fat&anxious

Hi - I've just found this board. I decided that this may be (or may not be) a good place for me to ask this question - since PCOS and estrogen-dominance are often intertwined. To make a long story as short as possible....I've been suffering from symptoms of some type of "hormonal imbalance" for many years (that I've recently suspected is estrogen dominance) - and I suspect that a cause for this hormonal imbalance could be the psychiatric drugs I've had to take for years to treat my severe anxiety disorders (both social anxiety and general anxiety) and depression. Well, I know that "xenoestrogens" can contribute to estrogen dominance. I'm wondering if the drugs I've been taking are xenoestrogens (I've taken Prozac, Luvox, Effexor, and now generic Wellbutrin - the first three, at least, caused certain side effects consistent with estrogen dominance.)? Does anyone know - or know how I can find out - if these drugs are in fact xenoestrogens? So many substances have already been identified as xenoestrogens - I'm wondering if you can add psychiatric drugs to this lengthy list.

I've recently been focusing on a possibly overburdened liver as being a cause of my hormonal problems - I've been thinking that these psychiatric drugs have impaired what already may have been a sluggish liver. Now I'm wondering if these psycho drugs have delivered a devastating "two-pronged" attack when it comes to making my hormones imbalanced - by both impairing my liver function and by being xenoestrogens themselves! Very little is known (or we are told very little) about how, exactly, these drugs work inside of the body - knowing whether or not these drugs have a chemical structure that causes them to act as xenoestrogens is a good place to start.

Thanks for any help.

Somewhat Damaged

I don't think the drugs you mentioned are xenoestrogens themselves, but that doesn't mean they don't affect your hormones. SSRI's, in particular, can effect insulin, which effects other hormones.

I couldn't find a complete list of xenoestrogens by searching google, which I'm sure you've done. But, I did find something that indicated there are over 700 known, and most of them I saw appeared to be pesticides, chemical additives, plastics and dyes. Wikipedia has a short list, under 'xenoestrogen'.

I wouldn't recommend you quit any psych meds without talking to a doctor first, but I can tell you that my own experience with Celexa was not good, and I firmly believe it played a role in the onset of my hormonal issues. If your doctor agrees and you feel you can safely do it, getting off that type of medication might help what you're experiencing.