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No, it's totally fine, not unhealthy. You could google "stacking the pill," "skipping placebo week," etc. for more. It's not unusual, and yeah, there are pills designed exactly for that (Seasonique iirc). I have Implanon, which is a little different, but I haven't had like a real period in almost 6 years. It doesn't build up and make you explode or something.
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Feb 2, 2014 06:17
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i like nice words
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Geolicious posted:My mom though my IUD could get lost inside my body, so. Moms are weird. My IUD had stopped mine for over a year and a half and I frequently skipped placebo week on the pill. No harm in it. Very true, my mom was really worried about me getting pregnant when I told her I was switching to Paragard, but to her credit she corrected herself right after with "Well I guess you could on the pill too."
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Feb 2, 2014 08:03
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24 days after getting my Mirena out and Paragard in, like clockwork, I got my period (first since July). Spotting on day one, unholy amounts of blood on days two and three, and normal/tapering off bleeding on days four, five and six. On the pill I really only needed two mini tampons a day, and on my heaviest days with Paragard I needed a super every two hours. Does this poo poo go away? It felt like my vagina was that one scene in The Shining.
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Feb 2, 2014 08:05
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A quick word on why it's not harmful or a sign of ineffectiveness to have either no periods or irregular spotting with hormonal birth control: The two main hormones affecting the endometrium (lining of the uterus that's normally shed every month during a woman's period) are estrogen and progesterone. We consider the cycle to start with menstruation (since that's the easiest thing to observe). After menstruation, estrogen predominates in the first half of the cycle (before ovulation) and causes the endometrium to grow (proliferate - hence, proliferative phase). After ovulation, the follicle that held the egg becomes the corpus luteum and releases massive amounts of progesterone, which quickly surpasses estrogen and causes the endometrium to mature. This maturation is called the secretory phase since it involves the secretion of substances that make the uterus hospitable for an embryo to implant. Progestogen-only methods (minipill, Mirena, Nexplanon, Depo-provera) act to thin the endometrium. Breakthrough bleeding on these methods tends to be what's called atrophic bleeding - bleeding because the lining gets much thinner than normal. Not all of these methods will work by inhibiting ovulation, and it's important to remember that ovulation will cause a change in the hormone profile, so that it can be hard to predict exactly what the pattern will be as these effects will vary from woman to woman. Depo is a high enough dose of a progestogen to reliably inhibit ovulation, and so it also has the highest amenorrhea (no period) rate - 80% at 5 years. Nexplanon has a little bit less suppression of ovulation and tends to have less amenorrhea. Mirena has a lower dose of progestogen in the blood stream, and has even less suppression of ovulation (but has higher rates of amenorrhea than Nexplanon because it has a larger local effect on the endometrium). Because the minipill does not have a high enough dose to predictably inhibit ovulation, it's important to keep the circulating dose of progesterone high to keep the contraceptive effects like cervical mucus thickening. Higher dose progestogen-only pills like Cerazette (lucky UK goons!) have levels of progestogen similar to that of Nexplanon, and thus Cerazette has a more forgiving time window (12 hours as opposed to 3 with Micronor). Combined methods (pill, patch, ring) use an estrogen and a progestogen to suppress ovulation as their primary method of action. Having a progesterone present with the estrogen keeps the endometrium from becoming built up like it would in a normal cycle, and keeps it thinned out. When OCPs were first developed, they tried doing a progestogen only pill but kept the estrogen because having the progestogen-only pill had unacceptable rates of breakthrough bleeding. Pills with a lower dose of estrogen (lo-estrin, etc) tend to have a higher rate of breakthrough bleeding because the estrogen in combination with the progestogen tends to have a stabilizing effect on the endometrium. (I may have made it sound like estrogen and progesterone work against each other, but it's actually a more complex relationship - estrogen actually increases the number of progesterone receptors in cells and makes progesterone more effective). Extended/continuous-use regimens of OCPs reduce breakthrough bleeding and also likely increase effectiveness because continuous or extended use is better at suppressing follicular growth/ovulation. Irregular spotting on hormonal contraceptive methods should not be confused with irregular spotting due to conditions such as PCOS, in which high estrogen keeps the body from ovulating. The increased estrogen also causes the endometrium to proliferate/grow and keep growing without sufficient progesterone to step in and tell it to mature. This is dangerous because this unregulated growth can lead to abnormal endometrial cells and even endometrial cancer. In fact, in patients with endometrial carcinoma who aren't candidates for surgery (usual first-line treatment) because of their other medical problems, we will often prescribe then progesterone methods or even put in a Mirena. Sorry, guys, just realized I geeked out a little bit more than I meant to. Hopefully this makes sense!
