Experiences of Mirena coil for heavy periods, adenomyosis and anaemia?

[ParkerPyne]

I’m hoping for some perspectives on whether I should try a mirena (or other hormonal) coil for my heavy periods. I’m 43, have one child and my ferritin is back in single figures again and my Hb is low too. I think I might have adenomyosis (ultrasounds show a ‘bulky uterus’ - flattering!) but my Drs are not interested in the cause of the heavy bleeding, they just keep pushing a coil. I’m now taking iron tablets and taking tranexamic acid during my period to reduce the bleeding. This worked last time but a longer term solution would be nice.

I don’t feel ready for a hysterectomy or ablation (very unlikely to want more children but complicated feelings due to difficult fertility history). I’ve read a lot of horror stories about the coil and my interactions with women’s health services in the NHS haven’t been reassuring.

Currently I have bleeding/brown discharge for 3 out of 4 weeks. My periods are very heavy - super plus tampon with two pairs of period pants at night, flooding in the day, pain which stops me sleeping for a couple of nights even after heavy pain meds.

But I’m worried about a coil for a few reasons. My mood - I have general anxiety disorder. My already pretty crap sex drive (although the anaemia and constant bleeding don’t help with that currently tbf) and could it actually make the bleeding worse/more continuous. Finally, I don’t trust that the NHS would remove it if it didn’t settle down after giving it a good go.

Sorry this is long (trying to get all the info in) but I’d really appreciate anyone’s perspective on this.

For me the mirena was life changing. I had endo and it blighted my life. I would bleed heavily every two weeks and was in agony a lot of the time. I had it treated with lasers twice but it came back aggressively each time. I used to have to carry spare clothes to work with me and would often be close to fainting with the pain.

Once I accepted that I would never have a child I had the mirena fitted at age 36. I have not had a period since and I'm 56 now. I am on my 5th coil now I think as it now forms part of my HRT treatment.

I sometimes wonder if I had had it fitted when I was in my early 20s it may have given me the option to have it removed when I wanted to start trying for a baby and my fertility may have been saved.

I do have a bit of problem with anxiety but I put that down to the stress of adopting and raising two children. I take magnesium and occasionally CBD oil if I need a quick remedy.

Sex drive no different.

The mirena was also life changing for me. It wasn't instant -- I did actually bleed out the first one I'd had inserted, after a couple of months of blessed respite from heavy bleeding (that necessitated sitting on a towel and bringing changes of clothes with me everywhere), but the second one stayed put and worked.

I only have positive things to say about the coil too - I’m 52 with endo - mirena has been brilliant for me. And for my daughter with endo and adeno in her twenties - absolutely life changing compared to the pain she used to suffer. We haven’t experienced any ill effects other than it taking a few months to settle down.

15 years ago I could have written your email, OP. My (female) GP insisted that a Mirena would sort everything out.

It didn't make a blind bit of difference. I put up with it for ages as the GP kept telling me to give it time. She also refused to prescribe me iron tablets despite a Ferratin reading of 7.2 as she said she could tell by looking at me that I wasn't anaemic!

Eventually I saw a different GP who referred me to a gynae consultant. It turned out I had a massive fibroid. I had it removed and all the issues went away.

Try the Mirena and see how you get on, as it does work for lots of women, but if it doesn't help then insist on a gynae referral to get to the bottom of it. I only wish I'd done it sooner.

I have always had heavy periods.
In my 20s I was a teacher and on day 1 and 2 I would use a super plus tampon and a thick towel at 8:30 am (rushing to the loo quickly before kids came in) and I was always worried that I wouldn't last until morning break. If I was on playground duty, I had to swap or get a TA to cover my class so I could go to the loo. It was really bad.
I was a vegetarian for about 6 years and gave up in the end because I was always anaemic, and I just couldn't eat enough iron rich foods.

fast forward 10 years and post kids my periods were worse. So heavy on morning of day 1 that I didn't leave the house.

I got a mirena. Went to very light periods to no periods over about 6 months and then had it until menopause.
It was completely life changing.

Life changing for me, too. I have been through years and years of heavy, painful periods (day 2 for me would be a super plus ultra tampon and pad, and I would be leaking through that after an hour). That would continue for the next two days then it would slow down and the same would happen again 3 weeks later. It was horrendous. I had to arrange my life around whether I would be bleeding or not. I had scans and tests to investigate which showed no reason (so I am putting it down to hormones). Eventually after becoming anaemic last year I had a mirena in October. 6 months on, I have no periods. I wish I had had one years ago. It has made my life so much better.

Thanks so much everyone, although sorry to hear about how much pain and inconvenience people experienced. It’s reassuring to hear that it’s been positive for so many of you. I do think it would be life changing if I could get on top of this. @AnnaQuayRules your GP sounds absolutely bananas, not prescribing iron because you don’t look anaemic? Really glad it’s all sorted now, but wow. I’ll see if I can get an appointment to talk through the options.

The Mirena will treat the symptoms but not the cause so I would endeavour further to find out exactly what is causing the heavy bleeding. For example both endometriosis and or fibroids can cause this to arise.

