Infants? In MY Vagina? Birth Control Megathread: Now w/ free BC for all! THANKS OBAMA

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Infants? In MY Vagina? Birth Control Megathread: Now w/ free BC for all! THANKS OBAMA

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ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Pianist On Strike posted:

Luckily the guy I'm sleeping with now doesn't let a little thing like a bloody vagina stop him. The very first night we hooked up I perioded all over his sheets (this was before BC, and it was near the end of my period so I foolishly thought I was in the clear... wrong) and he was just like, ain't no thing girl.

No BC related, but I have a similar anecdote. My bf says he knew I was a keeper when I laughed at his "calamari = fried buttholes" joke on our first date. I knew he was a keeper when I got my period in the middle of the night after our first date. I totally slept without underwear on that night. Luckily I didn't make a real mess but I was so embarrassed and he couldn't give a poo poo.

# ¿ Jul 26, 2014 20:44

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# ¿ May 15, 2024 13:40

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Hummingbirds posted:

I got Nexplanon a week ago and just wanted to check in, since whether or not it goes well I'll likely be posting about it here. So far so good. No bleeding yet, although I started breaking out almost instantly (I switched from the combo pill after using it for five years, and never had acne on that). Luckily I found a face wash from Lush that got it under control quickly.

I hope I'm in the 1/5 that stops getting a period on the implant!

Which face wash did you find that worked? When i switched from hbc to paraguard I started having even worse breakouts than before, especially around when I'm getting my period

I'm hoping for you, even though I still had mine super irregularly when I had my implant, I loved it and it was the best.

# ¿ Sep 28, 2014 17:06

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Hummingbirds posted:

It's called Herbalism. They also gave me a sample of something called Grease Lightning and I've been using both. Herbalism smells weird, but I'm really skeptical about face care products and I swear my skin looked better overnight. I'm really glad to have found something that worked, because I've always had clear skin (even as a teenager) and was sort of clueless as to what to do.

Thanks! I won't be too upset if I don't lose the period since I use reusable menstrual products, so it doesn't cost me anything to have random bleeding.

e: The link for herbalism says it's loving expensive but you can buy smaller containers. I think mine cost about $15 for 3.5 ounces. And you can always ask for a sample to try first.

Thanks, totally have Grease Lightning and I need more shampoo so I'll pick up a sample when I head over.

Kimmalah posted:

Paragard buddies!

Thanks!

# ¿ Sep 28, 2014 23:02

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Kimmalah posted:

It wasn't until I got the Paragard that I knew they made a tampon absorbency beyond Super Plus called "Ultra" (or Tampax does anyway). For a while there they were about all I could get away with using for more than a few hours at a time, but after a few months it calmed down. Now I rarely need them and just use the usual kind.

Black underwear is also good to have while you're getting used to the new period.

I need to pick some of those up, hopefully I can get them on Amazon and use my Prime shipping. For real though, the first couple of months it was absolutely awful and I ruined so many pairs of panties it was ridiculous. I got mine in late April and this last period, which ended a few days ago, was not nearly as bad as the first couple, but still pretty heavy. Thankfully for me I haven't had cramps any worse than before I started any kind of hormonal birth control method.

# ¿ Oct 7, 2014 19:39

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

I also suggest not stopping and starting. If a method isn't working after three months, switch to another brand/method.

# ¿ Oct 22, 2014 03:56

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Hummingbirds posted:

I'll pop in to say I've had my first period on nexplanon and it was the wimpiest period ever. Longer than I'm used to (since on the pill they were only three days or so) but I probably only needed my cup for two or three days total. It was great. Barely any cramping either.

I had super irregular periods when I had my Implanon but gently caress if I don't miss how light and easy they were. I usually needed a liner for most days. That's probably what I miss about hormonal methods the most, going back to "real" periods after 4+ years is hard :smith:

# ¿ Oct 24, 2014 03:53

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

fork bomb posted:

Are you off bc or are you using paraguard?