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Feb 2, 2014 08:16
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Tshirt Ninja posted:24 days after getting my Mirena out and Paragard in, like clockwork, I got my period (first since July). Spotting on day one, unholy amounts of blood on days two and three, and normal/tapering off bleeding on days four, five and six. On the pill I really only needed two mini tampons a day, and on my heaviest days with Paragard I needed a super every two hours. Does this poo poo go away? It felt like my vagina was that one scene in The Shining. I'm about a year out and it's improved to the point where really only the first day of my period is super-heavy. After that it fluctuates a lot between heavy, regular and just spotting.  It's shortened to 4 days for some reason too, so I don't have to deal with it for long. The first few periods will be pretty heavy I'm afraid (and probably seem worse since you're coming off light/no periods).Come to think of it, my most recent period has basically just been a few hours of really heavy flow/cramps and the rest has been pretty average with no cramps at all. It might depend on where you are, but companies do make larger absorbency tampons in sizes like Super Plus and Ultra (or that's what Tampax calls it). Even on my absolute heaviest of the heavy nightmare periods an ultra size tampon would last a good 4 hours at least. Kimmalah fucked around with this message at 08:23 on Feb 2, 2014 |
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Feb 2, 2014 08:20
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Kimmalah posted:I'm about a year out and it's improved to the point where really only the first day of my period is super-heavy. After that it fluctuates a lot between heavy, regular and just spotting. Good to hear - if it only gets better, I'll be pretty happy, since 6 days really isn't so bad but 4-5 would be awesome. I've only had minimal cramping, and best of all, my hair loss has dramatically slowed since the switch. For all the amazing things that Mirena did, it was *undoubtedly* the cause of my shedding. It seems like Bayer has done a pretty thorough job of removing 'hair loss' as a side effect from all its literature, to the point where two of the nurses at my OB's office denied that it was being caused by the IUD and only by requesting to speak to my OB directly could I get an appointment to have it removed rather than just having bloodwork orders thrown at me or being told I probably had alopecia. There seem to be many, many women on the internet who are suffering from the same side effect. I've had to cut my hair short to hide how scraggly it's gotten over the last few months, but I'll take that and heavy periods over baldness any day.
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Feb 2, 2014 09:03
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Tshirt Ninja posted:Good to hear - if it only gets better, I'll be pretty happy, since 6 days really isn't so bad but 4-5 would be awesome. I've only had minimal cramping, and best of all, my hair loss has dramatically slowed since the switch. For all the amazing things that Mirena did, it was *undoubtedly* the cause of my shedding. It seems like Bayer has done a pretty thorough job of removing 'hair loss' as a side effect from all its literature, to the point where two of the nurses at my OB's office denied that it was being caused by the IUD and only by requesting to speak to my OB directly could I get an appointment to have it removed rather than just having bloodwork orders thrown at me or being told I probably had alopecia. There seem to be many, many women on the internet who are suffering from the same side effect. I've had to cut my hair short to hide how scraggly it's gotten over the last few months, but I'll take that and heavy periods over baldness any day. Yeah, I remember it getting a little bit better every month and for some reason the 6th month mark is usually where things start to really turn towards the better for a lot of people (myself included). Don't know if that makes you feel better. I have no idea why it shortened - normally my period was 6 days long, then it got a little longer for a while and then went down to 4 days. Then sometimes it'll stop for a day or two and start up again. Weird, but good for sex. For me personally the worst part wasn't so much that they were heavy but that they were heavy and I didn't really know how to deal with it. I felt like I did back when I was 13 getting my first period for a while.  Now I kind of have a routine and remedies handy if I need them: black underwear, high absorbency tampons, ibuprofen and heat in case of cramps.Doses of stuff like ibuprofen or Aleve/naproxen can help ease the heavy flow (not at the same time of course!). And some people swear by taking vitamin E supplements (400 mg I think) to make their flow lighter, although I've never seen any definitive proof for that one.
