Birth control shot vs Hormonal IUD

.ljkebherg

The beginning i bled a lot, 40 plus day periods with few breaks in between. After about a year my periods went away and I only have spotting now. I recently found out I should only be using this form for no more than 2 years but this is my best option. It has been affecting my bones because I experience pain in my knees and hips that I haven't before this birth control. It does control my acne and is reliable which is a plus for me, i haven't experienced weight gain which is a common side effect. I have migraines more often after my shot and leading up to it as well. Overall I don't care for birth control in general and will be looking for other options.

i get non-stop acne

I’ve had it for 6 months and I have my period twice a month and the pain is pretty consistent day to day.

My first IUD placement (Mirena) was without numbing shots, and it really was quite painful. The immediate pain lasted only a few seconds, but I had hot flashes for a few minutes afterwards. The next week, I got the heaviest period of my life, followed by about 4 months of light bleeding. After that, I lost my period completely for about 3 years, and then very light and irregular periods until I had it replaced. My period used to cause painful acne and very frustrating mood swings, which I was quite happy to go without. I did have some discomfort during sex, but only with larger partners and only in certain positions. My second IUD was the Kyleena. I did have numbing shots for the placement, and it was much more comfortable - similar to getting a pap smear. My period has gone away again, and I haven't noticed any pain during sex (Kyleena is a little smaller). My only real concern about the IUD is that if I were to become pregnant while the IUD is in place, it is very likely to be ectopic. I do take a pregnancy test every couple of months, so if it does happen I can get the care I need. I live in a state with very good and safe abortion care, so I would be able to get help right away, but it's still something to keep in mind. All that being said, I would 100% recommend an IUD. I have been nearly period-free since 2018, which is well worth the pain of insertion. I really appreciate being able to avoid the acne, pain, and mood swings I used to get with my period, and I really really appreciate that I have an incredibly effective form of birth control that I only have to think about once every 8 years. I love my IUD so much, and I am probably going to use IUDs as my primary form of birth control for the rest of my life.

If you are considering the hormonal IUD route, I highly encourage you to read this! I primarily chose to switch over to the Mirena due to the weight gain I experienced while on the pill. To preface, I never had any issues with vaginal dryness prior to the switch. Following the insertion, I have been almost completely unable to get wet. As I stated before, this was never a problem for me regardless of arousal. It has been over a year, and without using an external lubricant, I physically cannot have sex due to the severity of this issue. It can be humiliating if the person i’m getting with isn’t aware of the causation. Just wanted to make it known, because it’s impacted my life pretty significantly.

I took this for endometriosis and it dialed my pain and symptoms down from a 9 to a 2-3, for a whole year. Unfortunately after a year I felt the pain begin to creep back in, a little more intense every month after that year mark, so I decided to pursue excision surgery as a more permanent solution. If you’re not ready for surgery but want endo relief, definitely encourage you to give Mirena a try!

I just had it inserted yesterday.

Just got this inserted early November. It's December and Im experiencing a month of bleeding, cramps, irritability, nausea, headaches, dizziness, feeling unwell everyday.

Caused increased anxiety, extreme cystic acne that did not respond to prescription acne treatments, and severe hair loss. Made my periods longer and heavier at first, then they finally started getting lighter but I was still spotting almost every day. Gave me hot flashes badly.

Didn't use it long enough to really form an opinion yet, but the reason I got it in the first place was because of very heavy periods and cramps. It has helped with that.

After 14 months I pretty much don't have a period, but I still have light to moderate cramping a couple of times a month.