Discharge with mirena

[Pegs11]

Hi, I had a mirena coil fitted last December. I was told side effects to could last up six months, but it’s been 10 months and I’m still getting excessive discharge. About five or six times the usual amount.

I do not have an infection, and I have been examined to check the coil is correctly placed.

One nurse suggested this may be my “new normal”… but I need to wear panty liners all the time and that doesn’t seem right to me and it’s not acceptable to me either.

I should add, I’m also on oestrogen as I went through surgical menopause at age 32 (I’m now 41).

I’m getting fed up with it. Has anyone else experienced this discharge for more than six months? Did it return to normal eventually?

The doctor who fitted mine said that Mirena would likely resolve my heavy periods... so long as I could put up with the discharge.

Mine settled but never went back to normal, and I do wear liners every day. And my periods stopped for 5 years, so it was an improvement for me.

I bled constantly (and heavily (for 13 months with a mirena in. I was glad to have it removed, but believe it or not I had to really put my foot down and insist on removal. I found doctors reluctant, still wanting me to give it more time. Apparently indefinitely.

It works well for some people and not for others. It is rather a marmite thing really in that you love it or hate it.

same here, some sort of bleeding / spotting / weird discharge most days and heavier bleeding and worse cramps than I had before. It was so bad I took days off sick. Like you I had all the follow up checks and they kept suggesting it would settle. Thankfully it bled itself out after a year so i didn't have to beg to get it removed! Do you really need it if you've been through surgical menopause?

Thank you everyone. So it seems it’s not that unusual, but that people find it a pain.

As I am on oestrogen and can’t tolerate progesterone meds, I do unfortunately need a coil to keep the womb lining thin and prevent endometriosis. The only other option available to me is a hysterectomy. But I’m honestly considering it! 😅

Yes! My coil will have been in for three years in Jan and there's still lots of discharge and I have to wear a pad. So annoying. Relieved to see I'm not the only one.

@itwasfkinoneoyas I’m also glad I’m not the only one! Are you on anything hormone-wise too?

[quote Pegs11]@itwasfkinoneoyas I’m also glad I’m not the only one! Are you on anything hormone-wise too?[/quote]
No, I was on the mini pill too but it made me feel crazy. Today I was told I could go for an endometrial ablation and be sterilised at the same time, or have a hysterectomy. My periods are really heavy which is why I got a coil but I'm bleeding and have so much liquid type discharge most of the time that it's just irritating.

@itwasfkinoneoyas. I couldn’t tolerate the pill either. It was the progesterone in it. Turned me into a proper goblin.

I’m sorry about your recent consultation, that must have been quite disheartening. Has top-up hormonal treatment ever been suggested?

No it hasn't ever been talked about. Those ops are pretty hardcore and not something I intend to rush into! I'll have a while to think it over. Tell me more about this hormone top up. Message me privately if you'd like.

I am on my 16th year of merina coils. 3rd one.

I've not had discharge at all, except with the second one when it went out of date. NHS were useless so I went for a private consultation. The consultant told me that the jellyish blood streaked discharge was my womb lining shedding.

The change to no 3 stopped that.

Re progesterone - I also cannot tolerate it in the pill but I've just had a private menopause consultation and she told me that HRT (for the womb lining) progesterone is different and I may well be able to tolerate it. She has prescribed tablets that can be used as a pessary, which means if I get problems rapidly I can remove it. But she's comfortable that it may well be OK (and I'm willing to try it).

So maybe worth revisiting that if the coil is causing issues.

I'm keeping mine in even though it's out of date, as apparently if you have it put in after age 45 you can keep it to age 55 for contraception purposes even though it usually only lasts five years.

@itwasfkinoneoyas I am post-menopausal due to surgical menopause, so my case is different and I can’t say whether hormone top-ups would be appropriate for you… but nonetheless it might be worth you making enquiries, seeing what other options might be available to you to try

@VanGoghsDog I have tried all sorts of progesterone and they all have the same effect, I get depressed and anxious and angry… it really alters my personality! and so I just can’t use it.

The coil has progesterone but in such tiny amounts as to be negligible.

I’m doing so well on the coil apart from this stupid discharge.

I’m hoping to have an ultrasound to see if the coil is definitely in the right place, as if it’s not, that could be affecting things. I also asked for a gynaecologist appointment today.

I’m on my second mirena, and yes I get quite a bit of discharge. To me it’s a price worth paying to control the flooding, but it can be annoying.

Shame about the progesterone, I'm fatally allergic myself, to one type, so fingers crossed the HRT type doesn't have the same issue - though if it did it might sort my menopause and contraception problems out in one fair swoop!

@BringPizza

I’m on my second mirena, and yes I get quite a bit of discharge. To me it’s a price worth paying to control the flooding, but it can be annoying.

Exactly. I'm willing to put up with it.