Maintenance and birth control

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  • evilqueenT
    evilqueenT Posts: 28 Member
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    Weight gain is a listed side potential adverse reaction for Mirena, however, keep in mind they have to list all reactions reported during clinical studies. The trouble is truly determining if it was caused by the medication or even the most subtle changes in the reporters habits. You often see just as many reports of weight gain in the placebo groups so take it for what's it's worth. If it is related to the Mirena you'll either have to adjust accordingly to stay at your goals or look at alternative contraception options. I'm a nurse practitioner and my coworkers are fairly evenly split on the idea of them causing weight or not (sigh).
  • jaga13
    jaga13 Posts: 1,149 Member
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    ARGriffy wrote: »
    vinegar_husbands wrote: »
    ARGriffy wrote: »
    I've literally come off birth control this week for the first time in 3 years. I lost throughout however I've always believed when I first took it, it contributed to my gain a little. I'm interested to see if coming off everything will effect my maintenance at all. Not really an answer sorry. ..

    Same here, but I was on it a lot longer.

    Just as an update, after about 2 weeks off the pill there has been a noticeable change in my appetite, ive struggled to eat enough calories and that's not something I have ever suffered with! I'm pretty convinced whilst it may not make you physically retain more fat, there's a definate link to appetite.

    This is my first week off birth control and my appetite hasn't changed so far. Side note, I'm all crampy this week. I guess I'm ovulating and I vaguely remember this from when we were trying to conceive but it is really uncomfortable!
  • cosmo_momo
    cosmo_momo Posts: 173 Member
    edited February 2016
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    I was able to lose ~12lbs after I got my Mirena. Not because I switched to it, but because I bought a food scale and became honest with myself about my diet. I was on Depo previously and at one point had lost ~20lbs on it. My weight overall between BC has gone from 155-143-135-155 on Depo, then from 155-139-142(now) on Mirena. I lost and gained because of my diet, not the BC. Mirena has been a fabulous BC and I do not miss going to the docs to get a shot every 3 months. Another plus is I've not had a period for over 7 years because both methods stopped them for me.

    Not going to lie. I wanted to get Mirena because I was blaming the Depo for my struggles with my weight, full well knowing that I had been able to lose 20lbs on it in the past. My doc was very kind, but pointed out that diet is #1.
  • hekla90
    hekla90 Posts: 595 Member
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    evilqueenT wrote: »
    Weight gain is a listed side potential adverse reaction for Mirena, however, keep in mind they have to list all reactions reported during clinical studies. The trouble is truly determining if it was caused by the medication or even the most subtle changes in the reporters habits. You often see just as many reports of weight gain in the placebo groups so take it for what's it's worth. If it is related to the Mirena you'll either have to adjust accordingly to stay at your goals or look at alternative contraception options. I'm a nurse practitioner and my coworkers are fairly evenly split on the idea of them causing weight or not (sigh).

    They cause weight changes by influencing appetite, or retaining water- there's no opinions to split on them because that's known. Yikes, how as nurse practitioners do you guys not know that you can't create weight out of nothing (except perhaps a few lbs of water weight)?
  • fleurhaus
    fleurhaus Posts: 35 Member
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    It is probably just water weight, as others have said. I have had mirena since August of last year. I maintained my weight on mirena for a few months and have recently lost about 13 pounds without a problem. I'd advise you just to wait until your body adjusts to the change (my doctor told me it can take up to 6 months) and if the issue continues then discuss it with your doctor.

    However, I encourage you not to give up and keep on logging your food (using a scale for accuracy). Best of luck :)
  • clarklessk8
    clarklessk8 Posts: 14 Member
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    If you're really concerned about your weight fluctuating, you should go ask your doctor because instead of blaming it on the birth control or calorie, there's a chance it could also have to do with what vitamins you're taking in and possibly your thyroid
  • mom2ava07
    mom2ava07 Posts: 186 Member
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    I am weighing my food and have been for over a year. I am as obsessive with logging as I was on day one and still even log gum. Nothing has changed in my diet...nothing.

    I'm so boring that I eat the same exact breakfast and snacks every single day. The only meal that varies is dinner and I log it, weigh it, all of that.

