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Cracker Jack posted:Any ladies here have migraines with auras? Yup! Dittoing what everyone else said, it's the estrogen in some birth control methods that quadruple(!) your chances of a fatal brain stroke. It really limited my choices when it came time to pick a method. Types of birth control I've used to date: Depo Provera: Used this for just shy of four years, in part because I had extremely heavy periods at the time. Within the first six months I gained about thirty pounds and completely stopped having a period, and my libido shrank into nothing. Getting the shot is easy and gave me nothing more than a sore arm for a few days, but making appointments and getting to them was a pain and greatly contributed to my switching methods. Some mild mood effects but nothing extreme, beyond being disinterested in sex and unable to orgasm, which looking back now was rather lovely. I still haven't lost that weight. :\ Ortho Evra: Was on these for about nine months. Didn't notice any weight gain, but having switched to the patches from the Depo, my libido started coming back after a few months along with my (light) period. Found out from another doctor that these come with the increased risk of fatal brain strokes in women with migraines due to the estrogen while trying to get a refill from another doctor. The original doctor knew I had migraines with aura so I have no idea why she recommended patches in the first place. The worst part of these has to be the gross grey fuzzy goo that accumulates around the edge of the patch from the adhesive. It's really unsightly and a pain to get off. There's also an increased risk of ectopic pregnancies and flat-out failure of the patch to work in women who are above a certain weight, and I was around 180 so I switched. Implanon: Getting it in with local anesthetic wasn't bad at all, but I had an impressively large black bruise on my arm where she had some trouble getting it positioned correctly with the needle. The doctor impressed upon me that if I had ever had suicidal thoughts or depression that I should not get this method and I quickly found out why: during the first month I turned into a complete basket case. Despite going into it pretty mentally healthy, after getting it in I would cry at the smallest provocation or at nothing at all and I would have errant thoughts about killing myself, how bad life was and how it would never get better. The entire time I had a little fortress of sanity and reason that knew these thoughts were completely irrational and crazy, but there was nothing I could do to stop it. Around the third or fourth week, it was like someone flipped a switch and I snapped out of it completely and never had another problem. Periods were light and irregular, and my libido was better than it had ever been; I finally had a drat orgasm for the first time in five years. Getting it extracted was a pain because it had partially fused with the flesh in my arm and I have an obvious scar where the doctor was wrestling with it to pry it out. Probably the worst side effects of any birth control I've ever been on, but the worst of it only lasted about a month, so it wasn't too bad. Mirena: Had this put in on the same day I had my Implanon extracted because I wanted a method that would last quite awhile, didn't want to go through Implanon-induced psychosis again and my insurance covered the entire cost. I have an especially sensitive cervix and the pain of insertion was unspeakably horrific and probably second only to the feeling of one of my molars getting infected and turning necrotic. The cramping that followed made me curl up in a ball and whimper pathetically for two days. Once the deluge of blood from having my cervix violated dried up, though, my periods pretty much stopped save for occasional spotting and I felt better than ever. For the first few months, I produced copious amounts of really goopy mucus (I needed to use pantyliners) but that tapered off quite a bit. Sex is now awesome. FWIW, I hear that the risk from STI's is severely overstated and only a serious thing when you first get it put in. I've never had one, but that was good to know. I'd be glad to answer questions about my personal experiences with these but I'm sure there's not much else to know. I hope my silly anecdotes help someone.
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Feb 2, 2011 11:43
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lou reed posted:Seconded. They'll give you one (they did ask questions about new partners within the last three months... I don't if answering 'yes' would result in no IUD.) They would probably make you wait. It's an STD concern; getting an IUD inserted into your uterus can introduce bacteria from your vagina and you can get serious and potentially fatal infections. Literature I've read is a little divided on whether or not there's additional risks associated with STDs after you've already had it put in, but it primarily seems to be an insertion issue.
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Feb 3, 2011 03:26
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IIRC normal migraines also do but it's a much lower risk. Migraines with aura have a stupidly high risk though.Sadsy Kitten posted:When I had surgery for my cysts last year, I was on Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo (and really liking it), but my doctor said I had to switch to Aviane to prevent them. I thought it was the estrogen that stopped ovulation, and that it didn't matter if the pill was mono- or tri-phasic, as long as it was a combination pill. Why did I have to switch? Estrogen is the hormone you need to avoid when you have migraines, so what you are looking for is progesterone-only birth control. What I remember of progesterone-only birth control is that it will reduce the incidence of ovarian cysts. It may just be IUDs that increase the incidence but that seems odd. Have you considered other kinds of progesterone-only birth controls? Implanon comes to mind. You could also try Depo Provera, but the side effects can be worse.
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Mar 24, 2011 15:15
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Several pages back I posted my account of my first month of Implanon. Summarized, it was absolute hell and if you have a history of going off the deep end with progestin then Implanon will only do it to you worse. When it's first inserted, there is a very large surge in your system that takes awhile to even out. It will make you crazy. I suggest Mirena frankly. IIRC they don't have metal in them and they release a minute amount of progestin, less than any other progestin-only method. I have been completely fine with mine.
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May 6, 2011 15:03
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