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I just want to point out that IUDs aren't ideal for everyone. I had mine for about three years and it made my cervix way sensitive, to the point where some positions were out of the question. They did an ultrasound to make sure everything was in the right place, and it was, so I don't know what the problem was there. I got it taken out and a Jadelle (implant) put in a couple months ago. I haven't had sex with a dude since then, but it hasn't caused chaos like my other hormone experiences (touch wood), so maybe a really low dose hormone like that would work.
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Sep 5, 2013 11:32
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Thanks for all the info. If she's not too stressed with dissertation finishing this weekend, I'll bring it up. But I definitely don't want to introduce ANOTHER thing to stress about!
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Sep 6, 2013 00:50
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Welp, my OB/GYN just did a pelvic exam and sent me right down to the ER to confirm that I had another mega-cyst and see if it was twisting my ovary at all. Goddammit Marvelon, you were supposed to stop this poo poo 
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Sep 6, 2013 15:30
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For the people posting updates on nexplanon, has it affected your weight at all? As of a few hours ago, I'm officially joining your club. My arm hurts  For health reasons, I had to give up Yaz (which I loved) and switch to an estrogen-free method. I didn't want the shot and getting paragard put in a few years ago was the single most painful moment of my life so I didn't want to do that again. But I'm nervous about nexplanon because it seems to be so completely hit or miss with people.
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Sep 7, 2013 07:35
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I've been on Nexplanon for about 3 months now, and I haven't noticed any weight changes. In fact I'd say I have had zero unpleasant side-effects, and there's no sign of my period ever making a comeback. But as we have seen, everyone's reactions to hormones are pretty unique to them.
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Sep 7, 2013 12:02
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Lackadaisical posted:For the people posting updates on nexplanon, has it affected your weight at all? I'm nine months in and I didn't notice any weight gain but my boobs got smaller as a side effect of going off estradiol (or switching to a different/lower dose progestin, but my guess is on the estrogens). I also don't have any periods anymore (although that took ~4.5 months and I spotted for 6-7 weeks at one point). Also I was weepy as hell for the first month or so but not too bad other than that I think. Totally worth it to have a form of BC I literally can't mess up!
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Sep 7, 2013 15:55
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Nope, I was losing weight before getting Implanon (same as Nexplanon but not radio-opaque) and I continued losing weight at the same rate after getting it. If you're concerned, just track your food to make sure you're not accidentally picking up calories somewhere. For awhile, I had a mini-period after rough-ish sex (whenever the cervix was hit), but that went away after a few months. Since then I spot maybe a couple days a year, super lightly. It's amazing. I do cry a little more readily than I used to -- I don't get any more upset, I just have water leaking from my face suddenly. Avoid Hallmark/ASPCA commercials and it's not a big deal at all. Also, my sex drive (not low to start with) increased and I think orgasms are better. I love Implanon -- on my second one already -- and I have no idea what I'll do if they ever discontinue it.
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Sep 7, 2013 17:16
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i like nice words
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I just wish Yaz didn't have such a high risk of clots after bad experiences with almost every ortho product, Yaz has helped with everything for the past decade (maybe less). No cramps, no acne, and no crazy hormone swings. I'm a big believer in not messing with things if they're working fine but apparently my doctor disagrees. Although I feel like something out of a scifi movie having an implant in my arm. Watch out, terminator!
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Sep 7, 2013 18:48
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Lackadaisical posted:I just wish Yaz didn't have such a high risk of clots Same here (although not with Nexplanon here). I don't miss the migraines and all the other weird little side-effects I got with the pill, but I don't care much for the return of PMS and increase in acne. My body has also decided to pull a trick where I don't have horrible migraines all month long like on the pill, but instead I just get like 3 in a row during the week of my period and none for the rest of the month.  I can deal with it though, because otherwise the switch has been the seriously best thing I've ever done for myself.If anyone else is like me and having problems with body acne from their birth control I've had really good results from using Phisoderm body wash recently. It's a pain to find (I ended up having to buy a case of the stuff from Amazon), but so far is the only "blemish body wash" that has actually succeeded at clearing up my skin to near normal.
