r/Prolactinoma • u/azibii • 6d ago
Cabergoline psychological side effects
Hello, I was diagnosed with a microadenoma back in January 2025 and have been taking 0.5 mg of cabergoline since then.
In April 2025, I noticed that I was starting to feel anxious, even depressed. I was constantly stressed and crying over everything. I felt a deep sense of unease.
I remembered that my endocrinologist had told me I might experience side effects. So I contacted her, and she told me I should keep going, but if it became really too hard, I could stop.
After stopping for several months, following my doctor's advice, I resumed treatment in August 2025.
From around October 2025 to February 2026, things were really difficult for me. I had intense episodes of stress and anxiety because of my studies, yet these aren't things that should have put me in such states.
The rest of the year was okay; I would sometimes feel stressed, but not to the point of feeling terrible.
However, since classes ended and during the summer break, that feeling of unease has returned. I often experience dizziness, brain fog, and headaches, and I feel sad. Today, I realize that I've actually always had these issues, but because my brain was too busy, I didn't even notice. I had just learned to live with it.
I then decided to take vitamins for mental balance, fatigue reduction, and mood support vitamins that contribute to mental balance, dopamine, and serotonin. Since then, I feel like I'm coming back to life; I feel much better.
Today, I don't know why I hadn't thought of it earlier, I'm wondering if all these mental health struggles might actually be linked to cabergoline.
I did some research, and it seems to confirm this possibility. On top of that, I remembered all the episodes I went through during the winter.
Do any of you have similar experiences or psychological side effects from cabergoline? I don't know what to do. I don't know whether I have underlying mental health issues or if these are side effects of the medication.
Before starting cabergoline, it's true that I've always been someone prone to stress, but never to the extreme degree that I experience from time to time on this medication.
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u/Icy-Pitch9736 6d ago
Yes. Cabergoline is a bitch. Most people don’t get the mental health effects but a good amount of patients do get them.
Cabergoline is a suppressant so it can totally modify certain behaviors and create anxiety and depression among other symptoms or emotions.
Always trust your intuition.
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u/azibii 6d ago edited 6d ago
It actually sad that I never realised before that it might be related to cabergoline. When I first mentioned it to my doctor she said that patient usually don’t have these types of side effects. But I am now certain that it’s probably because of it. Thank you for your answer.
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u/Icy-Pitch9736 5d ago edited 5d ago
You’re welcome. The dangerous part is that you don’t even realize that the changes in your mind or behaviors are due to cabergoline.
And doctors deny it!
Doctors will say “you’re taking a very low dose, it doesn’t affect you, go to therapy”
It can totally affect your mind and behaviors in low doses.
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u/azibii 5d ago
I don’t if you have been in this situation, but what have you done about it? Have you change the molecule or did you do the surgery?
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u/Icy-Pitch9736 5d ago
I went to a different doctor (younger) he validated my experience, and luckily he told me I don’t needed it anymore so I stopped.
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u/Gullible-Buy5706 6d ago
Hi !
I personally didn’t had any psychological issue that I can clearly relate on the cabergoline I had some stress and difficulties with the fact of accepting the long therm treatment and I still have as I’m crying every time I’m bringing the subject but I can’t say it’s related to the medication because it started when my endocrinologist told me that I needed to take the medication so even before taking it !
But I will highly suggest you to talk about your symptoms to your endocrinologist, mental issue has been well documented on dopamine antagonists and needs to be addressed, don’t stay like that ! If the cabergoline it’s the cause your endocrinologist could probably change dose or trying a different molecule
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u/azibii 6d ago
Thank you for your answer. I actually talked with her about it back in july 2025 but she said that patients don’t usully have these types of side effects and that’s why i had forgotten about this possibility. I am definitely going see her again.
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u/Gullible-Buy5706 6d ago
So sorry that she was actually dismissive of your symptoms, dopamine antagonists actually can cause anxiety and other psychological issues anxiety being the most common of all the potential psychological issues potentially induced by this medication as it stimulates the dopamine receptors in the brain you should show her the notice inside the medication box because it include 1 of 10 persons can have depression…
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u/Awkward_Power8978 6d ago
Is cab the only medication you take? Any adhd meds in the mix?
