Forms of birth control symptoms and conditions

I am 18 years old and I have just begun using NuvaRing after switching from the pill. My OBGYN claimed the side effects of NR would be milder than other forms of birth control because the dosage of hormones is so low. However, after a week and a half of using the NR I have been experiencing extreme depression. I stopped being able to do work normally and feel completely unmotivated.I spend all day in bed and it is so much effort getting the energy even to shower or get food. I also have gotten angry at my friends and my boyfriend and pushed them away. I've experienced feelings of hopelessness and started feeling like a burden to other people, so I began to completely self-isolate. I also have an increased appetite, have stopped working out and thus begun gaining weight, and have no sex drive whatsoever. I feel bipolar! But I'm so glad I found this website so I know this has actually all been a result of the NR, and I'm not going completely crazy!! Do not use this if you are emotionally sensitive to hormones like I am! Or at least be very careful. The minute I found this site I immediately stopped the NR. I don't want anything to do with it.

I have been on Mirena since April 2009. At first I thought it was the only form of birth control that I could be on since every other form that I have tried caused me to have anxiety attacks. Recently I've been noticing that I get really dizzy, get frequent headaches, have a hard time focusing, "fly off the hinges" about anything. I also feel weak, have no energy, have muscles aches, and the worst part is I'm always tired & Im only 22 years old. I'm sick of feeling like this! I made an appointment with my OBGYN to get it removed because I believe that I may be allergic to all forms of birth control because of the hormones used in them. The office nurse told me that my OBGYN will probably try & put me on some other kind of birth control, or see how he feels about it being removed, but Im going to tell him I want it removed ASAP. All birth control causes me to have problems so the only form of birth control I plan on being on is a condom! At least I know I'm not allergic to latex. I hate Mirena & regret ever getting it! DO NOT USE!

My Mirena, which I have had for 16 months, landed me in the emergency department at hospital at 2am this week. Apparently it had moved and cut a vein in my uterus, leading to 5 hours of very heavy bleeding. A gynecologist was called and he removed the mirena immediately (very painful but quick). It has been a difficult 16 months. The insertion was extremely painful (perhaps because I haven't had children), with bleeding, extreme cramping and vomiting. My period lasted 20 days each for the first 3 months, which was exhausting. My gynecologist advised to stick with it for 6-7 months. After 8 months, my period had finally become lighter and lasted around 8-10 days each time. Side-effects included cramping during the month, and cramping after sex, with occasional light bleeding (which I had investigated, and got the 'all clear', after sex. I've had bloating and what seems to have been increased hair loss. It is now 5 days since I've had it removed, and with the help of prescribed progesterone tablets the bleeding has almost stopped. But I feel more like myself now that its gone. I stuck with it for 16 months, as I was told that it was better for me than other forms of birth control. I have a friend who really likes her Mirena, but it wasn't for me.

I had an IUD placed after my second childs birth. All other forms of birth control had caused problems (like the symptoms already listed). After insertion, I told all my friends about it, I had NO symptoms at all. I had no bleeding, no pain, felt as normal as can be, very strong sex drive. LOOONG story short, 2- yes 2 YEARS LATER I began having pain with intercourse. I felt for the "strings" to check for placement, my cervix was EXTREMELY tender and swollen. Shortly thereafter, a doctor appointment and ultrasound confirmed a severe infection (from insertion- 2 years prior) that had become so bad, my cervix was infected and the infection had abscessed the wall of my uterus. At 27 I had a hysterectomy with removal of my left ovary and cervix. Needless to say, I will only ever have 2 natural children when I thought I had "five years" to make that decision. I had no idea this could have happened and only tell my extremely painful story to let you realize that if you still have your uterus, you may want to remove that foreign object from it immediately!!!

I have been on the Nuvaring for 5 years. I have had little to no side affects, other than a decrease in sex drive, which I also experienced with other forms of birth control. Recently, I have noticed that I have been steadily gaining weight over the last month or so. I seriously believe the Nuvaring is the cause. The last time I was supposed to take it out, I forgot, and it was in a week longer than ususal. My doctor told me to replace it with a new ring right away instead of removing it to get my period. Hopefully my wieght will return to normal after I remove this one.

I think everyone has different reactions to different forms of birth control. I was on Alesse for 2 years with zero problems. Then one day my pharmacist offered me the generic form Aviane and told me it was the same. I decided to get it since its cheaper, but now I wish I hadn't. I had some of the same symptoms listed here on Aviane, like yeast infections, low sex drive and thinning hair. So I'm going back to Alesse which was always great for me. Everyone needs to listen to their bodies and make the best decision for themselves. Good luck!!!!!