E: I'm on my third implant (about 7.5 years in drat) and I've been thinking about getting off hormonal bc. Mostly because I don't remember what my ~natural~ body is like.

Paraguard, and I will sing its praises from the rooftops. Insertion was the weirdest thing I've ever felt in my life (she had to twist it inside me :cry:

) but the heavier periods are worth not being a loving crazy person a good portion of the time.

I will also forever talk about how awesome Implanon was, but for me it also had some big negatives that nonhormonal methods don't, so I'm happy with my choice. Plus its more than triples the lifetime of my idiot-proof bc.

...and it wasn't covered by my insurance but the IUD ended up being covered.

# ¿ Oct 24, 2014 20:37

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Geolicious posted:

I almost chickened out on the Mirena after internet stories, too. But not the insertion stories the "ZOMG I got pregnant with an IUD" stories.

But then I had to remember the internet is skewed. And all the millions of women NOT getting pregnant with the IUD are not posting about it on the internets. Except in here.

When I announced my engagement my friend called me and the first thing she said was "Don't get pregnant". I said "If I did it would be a serious medical emergency, so don't worry". My insertion sucked but I've had worse cramps from periods before I went on HBC and ever since the worst complaint I have is that my periods are back to how heavy they were before I got my implanon put in almost 4 years ago. I absolutely love my IUD and would shove pamphlets in people's hands on the street if I could and not seem crazy.

# ¿ Nov 14, 2014 22:15

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Kimmalah posted:

Yes, even if it's bad it's usually over very quickly. My honest reaction was basically "Wow that's it?" because it was over in a matter of minutes.

Same here, I was so nervous reading people's horror stories, even understanding that people don't really share ehh to alright stories and share horror stories all the time, but it was weird as gently caress and crampy but I wouldn't describe it as particularly painful. More uncomfortable than anything. The worst part was she had to twist the IUD around inside my because something about my super small uterus and positioning, but even that was just more of a "whoa this poo poo is weird, nothing's ever been up there".

# ¿ Dec 23, 2014 21:49

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Kyashi posted:

I had pretty much the same experience. It wasn't a sharp stinging pain at all. It just felt weird and not nice. The sound wasn't too bad but my doctor had to use the tenaculum on me after. So while she was fiddling around with securing my cervix I almost lost my nerve waiting for the iud insertion itself. The insertion sucked but just for like 3 seconds. My paragard periods aren't even as terrible as I've read. The worst part is that it's up to 7 full days instead of 4 or 5.

Same! They're heavy (and slowly getting less so since my first couple where I made a big loving mess every month since I wasn't prepared/was so used to my Implanon periods that were like nothing at all) but not particularly painful or crampy. I am 100% in love with my Paragard and the discomfort for those few minutes and cramping that night/next day were well worth the pros, for me.

# ¿ Dec 24, 2014 20:33

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Kimmalah posted:

It got better for me after about 6 months or so and that's what I've heard from most people. I'm close to two years now and periods are pretty much business as usual except for the occasional heavy day.

I'm at the 8 month mark, almost exactly, and after the first 4 it calmed down significantly. Besides my mood swings with Implanon, though, I've had really good luck with finding birth control that works for me.

I'm gonna be sad to take it out once my fiancé and I decide it's time to give our kitten a little sibling, but I'm positive I'll just get another one put right back in, it's 100% the bc method for me.

# ¿ Dec 31, 2014 02:58

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Scudworth posted:

Cervix, dude, you're looking for your cervix. You'll never find your uterus.
There's no need to get in a fancy position, just reach in while you're sitting on the toilet and bear down (push with your vag muscles or pretend you're taking a dump if you don't know which muscles those are specifically). And yes it's possible that your fingers aren't long enough.

I have felt my strings a total of twice since getting my IUD back in April, even though I try every few showers. For me it's a time of the month thing, most of the time it sits high up/my fingers are stubby and short (though not as short as my friend with baby fingers). I tried to ask my fiance if he could check for me but I got a less than positive response and also he has short and stubby fingers too, so while he could get a much better angle, he probably wouldn't be able to reach them either.

