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Eggplant Wizard posted:I never had nasty side effects from the oral bc I was on. You hear a lot of horror stories because people don't go around saying "Hey guys I just started birth control and everything's fine!" Well, in that case I'd just like to say that I never had any issues with bad side effects on the pill, and I ended up switching to the Mirena because one of my antidepressants interfered with the pill's effectiveness, not because the pill was making my crazy or killed my sex drive or anything.
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Feb 16, 2011 03:11
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So I now have Paragard and am on Yaz. Is this going to have any lasting side effects I should be worried about?
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Feb 16, 2011 05:21
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Fire In The Disco posted:My experience with getting diagnosed with PCOS is that it is as much a clinical diagnosis as a medical one. For instance, I don't have any cysts on my ovaries. But, I do have hugely irregular cycles, unwanted facial hair, other endocrine and hormonal issues (diabetes, fibrocystic breasts), and one of the things they test for came back low. So even without the cysts and without other things coming back out of whack, it made sense to diagnose me with PCOS. Oh and I was on Metformin for my diabetes when I got pregnant with Cecilia, and Met. is generally what women with PCOS take to get pregnant. Huh. I have all these problems. Irregular cycles, which is why I started BC in the first place, unwanted hair mostly on my face, diabetes...well, I don't have fibrocystic breasts. I take Metformin, too. Should I ask my doc about PCOS? My doc who diagnosed my diabetes never mentioned it. I actually HAVE had ovarian cysts in the past (another reason I was put on BC). And, uh, dumb question, but Metformin doesn't reduce BC efficacy does it? No one mentioned it does. I am assuming PCOS women take Metformin sans BC to get pregnant?
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Feb 16, 2011 05:37
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Yeah, it does sound like you might be in the running for the wonderful grand prize that is PCOS as well. No, Metformin doesn't affect BC. It just seems to happen that women with PCOS have some sort of insulin resistance, which affects ovulation, and taking the Met. makes it level out enough that they can ovulate well.
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Feb 16, 2011 05:45
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Lackadaisical posted:So I now have Paragard and am on Yaz. Is this going to have any lasting side effects I should be worried about? I think you and I got the Paragard around the same time if I remember correctly. I was actually considering doing this too because I turn into a really terrible person the week before my period and also I hate having periods. Please follow up and let me know how it works for you. Best of luck!
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Feb 16, 2011 05:50
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Fire In The Disco posted:Yeah, it does sound like you might be in the running for the wonderful grand prize that is PCOS as well. Well, if I can scrape up enough money for another doctor visit, I will ask. I just wanted to make sure Met wasn't going to make me ovulate despite the pill. Though, the pill has almost eradicated my period, so I doubt implantation could even happen, and my bf and I haven't had sex in nearly a year...but that's a whole other can of worms, I guess. So, I probably shouldn't be worrying about getting knocked up anyhow. Another PCOS question: I know this is an issue with diabetes, which is how they found it in me, but does PCOS also make it super difficult to lose weight? The found my diabetes because I was working out 5 days a week and eating 1800 calories a day and GAINING weight (not muscle, weight)and they tested me and my AC1 was whack. But even with Metformin, I am having so much trouble with my weight. Could the added "grand prize" of PCOS be giving me double trouble with weight loss? How do they treat PCOS (besides Met)? Sorry for the derail, I am just curious. I had no idea that I had all these PCOS symptoms.
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Feb 16, 2011 05:53
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It's more likely that diabetes itself could be making it harder for you to lose weight. Are things going well with your blood sugar?
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Feb 16, 2011 05:56
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Fire In The Disco posted:It's more likely that diabetes itself could be making it harder for you to lose weight. Are things going well with your blood sugar? Yeah. It stays normal to lowish really. Unless I've eaten something atrocious, it stays OK. I have gotten off my exercise routine, though, like a bad, bad girl. So, yeah, not losing much at the moment. Lost a few pounds in the last few weeks, but I really need to get back to getting my walk on. Oh well, at least it isn't baby weight! 
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Feb 16, 2011 06:00
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lunarian posted:I think you and I got the Paragard around the same time if I remember correctly. Will do  I miss having clear skin.... I went off Yaz and all hell broke loose over my chest and back.
