‘All women should be offered pain relief for coil fitting’

[mrsgrealish69]

I’ve just read a news story about a lot of women finding coil fittings painful and traumatic (certainly was the case for me a decade ago) I think naga munchetty said on the radio or in an interview somewhere that it was an excruciating experience for her.
I’ve seen an NHS response that apparently guidelines state women are offered appropriate pain relief for a fitting. Does anyone know what they mean by this?

I was advised to take a paracetamol beforehand, is this what they are referring to?

Oh no. I’ve got one (put in under GA as part of an ablation procedure) and am due to have it changed soonish.

I’ve never had a vaginal birth - cervix has never even dilated! Does that mean it’s more likely to be painful?

I wasn’t offered anything, threw up after the first one. Number 2 was awful, I had some codeine left over from an op so took that, only to have a reaction to it and spent the 8 hours it took to wear off sweating, shaking and throwing up again.

The last time not only did I scream the place down but the nurse clamped my labia in the twisty bit of the speculum so we had to start again.

Honestly it’s fucking horrendous, but I can’t do oral contraceptive and the implant is too high a hormone dose for me to handle.

@AnUnoriginalUsername my last one took over an hour, two nurses and a GP. Not 'just a second'. Don't generalise your own experience as 'fact'.

I will be honest the first one I had didn’t hurt and the lady was so lovely. The third one was awful and the pinching feeling made me feel faint and suddenly thought that I might be sick. I can’t figure out if it was the speculum maybe she was trying to push or if the little brush got caught. I do think it is down to skill. She did try to push the speculum in so fast it was a shock. I complained to the practice about her smear training and I suggested some things that she could improve on. For example pushing the speculum in a bit slower. Do these women nurses not understand? Do they not have a vagina too? It’s shocking and the only thing left to think is that they enjoy the power they have? Or that they are just shit at putting a speculum in a delicate area.

Had 1 and a gp surgery before children and was offered a local anesthetic or something else I can't remember but several options, I refused being all brave and stupid and yeah it hurt, then had children (coil removed before obviously) moved house and with a different gp surgery not offered anything. Did take paracetamol before I left the house but that did absolutely nothing it was the most horrendous pain I almost passed out. In my experience was quite different from different gp practices

I was fine both in and out, but I know I'm lucky. I have a new one going on in a week or two... Praying it'll be as easy as the last one.

It's not as simple as the skill of the fitter nor pain thresholds - it's a metal device being placed into your womb. It's bound to hurt. Add in that it's going through your cervix, differing internal shapes of women, differing clinical and personal histories - it'll always be a very different experience woman to woman.

I had a general for it thank god

This is why I refuse any birth control and only use condoms, yes they’re a mood killer and not ideal, but I’ve had my fair share or of horrors from birth control and I don’t want to repeat them.

I was given paracetamol and warned I'd possibly be in agony- the nurse really hadn't wanted to let me haveva coil. Mine didn't hurt much but I had a good fitter- I have an incredibly low pain threshold so was genuinely surprised not to be in more pain. I didn't appreciate having someone bearing down on my pelvis through out though - maybe necessary but it made me feel very uncomfortable and trapped.

I appreciate I was lucky - another fitter could have left me in agony. Would completely support better pain relief for the coil & similar procedures in general. I had a silver nitrate treatment done about 18 months later, too- that was incredibly painful!

I know someone who went through two back to back labours with no pain relief and described the pain as "fine" but found having a coil fitted and removed "excruciating" and was in tears.

Of course pain relief should be systematically offered and staff should be realistic about the fact that many people find the procedure painful instead of brushing women off

I was told what a quick and easy procedure it would be, not told to take anything. I popped in on my lunch hour!

I went into cervical shock and passed out, I have never felt pain like it. The doctor and the assistant were a bit ‘oh shit!’ I limped back to work, the pain was awful. It never settled and I felt like I had barbed wire in my uterus, honestly. Went back three times in a year begging them to remove it, which they refused to do because I hadn’t given it time to settle.

Ended up paying privately to deal with it, they found it wasn’t fitted properly and removed it straight away, the barbed feeling i had in my uterus was exactly what i’d thought- the coil digging in where it shouldn’t be.

Awful traumatic experience.

I’ve had three and it does seem to vary each time, but there is very much a brisk NHS “it’s not real pain” culture around it. So women have been putting up with it for decades.