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Feb 2, 2014 09:44
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My girlfriend started taking oral BC a little over a year ago, in part to clear up some bad acne she had-- and coincidentally this was about when we started dating. When we first started dating her sex drive was pretty normal, but over this year it has significantly decreased. We've both noticed the decline, and I've also read that this is a common side effect with a lot of hormonal BC. But this is the only side effect that's really pronounced; she doesn't have any major mood swings or cramping or other issues that we've read about being an issue with some other drugs. So, I think it's understandable that she's not interested in switching to a different prescription. Have any of you all experienced this sort of decline of your sex drive, and is there anything we can do to try and reverse it?
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Feb 7, 2014 08:20
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Mirena out, Depo-Provera shot taken, and I'm losing weight and not cramping everyday. Like you, T-Shirt Ninja, I liked most of the effects of the Mirena, but I couldn't take much more of the ones I couldn't. The NP looked at the Ultrasound and realized that my uterus was completely inflamed, likely causing most of the issues.
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Feb 7, 2014 10:58
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MetaJew posted:My girlfriend started taking oral BC a little over a year ago, in part to clear up some bad acne she had-- and coincidentally this was about when we started dating. When we first started dating her sex drive was pretty normal, but over this year it has significantly decreased. We've both noticed the decline, and I've also read that this is a common side effect with a lot of hormonal BC. But this is the only side effect that's really pronounced; she doesn't have any major mood swings or cramping or other issues that we've read about being an issue with some other drugs. So, I think it's understandable that she's not interested in switching to a different prescription. I don't know that there's a lot that can be done about her sex drive without switching something, if it's indeed a hormonal thing. If she's got a lot of stress in her life, taking care of that could help. And I've found sometimes taking the time to fool around a bit even when I wasn't feeling it much at first would help me get into that state of mind more, but I really hate to suggest "have sex you don't want" as a solution. Some pills out there do have different formulations of the same pill (same hormones and everything, just a different dose). For example, when I was having libido problems on Ortho-TriCyclen Lo, my doctor switched me to Ortho TriCyclen - which was almost the same pill, just with more estrogen. It helped and I didn't have any new side effects.
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Feb 7, 2014 17:47
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If it's happened over the course of a year, it doesn't seem to have as much to do with the pill as with leaving the honeymoon stage of the relationship. I wouldn't assume it's the pill's fault when it could be stress, lack of romance, routine, being taken for granted -- relatively normal couple stuff. I would work on those possibilities first.
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Feb 7, 2014 17:55
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I am not nearly as in like with my Ortho Tri-Cyclen as I was a couple of months ago. I've gained about 15 pounds since switching from Lo LoEstrin in September. I am not, however, having the constant spotting and mid-cycle breakthrough bleeding so I don't want to switch pills again. Really there are no bad side effects at all except for the weight gain. I've always been in the 105-110 lbs range and now i'm creeping up on 130 and it's really getting to me. My partner's insurance covers vasectomy and he says he wants to do that (we both have a kid each so we're definitely done) but he hasn't taken any steps towards making that happen and I feel like it's his place to initiate the ball-slicing. So yeah. I'm getting all fat and I hate it. I've started working out in an actual gym for the first time in my life and i'm watching my calories. Anyone else in this boat? I talked to my gynecologist about it and he said it's totally normal and i'm a great, healthy weight. But I don't feel like myself anymore and I just want to stay tiny. I've never had this problem before (gaining weight quickly and having trouble taking it off.) Is there something about hormonal weight gain that makes it more difficult to lose the weight? Of to TFLC, I guess. 
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Feb 7, 2014 20:39
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Endocrinology isn't my strong point, so I was hoping someone with more knowledge could satisfy my curiosity. Obviously the period you get whilst on the pill isn't a 'real' one. So how come it comes along with horrible mood swings and anger, as well as pain? I am having trouble understanding why withdrawing from the hormones in the pill creates the same effects as in a non-medicated person.
