Talk to me about birth control ...

caraiselite · June 2012

i never had weight issues on the pill, i think its too easy to blame it for some people though.

i have an IUD and i love it.

fit4lyfeLisa · June 2012

I switched from the birth control pill to Depo Provera because I was tired of popping that pill everyday. But I used Depo Provera for a few years, and never had a problem with any of the side effects. I loved the injection shot better than I did taking a pill everyday.

WaterBunnie · June 2012

I've had a bit of a nightmare lately with Mirena. First one came away within weeks, replacement stayed put for 4 years with slightly lighter periods and no problems but had my 3rd fitted last September and had period pains for the first 2 months and endless periods which would just get lighter or heavier but maybe 1 or 2 days without bleeding at all a month. Had a scan and was told it was in the right place but that I had a small fibroid which was causing the bleeding, 2 weeks later the coil came away of it's own accord and since then my periods have been regular with no bleeding between - so must have been the coil and not the fibroid causing the problem. I'm just so relieved not to be constantly bleeding I can't face having another one fitted.

natvanessa · June 2012

I use Loestrin Fe 1/20 (pill)
Apparently it is the lowest possible dose of hormones, while still being effective BC. I am very sensitive to the hormones as well, but this pill doesn't affect me at all. I've been on it for 10 years and I'm very happy.

Good luck!!!

weighlossforbaby · June 2012

I was on the mirena 5 year IUD and gained 50 lbs and couldn't lose it at all. Everyone is different though.

kayleesays · June 2012

I used regular tricyclics (three-level hormonal birth control) and it made me CRAZY. I used one-level hormonal birth control as well, and it also made me crazy. I recently switched to low-estrogen pills and they make me infinitely more happy.

bkelley32148 · June 2012

I also have the mirena and I love it!

kayleesays · June 2012

I use Loestrin Fe 1/20 (pill)
Apparently it is the lowest possible dose of hormones, while still being effective BC. I am very sensitive to the hormones as well, but this pill doesn't affect me at all. I've been on it for 10 years and I'm very happy.

Good luck!!!

I'm on Loesterin 24Fe and I love it!

EDIT: There is a generic version, I was on that as well, works great

I believe it's called Microgestin.

bparsont · June 2012

YAZ and YASMIN are in a class action lawsuit right at the moment and that leads me to believe that it is NOT safe to take either one of those birth control meds. An IUD seems safer than hormone manipulation.

skinnieminniemouse · June 2012

I am on Yasmin and it has been perfectly fine. I still bloat around the time I am due on but that is it. Make sure you are drinking enough water too

JustJennie1 · June 2012

You really need to discuss your options with your doctor. Not every birth control is going to be the same for everyone. What one person loves and hasn't had an issue with doesn't mean you won't have issues with it and love it as well.

Here's a question: Is NOT taking the pill an option for you? I only ask because any sort of hormonal birth control that women take is not good for you or your body. It completely screws up your hormones in a negative way. I used to be on the pill and every time I got my blood work done I would have to ignore the hormone results because they didn't mean squat because of the pill. For the longest time I thought I had an under active thyroid. I was exhausted all the time, napped often for hours at a time. I could take a nap from 1-5 then go to bed at 8 p.m. and sleep the night through and wake up exhausted the next morning. There were weekends where I would wake up late -- like 9 or 10 -- have breakfast and be so exhausted just from that that I had to go back to bed and would sleep for most of the afternoon. I got my thyroid tested and it was normal. Last year I went off the pill and within a few weeks I felt 100% better and now the only time I nap is if I didn't sleep well or it's going to be a late night, and even then a nap isn't always necessary. Six months after getting off the pill I had my blood test done and my hormones were no longer out of whack. Sure I get my period when I'm on vacation (I loved the ease of being able to 'reset' my periods so that I wouldn't have them when we went away) but the way I feel off the pill is far better than the way I felt on it.