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Sep 7, 2013 19:11
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Lackadaisical posted:For the people posting updates on nexplanon, has it affected your weight at all? My weight has kind of been all over the place anyway this summer, but no I wouldn't say it's because of my implant. The only side effect I've really had was about a month of hormonal shittyness but that's subsided. I'm eight weeks in and I've gone from having a migraine from once a week to none at all, and no sign of my period. So far, no regrets!
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Sep 8, 2013 14:19
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pastor of muppets posted:My weight has kind of been all over the place anyway this summer, but no I wouldn't say it's because of my implant. The only side effect I've really had was about a month of hormonal shittyness but that's subsided. I'm eight weeks in and I've gone from having a migraine from once a week to none at all, and no sign of my period. So far, no regrets! Trip Report: How did getting back to real life go after you got it?
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Sep 8, 2013 16:34
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InEscape posted:Trip Report: How did getting back to real life go after you got it? Great! My arm felt bruised for about a week but I was able to go back to lifting after that. Thanks for your perspective! You are right, I don't even notice it unless I feel around for it. I was at my general practitioner on Friday for the first time since I had it put in and she was fascinated by it; the way she remembered, you could actually see them through the skin (although she was probably thinking of Norplant.) Maybe I'll get so swole that there will be no fat over it and that will happen to me.  lol yeah okay
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Sep 8, 2013 18:19
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pastor of muppets posted:the way she remembered, you could actually see them through the skin (although she was probably thinking of Norplant.) You can see the outline of mine through the skin, just about. Possibly because I have skinny noodly arms though! If I press on one end, the other pokes up a bit; it's great for creeping people out.
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Sep 8, 2013 19:49
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Nexplanon update: I'm 4 months in and I've FINALLY stopped spotting after 6 weeks. Hurrah! As for affecting my weight, for the first couple of months my appetite went WAY up. I don't have any scales but my trousers got tighter. My appetite seems to have gone back to normal since.
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Sep 8, 2013 22:17
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Kind of a weird question for the people with IUDs. If you do something that really strains your abdominal muscles, do you get some spotting afterwards sometimes? I've gotten this a few times and it weirds me out a bit, but everything seems to be in the same place it always is when I check it. 
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Sep 9, 2013 02:24
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floofyscorp posted:You can see the outline of mine through the skin, just about. Possibly because I have skinny noodly arms though! If I press on one end, the other pokes up a bit; it's great for creeping people out. Forget other people - it creeps me out! My doctor asked me to check and confirm I could feel it after she implanted it and once I felt it, I freaked out a little. Well, it's been since Friday and my arm still looks horrific. I have no idea what to say happened when people at work ask tomorrow. It's still bloody on top of all the bruising I'd rock a longer sleeve shirt if it wasn't supposed to hit over 100 degrees tomorrow.
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Sep 9, 2013 05:22
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Kimmalah posted:Kind of a weird question for the people with IUDs. If you do something that really strains your abdominal muscles, do you get some spotting afterwards sometimes? I've gotten this a few times and it weirds me out a bit, but everything seems to be in the same place it always is when I check it. Yes. If I do a lot of really challenging squats ill get a little cramping and maybe some spotting but it has really really dropped off a cliff once a hit a year into having it. I have to really kick my own rear end to cause it now.
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Sep 9, 2013 16:51
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Lackadaisical posted:Forget other people - it creeps me out! My doctor asked me to check and confirm I could feel it after she implanted it and once I felt it, I freaked out a little. Seems like an opportunity to talk about birth control in the work place =P Seriously though you can just say "Its a birth control implant" and if they have questions they can ask and if they want to be grossed out, let them. But dont say anything unless someone asks.