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Feb 8, 2014 12:47
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Anne Whateley posted:If it's happened over the course of a year, it doesn't seem to have as much to do with the pill as with leaving the honeymoon stage of the relationship. I wouldn't assume it's the pill's fault when it could be stress, lack of romance, routine, being taken for granted -- relatively normal couple stuff. I would work on those possibilities first. I dunno my pill I was on forever and my sex drive was low and my vag was disinterested in increasing amounts through time. I switched to mirena and within less than a month it had flipped and everything was going swimmingly (it still is apart from the odd night here and there). I'm sure I didn't notice the sex drive issues when they started but I certainly noticed them as they got worse and when I made the switch that confirmed it was the pill for me
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Feb 8, 2014 17:42
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Bollock Monkey posted:Endocrinology isn't my strong point, so I was hoping someone with more knowledge could satisfy my curiosity. It doesn't for everybody, it just depends on the person. I normally get horrible PMS mood swings, but it virtually disappears if I'm on the pill. Otherwise I'd guess that it's because the symptoms are caused by a fluctuation in hormones, which you're still getting when you take the placebo pills and stop the active ones. And with both a natural menstrual cycle and the pill, the bleeding is triggered by a sharp drop in estrogen/progesterone so the mechanism is similar just with different causes. CeramicPig posted:I dunno my pill I was on forever and my sex drive was low and my vag was disinterested in increasing amounts through time. I switched to mirena and within less than a month it had flipped and everything was going swimmingly (it still is apart from the odd night here and there). Yeah the libido thing with the pill was really insidious for me. I didn't even think it was that bad until I went off the pill and suddenly wanted to have sex like crazy. 
Kimmalah fucked around with this message at 17:59 on Feb 8, 2014 |
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Feb 8, 2014 17:56
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I'm in the same libido boat - switched from hormonal BC to paragard and after about 3 months I was wicked horny and almost lamenting it. almost
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Feb 8, 2014 20:31
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Bollock Monkey posted:Endocrinology isn't my strong point, so I was hoping someone with more knowledge could satisfy my curiosity. What makes a period a "real" one, technically, is ovulation preceding it, so if someone's on hormones that suppress ovulation, any regularly-scheduled bleeding isn't a period. But the cause of the regularly-scheduled bleeding is the same whether it was preceded by ovulation or not - less progesterone all of a sudden - so if someone reacts badly to that, it doesn't matter whether there's less progesterone because her body's realized(*) that no ova have been fertilized or because her pills don't have progesterone in them at the moment. (*) Or arbitrarily decided, in the case where someone's luteal phase isn't long enough for a successfully fertilized ovum to make it to the uterus and start generating hormones there.
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Feb 8, 2014 21:46
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Ah hah! Cheers, both. I now feel less like I am placebo-ing myself into it. Hormonal systems are so interesting.
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Feb 9, 2014 13:13
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Y'know how gynecologists will tell you that Mirena expulsions are fairly rare? I had two expulsions last year alone. Fortunately though I'm in Australia, so a Mirena only costs $40, and insertions are free at the hospital, but that's still a lot of pain and inconvenience to have to go through. The great thing is, I need progestins for endometrial hyperplasia (due to PCOS/pre-diabetes), not for BC. Once I was diganosed in 2012, my gyno suggested the Mirena was the best option - despite the fact they knew I've never had children and was therefore at greater risk of expulsion. The first one stayed in for all of two months before coming out in a massive clot (on a work day, no less - yay). The second one stayed for about three months, but I'm not entirely sure exactly when that one came out - I never actually saw either of them when they were expelled, unfortunately. But ultrasounds proved they definitely weren't there anymore. While they were in, though, it was non-stop bleeding and clots, which I guess is to be expected - while normal endometriums measure about 5mm to 9mm, mine was a whopping 70mm (I'm 33). Fortunately cramping was rare, though, and usually mild. The other great thing the Mirenas did? Thin, watery discharge. Lots of it. As in, I had to wear maternity pads *every day* lots of it, even after they'd come out. Yet I didn't have an infection, despite one GP thinking I had PID. Was still put on two courses of antibiotics though, which did nothing to reduce the discharge volume. So I was at a loss as to what was causing it (had never had such profuse discharge like that before) and the gynos weren't very helpful. All I heard from one was that some women react to the progesterone in the Mirena (or the implant itself), and it causes excess discharge. Which didn't seem right to me. I get the impression they had no loving idea either as to why someone with no uterine infections could be having so much discharge. But I digress. Fast forward to about 3 weeks ago and I had the next best option: the Depo Provera shot, which so far is going great. I'm still bleeding and passing heaps of clots like a champ, but at least this time I know the hormone's staying inside my system and my endometrium is being constantly and progressively thinned down. Because uterine cancer would suck. As for the discharge, before the bleeding kicked in in earnest, the day after the shot I noticed the discharge had virtually completely stopped. I'll be bleeding for a while yet, so don't know when I'll be able to tell for sure, but fingers crossed my suspicions are true and the Depo's cleared it up. As to why it has, I still can't figure it out. I did some online research and apparently some women with runaway excess estrogen do produce a lot of discharge, but that doesn't explain why it only happened once I'd got the Mirena put in. And why the Depo seems to have stopped it - they're both progestins, after all. Sorry for the TL;DR introduction to the thread.  Thought I might include my experiences with the wonderful world of Mirena.
