The leuprolide injections were my last ditch effort for my endometriosis. But it didn’t help. In fact, it caused issues with my bones despite taking the required precautions. Here’s my story.
Firstly a VERY IMPORTANT disclaimer: We all react differently to the various drugs out there and this experience is no different. I have quite a few health issues other than endometriosis, such as Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, adenomyosis, mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS) and painful bladder syndrome (to name a few). Therefore this experience of mine, is mine alone – I’m just sharing what I’ve experienced.
If you would like to watch a video version of this blog post then you can right here on my YouTube channel or you could just scroll through to read on:
What is the Leuprolide injection and why is it given for endometriosis?
Before I dive into details, let’s begin with a quick explanation from MedlinePlus about what the leuprolide injection is about:
“Leuprolide injection is in a class of medications called gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) agonists. It works by decreasing the amount of certain hormones in the body.”
These injections are either given once a month for 4 to 6 months or they’re given once every three months. This is based on the milligrams given, so for example, I was given the 3.75mg dosage, therefore I had it once a month. The once every three month dosage is usually 11.25mg.
The idea is that these injections are to help manage endometriosis. Please remember, this is a form of treatment, not a cure. It’s supposed to improve your quality of life by suppressing the hormones that encourage the growth of endometriosis, which also means that you should not be getting your period while on this course of injections.
This then means you should experience relief from pain and even once you’re done with your 6 months course, you should feel an improvement in symptoms for a further 6 to 12 months – that’s what I meant by improving your quality of life.
O’ speaking of quality of life, you may find my blog on ‘Can Endometriosis Kill You?’ quite interesting, so you can have a read of that once you’re done here.
Okay now back to the topic. On the face of it, this sounds like a great injection but how does it really feel to be on it?!
My experience with the Lupron Depot (leuprolide) injection?
I was at a stage where I was moving towards no pain-free days from endometriosis and my gynaecologist – who was NOT an endometriosis specialist advised these injections and I felt that was the only way to get some relief as all other options were done with – apart from excision surgery.
(Please always seek the opinion of an endo specialist – they’re not looking to push you into having children and run their IVF businesses – harsh but true).
Relevant read on excision surgery – it’s an in depth series:
- How Much Does Laparoscopic Endometriosis Excision Surgery Cost?
- My Guide: How To Prepare For Endometriosis Laparoscopic Excision Surgery
- My Guide: What To Expect After Endometriosis Excision Surgery
- Six Months On: Endometriosis Laparoscopic Excision Surgery – Am I Better?
So I was advised the Lupron Depot (leuprolide) 3.75mg dosage for 6 months but I couldn’t take it beyond 3 months.
Before I get into the details of why – here’s what the actual injecting experience is like.
Lupron depot is a subcutaneous injection. A small area of my stomach was disinfected and the injection was administered. I felt a sudden burn and had an overall warm feeling – I’m not sure if everyone experiences that though.
For the next 24 hours I needed to rest. I didn’t feel like I had the best energy and the injection area felt sore and very warm to touch. The redness spread one inch all around from the site of the injection. This took 4-5 days to reduce and eventually disappear.
Throughout the 3 months I was on Lupron Depot, I had break-through bleeding just once – I bled like a tap. This lasted 3 days and after that, it never happened again. Unfortunately we don’t know why this happened but apparently it can happen quite randomly. For someone who is usually prepared for her periods, this was quite a shocker – thankfully I was at home at the time!
Other than experiencing nausea and regular light-headedness, I experienced the worst ever hot-flushes and considerable amounts of sweating. The coolest setting on the air-conditioner could not save me!
One of the worst and the most long-term side-effects was joint pain. Eventually I got osteopenia all over and osteoporosis in my hips and lower back. This is something I haven’t been able to reverse despite being on supplements while being on the injections and post the injections as well.
Relevant read:
The reason for not continuing on with the remaining three months was the extreme hot flushes and the ever increasing pain in my bones. It didn’t seem worth it.
A further three months later, my periods came back and so did all the pain and symptoms associated with endometriosis.
For me, the leuprolide injections were a massive failure. I ended up worse off. Unfortunately, the many women I’ve come across who have been on this treatment plan have had similar experiences to mine and have been very discouraging to those who have been suggested these injections.
Again, we all react differently to different treatments and this could be down to various factors so for some this injection could prove to be beneficial, but I would just advise one thing – if you are planning on starting this course of injections, I’d suggest that you have a bone density test done to know where you stand with the health of your bones, otherwise you could do more damage in the long-run.
Because… just to end with one last point, today, as I look to treat my adenomyosis, the options laid in front of me could cause bone thinning – but as I already have osteopenia and osteoporosis, I am unable to try out any of these options. I’m stuck.
On that note, I end here.
If you’d like to share your experiences with the leuprolide injection or have any questions then please feel free to drop in your comment below 🙂
Have a good day!
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Hello, I want to know do we experience light menstrual flow if we take lupride after mensus?? And other question was can I intercourse while on this injection
Hi Namrata, It would be best to ask and confirm these things with a doctor, but in my experience there shouldn’t be a period while you’re on this course of injections. Once the course is over, it took a few months before my periods came and it wasn’t light – it was just as heavy but more painful than before. As for intercourse, I don’t think there are any restrictions but I believe safe-sex would still be advised – do confirm this with your doctor and don’t forget to take care of your bone health.
Good luck.