Periods, the copper coil and swimming?

[AmyFarrahFowler]

I'm going to have the copper coil put in, my doc said that I won't e able to use tampons with it which I wasn't bothered by but I've now realised that I use a tampon if I want to swim when I've got my period, so does this mean I can't swim during my period now?

I bleed too heavily to go without anything but love swimming and don't want to miss it each month.

What do people do?

You can use tampons with a coil.

Just not after it's first inserted, as there is a risk of infection for the first 3-4 weeks.

Also avoid tampon use towards the end of your period as the coil threads can be pulled out if they get caught in a 'dry' tampon - or use a tampon designed for very light flow.

More about coils here

Sidge thanks for that, my doc said categorically no tampons. Excellent, I can still swim I'm sure the exercise helps my period pain so didn't want to have to stop

Doc was wrong - well wrong-ish, no tampons at first!

Just remember to check your threads regularly (esp just after a period) and use the correct absorbency for your flow.

I use a Moon cup with the copper coil, my gp said no to tampons as the sit to high up but didn't use them anyway