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Feb 16, 2011 06:03
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sorted, thanks
Chedranian Girl fucked around with this message at 08:44 on Dec 1, 2016 |
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Feb 16, 2011 11:48
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Does anyone else on the combined pill get far worse cramping than they ever did before they started taking it? Everything I've ever read or heard had said that the pill eases period pain but in my case it's been the complete opposite. It's really frustrating as I've had no other bad side effects (good sex drive, no weight gain or mood swings, clear skin and so on) but holy poo poo, the first few days of the withdrawal bleed make me want to put my head through a wall.
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Feb 16, 2011 12:32
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Chedranian Girl posted:Anyway, my 4 am romp was already covered by my previous pill, surely? And even if it required my pill to be taken on time the next morning, it was still within the 12 hour window, so that's doubly "safe as normal" right? Obviously that's not your situation exactly since you only missed the pill by a few hours. I'm not familiar with mini-pills that have a 12-hour window - my understanding is that mini-pills are generally far more sensitive than that. At my clinic we tell patients on mini-pills that they can't miss it by more than 3 hours. So I think it's definitely possible that you could have ovulated in that 7-hour window especially given the high sensitivity of mini-pills. Take emergency contraception. Sorry to confirm your paranoia, but it's not something you want to guess and pray about, right? Taking EC is the only thing you can do at this point to put your mind at ease and it is very effective the soonest it's taken after sex. boquiabierta fucked around with this message at 15:16 on Feb 16, 2011 |
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Feb 16, 2011 15:07
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edit is not quote :P
Chedranian Girl fucked around with this message at 08:45 on Dec 1, 2016 |
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Feb 16, 2011 17:46
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Chedranian Girl posted:Can someone just put my stupidly paranoid mind at ease? I know pills aren't retroactive, so I know it's not going to effect me at all, but. I don't know for sure if it works for the mini-pill, but at the right dosage birth control pills can work the same way that the morning after pill does. Of course, that's kind of thing you should probably only do in a real pinch/as a last resort.
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Feb 16, 2011 18:56
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Been a while since I posted. So, the story so far. My wife and I have been searching for a decent birth control for ages, looking for any new ideas even though I think we've exhausted them all. Tried hormonal birth control. Ortho Tri didn't work out well, tried the low dose with generic and branded loetrin 24 or something, didn't work out well either. Hormonal pills depress her mood and eliminate her sex drive to a degree that's unacceptable to both of us. Tried the ring, it doesn't really fit and either falls out or during sex causes issues with her cervix as it provides something hard and painful to push into it during sex. She doesn't want to have to put it back in every time we have sex and she goes to the bathroom, and we wonder at it's effectiveness when it won't stay "seated" regardless. Tried the patch, same issues as hormonal pills plus her skin is slightly oilier than usual in that they don't stay attached if she does anything remotely active. She's in school for physical therapy so that's pretty much every day with them practicing PT techniques on each other. IUDs aren't something she will consider. I can't bring it up without her shuddering, have tried several times over the last year, it's not an option she's willing to consider. Spermicides irritate her to the point that as often as we have sex she now hasn't been able to have sex in over a week because of the stuff and can't continue to use it regularly. We both hate condoms. They inhibit orgasms for both of us. At this point we're down to a few times a month as she's able to use spermicide. Wearing on both of us as her sex drive is back to normal and she wants to when she can't regularly. Wondering if there are any ideas left. She's not willing to go with the shot either, brought that up and apparently the side effects are pretty severe with her. I'm about lost. We've run out of possible ideas because everything affects her in severe ways. Ideas, goons? Anything? Or are we kinda SOL?
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Feb 16, 2011 22:06
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TheSpiritFox- Has your wife asked about Implanon? That would be one option I would at least ask an OB about. But since your wife does not seem to do well with hormones have you tried the old diaphragm option? Before I got my IUD I used a diaphragm and it worked very well (I just hated toting it around). It's a classic method of bc with a bigger following in the older generation. You have to get fitted for it by an OB, who writes you a perscription for your size afterwards and then you have to learn how to put it in place at home. Sometimes the OB or a nurse will give you help at the doctors office if you ask. Since they are not nearly as popular today as they were 40 years ago the best person to ask about this is your wife's mother or a close aunt.
