. I used to have very think long hair, and was always complimented on it. recently my hair has thinned out, and falls out everytime i comb or wash it. I have reecntly started to experience numbness in the tips of my toes, i have just in the past few days experienced knee joint pains. Last year i had very bad chest pains, and i never thought it would be the pill, but i have been complianing to my family about breathing difficulties too. I do feel nauseous most of the time, and i feel tired all the time, i fall asleep anywhere. I am a pretty healthy individual. I have suffered headaches, reduction of vision, pain just under my ribs near the lungs, especially when i wake up in the mornings, i suffer hot flushes, again like others mostly at night... I used to be a pretty calm person, but now looking back i have had my moments of rage !
Thank God i came across this website because luckily im on my 7day break at the moment, and will probably not take them again ! and try lady comp just like another lady has .... hope this helps

Hi guys. I am so glad I found this site. I am 29 and I have been on Yasmin for four years. In the last few months I have toned up and shed a few pounds and all of a sudden last week I got home and felt a tightening in my legs that I had never felt before. Then a tingling in my left arm and I had trouble swallowing and breathing. I am a very healthy person so I freaked out and went to the ER for the first time in my life. After the blood work, EKG, MRI and stress test they told me I was normal, except for low potassium levels and mentioned that I should go to a neurologist. I also thought I must be allergic to something but all the foods I had been eating were the same as before. Well it happened again tonight so I went online because there was no way I was going to spend more money in the ER to have them tell me it was nothing. After reading all the comments on this page I realized it is amazing how many other symptoms that I didn't realize also correlated to the pill. My hair has been falling out at the root like never before and I just recently developed troubles with eating tomato based foods. I haven't been sleeping good lately either and I started crying uncontrollably for no reason. Well I am throwing away my Yasmin and I can't believe that the doctors in the ER aren't mentioning the side effects of this birth control.

I have been on Yaz now for a little over a year. I'm only 18 and I'm always exhausted and sore. My whole body aches almost all the time. Like most others on Yaz, I've been having really bad headaches on and off. I just found out today that the maker of Yaz is actually being sued because Yaz is such a dangerous drug. Exact words from the article: "ATTENTION: YAZ YASMIN PRESCRIPTION DRUG NEWS, On October 3, 2008, the United States government ordered the manufacturer of YAZ/YASMIN, a powerful birth control pill, to stop advertising that misleads the public regarding the value and safety of this drug. If you or a loved one has suffered a heart attack, stroke, blood clot, or death after using YAZ/YASMIN, please call right now. SERIOUS INJURY LAWYERS"

That's an article from Phillips and associates...Apparently this isn't such a safe BC.

I am a new poster & am excited to be a part of this discussion !! I feel to close to this discussion because I have been experiencing the same issues.
I too have been having major chest pain issues for almost 2 months now. I started Yasmin (much to my dismay!) about 6 months ago. I haven't taken any b.c. since I was about 19, I am now 30, I started because my periods were absolutely unbearable anymore, intense cramping, heavy flow & in incapable of work/activity for the first 2 days. My doctor always pushed b.c. on me for the pain relief. Finally I agreed. I started in February, 2008.
Almost 2 months ago (7 months into Yasmin) I was getting a bit of chest pain along the ribs/inside of the side of the breast, mainly the right & sometimes on the left. I wasn't too worried as I am a healthy eating, yoga/work-out doing, average weight, no health issues what-so-ever except for my intense period kinda gal. About a month went by with increasing chest pain & I went to the hospital (up north at my moms when I was visiting, only an hour wait to get in as apposed to the 6 here back home!). My fear was heart problems. They did blood work & (I am not sure what this is called!) they hooked me up with tons of little stickies & monitored my heart. - I mentioned to the doctor I was taking b.c. & he said it wasn't an issue, they usually pose blood clot risk....not my issue here.
They said everything was normal & because of the sensitivity of the chest pain (it is sore to the touch!) he said it was costochondiritis, the inflammation of the chest wall. So I thought that was it, I would just take the Advil the suggested 3 times a day for inflammation & it would go away. I did this for 2 weeks & nothing changed.
I was getting some shooting pains in my chest & went back to my doctor, explained my visit up north & what they concluded it was. She said that the costochondiritis has made me sensitive to acidic foods, prescribed me with previcid for a week. That didn't make any difference at all.
Here I am another month later & my chest pain feels worse, my chest still feels tender to the touch, I am short of breath going up the stairs, heart racing/palpitations, gas (burping & passing gas), some upper back ache, I am feeling helpless & beat down !!
By now I'm sure there is a bit of anxiety mixed in there, I have been so sad, scared & worried!
I went back to my doctor & she sent me for an upper G.I. to rule out acid reflux & it came back normal. I also did some blood work again (which have since came back normal) & am waiting for the results. She said she doesn't think it's costochondiritis now. I am scheduled for an abdominal ultrasound & with a cardiologist (I go tomorrow) for an EKG for my heart.
Last night my hubby & I were talking, my co-worker was really upset to hear I've still been taking the pill, she thinks it's poison. I told my guy that & we got out the information booklet from my Yasmin & there were ALL of my symptoms, there was a list of 12 & I had 8 of them !!! No vision or numbness problems but all of the chest pain/breathing issues.
I took my last pill 2 days ago (it was my last before my period) & I have no plans to start again. I am going to follow through with the scheduled appt.'s just in case but my hubby & I have our money on the pill being the cause for all of this.
1 thing that gets me is when I went to my doctors with this issue in the beginning, not once did she bring up the pill or say to stop the pill. In the booklet under all of the symptoms I've been having it says to immediately stop taking the pill. ;(
After taking my last pill I felt a bit better (it's only been a week/my menstruating week), the sharp pain on the inside/side of my breast/chest has not been as sensitive to the touch. I still have had palpitations (minor, not lasting long - to lasting up to 4 hours until I just go sleep to try to get rid of it) & sparse shooting/dull/aching pain in my chest/armpit.
YASMIN SHOULD BE BANNED !!

