Breakthrough Bleeding on Depo Provera?

[Mamf74]

Bit of boring background - I have stage 4 endometriosis and have pretty much exhausted all hormonal treatments. I had 2 Mirena coils as my body kept expelling them due to a dodgy cervix / uterus, this was pending surgery to excise the endo & remove two socking great endometriomas that had grown since my DD was born. As the Mirena didn't work (although was great whilst it was in!) my GP put me onto 3 monthly Depo Shots.

I had my 4th shot last Wednesday and mentioned to my GP that I was noticing a slight but definite increase in endo pain and had had a small amount of breakthrough bleeding. Her response was that this was impossible (!). I mentioned that most of the hormonal stuff I'd been on in the past had had a "shelf life", after which regular bleeding etc became re-established even if the pain didn't come back which she grudgingly accepted could happen.

Anyhoo, today I am bleeding properly and am in a bit of pain. I also have tested postive for a UTI so that could be related but is breakthrough bleeding common on Depo, and if so does it just happen intermittently or does a pattern emerge? And has anyone had this and had the frequency of their jabs increased?

Thanks for reading all the way through, just feel I'm about to go into battle with my GP and this poxy disease and want to get as much info as possible!

Hmm! I have been having Depo jabs for endometriosis for about 18 months. I had dreg type bleeding for weeks after the second shot and was give a months worth of mini pills to take on top. It's supposed to be renewed every 10-12 weeks but I found that if I left it towards the end, I'd start to bleed. So I made sure I went for the next shot as close to the 10 week mark as possible and the problem went away.

Am currently having a 6 month trial break to see whether my menopause is happening/finished. Week 11 now so waiting to see what happens next.

Thank you so much for your reply (apologies for not replying sooner, bloody modem upped & died).

I've been on loads of hormonal treatements and have also found that I was likely to get breakthrough bleeding towards the end but this has slightly freaked me out as it's just after a new jab when I would think the dose would be at it's strongest. I think I'll keep a diary and see how the bleeding & pain continues - this jab has been the worst I've had, really bad moods since pretty much day 1 and am seriously considering stopping.

Just as an aside - my metabolism has slowed to a crawl and that with a big craving for sugar has meant that although I'm not putting weight on I'm not losing any and need to for excision surgery & cyst removal. Did you have this, and have you noticed things getting back to normal after your jabs have stopped? This, tbh, is one of the bigger considerations for stopping the jabs. Feel a bit in limbo at the mo!

Thanks again for your reply!

Hiya. The short answer is yes! Have been fighting with my weight since taking Cerazette prior to the Depo shots. I've gained about 8-10lbs (and 2 bra cup sizes) and despite my best efforts it will not shift

I'm praying that once this last shot leaves my system, it will start to move. I cannot contemplate that I'm stuck with these squidgy bits.

I had bleeding all the time with the depo - had 2 jabs 12 weeks apart and bled throughout. I also put on loads of weight. The depo can also lead to thinning of your bones so another good reason not to use it.

www.netdoctor.co.uk/sex-and-relationships/medicines/depo-provera.html - gives side effects