I'm 24 yrs old and have 2 children. I had the Mirena placed in June of 2008. At first I really didn't have any symptoms just spotting everyday that lasted for 4 months. The first few times my husband and I had sex afterwards, it was a little uncomfortable but that went away. I even went through a phase about 3 months after it was placed - I had severe migraines, which I had never had before. I got these headaches everyday for nearly 2 months and them they just quit. It seemed like as soon as the headaches went away my lower back started to ache constantly. The pain seems to have gotten worse with each passing day. I was so relieved to find this site and know that all this wasn't just my imagination. Now, I deal with the chronic, severe lower back pain in the hopes that it will soon go away like all of my other symptoms. It hurts so much I don't feel like even moving. This is effecting my husband, my children, my house(it's a mess all the time now because cleaning is so hard for me now), and even my career. I had this thing placed because I wanted all of those things to benefit, not suffer. Can anyone tell me if the back pain has gone away for them? I just want to find out if it will eventually go away like everything else or if the only cure is to get this thing taken out.

To this day, I am not sure if Nuvaring is the cause of all my problems. But after reading about the side effects and finding many commonalities in my own experience, I took it out today and will not continue using it.

I've been on Nuvaring for the past year. Just before I started using it, I had an episode in the gym where my heart started racing very uncomfortably and I felt like i was going to faint after running. Two visits to the ER and numerous specialists' visits later, they concluded I have generalized anxiety disorder.

Over the past year since that incident, I've become much more anxious than I ever remember. I've gained about 20 pounds. I get headaches all the time. I'm CONSTANTLY tired, to the point where it doesn't matter how long I sleep, I still don't want to get out of bed. Most of the time, I don't want to have sex. I have spells where I feel like I'm about to faint (but never do). Of course, the doctors attribute this to my anxiety, and I'm pretty sure that's what it is since it doesn't seem to be anything else really serious.

Like I said, I don't know if the Nuvaring has had a hand in putting me through this ridiculousness, but I'm not taking any chances. I read somewhere the Nuvaring isn't good for people with anxiety problems because it just makes these problems worse.

At least if these symptoms continue for a while after I've stopped the Nuvaring, I'll know it may not have been it. However, every month I feel my best the week of my period. Coincidence???

I'm glad that i have found this site as well. I want to say though i only have had mirena for three days now. So far the only problem I had was some cramping. It was not rally painful to have inserted just more cramping than I expected it does seems to be subsiding already. Umm so I guess im just holding out to see how it goes. I just wanted to post to remind everyone that women react differently to birth control. I personally am 21 and I was put on birth control by my father when I was 12 I hadn't even really started to have periods yet but I will tell you I have used many different forms of Birth control some have agreed with me and some have not. First I think I tried the shot depo it made me bleed for too long so i stopped using it. Then I had lunelle i was fine but even though I was not sexually active I had to stop taking it because apparently they found out there wasn't enough medicine in it to keep people from getting pregnant. Next there was a time where I got seriously sick ( from an antibiotic I had Stevens Johonson Syndrome at 14 yrs old) I was hospitalized for three months at this time I didn't have periods and was on no birth control for about a 1 1/2 yrs- 2 yrs. during this time when my periods returned my periods were horrible i couldn't handle them so I went back on birth control I figured because I never established my own cycle without birth control that it would be hard for me to do so. I also treid the patch which was Awful i had really bad breast symptoms they were always very sore and tender and i started to form lumps in my breasts so I stopped using the patch and then the breast symptoms went away. So i went to different pill forms the best one that worked for me was Seaonale it was wonderful and great! I had no problems on my period and no side effects unfortunately my health insurance decided to stop paying for Seasonale. So i was put on another pill that was similar to Seasonale make up and although it was a once a month i was taken it for 3 months and then having a period somewhere along the line here there was a switch in my script to where I was getting a generic version and since then I started to have symptoms. I was having more PMs symptoms during my period, my sex drive went out the window, I gained almost 40 -50 pounds, and I experienced really bad vaginal dryness. Well due to these annoying symptoms and the fact that i had been recently diagnosed with High blood pressure i talked with my doctor about different birth control options and i was told I was better off using a non estrogen birth control so my last few options that I had not already tried was the IUD or the Nuva ring. So for now I have choose mirena and Im hoping that I have made the right choice after reading horror stories on the internet Im happy to say Im not going to get it removed unless it starts to cause problems for me. i posted this because like others i wanted to stress that every women reacts differently to each birth control so if you have negative side effects on one then that just wasn't the one for you I don't think this means that women should not try mirena or other forms of birth control so just know you have to find the right one for your body. So heres to praying and hoping that mirena works out for me.

