Birth Control Forum - Birth Control And Depression


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khmajo

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Joined: 28 Nov 2007
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Desogen Posted: 11-28-07 18:48pm


My daughter was recently taking the birth control pill desogen. A while after she was taking it I noticed that she was extremely depressed. Usually she would just jump right back from difficult situations. Anyways she became extremely depressed and was crying almost every time I saw her. She tryed to commit suicide and ended up in the hospital for 3 days and was in ICU for 24 hours following the attempt. I asked Doctor if this could be related to the birth control and he said that he never heard of such a thing as I recall. From reading the comments online it seems that depression is extemely common. This was the first time that my daughter had ever used the pill. She almost didnt make it and it really makes me suspicious of this drug.

Georgia59

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Posted: 11-28-07 18:57pm


Depression due to birth control is common. However, the depression from birth control is usually lower grade- like when you have pms. I wouldn't rule out other things- like depression, or maybe something happened in her life that was traumatic, or maybe the birth control simply brought out depression that was already there. Either way, she should be seen by a psychologist and get treated. I'm sure that a new (non-hormonal or different type) of birth control is probably a good plan, too.

Tylanas

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Posted: 11-28-07 19:46pm


There are many kinds of pills, and just because desogen made your daughter severely depressed doesn't mean all females react that way. She may do better on OrthoTricyclen Lo or Loestrin or any of the hundreds of pills out there!! Don't be suspicious of all hormonal birth control because of this experience; I know it was a horrible event, but there are still options.

Georgia59

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Posted: 11-28-07 23:01pm


I'm still not believing that it was caused solely by the pills- depression begins commonly around teen-early adulthood anyway.

babyphat

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birth control Posted: 01-19-08 17:04pm


i've been on the pill for 3 months, im on my 4th month now.. the reason im taking the pill, was because i was very emotional.. & its helped.. im on yasmin28.. but, ive been having alot of chest pains, and exiety attacks.. everything isnt something to cry about like before, now its if i have a problem or something went wrong, i just get really bad chest pains, and pains all over my body.. and its hard for me too breath, and i feel really faint.. its pretty weird, but.. i think its just symptoms

Tylanas

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Posted: 01-19-08 17:10pm


It doesn't sound like the pills are helping to me! Your emotional problems may stem from something else. I think you should work on that with a psychologist, instead of trying to cover it with medicine. Those physical pains you are having are a definite no-no, and I'd stop the pills immediately and report these pains to a doctor.

Georgia59

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Posted: 01-21-08 11:24am


DO you have an anxiety problem? Definitely find out if the pill is causing this or you have an underlying problem.

whitters225

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Joined: 16 Apr 2008
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thank goodness Posted: 04-16-08 21:00pm


Im so happy I found this forum! I was beginning to think that I really was going crazy! Ive been on BC since I was 15 for medical reasons, and I just started taking a new pill, Femcon, and I feel insane. I cry at any given moment, I feel so lonely and sad all the time. And the littlest things make me so angry. Its gotten to the point where its starting to affect my relationship. Im convinced my boyfriend is cheating on me at times. Ive never been this type of person before, and I hate it. Ive never had a panic attack before, but in the last three weeks Ive expierenced two. Im always so anxious and feel very overwelmed at times. Im going back to the doctor next week, hopefully theres something to be done. Im just glad there are other ladies out here feeling like me.

seaz_girl

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Joined: 17 Apr 2008
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Location: Ontario, Canada

Posted: 04-17-08 11:03am


Birth Control is soo tricky. I was on Alesse 21's for about 9 months, and I became almost suicidal. I am a very level-headed person usually and as soon as I started taking Alesse I started crying, becoming depressed, having mood swings and becoming very insecure. My boyfriend noticed and it was tough on him too.... But then I started bleeding (spotting) everyday. At first it was light, then I had to use tampons everyday. I sucked hard. I finally sucked it up and went back to the doctor. I'm on Marvelon now, which is a higher dosage then the Alesse. I find that I am less crazy, but I gain about 10 pounds from it. But I stopped bleeding! If its not one problem it's the next... I really hate birth control, but I'm s paranoid about getting pregnant. I guess I just need to experiment more and speak to my doctor. I hate going in there

foragefish

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Joined: 08 May 2008
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This message board may have saved my life Posted: 05-08-08 10:56am


Two years ago I found that I couldn't stop crying, I couldn't sleep, and I wasn't interested in living my life. I felt so hopeless, and I went to a cognitive psychiatrist who told me that I needed to talk about my problems. No help, what so ever. I knew I was depressed, but didn't want to take medication, because my depression made no sense. I was googling depression and happened on this forum. All of a sudden things made sense to me. My OBGYN had recommended that I "cycle" my birth control to avoid migraines (skip the placebo week) about two weeks before the depression set in. I mentioned this both to my psychiatrist, and my OBGYN. Both were pretty dismissive, but I was convinced after reading the stories of all the women here. I stopped the pills, and within 48 hours (no kidding) I was back to being myself again. I will never again put those hormones in my body, I now use a hormone-free IUD and I feel fabulous. I have PMS again, but nothing in the world is worth what I went through in the winter of 2006. Sharing stories here is so important, so thank you for yours.

buddhakitten

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Joined: 31 May 2008
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rock and a hard place Posted: 05-31-08 15:44pm


I definitely have similar experiences with BC. I've been on about 5 different kinds of BC since I was 17. I've been off the pill on multiple occasions because eventually the psychological problems get so bad that I become less functional. My most recent experiences have been a bit inconsistent, however. Last year, I started on aviane, which caused about 5-8 lbs. in weight gain and a complete dose of the crazies-- depression, anxiety, crying fits, pain and swelling in my breasts, insecurity, body dismorphic disorder, basically all of the same crap I experienced the first few times I tried out BC. I stopped last June for several months. During the following months my cramping became unbearable, my bleeding increased significantly, and while my mental health improved my periods lasted for well over a week (closer to two) and I was in agony the entire time. My OB/GYN suspects that I have endometriosis, but the only sure fire treatment is invasive surgery. She suggested that I shouldn't go that route until I decide to get pregnant, and in the meantime the best pain management was BC. So I restarted Aviane. Amazingly, the old side effects went away-- no depression, no weight gain, no swelling, no crazies, no crying or anxiety. Three months later my prescription ran out and I was put on Lutera. I'm now back to experiencing depression, weight gain, anxiety, etc. I'm terrified of going off BC because of the pain I experience during my periods. But I'm terrified of staying on BC because I really can't stand feeling like this all the time. I'm totally at a loss and I'm feeling extremely helpless and vulnerable. Any suggestions/alternatives?