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Feb 16, 2011 22:26
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Do you want to have kids eventually, or would a vasectomy be an option?
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Feb 16, 2011 23:02
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I just tried to see if Implanon is covered at all by my insurance and lucky me, my coverage was terminated. Now I have to hope that it's because of a late payment and not because of the fact that I wasn't a full time student for a few weeks. Does anyone know if clinics that offer BC on a sliding scale do Implanon or have any tips on getting it and not having to pay out the rear end? I'm on Microgestin and my last refill is coming up and instead of getting a full year I'd rather switch to something I don't have to worry about every day. Plus I'm already paying all that I can for this stupid pill, though it's worth it for no babies, of course. I will be going to the Health Center at school in the next week or so (that's where I got my first prescription and the NP told me all my options) but asking here couldn't hurt.
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Feb 17, 2011 00:39
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Eponymous Bosch posted:TheSpiritFox- Has your wife asked about Implanon? That would be one option I would at least ask an OB about. But since your wife does not seem to do well with hormones have you tried the old diaphragm option? Haven't considered the diaphragm before, I'll talk to her about it. I doubt it would work out well though, we have to be careful about depth as it is. The ring was enough of a problem from space requirements, and if I remember proper use of a diaphram would include spermicide, which irritates her and causes the problem we're dealing with now. But again, worth a look. HelloIAmYourHeart posted:Do you want to have kids eventually, or would a vasectomy be an option? Want kids. Once we've had as many as we want that's the plan, but we're young so kids are probably 5-10 years away with our current plans and goals and we want more than one, need something to handle that interim decade (and a half, maybe)
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Feb 17, 2011 01:51
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TheSpiritFox posted:I'm about lost. We've run out of possible ideas because everything affects her in severe ways. Ideas, goons? Anything? Or are we kinda SOL? You can try other brands of pills, or perhaps a minipill (progestin only). As far as sex drive goes, pills with higher estrogen and lower progestin potency tend to be better; for emotions it's rather hit-or-miss. A copper IUD really would be your best option - but some people just can't get over the idea of having something in their uterus. Or others are misinformed about the risks from hearing horror stories from older family or friends... Lastly, you could combine natural family planning methods with condom use or another barrier method. Many people have great success with FAM (check the OP) where you take your temperature every morning and monitor other symptoms to determine where in your cycle you ovulate. You then abstain, or use another contraceptive, on the days around the ovulation date. Then you wouldn't need condoms every time, just a few days a month. Be forewarned though: you have to be very patient and dedicated with this method to do it properly. I'm only mentioning it because you don't have many other options. If you decide to go with a method that has a large failure rate (condoms-only, natural family planning, diaphragm without spermicide) you should get some emergency contraception to keep on hand, just in case. It's really unfortunate that there aren't many effective non-hormonal methods available. Best of luck!
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Feb 17, 2011 02:09
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If she seriously wants to try FAM, I highly, highly, highly recommend getting a copy of Taking Charge of Your Fertility. It takes dedication, but it's so worth it when other forms of birth control just aren't doing the trick. It sucks to have to abstain from sex for a week, but if it means you can be condom free for the other three weeks in a month, it might be worth it.
