Lupron Shots

Hi there,
Anyone had Lupron shots before? I was told by my gynae last week that I am to have 3 Lupron shots prior to my hysterectomy in July. I have a very large cervical fibroid about 17 cmX 13 cm and the Lupron shots are to shrink the uterus and fibroid before the ops to minimize blood lost etc. I read about the negative side effects and feeling rather worried about it. Would appreciate to hear from anyone who have had the shots before and the side effects if any, so that I can be better prepared and know what to expect. Thanks in advance! hongwah.

Hi, I understand your interest in this drug. Click on the purple search tab and type in Lupron under" Keyword". You can get some instant conversation threads about the subject.
It was offered to me as a temp option. I read all about it on the net and said, NO, to it. But, alot of girls here have had it prior to surgery and it has worked well. I think it is easier also for the doctors because if it does what it is suppose to and shrinks the uterus a bit, it can make for an easiery surgery. Also if it reduces your bleeding a bit you can catch up on the enemia end of it.
Talk more also to your doctor about his other patients experiences with it. Each case is different. Good luck with your decision, although you sound as if your doctor has ordered it regardless. Perhaps because of the size of your fibroid.
Keep us informed,

Maralyn

First of all remember that everyone is different and you might not react the way that I did. I had a horrible time on Lupron, but that doesn't mean you will. You don't know how you'll react until you are on it. Here's a list of the side effects that I had.....

Hotflashes

Severe dizziness

Faintness

Heart palpitations

Tachycardia(racing heart)

Weight loss(20 pounds in the first month...alot of people gain weight, but not me)

Hair loss

Facial hair growth

memory loss(I swear I still have that side effect)

I think that's it. On the positive side, it took away my pain until I started add-back therapy and I had no bleeding at all while on it. And it was great losing the weight that I had been trying sooooo hard to lose. Good luck and remember alot of women do great on Lupron. I was just one of the unlucky ones.

I am into my 2nd month on the lupron shot, I am about half way through the month. The side effects I feel are being warm (not too uncomfortable) My legs ache some, worse by night as I am on my feet all day. I didn't gain any weight, but didn't lose any either.

I have heard mixed reactions to the shots like many others, but it does depend on your body and no one elses.

I opted for the shots to see if the TAH/BSO was the way to go for me, its nice being able to test the waters per say on some of my issues.

Good luck, take all you learn and then come with your & doc opinion on Lupron.

I also have not had any headaches, but do get tired some.

Take care

I did 6 months of Lupron..I was one of the unlucky ones that had the side effects...but the pain and bleeding were GONE! This is my experience on Lupron, everyone is different:
-Hot Flashes
-Night Sweats
-Insomnia
-Slight Memory Loss
-Irritiblity (Mood Swings)

I do not regret getting the Lupron, it did take away my pain and bleeding totally...but two months after I was done, it all came back...but now I know what to expect with my hysterectomy!

i did 6 months of lupron 14 yrs ago and again 12 yrs ago. that was the old way of having to administer the shots yourself. more recently i was on a low dosage during infertility treatments in 99 and just finished 5 months again in dec. 01 the side effects in the earlier doses were much worse than recent ones. i took soy this time for the hot flashes and my dr put me on 1500mg calcium a day. which i'm still on. for me the benefits far outweighed the risks. no bleeding, no ovulation, no pain. i got my life back. there are medicines to reduce the hot flashes. initially i tried the clonidine patch, but nearly passed out--it works by lowering the blood pressure and i have low blood pressure, so it was a bad choice for me. the only other side effect i had was that i developed joint pain in my hands, to the point i was having trouble gripping things. which is why i didn't get the 6th shot this time around, but my dr is unsure if the lupron had anything to do with it. but my grip has come back. there's alot of pros and cons out there for it like any other drug, do the research and talk to your dr and maybe a pharmacist. then make the best decision for your health. my bone density is fine.

I was one of the unlucky ones with Lupron. However, the ladies are correct, each person reacts differently. I took one shot, that was enough for me.

Hot flashes and a suprising crop of facial hair would have been enough, but the mood swings were the worst. I couldn't stand myself much less figure out how my husband put up with me!

I hope you have better experience, I wish you the best.

Linda

I'm almost one month into my 3-month shot of Lupron to shrink a 20 cm fibroid prior to surgery. Aside from feeling warm for 3 or 4 nights, and a few days of a persistant headache (though I'm prone to migraines, so who knows what the cause of these were?), I've had only a pleasant reaction to the Lupron - everything's smaller in my bladder/pelvic area, so no more pain! And I think I didn't ovulate at all last week, so I won't swell up again. I am taking calcium on my own, after reading the side effects of Lupron - my doctor didn't tell me very much.

My sister did the every-day-for-a-month injections to stop her cycle as part of fertility treatments. She got very cranky and had hot flashes. But she has a 5-year old daughter as a result, so she figures it was worth it!

Phil

lupron is a tough choice but i did it for four months and can say i'm glad i did. i had a honeymoon period where it wasnt that bad the first couple weeks but after that the deeper you get in to the therapy the less estrogen you have so the side effects are more prononced. hot flashes , night sweats were after two months very prononced. i never stopped bleeding for the entire four months! i must be one of the rare cases that my uterus wasnt giving up without a fight! and believe me it didnt. my football size fibroid was all the way up under my belly button..that doesnt count the other eight fibroids knockin around in there. by three months my fibroids had shrunk 22%....my doctor was very surprised by the amount of shrinkage and was then able to take it out with a horizontal incision instead of the more difficult vertical. so there was the plus too. finally i made my date for march 1 and told the doctor i would never make it til then...on feb. 17th i hemorraged and they did emergency surgery on the 18th. it sounds scary but wasnt ... it was over and done with quickly. the nice thing was i had built up my hemoglobin from 8 to 15! i had been anemic for six years and it was nice to feel like a person again...the night of surgery it had once again dropped to 7.something...but if i hadnt of had that time to get it up there i would have been in worse shape.. so everyone is different and i would have done the same again.
good luck in your decision making

I had to stay on Lupron for 11 months. Yes they are side effects but some people have them worse than others.
Mine mainly consisted of hot flashes and mood swings. They were bad for 3 months and then got better. The doctor CAN give you something to help that.

good luck
runabout
(lynne)