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Sep 9, 2013 16:52
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Lackadaisical posted:Forget other people - it creeps me out! My doctor asked me to check and confirm I could feel it after she implanted it and once I felt it, I freaked out a little. It creeped me out too at first, but you get used to it! I like being able to touch it to make sure it's still there. Also, when I encounter other people's kids being annoying, I can pat my arm smugly  Almost nobody said anything to me about my bruised and bandaged arm at work(I was a bit disappointed to be honest) but the one guy who did ask seemed to find the idea intriguing. I tweeted about it a bunch as well and got to explain and preach the message of how awesome it is to several of my friends. Yay birth control!
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Sep 9, 2013 17:46
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Tigntink posted:Yes. If I do a lot of really challenging squats ill get a little cramping and maybe some spotting but it has really really dropped off a cliff once a hit a year into having it. I have to really kick my own rear end to cause it now. OK, thanks! This makes me feel better since even though I'm about 9 months out from insertion with no problems I'm still a little paranoid about expulsion. I just realized it probably doesn't help that my period is days away so everything in there is kind of "upset" anyway.
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Sep 9, 2013 18:42
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Lackadaisical posted:Forget other people - it creeps me out! My doctor asked me to check and confirm I could feel it after she implanted it and once I felt it, I freaked out a little. I bruised horribly, though it was in December (yay sweaters!), so no one noticed. Make up an awesome excuse or just use the truth, depending on your workplace. I nailed my implant a month or two ago getting stuff out of the dryer (stacked units). It hurt like hell, but no damage at all to the implant. They're tough little things!
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Sep 9, 2013 18:49
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Kimmalah posted:OK, thanks! This makes me feel better since even though I'm about 9 months out from insertion with no problems I'm still a little paranoid about expulsion. I just realized it probably doesn't help that my period is days away so everything in there is kind of "upset" anyway. I spotted after every workout with my Mirena and was told it's completely normal.
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Sep 10, 2013 02:16
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Just thought I'd throw my story in for anyone considering getting a copper IUD. I just had one inserted, thanks to the NHS, and it couldn't have been easier or quicker. The nurse offered me anesthetic but I chose not to have it because I don't have a particularly sensitive cervix. I forgot to take any painkillers beforehand either. There was a little discomfort--not exactly pain but a weird queasy pressure, and then it was over. Since then I've been having just barely noticeable cramps. All in all, A++ would do again! But not for another ten years.
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Sep 10, 2013 13:16
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Since I've been on almost every kind of birth control I thought I'd share my experiences. I started birth control when I was 17 (Lo-ovral) and I was on it for about 7 years. I decided to switch it up when I realized that my sex drive was non-existant. (It'd been that way for so long, I pretty much forgot what is was like to have a libido.) I went on the patch which made me a raving lunatic and also bothered my skin where the patch was placed (I think I have a slight allergy to adhesive). I then tried the Nuvaring. It was really no different for me than the pill as far as sex drive goes. Also, it fell out a couple of times after sex, but thankfully I was paranoid about that enough that I would immediately check to make sure it was in place after we had finished. I was pretty fed up with hormonal birth control at this point so I opted for the Paragard IUD. My husband and I don't plan on having children so this was a perfect solution for me. I've never been pregnant and I was 25 at the time so the copper IUD was a nice long-term solution. I had it inserted, and thought all of my troubles were over! I had it a couple of weeks, no real problems. I checked for the string after I had it inserted (as my doctor advised me to) and I felt a plastic nub coming out of my cervix. Unfortunately I expelled it and had to have it removed. My gyno refused to put in a new one since I already expelled one. I went to a new gyno and she had me have an ultrasound to see why I expelled before she placed a new one. Come to find out, my uterus is the exact same size as the copper IUD and therefore would either be expelled again or perforate my uterus during insertion.  My gyno then suggested a diaphragm since I didn't want to go back to HBC. I've been using that for about a year now and haven't gotten pregnant yet!  It is kind of a pain in the rear end to deal with though. I'm pretty much over the hassel of dealing with that too. So I'm going in next week to see about getting Mirena. Hopefully this will stay in my drat uterus and not leave me numb from the brain down again. : (
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Sep 10, 2013 20:53
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Erysipelothrix posted:My husband and I don't plan on having children so this was a perfect solution for me. Is your husband willing to get a vasectomy? It provides permanent protection, and you wouldn't have to deal with hormones anymore. Another option for you may be the implant. Like Mirena it's long term protection and estrogen-free (in case you were worried about that). Just something else you can ask about if your doc is hesitant about giving you Mirena.