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Feb 17, 2011 02:23
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JustinMorgan posted:Update. They said she's probably missing her period due to stress. They put her on Sronyx. I've never heard of this pill, It's a generic. Anyone know anything about it? Have any luck with it? She's never been on hormonal birth control before, I've been trying to get her to forever. Condoms are so gross and unneccessary in a long term relationship. Sronyx is Watson's generic of Levlite (which is no longer produced). The Teva generic of it is Lessina. I can't tell you anything else except that, though! One thing that is a huge pet peeve of mine in this thread is: the generic of Yaz is Gianvi (made by Teva). Yasmin's generics are Ocella (Teva) and Zarah (Watson). The generic of Yaz is *not* Yasmin! Yasmin is its own brand (made by Bayer, who makes Yaz as well). I know that was totally 'spergin of me, but I just had to get it out
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Feb 17, 2011 02:36
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I finally conquered my fears and got my Mirena inserted yesterday! I really worked myself up before the appointment, and it ended up being not as bad as I was expecting. It was exactly like everyone said: it hurts like hell for a few seconds, but goes away quick. It's something I could totally go through again in five years. (For reference, I'm 21 and have never had kids) For the rest of the day I felt a little tired and my legs were crampy, but other that I felt just fine, hardly any abdominal cramps at all. I think it helps that I can take pain fairly well, too. I walked around campus right after the insertion, and I did some shopping/errands with my boyfriend; I think I could have definitely gone to class and work if I hadn't already taken the day off. However, I just woke up an hour and a half ago (3:00 am) with pretty bad abdominal/vagina pains. I wouldn't say they're TERRIBLE, but they're definitely the worst I've ever had. They're bad enough that I can't get back to sleep, and two Aleves didn't really help. It looks like I will have to take another day off of work and school. Has this happened to anyone else? That is, you felt fine after insertion but then the next day the terrible cramps begin? This is probably an "Oh my gosh my IUD is doing something wrong!!!" freak out, but I was searching through the old birth control mega-thread and it seemed like everyone's pain went down after insertion, not up.
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Feb 17, 2011 11:59
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Yes, I got the worst of my cramps the day after IUD insertion as well. I chalked it up to my uterus going "hayyyy... you don't belong in here!" and trying to tell you about it :P It goes away Just take it easy, if it persists and gets worse in say... 2 more days, go get it checked out
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Feb 17, 2011 14:47
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Kaini Industries posted:However, I just woke up an hour and a half ago (3:00 am) with pretty bad abdominal/vagina pains. I wouldn't say they're TERRIBLE, but they're definitely the worst I've ever had. They're bad enough that I can't get back to sleep, and two Aleves didn't really help. It looks like I will have to take another day off of work and school. Two words: heating pad. You wouldn't think it would do much but it really does. I think they might even have stick on ones? The reusable, microwaveable kind are good though.
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Feb 17, 2011 15:23
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Thanks guys! I've been taking it easy with a heating pad and tea.
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Feb 17, 2011 18:41
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Is there any miracle birth control I've overlooked that will make my periods go away, and not have hormonal side effects like depo does. I currently have a Paragard, got it over 2 years ago. It made my periods heavier for the next month after insertion by FAR, then very heavy for about 6 months til it feels like now it's back to normal pre-paragard, if not slightly heavier. I might get it out next obgyn pap visit on the offchance my periods could be lightened. Is there a light/low pill that might make my moods better, not cause weight gain or other bad side effects, and lighten period? I already get fairly moody and depressed once a month (it's almost like clockwork, for a few days I can cry for no reason) and I don't want something that makes women gain weight generally, I'm obese and trying to lose weight. And I don't even care about it's reliability, my long term monogamous partner (~*~FIANCEE~*~) cannot get me pregnant. Sorry if I glanced over anything relevant in the OP. Thanks in advance! 
pizzadog fucked around with this message at 19:42 on Feb 17, 2011 |
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Feb 17, 2011 18:58
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No hormonal birth control can promise not to have side effects from the hormones. Any reason you're strictly ruling out depo? As for your side effect questions, no one can say. Your GP/OBGYN can recommend you birth control based on the side effects you're worried about, and you can go through trial and error. There's no good way of knowing what will be perfect for you and what won't.
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Feb 17, 2011 21:45
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What about Mirena? The hormone is very localized and just enough to counter the side effects that Paragard has (heavier periods, more cramps, etc.) A lot of women find that their periods disappear entirely once they've had it in a few months, too.
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Feb 17, 2011 22:26
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I've heard nothing but horror stories about depo, cuz the the insane level of hormonal spiking every few months. Weight gain, moodiness, periods lasting months, etc. I definitely want none of that. Maybe mirena though... Any ladies here experienced bad side effects with mirena?
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Feb 17, 2011 22:39
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Eggplant Wizard posted:Two words: heating pad. You wouldn't think it would do much but it really does. I think they might even have stick on ones? The reusable, microwaveable kind are good though. On that note, does anyone know if they even still make those stick on heating pads? They used to be life savers when I had horrible cramps and now I can't find them anywhere. 
