I have been taking Yaz since Jan 2008, and I feel that I am losing my mind!!!!!?

I wasn't on Yaz because it wasn't available at the time, but birth control pills of all kinds did this to me. For years, I swallowed those stupid pills, told doctor after doctor about my symptoms which I believed was linked to the BCP, and doctor after doctor told me that the birth control pill could not have that effect.

I took Ortho Tri Cyclen as a teenager, and on the third day of the green pills, which were kind of mid-cycle, I turned into mush. I would cry at the slightest provocation, couldn't handle anything, and was short-tempered and fatigued. I stopped taking these late in my teens, got pregnant, married and had another baby shortly after - my first two children were 17 months apart. I went on another birth control pill after that.

With other pills, I had the same symptoms, only the whole month round. It was like permanent PMS. I finally quit taking them for good when I was brushing my 2 year old daughter's teeth and I became enraged and screamed at her that she wasn't brushing her teeth right. It just scared me and made me so sad that I was treating my baby that way. I knew it wasn't *me*.

It made me so made after I got smart and read the literature. While it didn't list my exact symptoms, it did say that the pill could cause depression. Depression could obviously lead to some of the behaviors I was exhibiting. I had doctors tell me flat out that I had anger issues. Funny. Anger issues that only appear while I am on the pill, and mysteriously disappear when I am not taking it?

I am convinced that between the physical side effects of the pill, and the emotional side effects that go unreported because doctors are convinced it's the person, not the pill that the pill is bad medicine that should never have been approved by the FDA. It certainly would never have been approved if it had been given to men. But because for so many years most doctors were men, and men tend to disregard women's complaints in general, and truly run from any hint of female emotional problems, these simply did not get reported as related to the pill.

In addition to these types of problems, I have also experienced the 'disappearing sex drive' associated with the pill. If you experienced no other side effect, this one alone would destroy many marriages. At one point I was convinced that the efficacy of the pill did not lie in it's ability to prevent ovulation, but in it's ability to make any desire disappear from the woman.

You don't have to wait to finish this pack. You can just quit. You might have another withdrawal bleed (period), but it will probably be light. I found it took about three months to get my self back. The pill depletes B vitamins, so support your body by taking a couple of B complex tablets twice a day, and some additional B12. This depletion of the B vitamins is probably the primary reason so many women experience mood problems when they are on the pill, and I have NO idea why doctors don't recommend that EVERY woman on the pill supplement with vitamin B - but that still doesn't help the sex drive, or any of the dangerous physical side effects, so it's still bad medicine.

If you want to go natural, find a way to add some brewer's yeast to your diet - available in your local health food store.

If you take the B, it will turn your urine a really violent shade of yellow. You don't have to worry about ODing on B, because they are water soluble vitamins, and whatever your body doesn't use, you'll pee out. Keep taking it, and you will notice over time that your urine is less yellow - this is an indication that you are metabolizing the B vitamins better, and is a good sign.

You and hubby might want to come up with a different method of birth control, if you are not ready for children. If you choose an IUD, get a copper one, not mirena, which has hormones in it. There are about 8 million methods out there now, but most of them have some kind of hormone, so you won't be able to use them.

Whether you are catholic or not, the catholic church in your area can give you and your husband fertility counseling, so that you can learn to chart your cycles and get to know when you are ovulating and know the process of pregnancy a little better. There are many natural methods of determining when you are ovulating, so you can avoid sex at those times. When you use temp charting, mucus, any other symptoms you may have, etc, you can get pretty good at it.

Don't lose hope! You are doing the right thing! I am convinced that BCPs are in part responsible for the high divorce rate - who wants to be married to a crazy bi*ch who doesn't want to have sex? And don't be sad - be happy. Some people never even know what the problem is! They think their doctors are right and that something is wrong with THEM!

I had the same problem with another birth control pill, it was controlling my Endometriosis but i had such bad mood swings i'd rather have the pain of Endo than the mood swings so i stopped taking it. It didn't take long to get it out of my system once i stopped taking it, maybe a month. Go see your Dr and ask to change Pills there's many different types out there, some work for others and some don't.

If you realize that the pills are causing you emotional mayhem, do not take them anymore. find another method of birth control. I know how you feel, I took birth control pills in the past and it really messed me up. it made me gain a lot of weight and left me severely depressed. Honestly I don't know how long it will take for all of the medication to be removed out of your body, but just be glad that you recognized the culprit and you can do something about it now. I recommend condoms if you and your husband do not want children. Good luck and hope you feel better soon.

I don't have personal experience, but see lots of questions on Answers about problems with this bc.

You need to consult your doctor ASAP about changing your pills to something more compatible with your system.

If you quit taking them, use other protection until you can see your doctor.