Should I get the IUS after having my IUD out

iud
#1

Hi @Dr_Paula,
Just some advice because I feel the advice I’m getting at the moment isn’t helpful. I’m 23 and have tried all types of contraception including: the implant, combined pill, mini pill (which I am unsure if this caused me to become depressed) and now I have a IUD.
I originally thought the IUD would be great… No hormones (I’m trying to avoid hormones due to my mum having breast cancer due to extra oestrogen). I’ve had the IUD now for 8 months, I experience pain nearly every day of the month. My periods are 10 days long and are extremely heavy and I have to take pain relief constantly. I’ve been to the doctors 3 times about the pain I’m experiencing. I’ve had it checked and there isn’t any infection and it’s in the right place.

So today I had an appointment to get the IUD removed in a month. But the information I got wasn’t helpful. I don’t know if I should get the IUS? Is there a possibility it will reduce the pain? Will it reduce my heavy periods? It was suggested to me to just use condoms but I really don’t want to just risk that. It was also suggested to give my body a break, is that really necessary?

Anyone else experience this?

#2

Hi @welsh

Many thanks for posting your question.

My personal view is that having pain every day of the month and periods that last 10 days and are very heavy are not acceptable side effects from your method of contraception. Obviously this is a personal decision but it seems like the IUD is bothering you a lot.

There are quite a few discussions about IUD and IUS symptoms on the forum and it would be worth having a look at other people’s experience.

From a clinical perspective I think I can say 3 things:

  1. Bleeding length and amount does get better over time - I am not sure whether it is worth putting up with it but it is also worth knowing that it should gradually improve.

  2. Bleeding should be a lot lighter and less frequent with the IUS (MIrena). It may be irregular and troublesome in the first 6 month but should settle down to very little bleeding after that. Having said that, this is not the case for everyone - again look at the other discussion threads on the forum - some people (a small number) keep having irregular bleeding on the IUS for many months.

  3. The pain may be the presence of an inflexible device in a small uterus. The size of the copper IUDs and the IUS are fairly similar. So I am not sure that there would be differences in the amount of pain caused by each. Again this could settle down over time.

When you said that your doctor had checked that it was i the right place - did they do a scan or did they just do an examination. If it was an examination then maybe you could consider doing a scan.

Does that answer your questions? If not then do come back to me.

Many thanks

Paula

#3

Hi @welsh

I was just replying to another post on the IUS when I saw your questions. Firstly, your experience on the IUD sounds horrendous. I would think it’s not worth staying on if it’s making your periods that bad!

I did have quite heavy bleeding with the IUS for the first few months, and had a bit of trouble with my mood (feeling very low during my period), however my periods have now dropped to almost nothing and I’ve pretty much forgotten that it’s in there. I didn’t have any pain but I now that quite a few people do. I think I’ve had it in for about 9 months now.

You asked about giving your body a break - I remember talking to my friend who’s a doctor about this and I think she said that you don’t really need to do this, your body is going to have to get used to the new hormones in the IUS anyway so I don’t think it makes much difference if you are going straight from one to the other. However, you might want a break to just have some time to get to know how your body feels without any contraception. You would need to use condoms but they are very effective if you use them right! If it will make you feel less anxious isn’t it worth trying them for a few months? then you have time to think about getting an IUS without rushing into it.

Good luck x

#4

Hi!
I second @jellybelly with trying the condom for a while if you don’t want to rush into getting an IUS.

I completely understand why you don’t want to risk just using condoms but they are really effective if used correctly. Something you could do to make them more safe is use them in conjunction with some other different non-hormonal methods, like tracking your cycle with an app like Clue and/or the withdrawal method. Both these methods are not very safe on their own, but if you use them in conjunction with using condoms every time I think that would make it much safer. You can only get pregnant around when you ovulate, so if you track when you ovulate with a period tracker you can abstain from penetrative sex during your fertility window. After having had a period tracker for a while I’ve actually been able to notice myself when I ovulate by just becoming more aware of my body!
You could also use condoms and the withdrawal method together, or use a combination of the three which would be very safe!
There are some more stories people have shared about bleeding on the ius here: Bleeding on the hormonal coil (7 months so far)

Hope this helps a bit! x