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Feb 9, 2014 18:46
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Expulsions are fairly rare overall, just not for you apparently. So your doctor was telling the truth there. The discharge thing is something that seems to come along with IUDs - I get it with Paragard and I've heard other women having it. Although your case seems to be kind of unusual in both the amount and the fact that you had it after losing the IUD. Glad you found something that worked for you though.
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Feb 9, 2014 19:20
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kthnxbi posted:a whole lot of bad luck Man you are a whole mess of outliers. Glad that Depo worked well for you. One of the few out there.
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Feb 9, 2014 21:25
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I've been on the combined pill for five years now, and for most of that time my periods have been religiously regular (I always get it on a Friday night). Because it's so regular, I tend to freak out if it's late by even a day. Am I being an idiot? Is there a reason why once in a blue moon my period doesn't arrive when expected?
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Feb 11, 2014 03:25
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I know when I was on the pill, every 6 months to a year it seemed, my period would get shorter by a day. So for months it would always start on Tuesday then POOF one month it starts coming on a Wednesday and so on. I'm guessing it was a side-effect of my uterine lining getting thinner as time went on or something. I'm sure other factors like stress and life changes could have an effect too. Personally I think a day or two is too early to be freaking out about lateness, although I completely understand the feeling so I won't call you an idiot. Now if it gets to like a week or more and there's a chance you could be pregnant, then it probably would be time to check with a test. Tough as it is, best thing you can do is try to relax for now because (1) stressing might make it worse and (2) most pregnancy tests won't be very accurate at this point so there's not a lot you can do but wait it out.
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Feb 11, 2014 05:11
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I actually did get my period, just wanted to try to allay my fears for the next time it happens. Thanks, at least I know I'm not the only one who starts with the "what-ifs" wayyy too soon.
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Feb 11, 2014 05:47
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Kimmalah posted:I know when I was on the pill, every 6 months to a year it seemed, my period would get shorter by a day. So for months it would always start on Tuesday then POOF one month it starts coming on a Wednesday and so on. I'm guessing it was a side-effect of my uterine lining getting thinner as time went on or something. This is exactly what happened to me on the pill. I would get so regular on the pill I would freak out if I were a few HOURS late. But yeah, as time went on I went from a Tuesday starter to a Friday starter. A stash of cheap pee sticks in the cupboard was a valuable tool for my peace of mind.
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Feb 11, 2014 14:45
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I got my Paragard on January 4th, had my first period on January 27th (lasted til February 4th) and just got another period today (the 19th). What the hell? Do I only get two weeks with no bleeding now? Am I pregnant? Expelling?? e. It's a period, not just spotting or something.
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Feb 20, 2014 08:06
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Tshirt Ninja posted:I got my Paragard on January 4th, had my first period on January 27th (lasted til February 4th) and just got another period today (the 19th). What the hell? Do I only get two weeks with no bleeding now? Am I pregnant? Expelling?? I know with mine (mirena) I had ~1 week of spotting after I got it, then it seemed to calm down for about 2 weeks and then bam 20 days of continuous flow that was similar to my light days on the pill. Chances are its probably your body settling into the whole IUD thing but as with everything it might be best to check it out with your doctor. If anything having your doc take a look will give you piece of mind. All in all it took me 5 months before I started to see anything resembling a regular cycle. 2 week periods check, 1 week between "periods" check, seemingly never ending days of spotting check... I think the pamphlets said something about expecting it to take 3-6 months before everything settles in. Basically take a breath, keep an eye on it and remember it never hurts to go in for a check up. I know with mine they wanted to me go back 6-8 weeks after for a how's it going appointment. Did you have any sort of followup after insertion?