    My husband has suggested I'm not eating enough and my body is in starvation mode. I don't buy it. I'm not going to go into starvation mode eating around 1700-1900 calories a day. He's also suggested that maybe about half is water retention from the Mirena and my new exercise regimine and the other half muscle mass gained. That could be the truth but I'm not sold on that idea.

    Every single day the scale creeps up. This morning I was up another pound and a half. I'm at the point that I'm convinced that either my body realized I turn 30 this month and decided to slow my metabolism down, my thyroid is suddenly out of whack, Mirena was created by Satan, I'm eating in my sleep and don't know it, or all of the above.

    I know that 5-6 lbs may not seem horrible, but when you fought this hard to lose it and don't know when it will stop it's scary! I feel like I should at least go eat something good if I'm going to gain anyway, but I'm holding on and hoping the scale will go back in the opposite direction. Today I am limiting myself to 1650 calories a day and going to consistently cut back if I have to.
  • robininfl
    robininfl Posts: 1,137 Member
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    mom2ava07 wrote: »
    I am weighing my food and have been for over a year. I am as obsessive with logging as I was on day one and still even log gum. Nothing has changed in my diet...nothing.

    I'm so boring that I eat the same exact breakfast and snacks every single day. The only meal that varies is dinner and I log it, weigh it, all of that.

    My husband has suggested I'm not eating enough and my body is in starvation mode. I don't buy it. I'm not going to go into starvation mode eating around 1700-1900 calories a day. He's also suggested that maybe about half is water retention from the Mirena and my new exercise regimine and the other half muscle mass gained. That could be the truth but I'm not sold on that idea.
    ........

    My money is on the exercise change, water and muscle. Remember that a gallon of water weighs 8lb - water retention is heavy. The difference in my weight from doing yoga/jogging rather than Jazzercise settled at about 8 pounds but my waist measurement did not change. Legs got bigger by over one inch each, better shape, it's muscle. And that's just yoga, not even lifting anything heavier than me. Waist size, I think, is the best thing to look at if you are worried. If your weight goes up with increased exercise but you do not gain inches in the waist, I really think it's muscle not fat, and that's a positive change. Water retention will of course puff you up everywhere, but it comes and goes.
  • Fuzzipeg
    Fuzzipeg Posts: 2,298 Member
    edited February 2016
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    I hear your concerns, best catch the problem before it escalates over months. Reducing your calorie intake just to achieve weight loss can be counter productive inducing a state of malnutrition depending on your activity levels and the what nutrition you manage to squeeze into your numbers.

    Taking time to visit your doctor may be helpful. It may also be fruitless unless you know the rare one of a disposition who listens to your all concerns accessing what they know are interrelated symptoms. Synthetic hormones can disrupt one's normal natural hormone production though many doctors do not recognise this or even read the contra indications and what to look for.

    Many doctors are not permitted to investigate adrenal or pituitary functions leaving the thyroid gland as the gland usually found wanting when unexplained weight gain is happening amongst other things. Like the thyroid, adrenal and pituitary hormones are responsible for our bodies functioning well. Pituitary and adrenal function should be reviewed prior to thyroid hormone replacement hormones are started. There are many people, usually women, who are on the wrong treatment for them because they do not start feel any better or their symptoms mysteriously return after an unspecific time lapse. Our bodies are complicated needing proper answers not potentially damaging sticking plasters. Stop the thyroid madness, a book and a web site is full of information, as are national thyroid websites.

    Mercola has an interesting article on the effects of birth control hormones, as does bodyecology, wedMD and the Huffington Post to name but a few. There was also a site luna something. It worries me that you young women are every bit as trusting of big pharma, as we, my generation were sometimes with problematic outcomes.

  • ARGriffy
    ARGriffy Posts: 1,002 Member
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    Another update, after a month off the pill I've lost 2.8 lbs. Not done that in a year...
  • erianswilliams
    erianswilliams Posts: 33 Member
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    I've been on birth control for maybe about 10 years now & it did cause me to gain weight. But after my body got used to it, I didn't gain anymore. So I had a few extra pounds to lose.
  • DragonRider83
    DragonRider83 Posts: 10 Member
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    I think it affects people in different ways but it certainly did make me gain weight - when I went onto the Pill I gained almost a stone in two months and when I came off it, I lost it again. My doctor insisted it was coincidence but I suspect not!

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