You honestly might want to think of something non-hormonal like an IUD but again it's something that you need to discuss with your doctor. Tell him/her about your issues and see what they recommend.

tobnrn · June 2012

Thanks all

Sadly I don't think a coil will be a good option for me, I have very painful periods which is why I went on the Depo in the first place and apparently coils can make all that worse.

Wish I could just get sterilised really, but it isn't something doctors are willing to do for a woman who doesn't have children.

Mirena isnt a coil. Its a T. Most do not vave a menses while using it. It is used as an alternative for those with heavy periods.

aymetcalf · June 2012

I'm on Nuvaring - and I love it - I was able to lose almost 60lbs - though I've plateaued lately. :flowerforyou:

ericachristie85 · June 2012

I take marvalon or apri with no weight effects. But I once took Seasonal, and ballooned up. It was a pill that you take for 3 months without a break. It was bad!

NNAhuja · June 2012

My experience...
Implenon made my weight shoot up like 20-30lbs in 3 years. They had a super rough time getting it out too.
I also have PCOS so that didn't help the issue either.

jadamuriel76 · June 2012

Yes I have gained with DEPO. :-(

jenkidney · June 2012

I use the Mirena IUD, and it has been great with lack of side effects. Plus I love that I don't have to think about it more often than every 5 years.

)

nikinyx6 · June 2012

I'v been on depo for 5 years...no change in my weight. I just started trying to lose weight, thought I may run into problems there, but I'm down 4lbs, in my first week.

Was on alesse for 5 years prior to that, but the migraines were awful, blacked out my vision, and made me throw up, at least once a week

BodyRockerVT · June 2012

I would say that "Natural Family Planning" is a really, really bad recommendation. It is not as effective as the pill and really only an option if you want less kids. While it is more effective than nothing, a fertile woman will eventually get pregnant using this method. Here is a great, clear chart of Birth control effectiveness. "Natural Family Planning" is a "Fertility Awareness Based Method" on the chart.

http://www.plannedparenthood.org/health-topics/birth-control/birth-control-effectiveness-chart-22710.htm

It depends on what kind of FAM you are using. Calender method is less effective than others. I have used sympto-thermal for 4 years now with no pregnancy and no issue.

From the PP Website you linked:

What is the Symptothermal Method?

To prevent pregnancy, women can keep track of their menstrual cycles and abstain from unprotected vaginal intercourse during their peak fertile times. The methods you can use to do this are called fertility awareness-based methods (FAMs).

One way that women track their fertility patterns is by combining several fertility awareness-based methods. This is sometimes called the symptothermal method.

Some women also track their fertility patterns when trying to get pregnant to know when they should have unprotected vaginal intercourse.
Symptothermal Method

When women use the symptothermal method, they use more than one fertility awareness method at once. These methods include

Temperature Method
Cervical Mucus Method
Calendar Method

The signs of one method can confirm those of the other. This lets you be more accurate when you predict your safe days than if you use one method alone. For example, keeping track of your mucus pattern can be useful when your temperature chart is confused by illness or emotional stress. And you may be able to identify more days when you can have unprotected vaginal intercourse than you can only using the temperature method.

Using a fertility pattern chart helps women keep track of the signs of their fertile times.
Post-Ovulation Method

Another combined method is called post-ovulation. All the days from day one until the morning of the fourth day after predicted ovulation are unsafe days. But this means that the safe days are limited to less than half of a woman's cycle.

Effectiveness
Of 100 couples who use the symptothermal method correctly for one year, 0.4 (fewer than one) will have a pregnancy.

