Ladies! Birth Control Question!

Options
24

Replies

  • JustJennie1
    JustJennie1 Posts: 3,843 Member
    Options
    I'd just discuss it with your doctor. The question is though do you want hormones or not? The hormone pills/BC while you can manipulate your period on most of them and they keep you regular they're not good for you and not because of all the warnings.

    I was on a hormone BC for 18 years and I was all screwed up while on it. I was exhausted all the time, could barely pull myself out of bed in the mornings, napped all the time. I thought it was my thyroid so I had that checked but it was fine. I got blood work done every year and my hormones were completely out of whack. I got off the pill about a year ago and a few weeks after I was off of it it was a complete turn-around with how I felt. Not only that but where as I was napping all the time (I don't know how I made it through an entire day at work without one to be honest) I can now count on one hand the amount of times I've felt so exhausted that I've needed to lay down. Not only that but my hormone levels are much different than they were while I was on the pill. I've honestly never felt better. Yeah it's a PITA when I get my period on vacation but I'd never go back to something hormonal based on how I felt before.

    With that said: while you can ask people what they prefer and what works for them it comes down to the discussion with your doctor and what YOU want to take and what your doctor thinks will be best for you.
  • Aviendha_RJ
    Aviendha_RJ Posts: 600 Member
    Options
    IUD was a terrible experience for me. I went into labour the day it was put in trying to expell it. Every time my period came, I ended up in the ER on painkillers because it happened again for the first four months.

    Eventually, that stopped. So did my period (YAY!) but I had to have it surgically removed after 15 months (it's supposed to last FIVE YEARS) because it had slipped. The exit string had jumped into the Uterus (after my Boyfriend constantly complaining about the bead on the end hurting him during intercourse).

    When they surgically removed it, they had to slice open my uteran wall because it had been growing INSIDE the uteran wall... and I had an ENORMOUS amount of pain post surgery.

    Do ANYTHING else. Believe me! I'd rather go through a complete hystorectomy & live with the scars before I did that again!

    EDITED TO ADD: Oh, this was a Mirena too....
  • erosales0117
    erosales0117 Posts: 21
    Options
    I use to be on Depo when I was 16 years old and went off when I was 19 cause my step dad's insurance didn't cover me anymore so I was about to get my insurance through work and get pregnant. I got back on depo again when I was 22 years old and stopped when I was 24 because the doctor wanted to try something else. Well now I got back on depo again at 27 and I was having nothing but problems. I gain weight which is something that never happened before. I also had painful abdominal pain while I was on it for 6 months that it would keep me up at night. I don't know why it didn't agree with my body this time, but I'm no longer taking any birth control because my boyfriend and I are trying for a baby. So good luck and I hope you find something that works for your body.
  • mississippi_queen
    mississippi_queen Posts: 483 Member
    Options
    I have Implanon. It's an implant with the exact same hormone as mirena. The only issue I have with it is I got acne. As long as I'm good about keeping my face clean, it's a non-issue. I like not having to worry for 3 whole years! My periods are all over the place, like before I ever used BC. But in general they are shorter and lighter than in recent years. I'll take a whacked out schedule for easier periods though!

    I was on implanon and gained 40 lbs, got terrible acne, ovarian cysts, among other things. I wouldn't recommend anyone getting this as it caused me so many problems. I got it out in December and have been doing fine ever since. Now i'm on generess fe and love it.
  • Toxictwist
    Toxictwist Posts: 274
    Options
    I have had the IUD now for 3 months & have had no issues with it. :)
    In the past I think I have used every pill-form birth control out there & eventually ended up having issues with all of them.
  • jennifer52484
    jennifer52484 Posts: 888 Member
    Options
    I liked Seasonale a lot - I was considering Mirena... but now I just cross my fingers....

    Crossing fingers lol..
  • jamiesadler
    jamiesadler Posts: 634 Member
    Options
    I personally have been on depo provera shot fro 14 years. I take it once every three months and give it to myself. Its less than 60 dollars without insurance. I have no monthly cycle or mood swings or cravings or bloating, you get the point. I love it and I had no weight gain with it. My cycles were so heavy and painful before I would often have to miss work and since I started the Depo nothing. I highly recommend it. There is a slight chance of bone density loss with it but my doctor has never seen a patient with this and I take a calcium supplement every day to help prevent it.
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,829 Member
    Options
    I'm on Implanon. I've tried Depo, several different pills, and NuvaRing, and I LOVE Implanon!

    I actually asked my doctor about the Mirena and she said she recommends Implanon over Mirena to all her patients. Not knocking Mirena, just because I have a lot of friends who've had success with it and other IUDs, BUT the risks are greater with Mirena vs Implanon (ectopic pregnancies and the IUD becoming adjusted wrong or coming loose or whatever, and being able to trap bacteria). Implanon is a small stick (seriously it's like and inch and a half long maybe, and super thin) implanted into the inner side of your bicep for 3 years. I'm on my second one right now, and I've never been so happy with a bc method! I only have one super light period a year, and I haven't had any trouble losing weight with it. And in my opinion it's the most reliable of the many bc methods you can take (obviously besides abstinence, but let's get real here, who's being abstinent?) I'm also not crazy and hormonal (omg, NuvaRing made me a freaking psycho!).