I loved nordette, I took it for about 3 years when I was in the US. I was a body builder, and I never gained weight or anything. But I've moved to Canada and I can't get it and I'm wondering what to do. I've tried Yasmin, and NuvaRing...I gained 80 pounds on Yasmin and Can't loose it...I"m desperately struggling with my weight on the nuvaring as well.....what can I do.

I have just started my fourth pack of Yasmin and hadn't really experienced any serious side effects. However, whilst finishing my second pack i suddenly got a bumpy, itchy rash across my face and swollen eyes which i just thought was an allergic reaction to make up i was using. But these symptoms have continued up until now, sometimes getting slightly better but then worse again. I have stopped using anything which could be irritating my skin but i can only think it must be the Yasmin. I normally have oily skin but now it is so dry and itchy, i have eczema around my eyes and they are very red. My entire body is itchy really but the rash has not spread. I am going to stop the pill now and see if my skin improves because i cant put up with the pain anymore.

So ive been on Yasmin, ortho tri cyclin lo and now my second month of femcon all of which caused different but equally annoying acne. Yasmin made me red and really bumpy acne, tri cyclin was good until right before my period my face went crazy and the rest of the month my face recovered. with femcon i am red again with acne on my jaw line (probably the only place i didn't have it before) any one with similar problems got something else that will work?

Ok. I'm a 17 year old girl. I've been on BC for a year or so now for a hormonal imbalance. I was taken of Yasmin, because it was making me a lunatic, and put onto Fem Con. At first everything was alright except for some spotting. But its been a few months now and the spotting returned. That spurred me into doing some research. Now I see that some of my other problems, that I would have never suspected my pills for, line up with the rest of these posts. Things like, skin irritation and dryness (those red rashes on your face are hard to hide! And I've never had to use a lotion on my face before. I'm now applying it 2-3 times a day.), lower back pain (a couple years ago I hurt my back because my back pack was too heavy. I just assumed it was that coming back to haunt me. Then I noticed it started up conveniently after I started these pills. D<), an itchy/smelly vagina (I thought it was just an infection but it hasn't gone away for two weeks now), nausea (I don't know why I didn't think of the pills, really.) and that my rage has considerably been heightened. It only takes a comment on one of my favorite books to set me off now - and then I'm over it in a split second. I've had that with Yasmin before - but I didn't notice the connection then. I'm just glad I'm noticing it now before it gets to the severe depression/suicidal stage again. I've also noticed that I've been kinda paranoid lately, but I've always been afraid someone might pop out of a dark corner. I really don't want it to get worse. I just thank God that I haven't completely lost it again and I can stop before I start gaining weight and losing hair. Please, research any pill you might be thinking about taking so you know what side effects to look out for. I read one post where someone says they almost died. I don't think this pill is for me.

Hi, Ive just turned 18 and something very similar happened to me. I have been on Yasmin for 5 months now and yesterday I got really bad cramps and passed out in the shower. I have been feeling a bit odd for a while now so my boyfriend took me to hospital. We thought that i might be pregnant since i have been having the following symptoms for over a week now:
hot flushes (mostly at night)
nausea
cramps
really bad headaches that last for days
light nervousness
and I feel so so tired all the time even if I have slept for 10 hours
im not sure what is wrong with me and its been really frightening. I never though it could be the pill but after reading all these posts im now starting to wonder...

My symptoms are

Massive hair loss by the roots, which started about 2 years after going OFF the pill and hasn't stopped. Some hair still hasn't grown back yet.
Bloating with water retention (this is where the bigger boobs come into it).
Leg Cramps
Pins & Needles in legs and toes
Cold/numb spots on one leg
Can go without sex for long periods

However, the benefits are:
clear skin, no mood swings. No depression.

