Copper Coil / IUD experiences

[djsnfne]

Hi all, looking for some experiences with the copper coil.
Currently I have had the hormonal implant for 4 months and it just isn’t for me. Terrible mood with PMS and low sex drive so I am intending to have it removed.
However, I have previously had an uNplanned pregnancy and miscarriage after just using condoms/ovulation tracking hence why I got the implant, so I need some kind of contraception, but I’ve tried the pill previously and didn’t get on with that either so I’ve come to the conclusion hormones just aren’t for me.
obviously I am anticipating pain putting it in, but just wanted to see if there’s any other side effects I should be aware of :)

I’ve had three in a row - a ten year effective one followed by two five year effective ones. The ten year was pretty painful to put in because it’s slightly thicker and requires the cervix to be opened more. (Though I’m childfree and nurse who did the fitting said it’s usually less painful for women who’ve had vaginal births.) You can request a local anaesthetic to the cervix if you know you’ve a low pain tolerance. The five year coils were a breeze, not much more painful than a smear and I cycled home right afterwards with no discomfort.

I’ve not had any side effects in the 16 years I’ve had my coils, though some women find their periods slightly heavier and a bit crampier. From memory I think my first couple of periods after the first install were a bit more painful but that was it. I’d definitely recommend: so many women put up with mood swings, skin outbreaks, low libido, lethargy, weight gain etc linked to hormonal contraception, I’m so glad I never tried anything but the copper coil.

I had one fitted a month or so ago. I’d read some horror stories about the fitting so was a bit nervous but personally found it completely painless (I have had a child which helps). Very minor cramps and spotting that evening but gone the next day. My periods are normally 7 days and my first period since fitting was 8 days. But no heavier. I did feel cramps a bit more but not to the level of it bothering me. Other than that no other side affects. I’m still early days but so far I’m very happy!

I had a mirena coil which worked great for 3 years and no side affects, apart from the pain of having it inserted and removed, until I found out I was nearly 3 months pregnant. My coil moved and became stuck which reduced the efficiency, after a gynaecologist successfully but struggled to remove it, I gave birth to my daughter 6 months later.

Oh god hahaha I’ve actually heard several stories of people having unexpected coil babies - worries me a bit

Thank you for sharing - feel like all I see is the coil getting a bad rep for pain but I think I’d rather a heavier period than my current issue of turning into a crazy person with PMS on hormones 🤣

agree completely, it shouldn’t be normal to have to suffer such horrible side effects with hormones, im definitely going to look into the five year coil , I’d take a bit of pain if it meant no more hormones :)

I think it’s worth noting as well that it’s natural that people will post more negative experiences than positive or neutral ones. A bit like restaurant reviews - a perfectly fine meal and you probably wouldn’t bother but a crap one gets a scathing review pretty quickly! It does skew the view and make you more worried than perhaps is necessary. At the end of the day, if you don’t like it you can just have it removed so worth a try

I chose a copper coil to avoid hormonal birth control. Having it fitted was uncomfortable and I had bad cramps for a couple of days. I now have occasional cramps around my period that I never had before but while I wondered at first if I made the right decision, I'm really glad I did it.

I loved my coil, there was no pain at insertion or removal, I had to have it removed because I had an infection that wasn't responding to antibiotics, as soon as I can get it replaced I will be. My period went from 3 days to 5, but not heavier or more painful