If finances permit I’d go private and see a gynae for an initial consultation. You will need a referral letter from the gp. This is also because waiting lists for gynaecology in many areas are miles long.

I know! I have a naturally very red face and she said she could tell I had enough iron even though the test results said otherwise! When I eventually got the hospital appointment to remove the thyroid they wouldn't operate at first because my iron count was so low.

@Stripes84 Did you gain weight or have bloating on the Mirena?

Other than that I have found my people @ParkerPyne Currently 50 and my Clue tracker is just weeks of red. I don't have pain but flooded my boyfriend's car the other day, and just bleeding through everything on days 3 and 4; bleeding for half the month every month. I have a polyp which is being quickly removed and they are pushing the Mirena but I ballooned on it when I tried it a few years ago. Might be different now?

Other than that I have no pain or real peri symptoms. I hadn't found anyone else who was experiencing bleeding like I am!

@BrightNewLifeI have gained a bit of weight (3-4lbs) but I cannot blame this solely on mirena as my diet is awful. I eat far too much chocolate. And my portions are too big. One thing I will say is that the lack of periods does make exercise easier, I am much more inclined to go out now and do regular walks. I even did parkrun the other day!! (Couldn't have even attempted that in my period days). Know exactly what you mean about days and days of red on the clue app. Have you tried tranexamic acid? My GP prescribed that to halt one particularly hideous bout of bleeding which did work eventually. Take care. X

@Stripes84 Thanks for your quick reply, and I'm glad for you! I massively sorted out my diet last year thanks to the HBD diet and lost 5-7 kilos really quickly, which has stayed off! So I can go back to that if I feel it creeping up.

It is true that I love working out 4+ times a week and the red days put a stop to it, so I am using around 8 or more gym days a month, so maybe it will all balance out.

TA was not that effective, just prolonged it for days and days, light/brown watery bleeding. I feel our options are so limited and with so many side effects!

@brightnewlifeI am not sure whether you have already mentioned in a previous post but it may be worth getting your iron levels checked. I believe if you have low ferritin or anaemia that this can make periods heavier, which then turns into a bit of a cycle (pardon the pun). My ferritin was low due to heavy periods. I had the mirena at the end of October and was prescribed iron tablets for 3 months, thankfully all now resolved (another thing to thank mirena for!). You could always give it a try again. After 6 months of it I have forgotten its there! I do now need to address my chocolate habits Hope whatever you decide it all works out. X

Life changing for me. Had it fitted during a laparoscopy for endo and adenomyosis
no more periods

Another one here with endo and actually just had my second coil fitted today! It was life changing for me, I don’t have periods anymore and my endo is no longer life limiting like it was.

i had also had previous meds like the pill which had worsened my anxiety but this hasn’t changed my mood at all. I imagine we’re all different though - you could try it and see if it works for you?

Thanks @Stripes84 Yes it has made me anemic to the point where I have iron infusions at the hospital. They are a game changer! However it is not sustainable to just bleed out again weeks later 😬

I had a 14 day cycle with bleeds that were so heavy I had to set an alarm on the night to change my sanitary protection. After the insertion of the Mirena, I went to no periods at all!!!! It was magical. I also
suffer with anxiety. I wouldn’t say it made any difference to that.

I could have written the OP’s post!

My GP has been pushing Mirena but I am worried about weight gain and bloating. I am also troubled that the root cause is being ignored. It seems like this has been sold to GPs as a catch all solution.

I am planning to try for a referral to a gynae so I can have some tailored advice. The GP just doesn’t know. For example, I am only on medication to reduce heavy bleeding because I asked for this, having read about it on mumsnet. Previously my GP would just listen to me sharing how I can’t cope with the heavy periods and constant flooding, and she never thought to mention that medication is available to help! I have been bleeding at various points for at least half of this past month. It feels like I’m bleeding all the time.

I had massive fibroids when I was pregnant and was put on the pill at age 12 due to heavy bleeding.

So now I take thyroid medication, ferritin and tranexamic acid. I was also taking HRT until recently.

I feel like there is something fundamentally wrong with me and my cycle and no doctor is interested.

I actually would just like to have a hysterectomy and be done with the whole thing.

I had the Mirena for 10 years, right up to menopause for heavy bleeding. It was life changing

@Jane143

Did the Mirena cause weight gain for you? I know it’s vain but I worry about this. I just stopped HRT as I packed on weight with it, especially around my stomach.

Coil made me put on weight. Stopped the bleeding for 18 mths only but then it came back, I've had the lovely ten day periods for nearly a year. I'm currently working through other progesterone options with my menopause doctor which are not yet working, then we'll go to scan and see if I need a procedure if the latest pills don't fix it. I had adenomyosis and a fibroid before the coil, after the coil they had returned to 'normal for a women of your age' size. Who knows what we'll see on the next scan.
Anyway I kind of hate the coil, especially now it's not working any more, but many women love it.

No I don’t think so. It was a long time ago and I stayed around a size 12, depends if you think that’s big or not, I know it would be for a size 8 person x

It did not cause weight gain for me.

The mirena coil is little more than a contraceptive. Sorry..

it may stop pregnancies but I wouldn’t rely on it.

it does not solve period pains nor treatment for likes of fibroids, endro or cysts.