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Sep 10, 2013 21:00
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Reformed Tomboy posted:Is your husband willing to get a vasectomy? It provides permanent protection, and you wouldn't have to deal with hormones anymore. Vasectomy is definitely on the table as far as long term options go. He is only 28 years old though and we don't think anyone will perform one on him since he is under 30 with no children. I would get sterilized if I could but the same problem goes for me (27 with no children). I will definitely ask about the implant at my appointment. I just wish the paragard worked for me then I wouldn't have to worry about hormones.
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Sep 10, 2013 21:12
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Erysipelothrix posted:Vasectomy is definitely on the table as far as long term options go. He is only 28 years old though and we don't think anyone will perform one on him since he is under 30 with no children. I would get sterilized if I could but the same problem goes for me (27 with no children). You'd be surprised. From what I understand doctors give men a lot less trouble about being sterilized than women. I just figured it'd be worth an ask before you commit to another long-term hormonal option as, personally, I can't wait for the day that I can quit bc. Good luck, what ever you decide 
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Sep 10, 2013 21:24
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Erysipelothrix posted:Vasectomy is definitely on the table as far as long term options go. He is only 28 years old though and we don't think anyone will perform one on him since he is under 30 with no children. I would get sterilized if I could but the same problem goes for me (27 with no children). Seconding what Reformed Tomboy said, you'll never know unless you ask! I was told by everyone that no doctor would sterilize me, and assumed that was true, but when I talked to my doc about it he had no problem getting me a tubal ligation @ 25 and no kids and even asked me why I waited so long to bring it up (story on pg 108). Seriously, ask around. You're potentially going through all this b/c hassle for nothing.
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Sep 11, 2013 04:08
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Erysipelothrix posted:Vasectomy is definitely on the table as far as long term options go. He is only 28 years old though and we don't think anyone will perform one on him since he is under 30 with no children. I would get sterilized if I could but the same problem goes for me (27 with no children). It probably wouldn't be as tough as you think, considering that you're married. That goes a long way in making some doctors more open to the idea as long as the spouse is behind it. And yeah, guys tend to not be given as much resistance to it. I think there are some guys over the in vasectomy megathread who had it done in their very early 20s with no hassle.
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Sep 11, 2013 05:47
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I love my Mirena, but I am kinda over the cramps I have with it. Strong, out of nowhere, double me over cramps. I am overdue on my yearly LadyDoc visit thanks to insurance issues, but I can hopefully go in October and make sure everything is OK up there. I can't feel anything amiss, but I also cannot reach my cervix. I mean, I am sure it's fine and it's just one of those side effects, but drat, these are some lovely cramps.
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Sep 11, 2013 13:49
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Essure follow-up trip report! I checked into my appointment about 30 minutes early and took 2 percocets since I didn't want to take any chances with pain. I was called back and asked to change into a gown then I went to the procedure room. The doc explained what was going to happen, I signed the consent form and got on the table. The table didn't have stirrups on it, but they had places for my feet so I was still all spread eagle like. He put the speculum in and then a small catheter into my cervix. He had some trouble placing the catheter because he said my cervix kept moving when he was putting it in. But as soon as he placed it I could feel it. He blew up the balloon end to keep it in place and I felt that too; it was like strong cramping (but it wasn't as bad as the Essure procedure itself). Then he put the dye in and had me roll to the right, left and back down the middle. During this time I had an xRay camera thing over me so he could take snapshots of the different positions and what the dye was doing. Then he took out the catheter and the cramps stopped. All in all it took about 10-15 minutes and that's including the extra time he took placing the catheter. He looked at the pictures and came and told me; my right side was blocked, but the left side wasn't! I was like wtf. He showed me the pictures. The spring is in the right tube and the dye stopped right at it. The left side the dye went through and I didn't even see the spring. He pointed it out and it's not even in my tube or uterus, but floating around my pelvis area! Great. So now I have to wait for the other doctor to call me and I have to schedule another Essure procedure and then another HSG (follow-up). I'm so bummed. I really wanted to get off the birth control because I think it's what is killing my libido. Plus now I have to get two more procedures which while they don't necessarily really hurt, they certainly aren't fun. I know it's worth it to me to not have kids, but it's still a pain.