Bearing down is totally the way to go, it's the only way I've managed to find them.

# ¿ Jan 6, 2015 22:52

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Toriori posted:

Can anyone with IUD experience or knowledge fill me in on copper iud vs other kinds?

You can check my post history for my raving about the copper IUD. I think I was lucky and had an optimal insertion, but there are so many horror stories that I feel like I have to share how awesome it is, when it works for you. I absolutely love that I'm protected for the next 9+ years, though I'll probably be taking it out early sometime after we get married and decide it's family time, but you can bet your rear end I'm getting one stuck right back in there as soon as we succeed.

# ¿ Jan 14, 2015 04:47

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Xibanya posted:

I guess I could get the loving copper IUD but

I would highly suggest looking into that as an option, despite the :effort:

. I went from Implanon (when mine expired) to the copper IUD and it was a million times better re: feeling like a crazy person. I do miss the super light periods but it's been almost a year and my periods have slowly evened themselves out and are pretty heavy the first two days (changing my tampon multiple times at work heavy) but not any extra crampy, which was my biggest worry. Check my post history for my comments on both methods, but I will forever sing the praises of the copper IUD to any and everyone, I love mine and when I take it out for baby time a new one will go right back in after we're done.

# ¿ Feb 10, 2015 21:13

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Kimmalah posted:

I feel like I'm looking at an ad for women's razors.

One more weird plus for Paraguard, I'm able to participate in a couples dynamic study and make some side money because they need women in long term hetero relationships not using hormonal birth control but also trying to prevent pregnancy (a concept many people on reddit had trouble grasping, but whatever, we do a survey a night and make some extra $)

# ¿ Mar 1, 2015 05:14

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Kimmalah posted:

The survey thing sounds interesting, considering I fall into the same category. Is it like an online thing or some kind of focus group deal?

"What" on the first part or the redditor part?

It's a focus group type study, I probably should have posted here back in November when they were gathering people, sorry

They sent me a bunch of ovulation test strips and some instruction and we're on day 3 of the 35 day surveys (asking about how attractive your partner is and how often you do various sexual activities and mood questions, women also have to measure themselves).

And you would not believe the amount of comments (it was posted in both /r/sex and /r/samplesize, which is an awesome group and I won $150CAD in another survey I did on there) saying "how are you going to find couples like that, good luck, who uses condoms in LTRs? ". All sarcastic and poo poo, I just commented "this is perfect for me and other couples relying on the copper IUD! Signed up!" just to say "y'all are dumb".

# ¿ Mar 2, 2015 00:13

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

JibbaJabberwocky posted:

Because I'm tired of the side effects and because I want to have a valid blood test done regarding my diagnosis of PCOS without other hormones mucking up the results, I've decided to give up on hormonal birth control maybe for good but at least for a little while to see what my body does. I've been on various forms of hormonal BC for the past 7 years and I don't even know what my body is like without that added estrogen and progestin. I'm on Yaz right now and I'm going to be stopping it at the end of this month and switching to the good old fashioned diaphragm for a few months.

I know that all the forms of birth control I'm looking into are covered under the ACA; BCBS has been paying for my offbrand Yaz for a while now. However I'm unsure if this coverage layers which leads me to my question. If I recently filled two months of Yaz but now realize I'm only going to be using this month of pills, will the insurance company still cover the fitting and cost of a diaphragm next week? Like, I'm asking them to cover two birth control methods in the same time period, does that work? And if in three months I decided to get on Paragard for example, would they cover that too even though they recently paid for me to have a diaphragm fitted? I think the answer is yes but I was curious if anyone has any real life experience.

That's more of a question for your insurance company, it depends entirely on your plan and what they allow. They may say no, you have to wait till after your last Yaz pack, or they may say 'gently caress if we care, do it up'. Call your insurance company and if you get a straight answer, ask for a reference number for the call and the agent's ID number (I had an issue about them saying something was covered, my Implanon, and then rejecting the bill from the Dr and they tried to bill me. I had to write an appeal letter and thankfully could reference the call where they told me it was absolutely 100% covered).