All that said, it may or may not be a good fit for the OP. I just hate it when people spread false information about NFP. I would suggest she look into something like nuvaring which is lower hormones and you don't have to remember it a lot.

acstansell · June 2012

I've been on Loestrin 1/20 Fe for about 5 years. I didn't gain weight because of it, when I have a period, it's light and I barely have PMS. It works for me...

hnsaunde · June 2012

I have been on the pill and now have a Mirena IUD. I prefer Mirena simply because I don't have to remember to take a pill everyday, and once I got past the initial insertion process, I don't even think about it most of the time. I've lost 60 pounds with Mirena, so I would say it didn't have any effect on weight loss or gain for me, but rather it was my eating/exercise habits that did. Just my experience with it though

ReinasWrath · June 2012

bump Cuz I need this info too lol :grumble:

skinnybearlyndsay · June 2012

I was on different pills for years and was always hungry and had tons of migraines...not to mention the horrendous cramps. I went off it last September and have had a noticable different in all of the above. While not entirely sure, I feel like the BCP was making me ravenous and I had more cravings for fatty, greasy, icky foods that I now find failry repulsive.

JulieHearts · June 2012

OK, I'm glad I asked as the majority of info on mirena on google suggests weight gain is an issue but from you gauys it seems not so much. :-) I'll do a bit more research. :-)

No weight gain for me on Mirena... love it. Have had it one year, no more period. A bit of PMS symptoms each month when my period would come but very mild. One appointment with gyne to have it in... no worries for 5 years, then get it replaced.

SRH7 · June 2012

Like you I've always had terrible trouble with my periods and I also use the pill etc as contraception.

In my 20s I gained 3 stones in six months on Depo and when I stopped it the weight started to fall off without too much trying (low carb eating seemed to work to get me back on track then).

Then I went on various combined pills and with each one my weight started to creep back up until I reached the weight I had been on while on Depo. I have absolutely no doubt that hormonal contraceptives make me gain weight (I think it's due to a different distribution of fat in the body combined with an increase in appetite).

For a while I went back to just using condoms but my periods were unbearable. I then saw a gynae consultant about my periods who offered either the Mirena coil or Cerazette.

I'm 38 and don't have children but haven't ruled out having them, so went on Cerazette. I'm struggling to lose weight on it, but it is slowly coming off, which was impossible on Depo. You have quite a narrow window in which to take it (12 hours), so I just keep it by my toothbrush to remind myself. Best of all I now have absolutely no periods, which has really set me free. My sister is on it too but she is a skinny mini, so it hasn't seemed to have affected her weight.

I notice you are in the UK... (I work in the NHS)

Best advice is not to go to your GP - check with your local primary care trust (PCT) or primary care provider (Google NHS Choices) about contraceptive clinics. The nurses have far more experience than GPs.

They will also be able to offer you proper advice about sterilisation. I was warned off Mirena by my GP as they said it could cause infections which could make me infertile. But the contraceptive nurse set the record straight and said the risk was slim and if my periods were really bad it might be a risk I would be willing to take. They might have a more balanced and up-to-date view about sterilisation too.

With Mirena it has a very low dose hormone so it may cause the problems that the pill and Depo do, but I've heard it does affect everyone differently. And if it doesn't suit you you can just get it removed (again, you can get this done for free in the UK via a contraceptive clinic, usually at your local health centre or GP practice).

Most importantly, don't give up looking for a solution! There will be something that is right for you out there.

Smuterella · June 2012

Thank you so much for taking the time top send such a detailed reply. I'm going to talk to my GP as I need to see him anyway about some other bits and bobs but if I don't get a satisfactory answer I'll certainly try my sexual health/family planning centre. :-)

imakimm · June 2012

I have the mirena iud. It was pure hell up until recently.I had it put in at the end of Dec. and have pretty much have been spotting every other day since a few weeks ago. I also had pretty bad cramps. It has just recently sorted itself out! It was driving me crazy but I like that I don't have to worry about taking pills or doing anything.

bloomlately · June 2012

I've been taking the pill for years for medical reasons and I never gained weight on it. However, the first one I was on for a few years definitely shifted how I carry my weight. I started carrying more fat on my upper belly so my hourglass figure is now looking more apple-y. It seems the really low estrogen pills tend to be counterbalanced with high androgens. I've switched to one that is more moderate so I'm hoping that will help with the tummy.