Help me with Side Effects, please...

[imclairesmom]

I just went to my endo and he has prescribed some new meds for me. I was wondering what side effects I can expect, and how fast these meds worked for some of you...

Here is what he put me on:
Metformin-500 mg/3 times a day
Spironolactone-
Yasmin-BC pills


I am at a loss these days. I feel more like a man than my husband does at times, I think. :roll: Do you all ever feel "manlike"?

My hair is falling out by the handfuls. I have to clean the brush, every time I brush my hair, but yet, the facial hair just keeps getting worse and worse.

My weight is uncontrollable. I am 5'3 and I am now up to 217 lbs. What has worked for you? I am totally a meat and potatoes person. I hate veggies... any ideas?

All of your help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

[tweety]

The only one I know about is the met. The worse side effect I had was the stomach issues. That took about a month to get over. As long as I watch my carb and sugar intake I am fine. I have noticed that my facial hair is better, it seems to grow slower and be less coarse. I have lost a little wieght but not as much as I would like :lol: I have noticed an increase in energy also.
My doctor told me I would need to lower my carb intake, which has helped with the weight issue.

[LJinTX]

I would strongly suggest that you start with a lower dose of the Metformin to minimize the side effects. Many docs are doing this, there is nothing wrong with taking a lower dose at first. I am going up by 250 mg/day increments weekly but you could try starting with 500 mg/day for a week and bump it up by adding another 500 mg/day weekly.

There are studies that support doing it this way. They say you should not increase doses any more frequently than weekly, however.

Virtually everyone gets some diarrhea and nausea with Met, and many find it more manageable to start low and go slow.

Hang in there.

[LJinTX]

Also, you need to make some diet changes but don't make them all at once. Meat is fine, but try finding a veggie that you do like and subsituting it for the potatoes at least a couple of times a week.

Walk 10 minutes a day for a week. Don't do more, just start really slow and increase your exercise over time.

One of the biggest reasons people fail to make lifestyle changes is that they feel overwhelmed when they try to change too much too soon.

You are on some pretty big meds. You might want to get used to the Met before you start the Spironolactone (which may be causing your hair loss).

[wantingbabynumber2]

What I did to help with the symptoms of the Met was I am on XR which supposedly helps too but I take it only at night with a high protein snack like nuts usually pistachios and cashews are okay for you and about 8oz of milk. I also take an over the counter fiber tablet. I take the generic brand and it says take it three times a day but I just take it once 3 tablets but you will have to see how many you should take to help. 2 will do the job okay but still lose stools so 3 seems to do the trick for me. Anyhow I do this about an hour before bed and I don't have any problems. I had my gallbladder out almost 3 years ago and i think that causes problems more than the met. Anytime I eat greasy foods I have stomach upset. Hope it helps. Plus the longer you are on it the more benefits vs side effects. I was horribly tired on it but it did get better. If I skip a dose too I will get horrible nausea. But I know some of us can not tolerate it at all.

[sasisami]

I was on this drug for a year and loved it--all my symptome lessoned and I had regular periods for the first time in my life. When I moved and got a new doctor, they cautioned me about the drug saying it has side effects for the liver, and they refused to put me on it, unless I was also on birth control pills because of the very bad birth defects associated with it.

I declined the drug and have been untreated thus far. Just an FYI--you may want to ask about the side effects/potential dangers.

Good luck!

[lunameow]

The others have already mentioned the metformin. For spironolactone, your doctor might have told you it's an androgen blocker (androgen being a male hormone), which should help a lot with the "feeling like a man". ;) The most common side effects appear to be the same with most medications, which would be diarrhea, nausea, etc. I'm not on it myself, just going with what I can find in my drug books.

[Wendi]

I'm in my thrid week of Yasmin now. First couple of days, it was like morning sickness all over again. Just feeling horribly nauseuas.

I take mine at night, hence the morning sickness. It's gotten better, but I find if I eat too soon after getting up, I tend to feel sick. I have started waiting until after eating to have my beloved cup of coffee, and that seems to help as well. Good luck!

[Kiki]

Just a few more tips:
I also started at 500mgs of Metformin @6 yrs ago. I had the classic diarrhea and stomach pains, which have lessenned but not completely disappeared. I tend to have stomach pains, diarrhea a lot though-even before I developed PCOS or its symptoms so its hard to say if its still a side effect of the Met. By the way Im now on 1500 mgs a day. I recently increased my dose after I felt my hair thinning got worse.
I also take spironoalctone which is a diuretic so it may make you pee more often. I think it helps with my skin and thinning hair. I haven't really had much of a prob w/ facial hair, althogh my arm hair is thicker than it used to be. Have you heard of Vaniqua? Its used to treat facial hair but I don't know much about it-you could ask your dr or look it up online. Iv'e never gone off these meds so I'm not sure if/how much my symtoms would change.
One last tip: I use Nioxin which you can get at most beauty supplies stores. I get mine at Trade Secret. It is expensive ($50) for the starter kit. I'm not sure how long its supposed to last. You're suppossed to use it everyday but my hairdresser suggested washing my hair only every other day. Nioxcin doesn't make new hair grow but its suppossed to keep wI think I see a difference in my hair when I use it for long periods of time. Best of luck to you and know you are not alone! ~KIKI