female problems

this is for women.i read where some of you were talking about the depo shot. so i decided to start a thread about it. i had been on the depo shot for 7 years. i was suppost to get another injection in january. i decided i wanted off the shot. i did really well on the shot. i had no periods but i have gained about 70 pounds. which i hope i will soon loose. there are lots of horror stories on the net about the depo. even lawsuits. anything that stops your periods is really going against nature. since being off the shot, my hair is falling out. my breast hurt, i am curently having a period which has scared the hell out of me. this is gross but, blood clots the size of a small egg. and smaller. severe cramping. very scary for me. but doctor said this is normal after ending the shot. it causes your sex drive to go way down. i also learned after reading alot of other stories from others, it can cause severe mood swings and other emotional dissorders. i have been diagnosed with panic dissorder, and obsessive compulsive dissorder. befor i was on the shot i never had any problems. nothing scared me, i was free willed never nervous about anything. i was able to live. unless you experience one of these dissorders it's hard to understand. so i am really hoping to get my body and mind back to normal. i don't know how long it will take to get out of my system. i just wanted to share my story and make women aware of these things. the doctors fail to tell you.

Hey, 7.

I have polycystic ovarian syndrome, and I have many of the same issues (plus some different ones) but they occur naturally for me. I only get a period once or twice a year and when I do, it's a doozy. I mean changing both internal and external protection every hour or so, cramping and tenderness and back pain for days, clots the size of an egg, all that. Once or twice I thought I was miscarrying, it was that bad. The weight gain that you can't lose, the mood swings, the loss of sex drive, the odd fears that take you by surprise, that all sounds familiar. I am working with an endocrinologist about this, but it does take time.

I have no great advice, just saying I understand and you are not the only one.

Good for you for taking care of your body. It will be the best thing in the long run, even if it's hard now.

You're not alone, Cozycats. I was hospitalized from Dec. to Jan. for a very bad case of pneumonia. It was so bad the doctors did every test you can possibly think of, sure that I had something else. They did a bone marrow test and withdrew fluid from my lung. The meds they gave me had totally messed up blood counts, blood pressure, my heartbeat, etc. Then, when I became depressed from all the tests and illness, they called in a psychiatrist to see if I was ok mentally. I was a basket case, but normal. One of the meds, the one for anxiety, gave me terrible side effects. A cardiologist came in and said, "Your heart is fine, and you'd be fine if they discontinued half the medications and sent you home." I asked him to frame that! The point is that meds can affect you adversely. I guess some were necessary, but I started to ask a lot of questions before I accepted any treatment. There was NOTHING wrong other than pneumonia. Everything else was caused by meds, maybe necessary to save my life, but the side effects were very real and frightening. It took time for me to get my strength back, more time to get rid of the side effects, but, for the most part, they're gone. There is light at the other end of the tunnel. The anxiety is the worst, I know. Research the medication you're on. ASK QUESTIONS! Doctors are NOT gods.

I've known several people, on Depo, for various problems and, they ALL got nasty side effects. After all, this is the drug, given to chronic sex offenders, to quash their libidos. Most drugs have side effects, depending on the patient but, some are more common than others.

I have never tried depo, and will never try it now. Anything that would make your period stop is very scarry.

Birth control pills make me feel insane. I am never a very emotional person, but one month I found myself crying during a hallmark commercial. That is when I decided no more pills. Now I try to avoid having sex, because I do not want to get pregnant. My hubbie and I do not have any 'human children', and right now I don't think I ever want any.

-safron

Safron, I think that you're overreacting, by trying to avoid sex. There ARE alternative birth control methods, that do work, with minimal side effects. You need to talk to a good GYN abou this. If nothing else, condoms are effective and safe, if used properly.

katl8e- I do use condoms, but they are only 80-85% effective. I have been on several different types of birth control pills and they all make me feel crazy. My hubbie would agree about the not wanting to have sex for fear of becoming pregnant is neurotic, but I'm working on it.