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Sep 11, 2013 22:50
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Oh man, I'm sorry Bulletkiss. How weird that the left one just totally fell out like that. At least it's fixable. Thanks for posting the follow up.
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Sep 11, 2013 23:37
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I had the initial "blah blah you're sure, right? you should consider it permanent even though there is a reversal procedure that's about as probable as a coinflip" consult for my vasectomy and I'm getting snipped at high noon tomorrow. 29, no kids, not married but close enough. BCBS is covering it at no cost to me and given that I've spent the last decade asking myself whether I'd changed my mind and never once even feeling the slightest emotional reaction at the thought of raising a kid of my own, I probably seemed sure enough that the doc didn't even try to make reeeal sure I was 100% going through with it. Bonus hilarity: I'm getting it done at a big ol' catholic hospital called Immanuel. Looking forward to being waited on hand and foot all weekend with frozen peas stuffed in my jock.
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Sep 13, 2013 04:34
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Erysipelothrix posted:I was pretty fed up with hormonal birth control at this point so I opted for the Paragard IUD. My husband and I don't plan on having children so this was a perfect solution for me. I've never been pregnant and I was 25 at the time so the copper IUD was a nice long-term solution. I had it inserted, and thought all of my troubles were over! I had it a couple of weeks, no real problems. I checked for the string after I had it inserted (as my doctor advised me to) and I felt a plastic nub coming out of my cervix. Unfortunately I expelled it and had to have it removed. My gyno refused to put in a new one since I already expelled one. I went to a new gyno and she had me have an ultrasound to see why I expelled before she placed a new one. Come to find out, my uterus is the exact same size as the copper IUD and therefore would either be expelled again or perforate my uterus during insertion. Can you try copper IUDs that are smaller than the Paragard? I was trying to Google around and from looking at patient brochures, I think the one I have, Flexi-T 300, is 28mm long (23mm wide). It looks like Paragard is 36mm long (32mm wide).
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Sep 14, 2013 16:46
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If you are in America, I think the Paragard is your only available copper option.
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Sep 14, 2013 17:02
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Update: everything seems to be finally settling with my Mirena. Still having cramps the week or so before my period, but it's no longer constant. I finally got back into a work out routine this week, and so far so good. For awhile there, I was wondering if I had managed to make my reproductive health worse rather than better.
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Sep 14, 2013 18:13
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Geolicious posted:If you are in America, I think the Paragard is your only available copper option. You would need to check first to see if they're still doing it, but I know the Willow Women's Clinic in Vancouver used to give U.S. patients the Gynefix IUD which is smaller than Paragard (and if memory serves is one of the smallest copper IUDs you can get). So if you're near the border or don't mind taking a long trip for it, that may be an option. I think sometimes doctors can special order things too, but you would have to have a good doctor who's willing to jump through hoops for you to do it.
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Sep 14, 2013 19:28
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mango time posted:Can you try copper IUDs that are smaller than the Paragard? I was trying to Google around and from looking at patient brochures, I think the one I have, Flexi-T 300, is 28mm long (23mm wide). It looks like Paragard is 36mm long (32mm wide). E: I live in Boston. I'll ask if my doctor has heard of it though. I'm also going to ask if Essure is an option though I really doubt it.
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Sep 14, 2013 23:48
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Erysipelothrix posted:E: I live in Boston. Never be afraid to ask questions.
