Implanon contraception?

[June2009]

Hiya,

Just had a baby and currently on the mini pill, I'm rubbish at remembering to take it and it won't be long before I forget to!
I'm looking at other alternatives and the GP was pushing the implant.
Have any of you got it?
I've google it for pictures and it looks quite obvious on there, not sure I want people asking what it is.
Also can you still do training like (heavy) weight lifting?
Nasty side effects I should know about? (I know these can vary but if everybody who replies has had the same...you never know).
Or other alternatives that work better for you?

DD (who is 19) has had one for around 6 months. She has said she thinks she's putting on a bit of weight but tbh, she could do with it, she's pretty skinny! Despite that the implant doesn't seem obvious at all, though you can feel it.

DD is an occasional mumsnetter, but she is at the Beautiful Days Festival atm, so probably won't see this- I'll point her in this direction when she returns.

Morning, I have had implanon since november and have had no side effects really although my periods have stopped completely (positive side effect ). You can feel it in your arm but you can't see it. Hasn't stopped me doing anything. HTH.

I've got one, it's pretty good, I like the freedom of not having to worry about contraception and once it's in, it's there for three years. It was easy to have it put in although I had to wear an elasticated bandage on my arm for about 12 hours and then there was a slight bruise at the site which lasted ab few days. It's not at all visible in my arm, but I am on the chubby side so that probably helps. I still have periods and sadly PMT which to be honest I was hoping it would help with. I think I've put on a bit of weight since having it but I don't know if that's due to the implant or just down to me. No other side effects though.

i had 1 fitted when dd2 was 3 weeks old . i loved the confidence of not having to think about contraception and not having periods (occasional spotting).
on the down side i gained just under a stone in a year which my gp put down to the hormones in the implant. ive since had it removed and now have a copper coil and have started to loose weight now. hth

I had one in for the full 3 years before I had my last baby.

Couldn't be seen but could feel it with your fingers, had headaches for about the first 3 months after that nothing,I still had periods, they didn't dissapear for me!

I had it removed in the September and fell pregnant with Ds2 in the December, so fertilty returns straight away.

I would reccomend it

mmm...mixed bag of experiences.
I really can't be gaining any more weight, i have 3 stones to loose as it is.
Is it water retention or can it be helped by exercise...
I've forgotten my mini pill 3 times now, in 20 days.

God its so hard isn't it, i'm trying to decide wether to get this but all the horror stories are really putting me off.

a friend of mine who is a gp suggested i asked my gp for a 12 hour pill rather than a 3 hour like micronor.

I guess with the implant at least you can take it off and whatever symptoms you have will go away, with the injection you're kinda stuck with them until it wears off.

I am not sure of the implications with breast cancer for implanon, I saw something on their site "breast cancer history", not sure if that's when you have had it yourself or when someone in your family has had it (mum was diagnosed with it back in 92 and died in 93).