Can I have your opinion on the 'coil' for contraception.....

[Dawnus]

Everything I have heard about the coil is negative...it is my last available contraceptive as none of the others have agreed with me (yes, I really have tried them all!!!)...be it non-existent sex drive, migraines, weight gain, mood swings etc etc etc.

I'm breast-feeding (which is a good contraception on it's own i'm led to believe) but cannot imagine finding myself pregnant again following a shit pregnancy and no sleep now she's here.

My GP has said that the 5 year coil usually stops your period (bloody marvellous if that's true)...and that because all of the hormones remain in you womb there are few side effects?

Weight gain?

Please give me the lo-down on what you have heard or have personal experience with.

Cheers

I have the standard coil - not the mirena - it has been in since October - easy now its in apart from my periods lasting 2 weeks!!! and being very very heavy (they weren't exactly light before)Am thinking about getting it taken out.

2 of my friends got pregnant while bf

I have a son conceived while breastfeeding.

I refused to have the coil - the hormone implant ones can cause a lot of bleeding apparently. I've also had enough of doctors wanting to stick things up my nether regions thanks very much.

A good alternative is the minipill (you can take Cerazette while breastfeeding) although I've just come off it because it was making me a tad nutty (PMT crazy type nutty) and my boobs have got their own postcode they are so big - add breastfeeding to taking the minipill and it's like having a Jordan makeover !!!!

Cant comment on the coil but did conceive while breastfeeding.I thought it was a good form of contrception, how wrong was i.

Tried the mini-pill, wasn't ideal as I have the worst memory known to man (since having children) and the time-slot allowed for taking it each day is limited! LOL

Just looked at the print-out the doc gave me...it's called an IUS (10 yr one IUD)

yes thats the one i have i think (if its not the mirena) as Dr told me i can have it in for 10 years! I don't think its gonna last 1 year at this rate tho

Yeah, the bleeding issue concerns me...had the implant after DS which made me pretty much have permanent period and subsequently I became very anaemic

I am interested in this, i have been offered a coil but im scared after a horific time with various other contraceptive methods, i am worried about wieght gian and continuous spotting which i have had with every othet type of hormonal contraception.

I got pg with a Mirena. I don't reccommend it for that reason alone!

Dawnus - Snap me to, i was the same with the mini pill (several types) hence being concerned about a coil.

The NHS guidelines now are that if you are 35 or over they try and encourage you to have a coil because they reckon it'll take you to menopause and they can just leave it in for ever (I personally find that quite a scary prospect!)

I asked for a tubal ligation and was told I should have a coil. But I refused. I was then told that even tubal ligation has a 1% chance of failure.

I guess nature is fairly resilient in this respect.

How about the implant then? If you can't remember every day, could you remember every three months to go to get a top up?

Had the injection before DD conceived...it was gr8, no periods...but you can't have it long term, hence now considering the IUS and not having to think about it for 5 years

I've got a Mirena (coil + hormones) and so far, so good. I had the implant between DD1 and DD2, and it was OK but I didn't like the completely irregular periods.

I got the coil in a while back, and have only just stopped bf-ing DD2 (now 13 months) but so far no sign of a period .

I have a friend with a non-hormone coil, and like stillenacht, she has very heavy periods now.

I've lost 2 stone since coil has been in (though this is due to dieting, not the coil itslf!!), no problems I've noticed with moods. I don't have much of a sex-drive but blame that on exhaustion, bf-ing and a total phobia about getting pg again.

They told me down the clinic that Mirena was as reliable as sterilisation, which I hope is true because getting pg again would be absolutely awful for various reasons. But I've heard of people like mugglewump who still got pg, so I'm sending DH for the snip and still keeping the coil in, just to be extra sure!

So, I'd recommend it, in general!