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Feb 18, 2011 06:29
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Marshmallow Mayhem posted:I've heard nothing but horror stories about depo, cuz the the insane level of hormonal spiking every few months. Weight gain, moodiness, periods lasting months, etc. I definitely want none of that. Like I said, the side effects that other people experienced are not relevant to you. Side effects vary from person to person. Since you want something low maintenance and longterm Mirena is probably a good choice to look into. But depo is just as viable as an option.
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Feb 18, 2011 06:43
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Lackadaisical posted:On that note, does anyone know if they even still make those stick on heating pads? They used to be life savers when I had horrible cramps and now I can't find them anywhere. I may have said it before, but if you can find the thermacare upper back/shoulder pads they are usually about the right size to fit in underwear. They get a little awkward and you have to stick them a bit weird but they totally work.
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Feb 18, 2011 06:55
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I have an appt in a week to have a paraguard put in. I already paid for it so backing out isn't an option. I am so freaked out about how bad it will hurt to insert. I had an awful labor because of pitocin and am not looking forward to my cervix being touched in any way again. Am I being a big baby? How awful will it be?
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Feb 19, 2011 04:49
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untitled posted:Am I being a big baby? How awful will it be? It will take about 5, maybe 10 minutes start to finish. Most of that will be like an awkward pap smear. The really sucky part should be less than a minute. If you can handle being pregnant and giving birth, you'll probably do just fine with this. Also, if you're still kind of traumatized from giving birth, there's nothing saying you can't put this off by a year or two. As far as I'm aware (and your doc or pharmacist should be able to confirm), there's no reason why a Paragard shouldn't keep in clean, dry storage in its original packaging. If you mean you paid for the appointment, you can probably get them to work with you too - no harm in asking.
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Feb 19, 2011 05:36
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Kerfuffle posted:Like I said, the side effects that other people experienced are not relevant to you. Side effects vary from person to person. If she's really worried about side effects, depo might make her kind of nervous because you can't really just stop it if things go wrong. You kind of just have to ride it out until the shot wears off after however many months it is. Most other methods can at least be stopped/removed pretty quickly. That's why I never seriously considered it anyway.
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Feb 19, 2011 07:36
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untitled posted:I have an appt in a week to have a paraguard put in. I already paid for it so backing out isn't an option. I am so freaked out about how bad it will hurt to insert. I had an awful labor because of pitocin and am not looking forward to my cervix being touched in any way again. I agree with innovated salad, if you could deliver a kid then you can handle the paragard insertion. There was about a combined minute of intense pain for me, and the other 5 or so were not bad at all. Afterward, I felt about 24 hours of not-extraordinary menstrual cramping. Take some ibuprofen about an hour before your appointment, I think it definitely helps the turnaround time.
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Feb 19, 2011 18:17
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Well, I dilated the whole way and ended up with a c-section so my cervix didn't actually experience a kid passing by. Although I think everyone that worked in the hospital had their finger in it at one point. I'm just being a coward.
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Feb 19, 2011 20:22
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Hi all. Started (again) on Levlen this past month, just finished my first pack. Went on it again because my acne was really bad (25 years old, face full of a pimples, I hate my life, etc etc.) I'm a hungry, weepy psychopath. I've started hating my job, I've started despairing about being single - all things I've never troubled with. I'm making rash, emotional decisions and I just don't feel like my normal happy self. I've also started feeling really hot all the time. I'm tremendously, hand-wringingly anxious all the time to the point where I can barely eat sometimes - which I almost never am off the Pill. My skin is really good though, and I'm enjoying not blowing up like a balloon with water retention each period. Is there another happy medium hormonal method I can use? I like the routine of the pill and am good at taking it, but this one is making me a crazy person. miss_chaos fucked around with this message at 07:39 on Feb 20, 2011 |
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Feb 20, 2011 07:36
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There are plenty of birth controls that can clear up acne and most hormonal birth control have the goal of lighter easier periods in mind. Definitely see your obgyn and try something else, that sounds awful. Since you're good at taking pills there's a lot of options for you to try. Your symptoms might be the hormone dosage or just your reaction to that particular pill. Hopefully your next birth control attempt will go better.
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Feb 20, 2011 07:47
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