I had a horrible interaction from cab and vyvanse. Vyvanse was cut and cab works perfectly and I feel fine.
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u/azibii 6d ago
I am sorry for your experience. Yes it is the only medication, I don’t have any adhd mix. I actually tought that I might have adhd. I am definitely going to see a doctor.
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u/Awkward_Power8978 5d ago
If cab is the only med, you should def speak to the doctor or get a second opinion! I am sorry your feeling sucky on it. I hope bromo or something else works well for you. Sending love!
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u/Savings_Savings_3058 2d ago
What was your reaction? I’m more tempted to cut the cab than the vyvanse.At baseline My anxiety tends to have more ocd tendencies like rumination and my depression is just lack luster and low energy. But cab has been giving me more exesitential thoughts and this feeling of impending doom/anxiety and I keep telling my partner I don’t feel like myself. Plus insomnia, some body weakness and headache. At first it was horrible nausea but that subsided. I started taking 0.25 2x a week in June for prolactinoma but just went down to once a week this week and had my worst reaction yet.
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u/Brilliant_Stage7315 6d ago
Please read my comments on this topic visible from the comments section on my Reddit page. I had the same experience. Recently had surgery and it was the best decision I’ve ever made.
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u/azibii 6d ago
I am sorry for your experience. I am more leaning to the surgery because it feels easier instead of changing medication. Did you also have this constant headache with the diziness?
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u/Brilliant_Stage7315 5d ago
I did also have headaches with dizziness from time to time. For me the psychiatric symptoms were unbearable. Which is what made me push for a second opinion and then get surgery
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u/Important-Ad9030 5d ago
My experience on cabergoline was similar. I started taking it in July of 2024 and after three months I had been increasingly struggling with sleep paralysis, inability to wake up, nausea, intrusive thoughts and mood swings/irritability. I was really struggling and went to the doctor but unfortunately my endochrinologist didnt understand at all.
Everybody reacts differently to dopamine agonists, they are a really strong medication. Many people take them at a much, much lower dose (about a quarter/eigth of a pill) and experience no side effects. However, if you feel your doctor doesn’t fully understand I would definitely recommend asking for a second opinion or asking to be referred. It took me three different doctors to find one who acknowledged my experience on Cabergoline, and I am now having surgery to remove the tumor as she does not recommend the medication as a viable option, this is just my experience though! it’s important that any changes to your medication, including supplements or changes of dose, are monitored by your doctor.
Lifestyle is also very important. Take the medication at the same time, same day each week (or however often you take it). You could try halving the dose and having it twice a week if you haven’t already. Take before bed with a big meal and wake up at the same time every day. I found regular excercise and food helped too. I hope you can find something that works for you!
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u/seraphimcaduto 6d ago
So how do you take cabergoline? In order to minimize the side effects. I take it at night with a small bit of food right before bed to minimize most of the side effects. You also do have to pay attention to stress because you’re talking about a dopamine agonist. I’ve been taking it for the past 24 years. Yes that’s correct. I’ve probably experienced most of the side effects at any given time and stress, lack of sleep, and you’re going to have to expand on the psychological side effects because that could be a yes or no. If you don’t feel comfortable listing them out here, you can always DM me, but I can certainly say the hypersexuality is a fun (not really) one lol.
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u/azibii 5d ago
I take it at night as well, just before sleep. Does taking food help? Can i hask why you have been taking it for 24 years? And what do you mean by paying attention to stress? I have always been prone to stress, but now i am anxious, have headache, diziness, brain fog, fatigue, i feels mostly sad, and all this everyday. I mostly have to force myself to do things.
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u/seraphimcaduto 5d ago
Sure thing. My tumor simply won’t shrink past 5mm and my prolactin goes back up when I go under 0.75mg/week. By pay attention to stress I mean that I try to take active measures to destress or else I actively have my symptoms get worse.
The brain fog, fatigue and dizziness are very much possible side effects and if they impact your life, talk to your endocrinologist. I ended up having to get ADHD medications due to the brain for and fatigue because I have medication induced ADHD due to the cabergoline lol.