I have had to Mirena IUD since January 2008. I decided to get it because most other forms of birth control have some terrible side effects on my body, and I have one daughter and I want something hassle and side effect free! I first only experienced HORRIBLE cramping and unpredictable spotting. I now have migraines, nausea, bloating, and the complete inability to lose weight!!! Worst mistake I've ever made...I wonder though what else I can find that will be effective?!

Finally got an appointment with my doctor to get mirena removed. At 25, I don't wish to have kids for at least 5-8 years. My husband and I as a couple are deciding that these symptoms are absolutely ridiculous for a form of birth control We have spoken to a few other doctors, about other options for male forms of birth control (new pill/vasectomy. I have tried all birth controls, and Mirena, has been the worst for me. I just can't wait until the 26th!!! Then I will be Mirena free! :)

I was only on NuvaRing for a month and had/have experienced serious side effects. I am currently fighting a second ovarian cyst with severe abdominal tenderness. I know these are typical, however, my first one came one week after stopping NuvaRing. As did many others, I experienced a lot of pain during intercourse and my husband could feel the plastic rubbing him which caused quite a bit of discomfort. In addition to the side effects, insurance does not cover the product well and it cost me $47.50! I wouldn't recommend the product but I think it is necessary to keep in mind that all forms of birth control work differently for each individual. If it works for you great, but if you begin to see any signs or symptoms out of the ordinary, take it out and consult your physician. (Remember when you take it out to use a back up method.)

I have had my Mirena for 4.5 years and found this site when looking up info on removal...WOW, I had no idea that women had so many different problems with this IUD. The reason I chose Mirena to begin with is that I had tried many other forms of birth control...not so much to prevent getting pregnant...but I had such bad menstrual cramps that they would cause my blood pressure to drop and I would pass out. My only option left was hysterectomy, and I was only 40 years old at the time. In any case, I never really thought I had problems with the IUD other than the initial pain at insertion. I attributed my weight gain over the past 3 years to a decrease in activity after beginning a Doctorate degree while still working full time. One thing I could never explain is the constant feeling of fatigue and occasional dizziness that seems to have increased over the past year....almost like a light hangover. I have also been getting more acne and breast tenderness over the past year, but I thought this might be due to the medication on the Mirena losing its potency. I am scheduled to see the Gyn next month, where I was going to ask her to remove the current Mirena and replace it with a new one...but I am not so sure about replacing this. I would appreciate advice specifically on whether anyone went from this option to a partial hysterectomy and their experience, as this is really my only other choice at this point.

I am 33 years old and have tried numerous forms of birth control. I have been taking yaz for 9 months and just decided to stop taking it after my last cycle. I have tried birth control pills before, but I really think the side effects were worse with this pill. I had absolutely NO sex drive and felt very apathetic and listliss all the time. I described to my husband that I felt "empty" inside. I was mildly depressed and experienced a great amount of anxiety. The only good thing was the light periods and I had great skin! I have since decided to try the nuvaring, but I am having some of the same problems with that one too. My doctor suggested it since it doesn't have to go through the liver like pills do, but it still sends these hormones into your blood stream. If you have problems with hormonal birth control methods, I highly suggest trying the copper iud or other non hormonal forms of control. The only bad thing about the copper iud was the heavy periods. I have also tried the mirena iud and didn't seem to experience as severe of emotional symptoms with that one, since it only contains progesterone. But for the first several months after you have it inserted you have a constant light bleeding. Plus it caused acne problems, which I never had to worry about before. But I would take those side effects over the emotional roller coaster I was on when taking the pill.

Hey, I totally know what you all mean about the personality changes. I was on NuvaRing for about 6 months. For the first few months the ring was great. I gained a tiny bit of weight (maybe a couple pounds) but nothing crazy. I am slim with a tall frame, so while I was a bit bummed, it wasn't the end of the world. And my boobs got bigger which was cool, lol. I didn't have any physical side effects with the ring. No cramps, my periods stayed pretty much the same, no spotting, no weird infections or irritation. Just normal. but the mental side effects have been so out of control lately that they have been interfering with my relationship. I used to be totally go with the flow, chill, happy go lucky, outgoing, and very confident. In the last few months my self confidence has dropped to zero even though I am doing well at work and life, etc. it's like I think everyone is out to get me, and it has gotten progressively worse. I cry at everything, have mood swings, depression and the paranoia about the boyfriend (even if he is going to study with a male friend I get jealous! Lame!) I was starting to wonder if I had suddenly become bi-polar until I figured out it was the ring! I still had a sex drive, but it was harder to get fully aroused. It's like I wanted to have sex, but it wasn't as good. So I took my ring out today and my boyfriend and I are going to research our options. The Pill does the same things with me. condoms make me a little nervous as to their effectiveness, though we will be using them for now until we find something else. I'm thinking of going with the copper IUD, as there are no hormones in that one but it is still very effective. My main concern with the copper IUD is the physical side effects (irregular bleeding, super heavy periods, etc.) but as I have not experienced any physical side effects with other forms of birth control, i'm hoping it won't be too bad. Ah, the struggles of womanhood!

