Rather Random Question
Has anyone used an IUD?
If you don’t feel comfortable writing in the comments, feel free to send me an email instead!
Thanks!
Has anyone used an IUD?
If you don’t feel comfortable writing in the comments, feel free to send me an email instead!
Thanks!
October 20th, 2005 at 1:04 am
My sister-in-law is currently very ill from her IUD becoming inbedded and infected. I have never heard of a good story from any of the people I have know that had one.
October 20th, 2005 at 1:32 am
I’ve always been under the impression that IUD’s are never a good choice.
October 20th, 2005 at 8:37 am
My sister was on the IUD for awhile but it messed with her depression. I don’t recall her getting an infection but I also don’t remember her having anything good to say about it.
October 20th, 2005 at 9:21 am
I am, and I’m fine… email me if you wanna
October 20th, 2005 at 9:43 am
… although you’d better use my gmail addy, seems my cow-dog/jeez-louise email isn’t feeling well today and have refused to come in to work
October 20th, 2005 at 11:13 am
i have had a couple friends use it and not have a good time with it. One became pretty ill. I have never used it. A friend is currently on the patch and she likes that.
October 20th, 2005 at 11:40 am
I have never used the IUD, b/c I figure it’s not a good idea to have something foreign floating around my uterus. However, last year I had the BRILLIANT idea to switch from my completely-functioning birth control pill to the friggin’ patch and had nothing but problems for a 3-week period. It irritated my skin. It fell off. I felt it all the time. It got dirty. It got snagged when I put on/took off my clothes. I put it in the wrong place (trying to find a place I didn’t feel it or it didn’t get snagged by my clothes), so I thought I’d comprimised by birth control and spent 2 excruciating weeks waiting for my period. the company’s explanation? ‘you can’t use any soap or products with moisturizing agents in it or the patch will fall off. The best method of application is to make one room in your home a clean room… that means no humidity, no dust, no lint… and after you get a Silkwood Scrubdown from the CDC… ‘ Yeah, right. After the 3rd one fell off less than 24 hrs after application… in the shower, I said ’screw this’, called the doc and got him to call in a script for the pill to the pharmacy, peeled off the friggin’ patch, and went on about my life on the pill. No problems since. My friend also went on the patch after having no problems with the pill but felt the need to simplify her life after having her first child. She is expecting her 2nd child in December. Let that illustrate my point.
October 20th, 2005 at 11:50 am
Unfortunately, I cannot use the pill, ring or patch because I have had migraines and may have had a blood clot from using the pill… so all the estrogen methods are out.
I have been using Depo Provera but am concerned about not getting enough calcium, espcially with a family history of osteoporosis. (depo restricts your calcium absorption)
So I don’t have many options left to me besides barrier methods (condoms, diaphrams- yuck) and the IUD.
October 20th, 2005 at 12:21 pm
I used to work for NARAL and so can spout off statistics like mad: the IUD is the most common form of birth control worldwide; since the 1970s Dalkon disaster IUDs are much improved (smaller).
If you can’t use hormonal b.c. you’d be looking at the Paraguard T, right?
I talked to my gyn about an IUD. I haven’t had any truly dangerous side effects from birth control but I have had the usual headaches, moodiness and weight gain. My doc said that IUDs aren’t a terrific option for nulliparous women - we are more likely to reject the device. Still, she said that she was willing to give it a go if I wanted to try. I declined and now use NuvaRing which cut down on side effects for me.
Whatever you do, I would make sure you see a gyn that is very familiar with implantation of IUDs. A doctor that has many patients using an IUD is more likely to be up-to-date on side effects, new models, etc.
Oh, and personal anecdotes: Two former bosses of mine have used IUDs exclusively since the birth of the children. They both say that the minor side effects (increased bleeding time/amount, increased cramping) are nothing compared to what they experienced on the pill.
Good luck in your decision making. Email me if you think I could be helpful.
October 20th, 2005 at 12:44 pm
I had been having circulatory-related probs with “The Pill” too. I went to my OB/GYN to get an IUD, and she STRONGLY recommended against it. She said that the risk may be small, but that it is there and that I wouldn’t be happy if I came to see her in a few years unable to conceive because of a problem with the IUD.
I decided against it. She wanted to fit me with a diaphragm, but I’m allergic to nonoxynol-9, so that was out. So, what did I do? Well, I am still on “The Pill”–but on the progestin-only minipills (they contain zero estrogen). The difference is that you take a pill every day; there’s no break. And your cycle isn’t regulated by it, so you if you’re like me you’ll be lots less regular.
I’ve been on it well over a year and have had zero problems. When I went for a follow-up with my OB/GYN she was eager to see what I thought of it, and mentioned that she is constantly surprised by how few women consider this method. For some reason, you don’t hear much about it. But like I said, I love it thus far.
That was my comment-novel. Any questions, feel free to shoot me an email.
October 20th, 2005 at 1:36 pm
I’ve had the Mirena IUD in for over two years and it’s been great. I was on bcp’s but my doctor wanted me to get off them because my blood pressure was getting high so they suggested IUD since I’m too mentally flaky to deal with gizmos like diaphrams/condoms and I’m overweight so no depo shots. I haven’t had any cramping, my periods stopped like on the pills, mood swings not too bad, no headaches, cramps, backaches, no pelvic infections/inflammation. If you want to know anything else, feel free to email me.
October 20th, 2005 at 4:44 pm
before I was all growed up with health insurance (two years ago), I used to go to women’s clinics for my annuals… In three different states I was told by RNs (who were currently or had used them) to try an IUD. I have gone through what seems like dozens of versions of the pill and I think I have found one that has a low enough dosage to not make me a stark-raving lunatic, but just enough to not make me bleed randomly throughout the month.
