Survived bi-lat Pulmonary Embolism and DVT Caused by YAZ

Thank you, for keeping the message board and blog going. By simply being a presence on the internet you keep the dangers of these drugs available for people to see. Woman need to be educated on these drugs and you're helping so many.

I'm in the middle of a YAZ lawsuit and I'd like to share my story in the hope that someone can relate to it and find a little solace knowing they are not alone. Also, my blog has become a place specifically where women can anonymously share information and discuss their experience (and intense frustration) with the YAZ MDL lawsuit and I hope others will find it useful. 

My Story. . .

I had been on hormonal birth control pills for 10+ years and besides the headaches and moodiness that came along with PMS, I never had problems. A few months before my wedding and just after my 31st birthday, I switched to YAZ. At the time I was a healthy, active non-smoker who ran and did yoga nearly every day.

On a Saturday morning in August 2010 I was shopping with a girlfriend and started feeling out of breath. Each time we got back to the car I felt like I'd just run a mile. Work had been stressful lately, so I attributed the tightness in my chest to that. It wasn't until I nearly passed out that I knew something was wrong. My friend took me to the ER where my husband met us. Again, we just thought I was having a stress induced panic attack or it was a pre-cursor to a migraine. It took several hours and a CAT Scan to confirm that both my lungs were filled with marble sized blood clots. I was immediately started on blood thinners and admitted into the MICU. I stayed in the hospital for a week.

A full blood panel concluded that I have no clotting disorders, so the only known cause of the PE (and DVT which they later found) was the YAZ birth control pills I had been on since May 2009.

I'm one of the lucky ones. I'm alive, although according to my doctors, I shouldn't be. The worst part about having had major blood clots is that they seem to be the gift that keeps on giving. I'm still on blood thinners nearly 4  years later and have been advised to stay on them for life. The fear and anxiety of another episode is always present. I've been to the ER a few times because of similar PE symptoms that turned out to be false alarms – each visit leaves me in tears; it's so frustrating to be held captive by the fear of having another clot. 

Currently, I am part of the YAZ MDL lawsuit. Settlements are being discussed and it doesn't look like any of the lawsuits will actually go to court or that Bayer will be taking YAZ or its sister drugs off the market any time soon. My hope is that the pending lawsuits are enough to convince women to question their use of birth control pills containing Drospirenone. I believe that hormonal contraceptives are a great option for many women, but it's important to educate yourself and make informed decisions, because the risks can be deadly.

Best wishes,
-Mrs.T
Visit Mrs. T's Blog HERE

Editors note: The overall message of the Yasmin and Yaz Survivors Group is to stay away from synthetic hormonal contraceptive due to the many risk that may or may not inflict upon your life but we wanted to leave Mrs. T's own words in this blog post because that is what this is for... to share your own story and thoughts. 

Two Surgeries thanks to Yasmin and the comforting words from my Doc

I went on Yasmin in 2005 and thought I loved it at first...
Then, I started getting headaches all the time, strange paresthesia sensations in my hands. My heart would skip beats, and I eventually started getting stabbing pains every once in a while in my chest. Couldn't handle hot weather in the summer, and actually had heat exhaustion twice.

I Never thought it was my pill.

Then I started to see the commercials about Ocella being bad for you. So I called my doctors office to see if I needed to change pills. They were not concerned and told me the risks are the same for all pills. So I was like okay, I guess I will stay on it...

Well, I just didn't feel right about a year later and just stopped taking my pills. See; what the doctor doesn't tell you is that this pill has a diuretic in it. One that alters your potassium levels. Well, potassium is kind of important for muscle function, nerves , CLOTTING factors, oh yeah and THE POLARIZATION OF THE HEART. So that is probably why my heart was skipping beats and I was having anxiety. So after being on a diuretic without my knowledge for five years, what happens when I abruptly stop?

- My blood pressure went through the roof, and I started having intermittent claudication when I walked. So I went to the Doc to make sure I didn't have a clot, and my blood pressure was 140/104. I usually run 118/68! Hello rebound hypertension! Thanks Yasmin!

All of my problems were caused by electrolyte imbalance due to diuresis. I was pretty much dehydrated for FIVE years. After coming off, my body wanted to keep every bit of fluid that it could. I have also had two surgeries on my reproductive organs in two years. Since Yasmin took my progesterone and threw it out the window, I ended up with uterine polyps that had to be removed. They are caused by an over abundance of estrogen. So girls, avoid soy and its isoflavones!

