birth control

CrazyCatLady3 · September 2013

Do any of you ladies use mirena? I'm in the market for new birth control...I've heard good things about mirena because it's only one type of hormone and localized to your reproductive system, so supposedly doesn't have the same hormonal side effects as pills? I've had problems will pills making me feel like a robot (i.e. emotionless, not like myself).

CASK85 · September 2013

I do not. Just wanted to say good luck

Swazzle · September 2013

There are quite a few ladies here who have Mirena. I have Skyla which is from the same makers as Mirena but it's smaller and more geared towards women who haven't given birth. Mirena is good for up to 5 years while Skyla is good for up to 3 years.

I absolutely love Skyla. I have been on several different forms of BC in the past (Depo, NuvaRing, many different pills) but my most recent pill, Microgestin, just wasn't cutting it anymore. I was sick of having to remember to take it and then having a "scare" if it wasn't at the same time every day. I also noticed my sex drive had all but disappeared. My doctor said I'd be a good candidate for Skyla.

I'm not going to lie, the insertion hurt like a motherfucker and I cramped pretty badly that night and for a couple days after that. I also had spotting for 2 full weeks. But then all of a sudden all of that went away and I seriously couldn't be happier now! It I also should say that on my previous BCP I did not have cramping or a period so I was probably a much bigger baby than normal people are.

I can't imagine using anything else now.

minskat30 · September 2013

Can't help you here...I'm on traditional pills. I've never had a scare in 15 years but I'm pretty good about taking them on time (give or take an hour).

CrazyCatLady3 · September 2013

Swazzle said:

There are quite a few ladies here who have Mirena. I have Skyla which is from the same makers as Mirena but it's smaller and more geared towards women who haven't given birth. Mirena is good for up to 5 years while Skyla is good for up to 3 years.

I absolutely love Skyla. I have been on several different forms of BC in the past (Depo, NuvaRing, many different pills) but my most recent pill, Microgestin, just wasn't cutting it anymore. I was sick of having to remember to take it and then having a "scare" if it wasn't at the same time every day. I also noticed my sex drive had all but disappeared. My doctor said I'd be a good candidate for Skyla.

I'm not going to lie, the insertion hurt like a motherfucker and I cramped pretty badly that night and for a couple days after that. I also had spotting for 2 full weeks. But then all of a sudden all of that went away and I seriously couldn't be happier now! It I also should say that on my previous BCP I did not have cramping or a period so I was probably a much bigger baby than normal people are.

I can't imagine using anything else now.

Wow, I didn't even know this existed. I haven't had kids either. I am going to look into this.

KeptInStitches · September 2013

I've thought about using Paragard, but that's because I have concerns about hormonal birth control. I've been led to believe by women in my family that they have had trouble getting pregnant after going off hormonal birth control, and Paragard seems like a good compromise.

nikib0210 · September 2013

I have Mirena. I've never had kids either. I really love it. Like PP said, insertion HURTS! But I haven't had any issues with it since having it put in, and I have had bad side effects from other BC in the past - so far, so good.

GoldenPenguin · September 2013

I have Mirena, and I've also never had kids. Insertion HURTS. Like A LOT. I had minor cramping for the rest of the day, but I went back to work that afternoon. I haven't had any issues with it since I got it in. I had a very light period anyway, but now, I have nothing. Every few months I'll get PMS-y symptoms, and MAYYYBEE a little bit of spotting, but not even enough to need a pantyliner.

I would absolutely recommend it to anyone. It was the best thing I've done as far as BC.

CrazyCatLady3 · September 2013

KeptInStitches said:

I've thought about using Paragard, but that's because I have concerns about hormonal birth control. I've been led to believe by women in my family that they have had trouble getting pregnant after going off hormonal birth control, and Paragard seems like a good compromise.

I thought about paragard too, but heard that it actually gives you heavier periods. I don't have a problem with my periods now, but don't want to create one. Mirena is hormonal but it's localized, not systemic and a relatively low dose.

It seems like a lot of people are on mirena or the like! I have generally been hearing good things, other than the consensus that insertion hurts like a bitch. I can tolerate some pain as long as it's for a short period. If the pain persists after a few days I won't be a happy camper.

loves2shop4shoes · September 2013

I have Mirena. I love it. I haven't had a period since Summer 2011 (when I got it inserted.) I don't have side effects, and it hasn't hurt my sex drive at all.