The Mirena* IUD, which its manufacturer calls an IUC (intra-uterine contraceptive) is being heavily promoted to young women in the U.S. as a wonderful high-tech, no muss, no fuss, put-it-in-and-forget-about-it for five years form of contraception. But it’s really just a levonorgestrel uterine implant, the same old side-effect ridden progestin that was in Norplant, a tiny implant that is injected into women’s upper arms and then causes many of them months if not years of misery.
MIRENA IS SAME AS NORPLANT

\ i had mirena 9 months and that was enough i know myself very good, so when i started changing i knew it was mirena. i almost ruin my marriage, with my bad moods. but what worry me later was that if YOU BREASTFEED IT WAS WOREST, THIS IS WHAT I FOUND ON BEWARE REPORT ON MIRENA. I WAS VERY UPSET CAUSE I BREAST FEED MY CHILD AND MY DR. DID NOT INFORM ME THIS!

could find that followed breastfeeding infants exposed to levonorgestrel (Norplant) was done in Norway and found that they had higher incidence rates of respiratory infections, skin conditions and eye infections than the control group, and later were found to have a higher proportion of “neurological conditions.”

To me it’s unthinkable to even consider exposing a nursing infant to any type of progestin. I would call this a form of corporate sociopathy—marketing without a conscience to unwitting, under-informed women who are just trying to responsibly avoid an unwanted pregnancy. Since the FDA is unlikely to take action against this practice it’s up to the rest of us to spread the word.
IF YOU BREASTFEED AND HAVE MIRENA READ THIS ABOVE

I am so happy to have found this site, I only wish I would have researched prior to having Mirena inserted. I have had The Mirena IUD for nearly three years. I thoroughly enjoyed having decreased flow and some months not having a period at all. However now I realize its probably one of the worst decisions I ever made. Only recently have I come realize that my fatigue, inability to concentrate, loss of memory, lack of interest in anything including sex, weight gain, constant yeast and bacterial infections were most likely due to the IUD and not due to anything that I was doing wrong. I have had bouts with depression and have been on meds for that, however it seemed like I was a basket case, over anxious and often times a nervous wreck. There were days recently where I was lethargic, lacked motivation to do anything. Then I'd have a good day, a day where I felt energized and thought, well maybe it was just the gloomy weather. Now I have come to realize it had to be the IUD. That is the only thing that makes sense. I made an appointment and got the IUD removed yesterday and already I can tell a difference in the way I feel. I woke up this morning feeling well rested for the first time in three years. I am looking forward to getting back to the "old me" rather than just a shell of of person that lacked motivation to do anything. I wish I would have investigated further and not listened to my Nurse Practitioner all these years that told me over and over that my symptoms were not the cause of the IUD.

I am so glad that i found this site. I was feeling like i am going CRAZY! I got the mirena after my third child Oct 2005. I can't wait to have it removed!!!! My story started by going to the doctor to find a good birth control. My doctor suggested the mirena, it sounded like the perfect method for me...up until today Oct 2008, i thought that it was perfect.
After the insertion everything was great until i started to feel like i was always pregnant(tender breast, nausea and vomiting, weight gain, and dizziness). I would report to doctor, have test run, simply told that i might have a stomach virus. Symptoms would come and go alone with now major hair loss, constant yeast infections, sore limbs, greasy oily skin, unexplained sweats, losing of 30 lbs, but gaining back 10 lbs in a month, bloated stomach, mood swings, unexplained sadness/depressions!!! I use to have long thick hair, but now i barely have any. My scalp is so sore and my hair is very dry and brittle. I thought that maybe i was just stressing myself and needed to take it easy. I started to grow very tired, drowsy with blurry vision, stressed-out, even slipped into deep depressions about any and everything. I would blow up on anyone for anything. I am so not feeling like myself....
After several OB-GYN and Dermatology appointments, I came to the conclusion that it might just be my so called "perfect" birth control. I expected my doctors to know the exact reason after i mentioned by birth control but they would always say that it was not likely to be the mirena. I will be having this removed this week. I just hope and pray that everything goes back to normal including all my beautiful thick hair.

