Seeking Advice About IUD

I have a Mirena (progesterone secreting) IUD in and love it. I had one after my second child also (the current one is my 2nd IUD, 3rd child). I have heard of reports from women who have cramping/bleeding after insertion, but it usually subsides by this time. I have never had a period while having an IUD in place.

I would recommend you contact the MD who inserted it to 1. verify correct placement; 2 rule out problems (which due to liability issues I won't go into); and 3 discuss a timeline as to how long to give the symptoms to resolve vs when to decide to have it taken out. If there are no other problems, it is just a matter of your tolerance level. It also could be simply that the string is too long and irritating the surrounding tissue.

In general, the IUD is a very good form of birth control for women who have given birth before and are in a monogamous relationship.

Good luck!
C.

I've never used one but they scare me in general. I've heard of stories of them migrating out of the uterus and my Aunt believes it was the IUD that caused scarring in uterus which at least contributed to her infertility. You may want to ask for a second opinion or do some research on it.
As far as birth control, after being on the pill for over a decade I switched to the Fertility Awareness Method in which I charted my daily temps and type of cervical fluid and it worked really well for me. I was then also able to use it for trying to conceive and for both my first child and my pregnancy now I was able to conceive in 3 mos or less.

Hope this was helpful. :)

I had the Mirena IUD put in about 2 years ago after the birth of my son. I cramped for the first week or so and I bled (lightly) for about 3 months following. My period completely stopped after that and my doctor told me that was perfectly normal. About 2 months ago, I started spotting for about a 24 hour period and that happened again this month. My doctor said it's perfectly normal. I have no complaints and am very happy with my choice to go with the IUD. It's much easier than remembering to take a pill every day!

I had one put in on December 19 and I am still spotting, I have had a little cramping. It could have been put in wrong, you definitely need to go back to your doctor and have her check it asap.

I too was wondering about the IUD. after i had my second baby my OB told me to try it. i chickend out and decided to try the nuvaring and i love it. its a great alternative to remembering a pill every day but not as semi-permanent as the iud. i do have irreg. periods but it beats condoms!

I also had one put in after my second child. I bled for a month, then didn't get a real period again for another 6 months. During the first month I was a bit crampy, but my doctor said everything was fine. I have had my IUD for two years now, and I love it. Every few months I spot for a few days and that is all plus I like not having to worry about broken condoms or remembering a pill every day.

Hi. I also got an IUD, for me it was several years after my second child. I definitely recall it being uncomfortable for a while, especially during periods. I don't remember how long it lasted, but it did pass. I had been told by my NP to expect it. Now I have had this IUD for about 8 years. It is checked annually for position, and I have never had a problem. I was told that it it would be good for ten years. So, ask your doc or nurse how long it lasts, but it is normal.

I would hope IUD's have improved since I had one back in the 80's. However, be dilligent and persistent in recording all discomfort and reporting in detail to your MD. It took months of complaining to my MD about severe pain for which I finally barged into the office during one of the episodes and demanded to be seen. The pain started off fairly mild, but gradually increased over time. I ended up with a Pelvic Inflammatory Disease which acted up at the time of each period and ended up with a diagnosis of Endrometrosis. I ended up on antibiotics and then treatment for the endrometrosis. Obviously the MD removed the IUD at the time of infection. C. D

I'm a retired nurse with a Master of Science in Nursing, mother of 3 and grandmother of 2.

I also had an IUD implanted after my second child. I had it put in around thanksgiving '06 and had a lot of cramping initially, then it subsided. I thought things were going great until I really started having cramping and a lot of pain associated with (in my opinion) the IUD. I went back to my DR and he said that everything looked ok and there was no infection or anything else wrong. I gave it another month and could not deal with it any more. I had it removed in April '07. A couple of days after it was removed the cramping stopped and I've felt great ever since. Now my only problem is getting my husband to agree to get a visectomy (sp?)!!!

Although I have no personal experience with an IUD, a close friend had one and got pregnant a few months later. She went to her Ob/Gyn, who told her that not only was the IUD STILL there but that she was absolutely pregnant. He suggested removing it, saying that would make her miscarry. After removal, she still remained pregnant! As the whole idea of having the IUD in the first place was to NOT get pregnant, after much angst, she had an abortion.
Another friend had trouble with pelvic infections that were painful and difficult to treat.
I opted for the pill after hearing from both these women. Give your decision on which method of birth control more thought and research.

i have a copper IUD. I've had it for 8 years now. The reason i got it is because my body just cannot handle the hormones in other BC methods. I did experience heavier than usual periods for the first few months with more cramping but that did go away.

I had the Mirena IUD inserted last June and had it removed in November...I had the opposite effect...I bled for 17 days a month, was gaining weight, losing hair...it was awful. It works for some people, but clearly not for me (and apparently not for you.) I would go back to the OB/GYN and have them check to see if it has ruptured your uterine wall (very rare!) and discuss other options. I discovered that it was not worth the pain for me.
Good Luck!