    I'd definitely talk to your doctor about Implanon, I love it! All that being said, everybody's body is different so what works amazingly for me might not for you and vice versa.
  • tdmcmains
    tdmcmains Posts: 227 Member
    Options
    Totally Mirena.
  • ChristiH4000
    ChristiH4000 Posts: 531 Member
    Options
    I have been on orthotricyclen lo for years and years and haven't had any problems with it. IUD's are a great option if you're committed to not having a baby for a good long while. Plus, they don't have as much of an affect on your natural cycle.
    After reading the book C*nt by Inga Muscio (a great book for anyone wanting to get in touch with their inner lioness) I have wondered if it ever is a good thing to disrupt our natural cycle with artificial hormones, but having control over my body and not wanting to have a child has always meant more to me than my oneness with the moon. :happy:
  • sjmitchner
    sjmitchner Posts: 121 Member
    Options
    I'm on ortho-low, have been for years. I never noticed weight gain from the birth control. But I was staying active, in fact I lost weight. I did experience nausea for the first month though. My weight gain was from lack of exercise and poor eating habits, starting a few years later.
  • AnninStPaul
    AnninStPaul Posts: 1,372 Member
    Options
    I've been on continuous microgestin (due to migraines) for several years -- my doc said to skip any withdrawal week because you don't need to have your period. Your doc can prescribe any bc for continuous use, microgestin is generic and cheap. I did have heavy spotting instead of periods for a while, but nothing now.
  • Mrsfullwood
    Mrsfullwood Posts: 172 Member
    Options
    I never understood what's so good about a bc that totally stops you're cycle.
  • Kirsty_UK
    Kirsty_UK Posts: 964 Member
    Options
    Totally Mirena.

    this :)

    5 years, no periods, no side effects, 20seconds of pain to be put in, 5 seconds of pain to be taken out

    what's not to love

    and if you don't love it, have it taken out - not like things like the Depo shot that have to wear off
  • Kirsty_UK
    Kirsty_UK Posts: 964 Member
    Options
    I never understood what's so good about a bc that totally stops you're cycle.

    why not? I loved not having a cycle
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,829 Member
    Options
    I have Implanon. It's an implant with the exact same hormone as mirena. The only issue I have with it is I got acne. As long as I'm good about keeping my face clean, it's a non-issue. I like not having to worry for 3 whole years! My periods are all over the place, like before I ever used BC. But in general they are shorter and lighter than in recent years. I'll take a whacked out schedule for easier periods though!

    I was on implanon and gained 40 lbs, got terrible acne, ovarian cysts, among other things. I wouldn't recommend anyone getting this as it caused me so many problems. I got it out in December and have been doing fine ever since. Now i'm on generess fe and love it.

    That is so crazy! I'm sorry your experience was so awful, I've had nothing but a wonderful experience with Implanon!

    I think that's even more evidence for the OP---talk to your doctor because you never know what will actually work for your personal body chemistry.
  • syam3000
    syam3000 Posts: 37
    Options
    I have the Paragard which is a non-hormone IUD. I have had it for about 4 years and I love it! Especially since I'm the type who doesn't want my hormones being messed with and not so great with remembering things like taking a pill, etc... :P
  • Flippiefloppies
    Flippiefloppies Posts: 319
    Options
    I have the implanon. I got it about 3 years ago and is getting ready to expire. They newer ones I hear can last for up to 5 years. I have had NO issues with my and I love it. For the 1st year and half I did not have a period at all. But, everyone is diffrent. I was hesitant at first because I am scared to death of needles but it was so painless. They take a cotton swab with a number on it and place it on the skin where they inject it in. Its already way numb after they do that but then they give you a shot to numb it even more. Then they actually inject it into your under arm. I felt nothing and it took less than a minute to do. I was a tiny sore after but it wasnt any worse than having sore muscles from working out. That is my vote!
  • BAMFMeredith
    BAMFMeredith Posts: 2,829 Member
    Options
    I never understood what's so good about a bc that totally stops you're cycle.

    why not? I loved not having a cycle

    If you're not ovulating (which is what hormonal bc does, prevents ovulation), there is no medical necessity for menstruation. I LOVE not having a period more than once a year!
  • nikrit84
    nikrit84 Posts: 46 Member
    Options
    I have had the mirena for 5 years...it is actually time to take it out. However, I don't have insurance...and although I know its probably not safe to keep it in longer than the 5 years...I have no choice lol. But I loved it...no acne, no weight gain, no periods (just occassional spotting). Well worth the cost to put it in...but it is also expensive to take it out, and I should have thought about that when I had it put in.

Categories