Insertion hurt, but I actually found insertion to be less painful than Paragard's insertion. (I had Paragard before Mirena, but realized that it wasn't a good fit for my PCOS.)

phira · September 2013

I have Mirena and I LOVE it.

Here. It's story time: Why I picked Mirena:

When I went off the pill (was having surgery), I lost almost 30 lbs pretty immediately. I have weird issues with vaginal pain (UUUGH GUYS IT'S THE WORST), so while my partner and I used condoms when we first started dating, we sometimes couldn't have sex because the friction from the condoms hurt too much (even with lots of lube).

Because of vaginal pain, I can't tolerate anything like a cervical cap, NuvaRing, or a diaphragm, and I wasn't very interested in going back on systemic hormones since my new clothes wouldn't fit anymore. So that ruled out the pill and most hormonal methods.

I had to decide between Paragard and Mirena, and it came down to how they work. Paragard works because the copper actually induces a mild inflammatory response, which seems to prevent implantation and maybe fertilization. Since I have chronic inflammation, that seemed like throwing gasoline on the fire. My doctor convinced me that the systemic effects of Mirena would be so mild that it wouldn't cause weight gain.

End of the long story about why I picked Mirena.

Insertion was very painful. I haven't had kids before, and I was told afterwards (not beforehand!) that the pain is similar to uterine contractions during labor. It's not like a bad menstrual cramp, which is what I was prepared for. It was just this horrible gut feeling like oh my god my abdomen is on fire oh my god it's horrible make it stop. My partner was with me during insertion, and he had to fucking coach my breathing. It honestly only took 2 minutes to do the insertion.

The sucky thing is that after insertion, the pain doesn't fade very quickly because there's still A THING in your uterus. Our health services makes sure that patients stay afterwards for about 30 minutes with ice packs and Tylenol and stuff before they let you go home. They also don't let you go back to work although ... who's going to tell on you?

I had cramping for the next few days, and then the cramps would come back in the very late afternoon for the next week or two. The spotting was honestly pretty minimal. I got a period about two months later, and I haven't had one since. I also haven't gained any weight ... but my acne hasn't improved either.

CrazyCatLady3 · September 2013

phira said:

I have Mirena and I LOVE it.

Here. It's story time: Why I picked Mirena:

When I went off the pill (was having surgery), I lost almost 30 lbs pretty immediately. I have weird issues with vaginal pain (UUUGH GUYS IT'S THE WORST), so while my partner and I used condoms when we first started dating, we sometimes couldn't have sex because the friction from the condoms hurt too much (even with lots of lube).

Because of vaginal pain, I can't tolerate anything like a cervical cap, NuvaRing, or a diaphragm, and I wasn't very interested in going back on systemic hormones since my new clothes wouldn't fit anymore. So that ruled out the pill and most hormonal methods.

I had to decide between Paragard and Mirena, and it came down to how they work. Paragard works because the copper actually induces a mild inflammatory response, which seems to prevent implantation and maybe fertilization. Since I have chronic inflammation, that seemed like throwing gasoline on the fire. My doctor convinced me that the systemic effects of Mirena would be so mild that it wouldn't cause weight gain.

End of the long story about why I picked Mirena.

Insertion was very painful. I haven't had kids before, and I was told afterwards (not beforehand!) that the pain is similar to uterine contractions during labor. It's not like a bad menstrual cramp, which is what I was prepared for. It was just this horrible gut feeling like oh my god my abdomen is on fire oh my god it's horrible make it stop. My partner was with me during insertion, and he had to fucking coach my breathing. It honestly only took 2 minutes to do the insertion.

The sucky thing is that after insertion, the pain doesn't fade very quickly because there's still A THING in your uterus. Our health services makes sure that patients stay afterwards for about 30 minutes with ice packs and Tylenol and stuff before they let you go home. They also don't let you go back to work although ... who's going to tell on you?

I had cramping for the next few days, and then the cramps would come back in the very late afternoon for the next week or two. The spotting was honestly pretty minimal. I got a period about two months later, and I haven't had one since. I also haven't gained any weight ... but my acne hasn't improved either.

Err...okay I guess I know what kind of pain to expect now? :P When do you stop feeling like there's a "thing" in there?

Maybe the paraguard inflammatory response is why it causes heavier periods.