I have been on NuvaRing for about 10 months. And I’m happy with it. However, these past couple of months, I have been acting crazy. And it makes me so happy to see that it’s not me. I am constantly paranoid about everything, especially my boyfriend. Before I got on the ring I was always happy and never let anything bother me, but now I am moody, irritable, stressed, depressed, anxious, and unsocial. And I’ll start crying about anything, It has definitely caused unnecessary fights and distance between me and my boyfriend. I am feeling clingier than I ever have before and I don’t feel like me. However, these are the only symptoms I have encountered. I never had any irritation or burning, my period has been the same if not better, my sex drive is the same, and cramps are definitely not as painful as they used to be. Honestly though, its not just the NuvaRing that has side effects, birth control in general is unnatural and life threatening.

I WAS TAKING YAZ AND FEMCON FE. THEY BOTH MADE ME EXTREMELY SICK.I WAS DEPRESSED AND SICK TO MY STOMACH WITH BOTH. AND WITH FEMCON FE I ALSO LOST HAIR. SO I TRIED NUVARING AND THE SAME THING HAPPENED. THE STOMACH PAINS HAPPENED WITHIN A HOUR OF STARTING THE NUVARING. NOW I WANT TO TRY PARAGUARD. ANY ADVICE ANY BAD SIDE EFFECTS. I NEED ADVICE.

I had Mirena put in about a month ago. I am 44 and I smoke, so the traditional birth control methods are not safe for me. ( I can tell you, the pull out method only works for 13 years.....I now have a 3 year old daughter to go along with my 20 year old son and 16 year old daughter....LOL.) I researched Mirena and decided to give it a try. I have had bleeding since it was inserted but nothing I cannot deal with, I knew this would be a possibility going in. I do get headaches now, but have no idea whether they are caused by allergies or Mirena, since it is allergy season right now. What everyone reading these posts needs to remember is that if you had no side effects, you probably would not have visited this site after the Mirena insertion. So, it really is a one sided site, without the feedback from those who got Mirena, and have gone on carefree with their lives. I only came to this site to see if headaches were a side effect, since I have experienced several this month and that is not common for me. Anyway, I am glad I did not look here before the Mirena because I may have not gotten it .....I plan on being open minded and wait a few months to decide for myself.

I'm glad I found this site. I have a history of migraines so I never thought it could be the Nuvaring. I got on it in Nov 07 and I just realized I experienced a loooottt of the symptoms. Headaches that turn to migraines, suddenly crying even listening to a song on the radio, I get hot and sweaty at night and feel cold at the slightest feel of air conditioning., mood swings, scattered thoughts, lower sex drive, no desire to socialize. weight gain in 10 months I've gained 11 lbs. I welcome it actually cuz I've been 110 for like 8 years. now I am a whopping 121 pounds. I have curves now, I love it

The perks: my breast went from a b to a nice c love it. the ease and clock work of my period. That's about it

I had a migraine so bad I couldn't keep my eyes open, I took the ring out immediately and within hours I felt relieved. I've spoken to my doctor about other forms of birth control and after all my research Nuvaring is actually still the top choice. We all know these BC's have side effects. How can they not. After all the craziness I have read about Ortho, Depo, Yasmin, Yaz, I see only one option. Get off the pills completely be back to my old self I used to be fun and get my boyfriend to wear condoms.

I started my NuvaRing on the 5th day of my period and noticed some changes that are going on with my body. It has only been 7 days, but I feel different. I noticed some white, sticky discharge that is not normal for me and bothers me. It has no smell though. I feel very dry inside.....and my sex drive is low. My breasts are tender. My mood is fine however. I am a little concerned with changes my body going through. When I contacted my doctor, she said everything im feeling is normal. But I wonder if those things will change once I get used to the ring and my hormones even out.
Did anybody felt the same way? Please share if you just waited out! I would love some input, cause I have no idea if I should just get off it or stick it out in hopes it will feel better........Confused ;(

I had Mirena put in in April 08, I did not have the bad cramping when inserted or any cramping after, how ever I did start bleeding 2 1/2 weeks later and it continued for almost 15 days, and then every 8 days after that I would start "spotting". Just recently the spotting has slowed, but I am bloated ALL the time I have had Looser stools I get nauseated easily IM VERY stressed and tired, and I had a great sex drive before, now I don't even thing about it and pretty well shun my husband who now sleeps in the living room. I have a blood clotting disorder where I cannot take certain forms of birth control and I was told that this was the best option now I wonder if the mini pill is better?!