COIL - experiences and would you recommend one?

[Wilkie]

Am in a major dilemma about contraception.

Can't take any hormonal contraception, use condoms but have had one split in past and got pg, don't fancy the cap...

Does it hurt to have put in? What are the +/- to it.

I'm 25, married, have DS but want at least one more child.

bump

I used it for years without incident (the copper, non-hormone one), and liked it a lot. Eventually parted company from it a few months ago, when my periods got too heavy. But I've had four pgs and am considerably older than you -- periods generally get heavier as you get towards your forties, esp if you've had several babies. The coil can make this worse, and for me it was starting to get out of hand, so I had it removed, which has helped calm things down. But for the first 7 or 8 years it was great.

The insertion is uncomfortable, but not agony. Check how much experience the person who's doing it has had, and take a couple of painkillers an hour beforehand. Removal is done in seconds, and you can get pg right away.

I've got the mirena which has hormone in it. It didn't hurt at all to have it put in but I've had a few children and the youngest was a month old.

I got a bit irritated down below by the threads - can make you more likely to get infections and stuff

Can make your periods heavier (the non-mirena one that is)

I guess it's there all the time you don't have to think about contraception

I take it you have no moral/religious/ethical views on how it works?

Tough call I have the mirena as I've run out of other options and have really heavy periods on balance it's good but it wouldn't be my first choice if I had other options IYSWIM

Haave the def ruled out mirena for you as that has a tiny amount of hormone compared to minipill/combined/injection etc?

I have the mirena, didn't really hurt going in, had no probs with it, apart from once monthly tender breasts (tmi. sorry). My sil had a bad reaction to hers straight away, just so you're forewarned.

There's a really long thread on this in the health section.

A Mirena is hormonally based. It is progesten based.

I've had a copper one about 12 months now...

Pros: No real worry about pregnancy (will expand on the "real" in a bit)

My hormones are natural again - much much needed

Insertion was fine - just like a smear. I got myself far more worked up than needed.

Cons:

Periods can be heavier/hurt more - My first 3 were heavier, but are settling now, same with pain.

If you are superfertile the worry of pregnancy is still there - the copper is meant to kill of most sperm, and the coil stop implantation of any that do get through and fertilise. I am one of those who just needs to be looked at without contraception and fall pregnant... I am 99% certain that 8 weeks or so ago I was pregnant and the coil worked it's coily magic, but I would have been about 5 weeks at the time. My hormones went nuts, hurt lots etc and I am slightly worried if it happens again I am much more likely to end up ectopic

But all that is a low % of people.

All in all I am liking it and sticking with it - mainly because it is my best of a load of bad options like yourself!

had 2 copper ones - the first a complete dream, 2nd made me a bit crampy at certain times of the month ( not the usual times ) so not sure if it was put in crooked or something. Not bad enough to be a real problem but was happy to have it removed. Got a mirena now which is brilliant.

Insertion depends alot on person doing it. I got the best treatment from the family planning clinic ( I suppose they have more experience )wouldn't go to the doctor again.

They used an anasthetic gel, didn't feel a thing and they were really quick.

Flamebatfink I'm sure that happened to me too. Not sure how I felt about it for a while.

i have no contraception atm
cant take pill/injection, didnt like implant
not sure where i stand morally with the coil
am interested what others think

I still feel a bit tbh even though I know I don't want more children atm

Mine was along time ago so hadn't thought of it for ages. Decided that I got the coil as didn't want another DC at that time so its job had been done, no guarantees that I had conceived or that it would have grown to a baby anyway. Midwife with DS3 said that she delivered a placenta with a coil in it once!! so where theres a will etc

I got preganant with the coil....................DH only has to look at me and I get pregnant so in reflection it was bad choice for us. Decided for all sorts of reasons to terminate.

DH then had snip and its wonderful but then we didnt want any more children.

Sorry to sound thick - what moral/ethical issues are we talking about?

BTW - I am very fertile. Have fallen pregnant twice, first go. Took MAP with first but still stayed PG, unfortunately m/c. Fell pg second time immediately.

with the non-hormone coil it works by stopping a fertilised egg/embryo implanting in the womb whereas the hormone coil (mirena) stops you producing good eggs, makes our cervix hostile to sperm etc so there is highly unlikely ever to be a fertilised egg/embryo to try and implant itself.

So it depends how you feel about preventing a fertilised egg/embryo being stopped from developing rather than stopping fertilisation occurring

it doesnt stop fertilisation, just implantation

I think - that you can actually concieve but the coil stops it implanting. No different to morning after pill I suppose.

Also quite fertile and would not consider anything other than a coil. Do not like the pill and everything else requires to much thought.

If you have not talked to anyone professional I would suggest going to family planning, its a bit embarrasing sitting with a load of teenagers but they definately know their stuff, much better than my brilliant GP. I had to go as doctor who did coils left.

I understood that the mirena stops the lining of the womb growing so the egg has nothing to implant in, thats why you get no/ v v light periods.

I had a Mirena for years (1 for 5 years, then replaced with a new one for another 4 years)

It didn't hurt in the least going in, and had no side effects (or periods) that whole time. However, I was one of the very few % who managed to get pregnant with it (later m/c).

I will just give my experiences, not my opinion (well, I suppose I won't be able to resist opionion actually!).

I had the mirena coil fitted in May 2006. My dr had been trying to convince me for a long time as condoms caused irritation. She finally convinced me when I was mentally ill, as she said it may help calm my hormones.

The fitting was simple BUT very painful. If you have had a child it won't hurt much; the doctor said it is much less painful than childbirth. I bled for about 2 weeks after, and had bad period pain for the same length of time... really bad! You are supposed to go back and have it checked, but I didn't because I changed GPs for several reasons.

I had gained weight due to mental illness/medication, and the mirena didn't help that cause as initially I had some bloating and that constant urge to eat that you get with your period. After 2 weeks the pain and bleeding more or less stopped and I had no periods until about March this year when I had 2 horrendous days of bleeding and pain and then nothing for another 9 weeks, then a few days of slightly lighter bleeding, then nothing until end of July when I had a seemingly normal period. Time will tell if this is my periods getting back to normal or if I will continue with them every 2 months, but the fact that get lighter and last longer each time, suggests they are settling down a bit.

I did initially get sharp pains down below but the nurse had told me that something like this might happen as the coil settled. But then again you ARE supposed to have it checked out to make sure it hasn't slipped, and they can actually expel themselves, which you may not always notice. The doctor cut the threads off the end of mine so I can't feel them - must get it checked out! Every so often I get those sharp constant pains down there, and it feels like something pushing on my cervix I guess, but it isn't unbearable, just a bit disconcerting at first.

Some people never have periods with mirena, some only light ones and mine were non-existant until recently; now they are light. The main issue for me is the feelings of hunger you get when on your period, seem to be there a lot of the time!

If you want convenience and don't mind initial discomfort/constant bleeding for up to 3 months, then I would recommend the mirena.

My mirena has been great. No periods, no pain, no pmt, no weight gain.

Just a bit painful going in but thats it. I hope to have it removed this time next year to try for No.3

taken off the website

Once Mirena is in place, it begins to slowly release small amounts of the hormone levonorgestrel into your uterus. It does not contain estrogen, so you can be free of estrogen-related side effects.

While there is no single explanation for how Mirena works, it may:

Block sperm from reaching or fertilizing your egg
Make the lining of your uterus thin (this may also result in benefits like less menstrual bleeding over time)
Stop the release of your egg from your ovary (but this is not the way it works in most cases)
It is believed that all 3 of these actions may work together to prevent pregnancy.

Oh and my hormones do seem to have settled a lot.