-safron

i plan to use vaginal inserts called encare. no side effects!!! you just have to prepare yourself 20 minutes ahead of time. i think their 99% effective. and i have no plans of going back on any kind of birth control that effects my body. i can't wait for my body to be free of that junk!!!!

Good luck, with the Encare - that's how I got Mark, 24 years ago. I, always got pregnant, easily: three weeks after my first wedding. That' why, after the second kid, I had my tubes tied. Two kids was my limit. Love my sons, dearly but, you CAN have too much of a good thing!

oh no! maybe encare with a condom! whats the point? kinda takes the romance out huh? what are women suppost to do? i can't afford to have my tubes tied, plus i may want another child someday. when i can afford a baby. boy, men have it made!

7cozycats-thanks so much for posting all that info about depo. At first when I heard that you don't periods anymore, I thought Woo Hoo! No more periods!! But, after reading all the side effects of Depo, I will NEVER take it. I don't want to have to deal with all of that and plus I don't want to loose my sex drive...hubby won't be too happy with that. And all of the stuff about severe cramping really scares me. I have been on the pill for over 3 years and I have been doing fine with that, so I think that I'll just stick to that from now on. Thanks for letting us know about all this.

In defence of those of us who are still on it, I have to say that there are risks and side effects with any drug. It affects different people in different ways. My best friend was on it for at least 2 years, went off it with no problems and had a beautiful baby boy. There are also cases like 7cozycats where people react VERY badly (which I am very sorry to hear about.) I would think that a good doctor would explain all the side effects to you before you make a decision like mine did, but I guess there are those that don't.

To be fair, Depo is not right for everyone. The first three months I was on it I was hell on wheels with the mood swings and raging hormones. Since then everything has been fine. I didn't experience any decrease in sex drive until I started taking an anti-depressant (that's a whole other thread! BTW, the depression was there well before I started on Depo.), and the weight gain was the same as if I would have gone back on the pill.

Just my 2 cents.

Thanks for all the information, everyone, I am learning alot here. I was thinking about an alternative to the pill once the baby is born, but I'm just not sure, now.

It is really good to get all this information and different opinions!!!

I've been on the depo shot since 1996. I got on it about maybe a year before we got married. Now, how do you explain the water weight before I got married? How do you explain how I went from 130 -175? It's from the shot, and I can guarantee you that. I may not eat the best, but I know about 85% of it is coming from the shot. This is personal, but I never had had it hurt during intercourse prior to going on the shot..... In 1998, I had laparaoscopy and they discovered I had a small case of endometreosis.... Of course, the doctors said the depo is supposed to prevent it, but I don't buy it. I even went to a specialist, and they tried to say it was all in my head And, I do believe it lowers your sex drive big time Oh, and and everytime I press down on my stomach, it hurts. I even took an article into the doctor because they say women who are on it, sometimes get the puffy stomach which is caused by endometreosis, which I do have a "puffy" tummy. Yet, the doctors say the depo is a good thing to be on....

There is a new IUD on the market called Meridian that I thought of going on, but not sure about that either.....

Advantages
The Shot is very convenient and no one can tell you're using it. The Shot:

prevents pregnancy for 12 weeks
doesn't need to be taken daily or put in place before having sex
doesn't require surgery
contains no estrogen
reduces menstrual cramps and anemia
protects against endometrial and ovarian cancers
can be used while breastfeeding (six weeks after delivery).

i decided to post the advantages and disadvantages to be fair. i'll be back with the rest

this is what i should have done. research. but i was 18 and clueless.
this is patient labeling. no body told me all the side effects. just the minor ones. the shot is good for some people. every body is different. this will help some of you. i wish someone had informed me better. hope this helps.

DEPO-PROVERAÂ[emoji]174[/emoji]
Contraceptive Injection
(sterile medroxyprogesterone acetate suspension, USP)


This product is intended to prevent pregnancy. It does not protect against HIV infection (AIDS) and other sexually transmitted diseases.