The reason this pill has a higher clot risk is not rocket science. It's a little something called Virchow's Triad. Dehydration(the diuretic) + clotting disorder(potassium alteration)+ blood vessel injury = DVT. The FDA should know better! Are they trying to kill people? Yasmin gave us ladies 2 out of 3 of the risk factors for clots. Where most pills probably only give you one of the factors. That is a huge difference.

Fast forward two years. Things are better, but still not back to where I was before. It is a long and painful process, and I still get acne from time to time, which I never had before this pill. I am no longer on ACE inhibitors for blood pressure and my body finally started to regulate itself again. I don't eat anything processed, and I had to learn to be patient. I just wish I had known what was really in this pill before my Doc gave it to me. Had I known about the diuretic I would have said no way! Good luck to all the ladies out there just now quitting this pill. You are not alone! I only was able to put all the pieces together once I started school for nursing.

I am now an angry girl that hopes she can still have kids one day. We'll see...

~Anonymous

On Yasmin 4 years 

My sister asked me what birth control pill I was on

My name is Maria and I am from Romania. Thank you so much for having the initiative to create this blog. I have discovered it as Yasmin almost ruined my life.

I have been taking Yasmin for 8 month now and about 4 months ago everything changed. I was a lively person, who laughed and enjoyed everything in her life, who couldn't wait for the weekend to come to see her boyfriend. Soon after starting taking Yasmin, everything changed. The panic attacks began, I cried for no reason I felt I was going crazy and nobody understood me. I really felt I was going nuts until this morning when my sister came to me and asked me which BCP I was taking. I answered that I was on yasmin and she said that my moods and my panic attacks and everything has an explanation. She then told me about a former colleague of hers who, in college, after taking Yasmin for several months threw a knife at her. Then I understood I was not crazy and that Yasmin are responsible for everything.

I don t want to lose my relationship, my parents, and friends because of some stupid pill that can ruin your life.

Thank you so much and once again congrats for this blog.

Kind regards,

Maria.

Since taking Yaz I have now developed a vascular condition

Hi ladies,

I have been reading your post on the Yasmin and Yaz Survivor Forum and here on the Blog for some time and have joined to thank you all for your thoughts and contributions. 

The support and sentiments expressed here are so valuable when there is such little information forthcoming from doctors or the drug manufacturer.

Many women are having difficulty transitioning from Yaz and Yasmin birth control, and I have long suspected that the 'mild' anti aldosterone properties of drospirenone have an effect on the renin angiotensin aldosterone system for a number of months thereafter.

I have experienced constant tachycardia, blood pressure problems, back pain in kidney area, fluid retention, unbearable surges in adrenalin, muscle weakness, sensitivity with regards to my central nervous system, visible strong tremors in hands, lack of coordination, brain fog, hair loss, decreased urination and alternatively excessive urination, odd, random bouts of nausea that disappear as quickly as they appear, vision disturbances, tingling and twitching in extremities...bizarre.

My doctor has used words like 'you are stressed and anxious' to smother my concerns. I think we all know there's a bit of a stigma associated with researching health ailments online, but what's a girl to do when your practitioners are constantly being evasive? Making you feel like a giddy hypochondriac but at the same time putting you on a beta blocker? I smell a rat. How about you?

Since taking Yaz I have now developed a vascular condition (diagnosed by a doctor) that is likely to worsen over the course of my life. All this before the age of 30! Anxiety indeed.
I have no history of serious health problems, no history of heart or other diseases in my family or myself that may be contraindicated with birth control use, non-smoker, always had low blood pressure (even in my pregnancy), a long background of birth control use without complication, and extended breaks without birth control...no complication.

I think my health status is pertinent to note. Around the time I ceased taking Yaz my decline was very rapid and at one stage I was down to 44kg (99lbs)...an old work colleague of mine came to visit me at my worst and cried when she saw me. My quality of life was severely limited for approximately four months thereafter.

On a positive note we are now at seven months past and last week was my first week where I felt almost completely normal! Though the cynic in me feels that you can't be that sick without some long term battles...there were a few times there that I thought I might die.

Sending lots of love and light to you all.
~Anonymous