I don't think any BC that doesn't contain estrogen will help acne. Hopefully the mirena didn't make your acne worse? I already had to put myself through accutane to cure myself of adult-onset acne, so hopefully I won't be dealing with that issue again.

loves2shop4shoes · September 2013

I've never known worse periods than when I was on Paragard.

I would hemorrhage blood and pass clots the size of my fist.

phira · September 2013

It didn't make my acne worse. I just miss when I was on the pill and had zero acne. That was super awesome.

The "there's SOMETHING IN HERE" feeling faded very gradually over the course of 1-2 weeks. It was never, ever as bad as it was during insertion.

lennonkdc · September 2013

I had mirena and loved it, but I had a pelvic infection develop 2 years after insertion, so it had to be removed and I had to wait at least a year before I could have a new one inserted, and by then I was a broke law student and our campus clinic didn't offer them. They did offer the nuva ring at a really cheap price, so I went with that. When I left school I just stuck with the ring b/c my FI and I had a family planning time line that included kids with in the near future, so I'm sticking with the ring until we're ready to start TTC.

KeptInStitches · September 2013

I'm getting the feeling that because I already have really bad periods I should not use Paragard ...

loves2shop4shoes · September 2013

KeptInStitches said:

I'm getting the feeling that because I already have really bad periods I should not use Paragard ...

Yeah. My recommendation would be Mirena.

If you already have bad periods, Paragard will destroy your life.

phira · September 2013

Yeah, which is the other reason I went with Mirena. 8 years of the pill destroyed my ability to handle a "regular" period. If it was longer than 3.5 days, with more than medium flow and one mild cramp to signal that each period was about to start, I was a total baby about it. The only thing I don't like about Mirena, besides the insertion process, is that I have no idea when I'm going to get cramps or spotting, which occur every 6-8 weeks like TEENSY TINY period.

leia1979 · September 2013

I'm also team Mirena. I've had it almost 3.5 years now. I've tried a ton of pills and NuvaRing, and they all make me nuts (erratic mood swings, etc). I actually asked for Paraguard, but my doctor convinced me to give Mirena a try with the promise that I could switch if I didn't like it. I have not had the same personality changes/mood swings on Mirena that I experienced with every other hormonal BC I've tried.

I went in expecting horrible pain, but for me, it was no worse than a regular gyn appt. I think that may be because my doctor had me come in while on my period and she had me take misoprostol and a ton of ibuprofen the morning of my appointment. I had cramps for the rest of the day, but since then, I've been fine. And if you think I must just be immune to pain, I think tampons are horribly uncomfortable and I avoid them like the plague.

I do still have about 10% of a period. Considering that without BC I needed prescription painkillers, I really shouldn't complain about 4 days of spotting every month or two. I did have several straight weeks of spotting about two months post-insertion (not uncommon), but if you can get through that, it will get much better after that.

buddysmom80 · September 2013

I have Mirena and I LOVE IT! I used to have really heavy periods (ie: changing a tampon every two hours on CD1 and 2) and now I get a period every so often (the last one was in June) and they're light enough that at the very most I would need a small tampon (regular absorbancy or whatever).

I had mine put in during my period (CD2) since I've never delivered a child and I wasn't advised to take any painkillers beforehand until I got to the appointment and by then the nurse said it's too late anyway. So it hurt like a bitch but I wasn't traumatized by it or anything. I went back to work afterwards. The worse part for me was wearing sanitary pads instead of tampons for 48 hours. I. Was. Miserable. TMI: But I spent most of the time on the toilet because I was changing a pad every hour and was like "fuck this I"m not leaving the bathroom"

The only thing I would suggest too is that due to lack of periods, some people get really nervous that they got PG. My friend has Mirena and every month she takes a HPT (which she now buys off of Amazon). But it depends on where you TTC timeline is. For us, if there was that 1% chance I was pregnant, we would be fine with it since we plan on having kids in the future anyways. But, I know one person who did get PG while on Mirena, so statistically I'm good

Blackbird230 · September 2013

I don't know about Mirena, but I'm semi ok with my pill right now. It's cleared up all my acne issues, but I still get pretty heavy periods, some cramping, migraines, and mood swings. (SO WEEPY! My poor BF.) I have no clear idea on my timeline though so I'm not sure I could commit to like 5 years for sure. I'm also really good with taking my pill exactly on time (alarm on my phone).

buddysmom80 · September 2013

I don't know about Mirena, but I'm semi ok with my pill right now. It's cleared up all my acne issues, but I still get pretty heavy periods, some cramping, migraines, and mood swings. (SO WEEPY! My poor BF.) I have no clear idea on my timeline though so I'm not sure I could commit to like 5 years for sure. I'm also really good with taking my pill exactly on time (alarm on my phone).