# ¿ May 6, 2015 17:08

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

JibbaJabberwocky posted:

This sounded smart so I did as you suggested and got confirmation that it will be covered 100%. I also got the reference # for the call just in case they try to give me the run around later.

I'm basically just really excited about the ACA right now because it's going to allow me to easily test non-hormonal methods at no cost to me until I find one that works.

Awesome, glad they were helpful! It took me ~3 calls before I got a real answer when I wanted Implanon. And when I got Paraguard they gave me such a run around with paying that I paid for it upfront and got a refund of whatever insurance decided to cover (which was like 80%, which was a nice refund after resigning myself to pay for it entirely out of pocket).

# ¿ May 6, 2015 18:58

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Anne Whateley posted:

Yeah they'll take it out. You can pee on a stick if you want. But the problem is probably related to starvation rations plus crazy amounts of exercise. An eating disorder and Adderall abuse is unlikely to be doing you any favors either.

I agree that that's the most likely culprit, at such a huge calorie deficit plus exercising your body thinks its starving and is holding on to every little thing it possibly can. A pregnancy test may ease your mind, but you should probably seek some help for your eating disorder to deal with your weight in a healthy way.

# ¿ May 27, 2015 15:55

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Xibanya posted:

Hi thread, I just had the Nexplanon removed today! Woohoo!!

I asked the doc about Paragard (copper IUD) and she said that the office can't order it because insurance might not cover it, so I have to order it myself. When it's delivered to my home, I can call them to make an appointment and then bring it with me and they'll stick it in. That seemed weird enough, but I'm googling on this and it looks like you can't order directly from the paragard website? They just say "ask your doctor." So how the hell do I get this thing?

Edit: from their site

Click the Learn More portion, it says you have to call their phone number (which is 877-paragard, I love when phone numbers are easy like that), they don't send it to your house but you can have it shipped to your doctor's office. Make sure you keep any recepts and submit them to your insurance company for reimbursement, if they'll give you anything.

# ¿ Jun 12, 2015 01:19

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

I had Implanon for the full 3 year cycle and while I loved how light my period was (especially compared to how heavy it was before/is again with my IUD), my cycle was incredibly irregular and the tracking app I used was useless. I would warn that it's a possibility that your period could go absolutely bonkers, but it was still a great option. I went hormone free because I was having some mood swings and just needed to get back to my old cycle after having Implanon, though I kind of wish I went with Mirena only because I may take it out in the next couple of years when my fiancé and I decide it's baby time, and it'll only have been half of its full life.

I do dream of those light periods, as irregular as they were.

# ¿ Jun 24, 2015 20:34

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Scudworth posted:

Dude, menstrual cup. Buy one. Kiss tampons goodbye.

Also possibly switch to cloth pads?
But menstrual cup, for realz.

I have been trying to convince myself to go cup ever since I switched to paraguard and my periods have been heavy as butts, any specific one you recommend? I'm terrified of making a mess of myself but I'm so tempted. There are only so many super jumbo tampons one can scour amazon prime for before getting frustrated.

# ¿ Jun 30, 2015 23:37

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Scudworth posted:

Get whichever one fits your price range and has agreeable shipping to you.
Their differences are minimal and only really become apparent when you get used to using one and try other kinds, if ever.

Just get the larger size of whatever brand.

You can use pads as a backup while you get through the learning curve (or all the time if you have a heavy flow like I did).

Awesome, thanks. I am gonna look into a few and hopefully take the plunge into the world of cups soon.

# ¿ Jun 30, 2015 23:46

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Kimmalah posted:

Really I read way too much before I got my Paragard, to the point that I was terrified about all the ways it might even remotely go wrong/badly.

Same here. The good stories are constantly drowned out by the myriad "my uterus has so many holes poked in it you can use it as a strainer and it expelled so horrifically that I now walk with a permanent limp and have to sit sideways to pee because my whole anatomy has been rearranged" horror stories. I like to share my experience because it's good and people like to complain and rant more than they like to rave.

