The pill and depression?

LegacyUser

I used to be on the yasmin pill and had to come off it due to severe depression when I had my seven day break. I told a doctor and they put me on microlite with very little thought about it and no investigation. That was some time ago, nearly two years ago.

When I start day one of the break everything is ok but from there on in it's like a slow spiral downwards. The depression has reduced but it can still get quite severe. The severe depression doesn't happen as often anymore but it has a tendoncy to happen which is not something I cope well with. I have a history of depression. I am aware that there is warnings with the pill that says that it may aggravate depression, the thing is though that I am a lot happier and more stable on the pill than when I have to come off it for the seven days so I do not want to give that up.

The thing is that if I mention the above to a doctor they will more than likely suggest I try a different pill. The thing is that I will not know the effects of that pill on my depression and I fear going back to a situation I had with the pill yasmin. Also I don't have the money to keep changing which pill I get every three months or so.

Has any other female/wife/girlfriend experienced this before?

tinkerbell

Obviously the pill will affect different women in different ways - it can go a bit wild with your hormones at the start until the body adjusts to it. You'll just have to go back to your doctor. Actually, get a second opinion, your own doc doesn't seem too helpful if all he's concerned about is switching you to another pill straight away without trying to investigate the actual cause first.

Cyrus

maybe its not the pill? you could actually be depressed, maybe talk to a sympathetic doctor, some are too quick to dismiss talk of depression

MistressPandora

I don't know Cyrus, I'm also on the pill and I suffer from depression too, but I never thought there was a link, because I knew I was depressed well before going onto the pill. But then again, you could be right. Some doctors think that depression is so overrated but the honest truth is that it's understated. I used to have this one doctor that gave me a prescription for the pill, and he'd always ask how I was and how I was dealing with my depression. He was cool
depression_pill, how long have you been depressed for? Was it before or after taking the pill you realised? All I can recommend during your 7 day break is snarling at people sometime and claim PMS. Worked for me last week ah no, I should be serious about this. Maybe you should take Cyrus' advice, see a sympathetic doctor. If you want the number of the doctor that I went to see, pm me.

Cyrus

was just my girlfs experience i was relaying really, she tried all sorts but at the end of the day for some reason unbeknownst to us she had a mild depression which was cured with a 6mth course of mild anti depressants

Kêrmêttê

I was taking mercillon for about 18 months a long time ago. I was never more depressed in my life. My doctor changed me to one of the older ones and it was like my whole life changed. The depression completely lifted once I started on the newly prescribed pill. Since then, the manufacturer stopped making this particular pill and I was put onto ovranette... again, I've had no problems.
I can get a bit lethargic and moody during the 7 day break... but hormones are running rampant anyway at this time.
Depression_pill, I'd suggest talking to your doctor. The combination of hormones in the pill that you are currently taking might not be the right one for you. It can be hit and miss selecting the right pill for a person because everyone's metabolism is different.

bug

had the same problems on the combined pill, was a raving lunatic. went on the progesterone only and Im happy as Larry.

LegacyUser

"your own doc doesn't seem too helpful"
I don't really have my own doctor as I have moved quite a bit over the last couple of years and this has led me to have a new doctor in each place.

I have suffered from depression for quite a number of years, even before I went on the pill. I believe it started when I was about twelve and got progressively worse as I got older.

I think that the major problem I have is that I actually don't want to tell the doctor that I have these depresssive states. Around four years ago I was admitted to the pychiatric ward of a hospital for the duration of two weeks. It should be noted that I did not what to admit myself but I was told that if I didn't admit myself that my parents would admit me (I was under eighteen at the time) and it would then go on my permanent record. I hated every minute of it and did my best to act "normal" to get out of there hince my short stay. I try to pretend it never happened to professionals such as doctors as I am afriad that if I start talking about my depression again it will just open up a can of worms that I won't be able to control. I am a lot better than I was and don't want to jeopardise that by telling doctors. I don't want professionals continually asking me about it, changing doctors so often over the last couple of years as allowed me hide the fact that I was commited. Something like MistressPandora's doctor who asked her how she was dealing with her depression would not suit me as I don't like so much attention being brought to it.

Maybe there is something natural that I could take for just the seven day break which someone else has tried? Does this happen to anyone else?

LegacyUser

I had been suffering from depression long before I went on any type of contraception.