Patient Labeling

Introduction

Every woman who considers using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection needs to understand the benefits and risks of this form of birth control and to discuss them with her health-care provider. This leaflet is intended to give you much of the information you will need in order to decide if DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection is the right choice for you. Your health-care provider will help you to compare DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection with other contraceptive methods and will answer any questions you have after you have read this information.

DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection is given as an intramuscular injection (a shot) in the buttock or upper arm once every 3 months (13 weeks). Promptly at the end of the 3-month interval, you will need to return to your health-care provider for your next injection in order to continue your contraceptive protection.

DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection contains medroxyprogesterone acetate, a chemical similar to (but not the same as) the natural hormone progesterone that is produced by your ovaries during the second half of your menstrual cycle. DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection acts by preventing your egg cells from ripening. If an egg is not released from the ovaries during your menstrual cycle, it cannot become fertilized by sperm and result in pregnancy. DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection also causes changes in the lining of your uterus that make it less likely for pregnancy to occur.

Effectiveness of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection

To ensure that DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection is not administered inadvertently to a pregnant woman, the first injection must be given ONLY during the first 5 days of a normal menstrual period; ONLY within the first 5-days postpartum if not breast-feeding, and if exclusively breast-feeding, ONLY at the sixth postpartum week (see Administration of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection). The efficacy of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection depends on adherence to the recommended dosage schedule.

DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection is over 99% effective, making it one of the most reliable methods of birth control available. This means that the average annual pregnancy rate is less than one for every 100 women who use DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection. The effectiveness of most contraceptive methods depends, in part, on how reliably each woman uses the method. The effectiveness of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection depends only on the patient returning every 3 months (13 weeks) for her next injection.


Who Should Not Use DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection

Certain women should not use DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection. You should not use DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection if you have any of the following conditions:

if you think you might be pregnant
if you have any vaginal bleeding without a known reason
if you have had cancer of the breast
if you have had a stroke
if you have or have had blood clots (phlebitis) in your legs
if you have problems with your liver or liver disease
if you are allergic to DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection (medroxyprogesterone acetate or any of its other ingredients)
Other Things to Consider Before Choosing DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection

Before your doctor prescribes DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection, you will have a physical examination. It is important to tell your doctor or health-care provider if you have any of the following:

a family history of cancer of the breast
an abnormal mammogram (breast X-ray), fibrocystic breast disease, breast nodules or lumps, or bleeding from your nipples
kidney disease
irregular or scanty menstrual periods
high blood pressure
migraine headaches
asthma
epilepsy (convulsions or seizures)
diabetes or a family history of diabetes
a history of depression
if you are taking any prescription or over-the-counter medications

This product is intended to prevent pregnancy. It does not protect against transmission of HIV (AIDS) and other sexually transmitted diseases such as chlamydia, genital herpes, genital warts, gonorrhea, hepatitis B, and syphilis.

Return of Fertility

Because DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection is a long-acting birth control method, it takes some time after your last injection for its effect to wear off. Based on the results from a large study done in the United States, of those women who stop using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection in order to become pregnant, about half of those who become pregnant do so in about 10 months after their last injection; about two-thirds of those who become pregnant do so in about 12 months, about 83% of those who become pregnant do so in about 15 months, and about 93% of those who become pregnant do so in about 18 months after their last injection. The length of time you use DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection has no effect on how long it takes you to become pregnant after you stop using it.

Risks of Using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection

1. Irregular Menstrual Bleeding

The side effect reported most frequently by women who use DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection for contraception is a change in their normal menstrual cycle. During the first year of using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection, you might have one or more of the following changes:

irregular or unpredictable bleeding or spotting,
an increase or decrease in menstrual bleeding, or
no bleeding at all.
Unusually heavy or continuous bleeding, however, is not a usual effect of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection and if this happens you should see your health-care provider right away.

With continued use of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection, bleeding usually decreases and many women stop having periods completely. In clinical studies of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection, 55% of the women studied reported no menstrual bleeding (amenorrhea) after 1 year of use and 68% of the women studied reported no menstrual bleeding after 2 years of use.

