Lupron

[alana rose]

Hi all!

As I said in earliers posts, I have been diagnosed with endo on top of the 24/7 pain of IC. I am so desperate to find something to help with the pain (I have tried all of the treatments/meds for IC so far) and am in hopes that Lupron will help with, if not all, some of the pain.

I spoke with my pharmacist about Lupron-I asked if there was any signifigant weight gain (I am a recovering anorexic). He said that it is usually the opposite-weight loss. I also have read that a persons breast size decreases-I'm ok with that. I know that I have gained weight since last summer. Alot of my pants are snug-not too happy with that.

Anyway, I was told that Lupron doesn't contain any hormones, but what about steroids? If so, does this cause weight gain? I know where I have gone wrong (too much sugar, not enough exercise!!)

I feel myself slipping into the black hole of anorexia....but I'm not allowing myself to go there. It has been nearly six years since I weighed myself.

Thx for listening!

[Katrina]

Lupron was the first thing to help my Endo at all. Even it was far from a fix. I was a small person previous to it....and possibly got smaller. I know some have gained wheight though. I found I had a lot of changes in how feminine I was physically.
Hope that helps ya

[holles]

i had a bad experience with lupron. i lost weight, yes, but only because i lost taste-sensitivity. food tasted like glue the whole time i was on it and for several months after. my boobs did shrink, but fortunately, they returned after about a year. during lupron therapy, i developed IC. i'd never had bladder problems before, so i think the estrogen loss was bad for me. for some women, they have no problem at all. hot flashes were tough, but bearable (buy a water bra and keep it in the fridge, seriously!). insomnia was bad, i slept about 1 or 2 hours a night. but the dr gave me something to help with the hot flashes and insomnia. it worked a little bit. therapy and counseling helped with the depression i experienced.

however, i had a second look lap a month after stopping lupron. this was just 7 months after the first lap to remove endometriosis. when i had the second lap, there was endometriosis again. so it grew back that quickly for me. lupron treated it somewhat (pathology report said it showed signs of prior treatment), but it didn't do anything for my pain. only made it worse.

exercise did help me feel better. it still does. it is immediate pain relief, although not long-lasting. however, on lupron, i was exhausted most of the time.

please be careful with this drug. it's different for each woman. when i asked my dr about his success rate with it, he told me he had only had to stop treatment on one other woman besides me. so that tells me that my experience was not the norm. but any side effects you have that are unusual or just too much to bear, you need to report them to your dr.

ask for the 1-month shot. try it for 3 months (1 shot a month) to see if you can tolerate the side effects and to see if it doesn't affect your IC in a bad way. then if you can tolerate it, go for the 3-month dose.

personally, the only thing that's helped me regarding endometriosis is surgery (excision) and birth control pills. i fought the bcp for ages because we were trying to conceive, but eventually i had to do something for the pain. and the bcp also has helped the IC pain for some reason. i think estrogen is good for me. but each of us is different.

good luck with your decision. i researched for months before finally starting the drug. i don't regret doing it, because now i know what works for me and what doesn't. (((((hugs)))))