Giving birth symptoms and conditions

Wow glad I'm not alone. Had mine inserted after giving birth to my first child, 8 weeks later. Insertion was terrible, awful, all others have described. I'm breastfeeding so my doctor said I could bleed for up to 3 months on and on, and it was about that until it stopped. In the beginning i felt as though it was tickling me which could have been in my head but that's what I remember. But recently Ive been having horrible cramping that seems totally random. Insane mood swings. One minute I will depressed and thinking to myself do I really love my husband and feeling my life is meaningless to the next minute wanted to have crazy wild sex. My husband is starting to worry about my crazy mood swings and depressions. I have nothing to be depressed about my life is great but I continually find myself feeling that way. It's terrible. Not to mention I can't sleep anymore hence it's 4am and I researching mirena side effects. I can't wait to get this thing out of me. My advice my first child was a surprise and I really really can't afford another kid any time soon, but this mirena crap ain't worth it, AT ALL. Beware do not get it!

After almost a year to date....I am experiencing a lot of the side effects lately that almost everyone has posted. I have two beautiful daughters and a loving husband. Here is my story. I had it put in Oct of 2008. I had not been on BC before b/c we were purposely starting a family. Well, I had it put in because I ended up getting pregnant for the 3rd time after having my 3month old (second child). Being pregnant so soon after giving birth was such an emotional roller coaster and caused a lot of stress for us both. Unfortunately I ended up having a miscarriage after 3months. When that happened, we decided that I needed an effective BC that I didn't have to think about everyday because I already had a 3month old and a 20 mo running around. This is what led us to getting the Mirena. So NOW that I stumbled upon this forum, I realized that I had been through a lot of the side effects that others have. I thought it was "normal" to go through what I did. At times, I thought it was my imagination. And now, I wish I would have spoken up about it sooner. I bled for 6 months straight thinking that this is what I had to go through to have years of light or no periods at all. It def put a wedge in my sex life with the hubby and not to mention my libido has been next to nothing. After the first 8 weeks of insertion, my hair fell out, but I blew it off because I thought it was due to the stress of the kids and the miscarriage. It fell out so terribly that I had to get a new hair cut to even it out. Fast forward to May of 2009, finally, my period is starting to last only 7 days and not like 3 weeks. Next thing you know, we are smooth sailing. Libido hasn't moved up a notch, but at least I knew when my period would come and how long it would last so that my hubby and I could have intimacy for once. Everything was fine all summer all the way up to last month (Sept 2009). Present day, now all of a sudden, my period has not shown up. Last time it came was 6weeks ago in Sept.. Kid you not, I'm having all the same symptoms of all my pregnancies. All last week including today I have had the following symptoms:
-Extreme dizziness with nausea
-Severe abdominal pain-like a sharp piercing pain on the left side
-lower back pain every single morning
-nose bleeds everyday, sometimes twice in a day
-increased appetite
-Extreme fatigue like I need to take a 2 hour nap
-adrenaline flashes
....So, after 7 days of this I called my OB today since she was on call and asked if I should go to the emergency. She decided that she wants to see me at her practice first thing tomorrow morning. In the meantime, she asked me to take a hpt. It was negative. But guess what, I'm not convinced. The 3rd pregnancy where I had the miscarriage...you remember right? Well, I took a pregnancy test the week before I was supposed to get the Mirena in b/c it had to be put in before my next period, well, that's when I found out I was pregnant...at the doctor's office! My hpt test said negative. So anyways, I am nervous and anxious to get to the bottom of this. If I am not pregnant, I will probably have it removed. It has caused so much unwanted change in my life-loss of sex drive, irregular bleeding, moodiness to the point where my husband thinks I'm psycho at times....you name it. If I am pregnant, then I will certainly have more worries than I ever have had before.