The reason that your periods stop is because DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection causes a resting state in your ovaries. When your ovaries do not release an egg monthly, the regular monthly growth of the lining of your uterus does not occur and, therefore, the bleeding that comes with your normal menstruation does not take place. When you stop using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection your menstrual period will usually, in time, return to its normal cycle.

2. Bone Mineral Changes

Use of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection may be associated with a decrease in the amount of mineral stored in your bones. This could increase your risk of developing bone fractures. The rate of bone mineral loss is greatest in the early years of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection use but, after that, it begins to resemble the normal rate of age-related bone mineral loss.

3. Cancer

Studies of women who have used different forms of contraception found that women who used DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection for contraception had no increased overall risk of developing cancer of the breast, ovary, uterus, cervix, or liver. However, women under 35 years of age whose first exposure to DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection was within the previous 4 to 5 years may have a slightly increased risk of developing breast cancer similar to that seen with oral contraceptives. You should discuss this with your health-care provider.

4. Unexpected Pregnancy

Because DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection is such an effective contraceptive method, the risk of unexpected pregnancy for women who get their shots regularly (every 3 months [13 weeks]) is very low. While there have been reports of an increased risk of low birth weight and neonatal infant death or other health problems in infants conceived close to the time of injection, such pregnancies are uncommon. If you think you may have become pregnant while using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection for contraception, see your health-care provider as soon as possible.

5. Allergic Reactions

Severe allergic reactions known as anaphylaxis and anaphylactoid reactions have also been reported in some women using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection.

6. Other Risks

Women who use hormone-based contraceptives may have an increased risk of blood clots or stroke. Also, if a contraceptive method fails, there is a possibility that the fertilized egg will begin to develop outside of the uterus (ectopic pregnancy). While these events are rare, you should tell your health-care provider if you have any of the Warning Signals listed in the next section.

Warning Signals

If any of these problems occur following an injection of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection, call your health-care provider immediately:

Sharp chest pain, coughing up of blood, or sudden shortness of breath (indicating a possible clot in the lung)
Sudden severe headache or vomiting, dizziness or fainting, problems with your eyesight or speech, weakness, or numbness in an arm or leg (indicating a possible stroke)
Severe pain or swelling in the calf (indicating a possible clot in the leg)
Unusually heavy vaginal bleeding
Severe pain or tenderness in the lower abdominal area
Persistent pain, pus, or bleeding at the injection site
Side Effects of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection

1. Weight Gain

You may experience a weight gain while you are using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection. About two-thirds of the women who used DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection in the clinical trials reported a weight gain of about 5 pounds during the first year of use. You may continue to gain weight after the first year. Women in one large study who used DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection for 2 years gained an average total of 8.1 pounds over those 2 years, or approximately 4 pounds per year. Women who continued for 4 years gained an average total of 13.8 pounds over those 4 years, or approximately 3.5 pounds per year. Women who continued for 6 years gained an average total of 16.5 pounds over those 6 years, or approximately 2.75 pounds per year.

2. Other Side Effects

In a clinical study of over 3,900 women who used DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection for up to 7 years, some women reported the following effects that may or may not have been related to their use of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection:

irregular menstrual bleeding
amenorrhea
headache
nervousness
abdominal cramps
dizziness
weakness or fatigue
decreased sexual desire
leg cramps
nausea
vaginal discharge or irritation
breast swelling and tenderness
bloating
swelling of the hands or feet
backache
depression
insomnia
acne
pelvic pain
no hair growth or excessive hair loss
rash
hot flashes
joint pain



Other problems were reported by very few of the women in the clinical trials, but some of these could be serious. These include: convulsions, jaundice, urinary tract infections, allergic reactions, fainting, paralysis, osteoporosis, lack of return to fertility, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolus, breast cancer, or cervical cancer. If these or any other problems occur during your use of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection, discuss them with your health-care provider.