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Sep 15, 2013 00:07
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Speaking of Essure, any ideas on what happens if you get it when you have a nickel allergy? I've never been tested for it officially, but when I wear nickel plated anything (earrings, watches, belts, bracelets, rivets, etc.) I always get these awful blisters that itch like crazy. If I sweat at all while wearing nickel it's guaranteed to blister then ooze for about two days, and takes over a week for it to fully clear up. Obviously I'm very careful about wearing anything with nickel against my skin, but I've never had a surgical implant before and have received mixed info on Essure. I got super excited about it at first when my OBGYN suggested it, and when I read the brochure it said to ask your doctor if you have a nickel allergy. I was peeved cause I do have that written on my chart, so I called back that day and was told by a nurse that they can't do it, and that she'd ask him what he'd recommend instead. About a half hour later she called back saying that the FDA has changed something and they'll mail me the details. What I got in the mail was just a printout of that section of Essure's website. I assume that means that they've OK'ed it if you have an allergy, but how was that figured out? I can't find the study they cite cause of a paywall, and one of the two authors is a consultant for Essure's main company so I'm rather cautious about this. I would really like to know the methods of the study, because if they banned those with an allergy from getting it, how did they find enough people with a doctor who ignored this, and then determine that nothing bad happens? On the rare chance that something does happen, what's the protocol; do they remove it somehow non-surgically, or would they have to remove both fallopian tubes? I called back to ask my doctor that week but got a different nurse cause he was out of town. It didn't help that she said "well if you have an allergy we'd see it and take it out" and when I asked how they'd take it out since it expands/deploys into the tube, (never mind that it can take up to an hour for blisters to start showing from direct contact), she just went "oh right" then took my info so she could run it by the doctor and have him call me when he gets back. She said she assists him with the procedure and yet didn't know as much on how it worked as I did just from reading Essure's website Needless to say, it's been over a month since he was supposed to be back and no call. I'm seriously doubting he even got a note saying I called back after they mailed me the FDA stuff...I think I got on that nurse's nerves.I'm normally quite logical and sensible when it comes to statistics on the likelihood of it negatively affecting me, but I'm getting rather paranoid about how this FDA approval came at the same time they were suing Adiana (the silicone version) for patent infringement. The lawsuit was settled earlier in 2012 and now Adiana no longer exists, so Essure has effectively cornered the entire non-surgical sterilization market from what I can tell. The only thing I can think of is to get the copper IUD (as it has nickel in it) then try to puzzle out if any negative effects are from having an object in my uterus or from the nickel itself. I actually have never worn copper or have taped a penny to my skin for an hour, so I have no clue if I have a copper allergy either. Worst case scenario with that however is getting the IUD removed. Does anyone know if there is an official protocol on what to do if you get skin rashes/welts from Essure as it's not meant to be removed? No, my husband is not going to get snipped, and we've talked about it at length so please don't jump on him about it since I'm the one wigging out about statistics that are even more favorable than his. I was on hormonal birth control for over 10 years at first for an incredibly variable menstrual cycle (once every 3 weeks to 6 months, not obese), then on it continuously for PCOS after I got hospitalized for a cyst. Turns out I was diagnosed PCOS by my prior doctor who didn't look at the CT results which as I found out this year, wasn't folicular. Due to developing a very gradual but exceedingly worse case of chronic headaches over this time I was advised by my GP to go off the BC for at least 3 months to see if that helps. I was honestly surprised cause I thought the headaches were from another medication I take for narcolepsy, but he was pretty confident it was the BC since I've head headaches the whole time. Talking to my OBGYN about not wanting kids ever he suggested doing Essure and once getting the confirmation test done, then I could go off of BC and not be paranoid about getting pregnant. If my reproductive system is cooperative then great, won't need to do anything else. If it's uncooperative then I could try other hormones like the implant knowing that no matter what, I've got those tubes blocked. It's a very comforting thought. So, that's my wall of text. Just doing condoms for now and pondering my ideally non-surgical options. A bit frustrated at the lack of quality information out there and wondering if anyone's got an idea. Zantie fucked around with this message at 19:48 on Sep 15, 2013 |
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Sep 15, 2013 19:42
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