anxiety and birth control pills

[anxietystinks]

Hi All. I've just read through all the postings and I am so relieved to hear others have the same problems/issues. I have suffered from anxiety my whole life for a variety of reasons and it has gotten worse and worse over the years. I am 39 now. Several years ago, I went on Lexapro 10mg and in therapy for about a year. I was on it for 5+ years and was doing great.  I went off of Lexapro and did great for over a year. My anxiety started to creep back in periodically, but I worked through it.  I was on the bc pill Aleese at the time I went off of Lexapro and still did ok, but I did get more anxiety around my period.  So, my primary care physician switched my pill to YAZ (which was supposed to help with anxiety) and I actually felt more anxious around my period.  I was only on it for 3 mos when I broke-up with my boyfriend.  This, of course, triggered my anxiety and it went through the roof.  So, my immediate reaction was to go back on Lexapro.  Here's where it gets interesting, when I went back on Lexapro, within 6 hours of taking it I was in the ER with severe anxiety symptoms.  It was like someone opened a faucet in my neck and poured hot lava down my back and arms.  Throw in some serious tingling, racing thoughts and I was a mess. This came and went for days and I was miserable.  I ended up in the hospital and was switched from Lexapro to another SSRI.  That didn't help nor did the next one.  So, eventually, I put it together that this weird reaction I was having to the SSRI's, that worked perfectly fine before, may be caused by a reaction with the Yaz. I went off Yaz and eventually, they put me on Wellbutrin and Buspar.  

Each week I was getting better and better, however, I was getting awful acne. I never had acne even as a teenager.  So, I thought, I'll go back on a different bc pill because they help with acne.  Big mistake. I should have gone to a dermatologist instead!  Within a day I was experiencing the tingling and burning in my neck. So, I googled this issue and found this site.  Effective today, I am off the pill. Hopefully, things will get back to normal soon.  Oh, and yes, I have had my thyroid tested many times (while on the pill? not sure if this makes a difference?) and even had a thyroid scan. Interestingly, all my tests have come back negative.  I find it all very interesting.  There was 1 test that did come back with 1 of my numbers elevated, but they didn't feel my symptoms were due to hyperthyroidism.  I was very bummed because if you read the symptoms of hyperthyroidism, I am a textbook case. Bottom line, more research must be done on hormones and anxiety!    

[anxietystinks]

I wish I wouldn't have gone off the Lexapro to begin with, but I went off of it originally to lose the weight I had gained over 5 years and I also wanted to see if I could handle it.  Also, I was dating someone and felt pretty secure with things. I did well for about a year and half off the Lexapro. Once the relationship ended, however, my anxiety kicked right back up to high gear.  I am attending weekly therapy for my security issues, but still trying to figure out the medications.  Now that I am off of the birth control, I am going to talk to my doctor about trying lexapro again.  I can deal with the weight gain, but not the anxiety.  

[shadowserpent]

just wanted to add.... birth control pills should NOT be taken at the same time as your antidepressant!
apperntly the antidepressant causes the birth control to not work!
i sit here 31 weeks pregnant as a testament to prozac canceling out my birth control!

[Jikan]

Namaste,

Some questions which are unanswered are whether your discontinuance of Lexapro and subsequent reinstatement of Lexapro were supervised by a physician? And, why did you stop the Lexapro in the first place if it was controlling your symptoms?

Lexapro is an antidepressant in a group of drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Lexapro affects chemicals in the brain that may become unbalanced and cause depression or anxiety.

Lexapro is used to treat anxiety and major depressive disorder.

When you subsequently changed your medications to Buspar and Wellbutrin, instead of going back on Lexapro, what was the reason for this instead of putting you back on Lexapro since you were no longer taking Yaz?

From the research I have done concerning clinical trials conducted on Buspar and Wellbutrin, there is no evidence that they cause acne, although it is possible since different people react to medications differently.

I would obtain a second opinion concerning what medication(s) would be best for you given your diagnois and symptoms.

Since your situation is so unique, a complete psychological history would need to be conducted, followed by an evaluation and finally development of a treatment plan, which may or may not include the use of medication(s) and/or adjunct therapy.

Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

Jikan