I think that people freak out about IUDs the same way they freak out about L-tryptophan… a high profile case or two and you get a superstition. They are MUCH improved (including plastic rather than copper options) and much smaller than in the scary 70s (as someone mentioned) and it is still on my list of options.
if, that is, I am ever in a situation where I might *need* bc again…
I am looking forward to keeping an eye on what everyone else says, though.
October 21st, 2005 at 9:53 am
I’d like to say I’ve used an IUD, but that would be an obvious lie, since I haven’t really been able to convince anyone of late to have sex with me. BUT, my friend’s girlfriend has had one for a few months an she seems to be okay, even though the whole thing is weirding them both out a little. She’s 36 and never had trouble with hormones from the pill though.
Good luck with your decision.
October 21st, 2005 at 12:35 pm
i tried to have one inserted but it was too big and wouldn’t fit. just to warn you, they don’t come in different sizes. there might be better ones out there now though, this was about 3 years ago. i’m not super petite either.
from what i’ve heard, women who have had at least one child had better success with the UID.
October 21st, 2005 at 8:22 pm
In reading all the above responses about this subject, a observation occurred to me that has now turned into a rather passionate opinion …. WHY, Why do women have to bear the majority of the brunt for all of this family planning? So many of the female commenters have listed infections, infertility, migraines, heavier periods, etc. etc. etc. as a result of the available birth control methods. It seems unnecessary for these women with such uncomfortable/painful reactions to BC to have to continue to suffer the responsibility, esp. when there has been so much literature out there as of late about all the new, very effective, birth control methods out there for MEN. That’s right, there are more choices out there for guys besides just condoms and vasectomies! i can’t say that i am overly knowledgeable about the topic, but i think it is atleast worth some investigation. My husband reads ‘Men’s Health’ and has been telling me about these low-side-effect, BC pills for men that have been featured in the magazine. i have been recieving injections, pills, rings and the like for years, so I think it’s only fair for our guys to atleast look into the possibilities on their end!! That’s what partnership is about right, sharing the good and the bad? Just some food for thought…
October 22nd, 2005 at 12:35 am
I used the “mini-pill” effectively between each of my babies (progest. only). I’ve never used an IUD but know that my mother used one ages ago without much incident and I’m sure they have improved plenty. The only thing worth mentioning that I have to add is the way IUDs work.
It was presented to me that the device prevents fertilized eggs from implanting. Anyone who believes life begins at conception would want to seek out other options.
October 22nd, 2005 at 3:05 am
I’ve had the Mirena for about a year now and my experience has been mixed. The insertion was painful, the cramping afterwards was painful, very very painful. The kind where you feel someone’s taken a cold melon baller and hollowed out your pelvis. But, it lasted a day, big deal.
A common effect is cessation of menstruation which I have, but I still have some sort of a ghost cycle going on (some pms type stuff, mild). The biggest issue I have had is that the strings you are supposed to check regularly kept disappearing and the support from the “installer” OB/GYN was…not supportive.
I even blogged about the experience awhile back (http://spaazlicious.blogspot.com/2004_12_01_spaazlicious_archive.html scroll down to december 12 entry)
I’m glad I did it, I’ve learned to chill out. If the strings aren’t there, the strings aren’t there, I don’t panic, and they show up later. I’m also 99% sure we don’t want kids. So while the idea of it wandering, rubbing its little flexible arms and agaist my uterine lining and creating keloid tissue does kind of freak me out, I tell myself not to think about it, I’m imagining it, and we don’t want kids anyway right? On the other hand, I still have a packet of pregnancy tests in the cabinet which I piddle on if I have persistent weird nausea, dizziness, and strange dreams, because while I’m not taking any other b.c. measures, I still don’t trust it 100%. Maybe just 99.97%. And all told it was about $800 dollars. Cheaper than a child, of course.
Truly, I am not as neurotic as that comment makes me sound. I almost never think of it any more, and it is nice not to worry about the pill.
October 25th, 2005 at 7:56 am
A couple of years ago I used an IUD after the birth of my two children. It was a bit painful when it was inserted with mild cramping after the procedure. I did not have problems locating the strings, and it seemed to be properly inserted.
However, my husband stated that he could feel it sometimes during intercourse, which would cause him pain. A few months into having it in me and after another bad experience with my husband, I felt for the IUD and it had nearly come all the way through my cervix. By this point, it was causing me pain, so I removed it completely.
Obviously, not everyone has these same problems. I just wanted to share another woman’s experience with an IUD. Currently, we use condoms. I did not have good experiences with the pills or the patch. I guess I’ll just stick with what we’re doing until menopause hits
November 2nd, 2005 at 12:56 pm
I don’t recommend it. It was a very unpleasant experience for me.
February 1st, 2006 at 5:07 pm
I had an I.U.D pu in in 1994. I got pregnat Oct 94 and had a boy. Apr 95, who’s fine. Where did the I.U.D go? MY BOWELS!! I went to the doctor two years ago for back problems. He called me at wwork to say he found something peculiar. My I.U.D had been in my bowels for ten years. I had surgery in ‘05 to remove it and haven’t been back to work since. I cannot have a bowel movement with the aid of laxatives. I am having a colectomy next month to remove the part of the bowel where the I.U.D was embedded. I don’t know what the outcome will be. Iain is my fourth child. Hw was only 4lbs 8oz at birth. I carried him full term. I haven’t been able to go to the bathroom properly in years. They told me I wasn’t eating properly (I was). I gained 40lbs in the last two years, because of “something wrong with my digestive system…eat the right foods”. I just got told today that there is apossibiiy of leakage within my clom from the surgery which could be ftal. NEVER GET AN I.U.D!!