General Precautions

1. Missed Periods

During the time you are using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection for contraception, you may skip a period, or your periods may stop completely. If you have been receiving your injection of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection regularly every 3 months (13 weeks), then you are probably not pregnant. However, if you think that you may be pregnant, see your health-care provider.

2. Laboratory Test Interactions

If you are scheduled for any laboratory tests, tell your health-care provider that you are using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection for contraception. Certain blood tests are affected by hormones such as DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection.

3. Drug Interactions

Cytadren (aminoglutethimide) is an anticancer drug that may significantly decrease the effectiveness of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection if the two drugs are given during the same time.

4. Nursing Mothers

Although DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection can be passed to the nursing infant in the breast milk, no harmful effects have been found in these children. DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection does not prevent the breasts from producing milk, so it can be used by nursing mothers. However, to minimize the amount of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection that is passed to the infant in the first weeks after birth, you should wait until 6 weeks after childbirth before you start using DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection for contraception.

Administration of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection

The recommended dose of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection is 150 mg every 3 months (13 weeks) given in a single intramuscular injection in the buttock or upper arm. To ensure that you are not pregnant at the time of the first injection, it is essential that the injection be given ONLY during the first 5 days of a normal menstrual period. If used following the delivery of a child, the first injection of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection MUST be given within 5 days after childbirth if you are not breast-feeding, or if you are exclusively breast-feeding, the injection MUST be given 6 weeks after childbirth. If you wait longer than 3 months (13 weeks) between injections, or longer than 6 weeks after delivery, your health-care provider should determine that you are not pregnant before giving you your injection of DEPO-PROVERA Contraceptive Injection.

Believe me, I can certainly understand why some of you would never want to try this stuff. I probably wouldn't have either if I was 'healthy'.

However, I will be eternally greatful for Depo-Provera because it took away the pain of severe endometriosis for me. I was only 22 years old, and from the time I was 18 I had been going from doctor to doctor trying to find out what was wrong with me! I even had one QUACK tell me that I had gonorrhea and he shot me up with penecillian!

Finally, I found a wonderful doctor that decided to do an exploratory surgery to figure out what was going on. In addition to ovarian cysts, and a fibroid tumor, he found the endometriosis. That's when he brought up trying to control it with Depo shots. (No doctor wants to do a hysterectomy on a 22 year old!) I was on the shots for a year or so before he finally agreed to do the hysterectomy and end my suffering for good!

I just wanted to mention that there ARE people like me that can be helped with this drug. Apparently I was lucky - no weight gain, no side effects, no nothing. Just an end to the debilitating pain of endometriosis. And the added benefit of birth control at the same time!

I guess in some cases (like mine) it can be a god-send, while in other cases it can be a nightmare.

TIGGER: I noticed that your were diagnosed with endometriosis. Well, I looked it up because I also have pain during intercourse. And I was shocked to know that I have every other symptom except one! Now I'm worried. These were the symptoms:

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF ENDOMETRIOSIS?

Pain may be felt :

With period
During ovulation
In the bowel during menstruation
When passing urine
During or after intercourse
In the lower back region

Other symptoms may include:

Diarrhoea or constipation
Abdominal bloating
Heavy or irregular bleeding
Constant tiredness
Increasing PMT

I have everything but "when passing urine, and possibly increasing PMT" if I knew what it means. Anyone know what PMT means?? pre-menstral...????

Also, should I see my doctor then, or am I over-reacting?? I hate my doctor, and I'm scared he'll just pass it off as nothing, as usual, and later on, I'd be screwed.

PMT = Pre Menstrual Tension

I find that Brits say PMT and Americans say PMS

falling_rain21,

I'd go see an ob/gyn for it.... They would be the ones most likely to catch it and tell you. Although mine has subsided, there are times it still hurts. See, and I told them I have had abdominal bloating and they just pass it off as whatever. I even took in an article!! I think when I go for my "exam" at the end of this month, I will once again bring it up & see what they say.

Like today..... I am bloated up and am feeling very ugly, too