Hi J.,
I had the IUD inserted after my first child. I was nervous about using another kind of birth control other than the pill, but I am glad I chose the IUD. My physician told me that it was normal to have cramping the day of insertion and the week following. I have not had cramping since. It does not feel uncomfortable, you should not even be able to feel it. I was told to call the doctor if I have any pain. If your feeling uncomfortable it would not hurt for you to call your doctor and express your concern. It's better to call and be safe. In the research I have done on the IUD and with talking to my physician, it's normal to have some spotting or light period, but some people never have a period. If your worried and feel there is something wrong I would call your doctor just to be safe.

I have had the Mirena for nearly 2 years, since my son was born. I had cramping for a while and spotting for several months and then everything was fine. I have not had a period since getting the IUD. It's great! I thought at first that it was because I was breastfeeding, but I stopped, and the period still stayed away! I asked my Dr. and they said it is ok, but if I was concerned they would "induce" a period by giving me hormones or something to trigger one. I plan on having it removed soon though in order to start trying for #2! Good luck!

Listen, be glad you have not had a period yet! I had one put in about 4 months ago after my second child (2 years after actually) and its been like opening the floodgates! A friend of mine who has had hers for about 8 months said that it subsides a little as time goes on, but she said the only way she could deal with the flow was to sleep on a black towel at night - so now we have a joke (I got one too after ruining 2 sets of sheets in 2 days) - that we're members of the exclsuive 'black towel club' - it IS convenient (more so than taking a pill every day or using condoms), but there are always draw backs to every method. The cramping is normal as is perdiodoc spotting and a few build up days leading to your full cycle that involve some brown blood. But you should defnitely check abck in with your doctor if you don;t get a period soon. Maybe because its too soon after your second child (are you still nursing?) Good luck! If mine does not get a little ore normalized in the next few months I am thinkig of having it removed...

hi,
i had 4 kids and 4 c-sections...so iwas done having kids...well 4 months later i was pregant with number 5 ...and had to get the IUD taken out...right away...i was luckey and the baby was ok .....but my OB was telling must women have miscarriges.
i know of 2 women who got pregant with IUDs..one had a misscarrige...and one had a healthy baby.
of course i didnt know these of women before i got the IUD.
so be careful.

Hi J.
I had the Mirena IUD put in a year and half ago. At first I wanted it taken out because of the cramps but I stuck with it and now love it. I haven't had my period for more than a year and no PMS yeah! Once you get through the first few months it is great. You never have to think about your period again or taking a pill everyday. Any more questions let me know. B.

I got an IUD after my 2nd child. Like you, I didn't feel well. I was crampy (which they say is normal), but I was also dizzy all the time. I went to the doctor and they found it had slipped out of place. They put in another one and a few months later it had gotten lodged in the side of my uterus. After they removed that one I decided the IUD must not be for me. I think not having a period is normal with IUDs. Call the doctor and good luck!

I'd like to know this too. I am also having cramping but haven't gotten a period yet as I am also breastfeeding

I just had one put in 2 months ago. There was A LOT of cramping, although I did get my period one week after it went in. The cramping didn't go away completely until about 2-3 weeks after it was put in. If you're still cramping 3 months after, I'd check with your doctor.

J.
I too had an IUD inserted 6 weeks after the birth of my second child. I have the one that has no hormones in it- I am breastfeeding and did not want to interfere with that. I had a lot of cramping issues for around 6 months after it was inserted. It is going on 9 months now since I had it in and I was just thinking the other day that I haven't had any issues with it for a while now. At first I thought that I had made a mistake in getting it, but now I don't feel it at all. I have not yet gotten my period back yet (my baby is 11 months) but I am still breastfeeding so I am not all that concerned. I don't think you should be too concerned about no period since it seems as if it was not that long ago that you had a baby. With my first it took 12 months to get back my period (and I didn't have an IUD then). I am a bit worried about what my first period will be like, but I am happy not to have to worry about birth control so I would have to say that I like having the IUD in.

Hi Jenn, in response to your questions about the IUD, everything you are experiencing is what I went through with my IUD when I first got it. The cramping should subside and you should get a normal period soon. I would talk to your doctor if your next period is abnormal. I just had my IUD out after having it for 5yrs--trying for a 2nd child. I loved my IUD, you either love it or hate it. Hope this helps.
M.

I have had my IUD for 5 years and I have to have it replaced in February. I love it. I never had a period ever. . .I spot once in a while but nothing much. I never have cramps and I am getting another. I have the Mirena IUD.

L.

Hi J.,

I also had one put in after my daughter was born last Jan 07. I experienced severe cramping however the difference between your situation and mine was that I bled about 25 days out of each month with about 5-6 days of no bleeding. I spoke to by Dr who said that some people's body does not respond well to the IUDs. She also stated that it takes about 3-4 months for your body to adjust to it before it should return to normal. Because my body was not responding well to the IUD I had it removed. I would suggest keeping track of any discomfort and if you still haven't had a real period by the 4th month contact your Dr.