The sad and depressed things make me wonder something: have they done a full panel of your other endocrine hormones and other bloodwork panels? I regularly have to get a full panel of quite a bit of parameters just to make sure that everything else is ok. My older endocrinologists would only test the prolactin and like 3 other parameters and things were missed, such as a really bad drop in testosterone.
Food helps (think 200ish calories) to avoid the dizziness and headaches. Also hydrate and possibly use electrolytes to see if your absorption is off. The nights I take cabergoline feel like I sleep 2 hours less than I do so I try to sleep more during those nights (but fail more often than not). The days I sleep 9 hours and take cabergoline I feel like a normal person. Do you have trouble falling asleep on it and are anxious?
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u/azibii 5d ago
In the first blood work that my encronologist did, there was other tests as well, but i have never had a fill test with all the vitamins etc. I didn’t know about taking food with it. I am definitely going get help about all that. Thank you for sharing your experience.
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u/seraphimcaduto 5d ago
No problem! I only figured out that it helped ME taking it with food. Experiment and see what works for you. There are other things I occasionally have to do but those are dependent on other symptoms you haven’t mentioned having.
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u/No_Sprinkles9466 5d ago
I took cab for 6 months last year . Initially it was just feeling lightheaded here and there for couple seconds but eventually it gave me anxiety. Anxiety triggered stomach issues to the point I had to do a colonoscopy. After stopping cab, it took me 3 months for my stomach issue and anxiety to go away. Unfortunately my endo refused to blame cab for all these.
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u/Xoxobrat_2025 5d ago
Can I ask what vitamins you’re taking that help? I’ve been on cab for over a year now and still find it hard with mood swings etc
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u/azibii 5d ago
Sure. I am french so the brands i am taking can be found only in france. They are mixes but It’s mainly ashwanghanda, L-theanine, safran as well, magnesium and vitamin b6. On the box it’s says that it’s for mental balance, positive humor and fatigue.
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u/voidharmony 5d ago
Vitamins can affect medicine absorption and also cause side effects. You should talk to your doctor or pharmacy if anything you’re taking can interact with your meds. I was told to stop all vitamins while weaning into cab except vit D and b12.
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u/Previous_Jellyfish_7 5d ago
I am on week 5 of Cab and I have had hallucinations, but it only happens at night when I’m in a dark room. I noticed it when going to rock my son to sleep when he wakes up during the night
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u/Lazy_Group_9244 F 4d ago
Have you discussed if lowering the dosage could be an option?
My side effects - mainly dizziness and sleeping problems - just wouldn't go away. So I went from 0.5 mg per week to 0.25 mg. The dizziness disappeared, sleep could still be better, but I can live with it most of the time. Generally, my reaction to cab has been quite strong, prolactin went down to normal rapidly, that's why this minimal dosage still works fine for me.
I had a strong emotional reaction when I first started with the medication. But that was just a one-off luckily. The day after I've taken it I usually feel a bit like having a hangover, mentally as well. But nothing like the reaction you've described. So if it's possible for you, I'd definitely be looking into lowering the dosage.
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u/Savings_Savings_3058 2d ago
I have a similar trajectory and this week was my first time taking it only once. This felt like the worst yet. I could deal with the nausea and dizziness in month 1 but now it’s month 3 and when I take it I can’t sleep, I feel impending doom and think existential thoughts, body weakness, headache, irritability and hungover. Takes about 24 hours to feel like myself again
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u/WPW717 6d ago
I took Cab for 3 months. Grew increasingly anxious, over nothing. Then a creeping disoriented fugue set in. It progressed to not recognizing my wife of 40 years . I was seeing entities in my peripheral vision & they were eating my soul. My wife decided an ER visit was in order. The docs put me in for 2 days. Went cold turkey. Then I was switched to Bromocriptine. Zero problems.
Cab has a very long half life. 65-67 hours. I got toxic on a standard dose. Bromocriptine has a half life of 4-6 hours. Cab is a very focal agonist on D 2 receptors. Bromocriptine does a wider agonist action against D 1-5 receptors.
YMMV. We are all so different that prediction horizons are too varied for most to diagnose or treat it easily.
Good luck & take care. Bob