Copper coil (IUD) vs Female condom

I wanted to get a contraception that was hormone free as I’d been on the implant since I was 18 and by the end of it my mental health had definitely taken a toll (my anxiety was unpredictable and awful!), as well as experiencing regular spotting. I went for the copper coil and the experience was pretty straight forward - I didn’t take painkillers beforehand because it was 9am (would not recommend getting the coil fitted at this time haha) but the lady gave me a numbing cream of some sort without me even asking which I appreciated. The pain was pretty bad but in an achey way - when she inserted it I could feel my uterus cramp up. I could barely walk home because it felt like the worst period cramp in the world and I got home and took some painkillers and cried it out for a few hours. I wouldn’t say this deterred me though and honestly I would recommend what the GP told me which is a mix of ibuprofen and paracetamol the day you’re getting it inserted. After this day, it was fine and an amazing decision. My hormones go up and down when they’re supposed to and I follow my cycle pretty accurately which is fun for a change! My periods are heavy on one day out of four or five that I’m bleeding, but nothing I can’t handle!

As I was reading these reviews before getting mine inserted I thought I’d give back by sharing my own experience also. I am writing this while very fresh in mind and I have only had it for a few days, so I cannot comment on long term effect yet. As I was mentally preparing to have it inserted, I was quite scared due to the many comments on how painful it would be to have inserted. What was not clear to me was the difference in terms of whether you have previously given birth or not. I could truely barely feel it at all and had no pain relief. I have given birth 2 times, and as late as 9 weeks ago. Wanted to share this as my physician also informed me that (here, Denmark) we only give pain relief to those who have not yet given birth. Other than that I experienced a little bit of slight bleeding for 1,5 days. Another thing worth commenting on is that you can feel the copper strings after insertion, so you can self-check that it is sitting right and in place. Hope my experiences also gives some comfort to someone else 😊

I had my copper coil for the full 10 years. I had always had slightly heavier periods before my coil however after having it fitted I suffered for years with extremely heavy periods that were painful and I would leak every time. They say it doesn’t make you gain weight however I gained 5 stone whilst on it. It came time to remove it and I was going to just have another fitted however the doctor couldn’t get it out i was bleeding everywhere and in intense pain. Was sent for emergency antibiotics for PID went through a week of feeling awful on strong antibiotics just for all tests to come back negative. Spoke to dr she thinks the coil was causing these issues. Had it removed eventually (thank god!) decided against having another one! When the dr took it out, my coil that was supposed to still have a few weeks left had 0 copper left of the coil! So was completely ineffective at this point! Terrible experience!

Same as the male condom, has no side effects and will protect from STIs and pregnancy! The only thing its a little fiddly to get on and if you don't react well to latex then not ideal!

These condoms prevent me from getting UTIs, I can't have sex without them! I think it's because the part of the condom that sticks out covers my urethra and prevents bacteria from spreading. They're a little hard to use at first, and some brands are better than others, but I highly recommend them to everyone.

Tried it a couple times with different partners. Mixed reactions. I practiced inserting prior to anything, so it was easy, especially after a couple of tries. Sex felt no different for me and one of the partners. One didn't like the appearance and the other the feel. One thing I love is that it doesn't have that nasty latex smell! You can also use any lube. Overall, I think it is a great option for many people, but (like everything) you should try it a few times for yourself. Also great if you run into situations where the guy is resisting wearing a condom himself.

Used it once - it came off inside me within 5 minutes and I didn't realise so ended up having completely unprotected sex and having to get a STI test.