Hey Gals,
I had my mirena put in in February 2009. I just got it out three weeks ago.
When I gave birth to my son I weighed 230, having gained 50 pounds during the pregnancy. Two months after giving birth I was down to 190 and losing weight fine. All throughout the pregnancy and afterwards I was eating healthy and exercising, so for people who say its just because we eat poorly and don't change our diet after we give birth, thats not always the case.
Then I got Mirena put in. I gained all that weight back, horrible mood swings where I would start snapping at my husband over inconsequential things. I started getting really bad headaches, (I've never had migraines before, but I'm sure it was pretty close). Constant fatigue; I was always tired, no matter how much sleep I got and never had any energy to play with my son. I also hadn't had a period since February of 2008, just a little spotting after getting the Mirena put in. Not to mention discomfort during intercourse, which just made the act seem unpleasant for both of us.
Now that I've got it out I've lost 15 pounds, I no longer have headaches, All of my energy is back and I'm not as tired as I was before, and I finally got my period! I have never been more excited to have it than before.
I guess it works for some people, but with it and the hormones it was secreting, my body couldn't handle it. I've tried other BC's before too and didn't have any problems.

I just want to reply to you and everyone else who is having difficulty with doctors acknowledging mirena side effects. I work in pharmaceutical research and what people need to understand is that clinical trials only test on samples of about 5,000 patients and the side effects observed in those people are the ones acknowledged in the literature your doctors are referring to. The problem with that is for a drug sample population to statistically represent the actual US population it would have to be at least 30,000 people. This is not feasible even for the most profitable big pharma companies. So once these drugs get to market, there are inevitably going to be people experiencing side effects not reflected in clinical trials.

That said, I had Mirena put in 6 weeks after giving birth to my son in August 2008. Pre-preg I weighed 132, at 9 months I was 173. I left the hospital weighing 152. When i got mirena inserted i had been loosing slowly due to breastfeeding, but I was loosing and weighed 145. By Christmas 2008 I weighed 155. So I started working out, circuit training 45 minutes, 5 days a week, and eating much healthier for 6 weeks. Like others assuming it was a change in lifestyle, stress whatever. I didn't loose a pound. After no success I cut down to less intense workouts but kept eating well. By June 2009 I was 163. At 132 lbs pre-preg at 5'4" I never worked out, I'm not kidding, ever and I was not a healthy eater, I just wasn't a big eater.

So August 10th 2009 at 168 lbs and fed up, I went to the doctor to have it removed. They insisted it was not the mirena, but if for no other reason I had to find out for myself why I could not loose weight, if i was still overweight afterwards then so be it, but I had to know.

I'm glad to announce that today September 21st, I have "inexplicably" lost 21 pounds in counting. I have not worked out like I did in those six weeks, brisk walks at the most,and I have continued eating healthy. I'm not advising anyone on what to do, I just know when I was contemplating getting this thing removed, I wanted to hear from someone who had actually gotten it removed. Also, I did not the emotional or dermatological side effects others described.

I have posted a couple of times previously about negative side effects, i.e. migraines, weight gain, acne, chin hair, eczema, lower back pain, no sex drive...and the list could go on. As a mature 36 year old woman I have educated myself over the past couple of years and can really only attribute all these issues to having the Mirena inserted 4 months after the birth of my daughter 3 years ago. Although at this time my doctors will not openly acknowledge these side effects, I am confident that one day they will. I encourage women to report adverse side effects to the FDA. It onlt takes a minute or two. Who knows, it may be the hormones or it may be the silicone plastic? It has to be something. It should also be acknowledged that some women, my very best friend for one, have had wonderful experiences with the Mirena. I really think it may just depend on the woman and her own body. I am having mine removed tomorrow after researching all of this for about 8 months. All I can say is, thank goodness. I am also scheduled for the Essure(permanent birth control). Food for thought for the older women in the group. Whatever each of you decide, realize you are not alone and you do not have to continue to feel the way you do if you believe that the Mirena could be making you feel so bad. Take care.

I had my Mirena put in August of 2008. To start with I thought it was great. Now insertion was worse than giving birth to my two year old but I figured that was normal. The first few months were great. I have not had a period since having it. I LOVE this fact but I would rather have a monthly than have all my other symptoms. I am ALWAYS tired no matter how much I sleep; I have terrible headaches verging on migraine level. I have horrible mood swings. One minute I am fine and the next I feel like a mad woman. I feel horrible because my two year old see’s this and I know she does not understand. I have terrible bouts with depression. Sometimes they last for days. I have gained 25 lbs, now I have always been heavy but when I work out 5 days a week and eat VERY healthy and am still gaining weight there has got to be a problem. I am almost 30 and I now have acne like a teenager. And I think the WORST side affect of them all is NO SEX DRIVE. This has seriously hurt my marriage. For a long time I have just put much of this off as being the mother of a toddler but now I am not so sure. I cannot take it anymore and have an appointment scheduled for October 1st to have it removed. I will update as soon as it is out.