I am so glad that i found this site. I was feeling like i am going CRAZY! I got the mirena after my third child Oct 2005. I can't wait to have it removed!!!! My story started by going to the doctor to find a good birth control. My doctor suggested the mirena, it sounded like the perfect method for me...up until today Oct 2008, i thought that it was perfect.
After the insertion everything was great until i started to feel like i was always pregnant(tender breast, nausea and vomiting, weight gain, and dizziness). I would report to doctor, have test run, simply told that i might have a stomach virus. Symptoms would come and go alone with now major hair loss, constant yeast infections, sore limbs, greasy oily skin, unexplained sweats, losing of 30 lbs, but gaining back 10 lbs in a month, bloated stomach, mood swings, unexplained sadness/depressions!!! I use to have long thick hair, but now i barely have any. My scalp is so sore and my hair is very dry and brittle. I thought that maybe i was just stressing myself and needed to take it easy. I started to grow very tired, drowsy with blurry vision, stressed-out, even slipped into deep depressions about any and everything. I would blow up on anyone for anything. I am so not feeling like myself....
After several OB-GYN and Dermatology appointments, I came to the conclusion that it might just be my so called "perfect" birth control. I expected my doctors to know the exact reason after i mentioned by birth control but they would always say that it was not likely to be the mirena. I will be having this removed this week. I just hope and pray that everything goes back to normal including all my beautiful thick hair.

I was put on birth control when I was 21 years old and I started with Estrostep FE for irregular and very painful periods. 9 years later, after complaining of unusually light periods and horrible hot flashes I was switched to Yasmin to see if that would make a difference. I was fine with the Yasmin for about 6 months but then I came down with what I thought might have been a stomach virus. I was fine until June of that year when I came down with what seemed to be another stomach virus. I found this odd as I had not had a stomach virus since I was eight years old, but I seemed to have contracted two within six months of each other 22 years later. By the time July hit, I was experiencing these "stomach viruses" just about every other day. I would have horrible acid indigestion and the sensation of needing to vomit (but I never would) which would send me running for the bathroom for hours at a time just in case I did. For over a year I sought the advice of doctors and had been theoretically diagnosed with the following: stress (always the first one), acid reflux disease, IBS, and gastroparesis. I have gone through an endoscopy, gastric emptying scan, colonoscopy, two ultrasounds, two CT scans and an MRI. Drug wise I have been put on Prevacid, Compazine, Zofran, Zegerid, Imipramine, Reglan, Levsid, and Erythromycin. I now am buried in medical bills and the whole thing has caused me to miss a month of work without pay. I also was struggling to eat and, at one point, had dropped 25 pounds which is very frightening for someone with my tiny frame. The mental anguish was unbearable and I was actually at the point of welcoming a diagnosis of cancer just because it would have been answer. The idea to stop taking the Yasmin actually came from a fifteen minute conversation during a birthday party with an obstetrician. Within two weeks of stopping I was absolutely fine. I gained all of the weight back in record time and am once again a person who rarely ever needs stomach aids (in three months I've only taken two tums). Stopping the Yasmin made absolute sense because the nausea episodes would only occur between 9am and 2pm (weird, just like morning sickness) and my thyroid levels were all over the place. One blood test would show them as normal and another would show them as sky-high. I questioned my ob-gyn why she said my blood tests were normal when my thyroid levels were actually twice the normal level. She merely shrugged it off as being "normal because of the Yasmin". No wonder I never felt well! I've been off Yasmin for three months now. I've only gotten one light period that lasted for three days. It was over a month ago and it took almost two months to happen after stopping the Yasmin. I don't know if I'm sterile because I have heard cases of girls becoming infertile after long-term use of the pill (any kind). I am definitely interested in joining a class action lawsuit because I don't feel I should be the one stuck with all of these bills. Has anything been officially started yet?

ive been on Yasmin for 5 months. its been the worst 5 months of my life. been VERY depressed desperate and had suicidal thoughts. its made me cry and cry and cry. im still currently taking this but am waiting to finish this pack and change to loestrin 20. all women react to different pills. but from my own experience i wouldn't go near this pill. i wish id changed pill sooner because i cant handle my life at the moment.

Hi to all Yasmin victims. I have been off Yasmin for 2 months now and still experiencing anxiety in the mornings and depression. Silke, flower babies, whoever is there to help me believe this suffering will come to an end. I lost the joy in life, and cannot function as i used to. Please please write to me girls, i really need support. I am 26 and living on my own in another city. I had to move next to them for 1.5 months in order to survive. I lost so much weight, my thyroid started to work fast (it is under control now). I have a beautiful and loving boyfriend, and he is suffering with me too, our relationship is damaged a lot because of my severely depressed mood. I need to talk to people who are getting better. I am on antidepressants because I was soooo depressed and with no appetite. I feel much better compared to the previous month, I am trying my best to stay strong but sometimes loose my hope. I really need you guys, I really need your supporting words.