# ¿ Jul 8, 2015 20:14

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Kimmalah posted:

I still have 1-2 days that can be a bit of a bloodbath, but it's definitely gotten better. And the cramps were bad at first, but now they're pretty much gone. It seemed to turnaround for me at about the 6 month mark (and that's what I've heard from a lot of people). I've had the IUD for about 2 years, just for reference.

Even at the worst, usually ibuprofen and/or a heating pad would be enough to deal with it. I also invested in some dark underwear so if I did have minor leaks it wasn't the end of the world.

Just pretend you're reading this for a second time, because this is basically my experience, as well. I've had my IUD for almost 2 years and at this point I can fill up a super plus tampon like nobody's business for a few days a month but otherwise it's leveled out a whole lot. The first ~2 days of my period are super light and spotty (like I can wear just a liner light) and then it's like I got stabbed in the vagina for a couple of days and then it slows down for another day or so, which is worth it for the pros of not being on hormonal birth control.

# ¿ Aug 3, 2015 20:13

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

I can feel my strings depending on where I am in my cycle but it took a few months of trying that first time. Though I was basically thinking "whelp, hope it works!" from the start so I wasn't all that bothered.

# ¿ Sep 2, 2015 03:35

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Evelyn Nesbit posted:

Alright, I have a question about birth control refills that hopefully someone can help me with. I refilled my prescription today, and on the package, it says that I have 5 refills left before 9/15 (which is two days from now). Is there any chance that they would like... give me those? Probably not, right? My regular ob/gyn doesn't take my insurance anymore, but in the past, they've given me a really really hard time in the past when I've tried to get them to refill it without me having to come in for my annual exam. Normally, I would just find a new doctor who does take my insurance and make an appointment, BUT I'm moving out of state in three weeks anyway, so there's literally no point. My other two options are to go to my GP and see if she'll get me a prescription, or wait until I'm in Seattle, go to Planned Parenthood, and see if they can help me out until I'm settled in with insurance there (which I don't want to do because there's only a week between when I'm getting there and when I would need a refill, and I'm already going to be crazy busy). Is it even worth going to my pharmacy and asking?

They'll probably let you buy them, but your insurance most likely covers one refill a month, so it would be out of pocket. You can also probably just call the pharmacy and ask, it should be easy to answer without requiring you to go in.

# ¿ Sep 14, 2015 05:47

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Kimmalah posted:

It may be rough going for the first few periods (especially coming straight off Mirena periods), but if you can hang on they usually get better.

Obviously anecdotal, but this is how it was/is for me. The first few periods were like the elevator scene from the Shining, it evened out a bit and while they're still heavier than when I was on hormonal birth control, they're definitely lighter than they were at first. I still stock up on ultra tampons, though.

# ¿ Sep 17, 2015 19:32

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

LITERALLY A BIRD posted:

Hi thread, I got a Paragard today and now I'm being a huge baby and cuddling up to a heating pad and my bottle(s) of ibuprofen. Is there anything anybody particularly recommends for cramps? Is there a better option than ibuprofen as far as over-the-counter stuff? I used to have really bad cramps, but they lightened up considerably over the last couple years and so it is going to be rocky readjusting

Welcome to the club! I like Aleve but I just take an extra one of whatever I take so who knows what I'm talking about.

Personally I'm coming up on 2 years (at the end of this month wutup) and my cramps and period have lessened significantly since insertion. The first 6 months it was like the elevator scene from The Shining but now it's just normal heavy and not super ultra plus tampon 6 times a day heavy.

# ¿ Apr 5, 2016 22:44

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# ¿ May 15, 2024 13:40

ilysespieces: Oct 5, 2009; When life becomes too painful, sometimes it's better to just become a drunk.

Personally, the painful cramping and heavier period leveled out after ~1 year or so of having Paragard. I don't have PCOS so I can't comment on that end of it.

# ¿ Jan 13, 2017 22:52

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Infants? In MY Vagina? Birth Control Megathread: Now w/ free BC for all! THANKS OBAMA

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