I've always thought this and pain relief for after birth pains. On my last baby I was left alone as soon as I was delivered because of staff shortage. I went back on the gas and air and it made a big difference not having that continuation of pain.

@Lissy23, I have a coil post menopause to protect from female cancers, as do some younger women who are ovulating. They aren't just for birth control.

I was offered anasthetic first. The idea of an injection in my cervix seemed worse than the fitting, so I didn't take them up on it, but it was offered (in my GP surgery).

I found it a mild discomfort rather than painfull in all honesty, but it was nice to be offered. I hadn't realised it was unusual tbh, seems shit it's not a standard offer.

I took ibruprofen and cocodamol before my first one. I couldn't believe how painful it was. I expected it was going to be worse than the leaflet suggested but I was shocked at how much it hurt. It worked really well though and I had another fitted about three or four months after dd2 and that was no more than a little bit uncomfortable. I do wish they would explain that fitting them can range from uncomfortable to agony though and discuss what pain relief can be offered.

I was lucky to have my coil fitted during a biopsy. The pain relief wasn't enough for the biopsy, but I coped. There were women in their 70's who didn't cope as well.

I’ve seen comparisons to how everyone is sedated for a colonoscopy. I know that’s probably more invasive and painful but it seems crazy so many of us have been expected to have a coil fitted with nothing other than a paracetamol beforehand.

@Herja it didn't have to be an injection, it could have been a pessary.

I was about 22 when my first was fitted and no dc, my second was after 2 vaginal births. I had thought that this was why it was not painful for the second.

"I’ve seen comparisons to how everyone is sedated for a colonoscopy"
Likewise the camera down your throat. But men have these as well, so pain relief is offered and they aren't seen as 'lunch hour' procedures.

I'm on my 4th Mirena now, don't recall ever being offered any pain relief

1st one was no problem as not long after childbirth so assume cervix wasn't fully closed

2nd was awful, after getting the old one out the GP had to abandon attempt to get new one in as my cervix went into shock. I returned about a month later and managed to have new one fitted but was not pleasant

3rd and 4th I was expecting the worst but all went OK although still quite a traumatic experience but I decided it was worth it for the sake of not thinking about contraception for another 5 years

Luckily my GP and the nurse who assists are very patient and understanding during the procedure and have never been dismissive about the pain. I'm hoping my current Mirena will take me through menopause now!

I've had endoscopy and colonoscopy done without sedation (it doesn't work on me so zero point trying) and then a coil. The endoscopy was the least uncomfortable, the colonoscopy pinched a bit going around bends and the coil was two sharp pains for me. All tolerable for me. That said I'm loaded up on pain meds anyway due to a spinal injury and have reduced sensation from the waist down so that may be why!

Colonoscopy and coil were equal ish to me - it doesn't make sense not to offer at least gas and air as most places could do that within their existing infrastructure.

I've had two, and my virgin uterus has never had a baby (sorry, Mumsnet).

They both hurt initially. Having your cervix forced open will hurt! I was under no illusions that it wouldn't hurt, to be honest. I've never had one done at a GP surgery, only at a sexual health clinic where they presumably specialise in it a bit more. Yes, they hurt. Maybe, being an endometriosis sufferer, I was just used to shooting pains in the uterus and pelvic area? Who knows?

They have helped my endo, though. I now don't bleed or get pains in my uterus at all (though my rectal endometriosis is another story).

My personal opinion: Yes, women should be offered anaesthetic of some kind - it's an invasive procedure! I wouldn't like the coil to be phased out, though. It has done wonders for my endo and is a reliable form of contraception. I personally prefer it to the implant (which made me fat and moody).

@mrsgrealish69, I have to have regular colonoscopies and I can tell you even though they are invasive I would rather have one every week than have a coil fitted, I have had 3 and probably should have had the last one removed years ago, its a mirena and I think it has helped me get through menopause, going back nearly 30 years ago when I had my first fitted the pain nearly made me pass out, I feel so angry that afer all this time women are still suffering so badly.

I had a coil in the years before having children. Mine was fitted during bleeding. Medication wise I was given 800mg Ibuprofen and Cytotec to ripen and soften the cervix before. It was uncomfortable but not unbearable.
However I won't get another one. I always had a feeling of something being there and was glad when I got rid of it after a few years.