You don't have to have it in for five years. Skyla is three, and you can have either taken out at any time. I've had mine in since June of 2012 and getting it taken out in December to start charting and getting in tune with my cycles (I've read TCOYF and love anything with charts so now I'm curious).

phira · September 2013

Yeah, I took the drug that helps your cervix dilate a bit, but I wasn't even close to having my period. I also am allergic to ibuprofen, which is way way way better than Tylenol at reducing menstrual cramps for me. So I'm not surprised that it was so painful for me.

I do want to emphasize that I'm not traumatized from the experience. If we weren't likely going to start trying for children in about 4 years (which is when my IUD comes out), I'd probably have a new one inserted. The pain was just very unexpected for me, and I was more surprised than upset!

GoldenPenguin · September 2013

I had a friend get the Paraguard and have it taken out in three months because she had a full-on, heavy HEAVY period non-stop from the moment of insertion.

I didn't have the "something is in there" pains, but I did have a paranoia that I was going to poop it out for a couple of weeks. It's all the same muscles!

@phira I'm also allergic to ibuprofin - I take Aleve and it's a godsend.

labro · September 2013

This is all really enlightening! I've been on the pill since I was 19 or 20 and I'm seriously considering talking to my gyno about switching to Mirena or Skyla since I don't plan on even considering trying to have kids until I'm 30. I've always been told that Mirena is a really bad idea if you've never had children before and I had never read about Skyla until today. The pain part sounds really scary but I think I'd rather try that than take a pill every day for the next four plus years.

GoldenPenguin · September 2013

@lmhollister - if your doctor tells you that Mirena/Skyla/IUDs in general are a "really bad idea" because you've never had kids, find a new doctor. There is no good reason why women who haven't had children can't have IUDs. Insertion is more painful because your cervix (probably) has never been dilated, but other than that, there is nothing that should prevent your doctor from doing it.

Swazzle · September 2013

Ditto @BriSox81. My doctor had no problem with me getting an IUD regardless of the fact that I haven't had children. It just so happens that Skyla recently came out and since it IS smaller and more geared towards women like me, he thought that'd be a better fit than Mirena. I'm sure if I insisted on Mirena, he would have had no problem with that at all.

leia1979 · September 2013

The perception of IUDs is slowly changing in the medical community. In 2007, I was denied an IUD. I was 27 and knew I didn't want children ever, but my doctor said she wouldn't do it because of a very slight chance of scarring that could impact fertility. Three years later, the same doctor didn't blink when I asked again.

The only thing that changed was that she herself got Mirena. IUDs are actually very common around the world, they just still have a bad reputation in the US.

phira · September 2013

Yeah, the only reason that IUDs are "meant" for women who've had children is that they're easier to insert if it's not the first time you've had your cervix dilated. They can insert them immediately after giving birth vaginally--it's apparently super easy and comparatively painless (considering that you've just given birth and you probably wouldn't register something as tiny as an IUD!).

@BriSox81 WHAAAT really, can I take Aleve? I'm also allergic to aspirin, so maybe not? But holy shit, I would like to be able to not take Tylenol sometimes. My partner is also allergic to ibuprofen and hates taking Tylenol (risk of liver toxicity).

KeptInStitches · September 2013

Yeah, @phira, Aleve is naproxen - not ibuprofen, and I don't think it's an aspirin derivative.

Pepper6 · September 2013

phira said:

Yeah, the only reason that IUDs are "meant" for women who've had children is that they're easier to insert if it's not the first time you've had your cervix dilated. They can insert them immediately after giving birth vaginally--it's apparently super easy and comparatively painless (considering that you've just given birth and you probably wouldn't register something as tiny as an IUD!).

@BriSox81 WHAAAT really, can I take Aleve? I'm also allergic to aspirin, so maybe not? But holy shit, I would like to be able to not take Tylenol sometimes. My partner is also allergic to ibuprofen and hates taking Tylenol (risk of liver toxicity).

Really? We are TTC right now, so I'll have to ask about this once we finally get pregnant because I definitely want several years in between kids so this would be nice, two birds...

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