My Depo Story Danielle Cochran

​My name is Danielle Cochran, I am 21 now. Then i was just 19. I had my son in July of 2017. A month after having him i got married and went for just a check up at my family doctor. They kept pushing the matter of birth control. I simply told them i have never done any form of birth control I’m not sure about it. After thinking and reading about all the different forms of birth control i had finally decided to do the depo. Heck it was only a shot every 3 months; what could it hurt? 
 
I was wrong.
 
After my first dose of the depo shot everything was fine. I went on caring for my son and step daughter and making memories like any other person. 
 
I woke up one morning with some swelling. Well i read about the side effects and it had read “may cause swelling". Well i never thought anything of it. I still went on with my life. "Yes i let my family doctor know about the swelling. Days had pass and i notice i had more swelling and more swelling. 
 
Weeks later i kept getting sick from a double infections, to the flu, to just being tired and constally thirsty; as to if i wasn’t getting enough to wet my mouth. My pee had so much foam. I swore there was more foam then there was pee. I kept going to my doctor and explaining to her the swelling just keeps coming and it won’t go away. She had gave me some water pills to try and help. Well that didn’t work. I went and got all kinds of blood work done every week. Yes every week on a Monday or Tuesday. 
 
I went and got my second dose after i thought everything was fine. I ended up swelling much more than before. But this time it was everywhere. I got the point my clothes wouldn’t fit, shoes where impossible to wear, even my husband’s shoes (size 12s). I couldn’t even get in the floor and play with my son. I had to basically flop in bed and my husband had to roll me out of our bed. I looked like i was pregnant with twins at 9 nine months. And going barefoot everywhere in the middle of winter.  My family doctor sent me to a specialist cause after the thousands of times of being poked ( i got use to it) she finally saw my creatina (however you spell it) was not normal. 
 
At my first appointment i got weighed something i didn’t want to do but had to. I weighed 398lbs.... 
I was shocked after having my son Kayden i weighed 167lbs. From that to 398lbs it was unbelievable. I kept telling my husband i felt as if it was the depo but my family doctor said it wasn’t. And the kidney doctor couldn’t say for sure either. So i kept going to him and doing everything he had me to do. 
 
On Jan. 31st i got admitted to the hospital. My kidney doctor told me i have about a sip away from downing myself, or i could go to the hospital and get the lasix thru the iv to get the water off. By this time i was already in stage 3 kidney failure. So i go to the hospital and do as what my doctor told me to do. Having doubts cause i felt as if i was gonna die big and not be able to see my little boy grow up. See him take his first steps. I was scared. My husband stayed with me the whole time while Kayden stayed with grandparents and my step daughter was with her mommy. I was doing this for my babies, my family, i was doing it for ME. 
 
While i was there my kidney doctor came in every day at 9am. Not even a minute late or a minute early. He stayed there and talked to me explained things to me and my husband that we had no clue. Then came the big ultimate question. " are you will to do a biopsy on you kidney?" I was nervous and scared. But i said yes. As the next day came once again 9am rolled around and here came my doctor asking me if i was ready to go?! I told him yes kissed my husband and told him i will be back. They wheeled me down to do the biopsy i sww the doors come open and just started crying. I couldn’t stop. But the nurse i had was there to comfort me and get me thru it. Well they were telling me all the horrible and good things about it. All i thought about was the bad horrible things and finally done it. Got that done and over with.. 
 
After my results came back my doctor once again came in at 9am to tell me what i have can be fixed with steroids. The steroid was prednisone. Along with that i had to take 3 other pills. I was basically a walking pharmacy. 
 
I stopped the depo after that second dose. I was on the highest dose 60mg of prednisone. 
 
It is Jan. 24th 2019 and i am now down to 5mgs of prednisone and that’s the only pill i am taking. My kidneys are in normal function. I am healthy and running around with my now 1yr old. Happy as ever. 
 
I refuse to do the depo. And refuse for my step daughter to do it when she is older. Anyone that tells me about them thinking of doing it i explain to them what happened to me and tell them not to. I want to reach out and explain the horrible memory i have of it. 
 
Thank you for reading my story if any questions just message me on fb. 
 
Much love Danielle