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Feb 24, 2014 00:45
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Kind of a vent with possibly a question or too: My boss and I were finally able to get my health insurance un-hosed and I've been able to make calls and, sadly, Implanon isn't a covered device so I'm getting an IUD  Luckily they cover removal, though, because apparently that poo poo's expensive on its own. I spoke to a very nice woman at the Planned Parenthood in my area and I have to get my implant removed and have an exam in order to get "approved" for an IUD of my choosing and then come back when I'm on my period for the IUD. I would probably be able to make those appointments a lot closer together if it weren't for the fact that my period is like Gene Parmesan, always surprising/tricking me, so I can't accurately make an appointment besides day of (which I may have to do). They're going to give me a pack of microgestin (the pill I was on before I got my implant) to cover me for the ~3 weeks/month before I get my period, as long as my body behaves itself with the new hormones. I'm seriously torn on Mirena v. Paragard and can't decide. Both have some serious pros and no real cons, I like what the hormones can [possibly] help me with for the Mirena, but I also have some mood swings and cry without too much provocation, so the idea of going hormone free sounds appealing, even though before I was on any kind of HBC my periods were heavy and slightly painful. If anyone has had that dilemma, what other things did you think about/can you help me weigh my options? Sorry for the tl;dr rant, it also kind of helps just talking it out with people who are knowledgeable, even if no one actually responds.
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Feb 24, 2014 03:15
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ilysespieces posted:Kind of a vent with possibly a question or too: Wait a minute. If you are in America - any BC of your choice should be covered. That was the point of the ACA. This change went through like 2 years ago now so no one should be even grandfathered anymore. I have still been hearing about insurance providers still lying to their clients about what is covered though.
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Feb 24, 2014 03:39
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Tigntink posted:Wait a minute. If you are in America - any BC of your choice should be covered. That was the point of the ACA. This change went through like 2 years ago now so no one should be even grandfathered anymore. I have still been hearing about insurance providers still lying to their clients about what is covered though. That's what I thought but the woman I spoke to said, after I was on hold for about 15 minutes while she spoke to someone about my question, that they cover IUDs and "other devices. NuvaRing is covered, if you want". I did have to speak with 2 other people before getting confirmation that the removal of the implant was even covered, so maybe I've just got to call again and speak with someone who doesn't need me to spell Implanon 4 times to understand what I'm asking about. With the removal call I made sure to get a reference number for the call (had issues with my last insurance denying the implant was covered even though I confirmed it with 3 separate calls, I'd rather get a reference number now so I don't have to worry about appealing), maybe I'll try calling until I get an answer I like. And my plan is brand new, switched to a different one from the one I was on for a few months as of January 1st, so it wouldn't even be a grandfathered issue. I thought everything was covered but then started doubting that because I wasn't sure if they could say they covered some options but not all.
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Feb 24, 2014 04:12
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I would def call again and press for the answers you want. You might still get told "no" but at least it won't be because some idiot isn't sure and doesn't want to take the time to check. As far as period scheduling, I know there are posters in this thread who have had IUD insertions when they're not ragging. If you do end up getting an IUD I would schedule insertion for when it's convenient to you (don't have to work that day and possibly the next). I don't think they would turn you away when you're in the exam room.
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Feb 24, 2014 06:18
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ilysespieces posted:That's what I thought but the woman I spoke to said, after I was on hold for about 15 minutes while she spoke to someone about my question, that they cover IUDs and "other devices. NuvaRing is covered, if you want". I did have to speak with 2 other people before getting confirmation that the removal of the implant was even covered, so maybe I've just got to call again and speak with someone who doesn't need me to spell Implanon 4 times to understand what I'm asking about. Also, if your insurance really doesn't cover it somehow, you can tell PP you're uninsured (you are for Implanon) and they should have a sliding scale. If I had to, I would definitely pay a few hundred to stick with Implanon.
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Feb 24, 2014 06:38
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Re: birth control and insurance - is the birth control mandate on hold pending the outcome of Hobby Lobby's challenge to it that's currently before the supreme court?
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Feb 24, 2014 06:52
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Geoj posted:Re: birth control and insurance - is the birth control mandate on hold pending the outcome of Hobby Lobby's challenge to it that's currently before the supreme court? If so, that's absolute bullshit. I know they're challenging to be exempt, but I didn't think it would affect anyone else.
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Feb 24, 2014 07:02
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Geoj posted:Re: birth control and insurance - is the birth control mandate on hold pending the outcome of Hobby Lobby's challenge to it that's currently before the supreme court? No. It's only on hold for certain religiously affiliated organizations. Given you had to spell Implanon for them three times, did you consider asking about Nexplanon instead? It's possible the person you were talking to wouldn't have realized they are the same thing if only one was listed. As for IUD insertion, it absolutely does NOT need to be done on your period (two of my 3 IUDs have been inserted when I wasn't on my period). If they won't do it without you being on your period I would try calling a few other providers.