My main problem is in actually speaking to a doctor about the depressive state. I can be quite dismissive of my depression when I am not depressed and when I am depressed I try to isolate myself from people. Also I am afraid that mentioning my depression might open up a can of worms that I don't want to deal with. I don't reveal my history of depression to new doctors and if I do mention it I never go into detail as to how bad it was. My depression these days isn't half as bad as it used to get though.

bug

may I ask how old you are, and if you think that your parents made the right decision to send you to a psychiatric ward?
The reason why I am asking is because I personally think (not being a doctor) that alot of people I know of three, go through a really depressive phase ( thats sounds dismissive, but i dont know how else to describe it without saying phase) from the age of puberty to their early 20's.
Like everything else it can depend on what sort of support a person gets, and thats why im wondering if you think your parents made the right decision to send you to the ward. Were they supportive? or did they just want to pass the issue on to someone else, not wanting to address it?
Im sorry if this is hurtful, Im just trying to access the situation, the reason being I know of a few people who's parents refered them to psychiatrics purely because they couldnt deal with it, (which doesnt neccessarily make them at fault, nobody is born a parent, or knows how to deal with it.)

I think that if you really want to deal with this you have to realise that firstly, it can get better and most probably will, since you see signs of improvement you said yourself. And secondly that its not and shouldnt be a taboo subject to be depressed or to say that you go to a doctor because of it. Its not something to be ashamed of, at some stage in thieir lives everyone gets really bad for one reason or another.

Also, it could be hormonal especially since you said that you notice it when you are on your break, in some people puberty goes on for alot longer than the initial 11-15/16 and the residual changes can go on into a persons twenties. I remember the guy Dr. Robert Winston said this in one of his programmes.
Some people are more sensitive to hormonal changes than others. But you really shouldnt have a hang up about being depressed, there is no shame in it.

re-reading over your posts there I realise to my mistake that its more a question of not wanting to talk about it when your feeling ok, than being ashamed of it, my mistake. I know it seems a bit silly when your on the highs to be even trying to describe the lows, the best thing to do is to try and build up a relationship with a doctor that you like, shop around you dont have to settle on any one GP, and then go to this person when you are in the height of feeling low, once you feel you trust their judgement enough. In my opinion psychiatrists are a waste of space, too pricey and too quick to prescribe and should only be visited in dire cicumstances. But thats purely my opinion, a doctor you trust would be the best person to ask.

Best of Luck, and no harm in reading up on the pill that your on the the symptoms of your own depression, best to be forearmed to be able to spot a doc who knows what they are talking about IMO.

shiv

to the original poster, you're never going to come to terms with your depression if you refuse to admit it or talk about it, as hard as it may be. in my own experience, the pill does nothing to help depression, or your moods in general. the only thing that lifted my severe lows was an anti-depressant, but i'd use it just to get you out of a particularly nasty slump, maybe for 6 months. they too have their side-effects, most notably on libido.

don't be ashamed of your depression. there's a great book i read called Sunbathing in Rain, and talks about how depression usually happens for a reason, because something big is not right in your life, and your subconscious is sick to the teeth of repressing your unhappiness.

if you're not comfortable with a gp, try a counsellor, they're a lot more sympathetic and obviously not as hurried. failing that, talk to a friend. and please don't judge yourself so harshly. as the old saying goes, would you treat a friend in similar situation the same way?

Victor

Poster. Without saying you are being dishonest, can I suggest that you aren't being fully honest about your depression.

If the medications you are taking say they may affect depression, you need to discuss this with your doctor.

Ever hear "My name is Bob, and I'm an alcholic ..." at least Bob is trying to be honest.

Now I realise being "honest" is fúcking scary, but hey, it was me that started this thread http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=201948

I've read read 6 out of 27 e-mails in the last half hour.

LegacyUser

"may I ask how old you are, and if you think that your parents made the right decision to send you to a psychiatric ward?"
I am twenty-two. I was admitted when I was seventeen. My parents didn't know what to do. They had sent me to a counsellor and my mother reminded me of the cost every time I went. I was on anti-depressants which they were paying for and doctors visits they were also paying for. They wanted the hospital to "fix" me. I was admitted more so by my mother than my father, after an attempted suicide which was by no means the last but after being commited I was very scared to admit to anyone what I was going through. When I left the hospital I had one more obligatory visit with a psychiatrist and the whole incident has never been spoken of since.

Thanks everyone for the advice. I will mention this to a doctor.