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Feb 24, 2014 08:04
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Anne Whateley posted:Ding ding ding. I love the idea of PP but ours in the city are not so great. When I tried to go through them 3 years ago, it was a shitshow. I wound up taking a train to some CT city where they apparently do Implanon a lot, and they handled it without even a hiccup. I think it's just organized by state, so some have their act together more than others. Mine is up in a month and I'll probably just go back to CT. It's not a bad trip on MetroNorth. It was the insurance company that I had the problem with, PP was pretty great when I called them a few different times (though I'd go to the one on Long Island, I don't want to even think about taking a train if I get an IUD). I did ask about Nexplanon (spelled that one for her a few times, too) but she blew them all off as "devices we don't cover". Honestly, I was leaning towards IUD anyway because I'm kind of sick of the irregular bleeding. I miss being able to check an app and say "oh, poo poo, it's tomorrow" rather than dealing with the "what is that feeling? Could it be?" game. Thanks for all your help, I knew I could count on you (I think you were the one who first convinced me Implanon was awesome, Anne). I'm going to try and get someone a little more knowledgeable and confirm the coverage but right now my main reason for wanting another implant is that there's no gap in coverage.
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Feb 24, 2014 14:03
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Tshirt Ninja posted:I got my Paragard on January 4th, had my first period on January 27th (lasted til February 4th) and just got another period today (the 19th). What the hell? Do I only get two weeks with no bleeding now? Am I pregnant? Expelling?? Maybe your hormones are just still regulating? I saw in your previous posts you were coming off Mirena. And then there's the usual stuff like life stress and all that. I have a Paragard and get the usual 28 day cycle, so no you're not necessarily doomed if that helps. ilysespieces posted:It was the insurance company that I had the problem with, PP was pretty great when I called them a few different times (though I'd go to the one on Long Island, I don't want to even think about taking a train if I get an IUD). Not to steer you one way or another, but the irregular bleeding thing might also be an issue with Mirena, since it's another progestin-only method. Periods stopping completely only happens to some users, not all. And you definitely don't have to be on your period for an insertion. I think it helps, but during my insertion I was just finishing my last week of active pills and wasn't close to actually bleeding yet but it didn't seem to be a problem. As for your insurance company, just from your posts it kind of sounds to me like they don't even know what the hell Implanon/Nexplanon is. I think it is a little less well-known and maybe they just don't realize it isn't some weird experimental or off-label thing.
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Feb 25, 2014 18:31
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Kimmalah posted:As for your insurance company, just from your posts it kind of sounds to me like they don't even know what the hell Implanon/Nexplanon is. I think it is a little less well-known and maybe they just don't realize it isn't some weird experimental or off-label thing. I've had to pull out my Nexplanon card and hand it to so many medical professionals over the last year. It doesn't have the marketing that Mirena and some of the pills have, so lack of familiarity is definitely an issue.
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Feb 25, 2014 18:57
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Kimmalah posted:
That's why I'm really hesitating going Mirena over Paragard, I'm only seriously considering it because progestin-only methods apparently lighten my period, which I like. I've also got used to being able to feel when it's going to start, for the most part I haven't had any accidents. I'm just so torn, I wish I could magic in another Implanon and deal with the irregular periods. I do know that you don't have to be on your period for an IUD but from everything I've heard I'd rather do everything in my power to make it as easy as possible, I just hope my hormones behave when I start the pill pack they give me when I get the implant taken out. At this point I'm also just so frustrated with the insurance company that I'd rather not deal with another hour and a half of phone calls trying to find someone who understands that there are more HBC options besides IUDs and pills and that NuvaRing is not an appropriate alternative to Implanon. Thanks again for all the help, I'll probably be back with a trip report for all this poo poo to add to the experiences with Implanon and IUDs
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Feb 25, 2014 20:21
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If you can't find someone experienced to remove the Implanon, you might want to consider leaving it in. It won't be 99.99% effective anymore, but it shouldn't be at 0 yet either, so maybe it can help with your periods for awhile. It shouldn't hurt anything. Removal might not be super fun either if it's a clueless person.
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Feb 25, 2014 21:58
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