I am 25, I had my daughter last October 2008 and had Mirena inserted December 2008 at my 8 week postpartum appt. Everything was fine for about 6 months... It is now September 2009 and since July I have been having EXTREME hair loss (I already have gone through the post preggo hair loss 3 months after giving birth), anxiety feeling in the chest, crazy discharge, erratic periods, no sex drive, moody, ACNE on face chest and back (and I NEVER have acne). So my annual physical was yesterday, so I tell my doc about all these symptoms and he thinks "thyroid" so they pull 4 viles of blood. Then, I get home and I googled "Mirena and hair loss" and here's this site! SO, I called my OBGYN this afternoon and tell her Im losing my hair plus the other symptoms I listed above and she says "Yep its the Mirena, the same thing happened when I had it too and it stopped when I took it out" So she told me to come in and they will remove it and try PARAGUARD - a NO hormone IUD that will bring me back to my "base" and I will start having one period a month (like your body is supposed to in my eyes) and no crazy side effects. I can not tell you how much better I feel that she said right away it was the Mirena. I have really not been feeling myself the past 2 months AND everyone in my household has noticed my hair ALL OVER THE PLACE and has asked me to ask the Doctor... so glad I did.

First of all, I am so happy and relieved to have found this site. Thank you so much to all of the woman who have posted their experiences with the mirena. I have been so scared over the past few months that I have literally been going CRAZY. Here is my experience:

I had the mirena inserted at my 6 week check-up after giving birth to my son. I chose the mirena because my doctor recommended it. Anyways, ever since I have had my son (being my first child) have been severely stressed out (of course). Although I have had several different stressful situations go on (my sister becoming very sick, my parents getting a divorce, moving out for the first time, ex troubles) I have been feeling not only stressed, but major anxiety, and I suspect depression. Anyhow, I never contributed any of this to my birth control because I assumed that this is what stress feels like (seeing as though I am lucky to say that I have never really had serious problems to deal with). Well this is where it all came to a head..yesterday.

Since giving birth to my son six months ago, I have since become a H-U-G-E hypochondriac, extremely anxious, depressed, dizzy spells, terrible mood swings, almost daily brain fog (which I find to be the scariest), I just do not feel like the same person. I feel like I am trapped inside my head (thats the best I can describe it). I have no energy and I do not feel like doing anything and when I do all I can think about is how not right I feel. I have started questioning how I feel almost constantly. I have trouble concentrating, have headaches (which I NEVER had before) and now find it difficult to wear my contact lenses. WELL, yesterday I was at work, which also happened to be my birthday, and had such a horrible dizzy spell that I instantly became sick to my stomach, and my heart started to pound. I was so scared by this I instantly started to cry and asked to go home. My mom, who is a psych nurse (for 15 years), was at her home. I rushed over there and cried to her that something was wrong with me and demanded her to tell me if I was crazy. I have been so obsessed with feeling ill that it has consumed me and the bad part is that I know it is all in my head, I just can't overcome it. That is when she asked me if I thought that it may be my birth control? *DING DING* I haven't been on birth control for so long that I forgot how madly I have reacted to it in the past. I then remembered why I had quit taking the birth control patch 5 years ago!

That is when I looked up the side effects and found this blog! I feel so much better now. I now have hope after reading everyone else's experiences which are so similar to mine. I have already made an appointment to get it taken out tomorrow. I have also made an appointment with my family doctor to talk about my anxiety and depression symptoms and see what he suggests (since I am not usually a down or anxious person). I will definitely keep you all posted! Thank you all for posting, I think it has changed my life!

HI,
I had mirena put in during Jan 2008.
I had it taken out on Sunday after presenting to casualty on Friday morning with heart palpitations, shaking and heaviness in left arm. The casualty doctors ran tests but couldn't see what the problem was.
I've experienced increasing heart palpitations to the point where they are every day - and several times per day. I've had my thyroid checked.
I'm 36 years old, not overweight although I've definitely put on weight and not been able to shift it, since having this IUD. I've been moody and incredibly tired. My skin hasn't been great also.
I have four kids and so know my body well and know how quickly I normally bounce back after giving birth. Since Ive had the mirena, my body has felt like it's been pregnant. I've done numerous pregnancy tests.
It's only been a couple of days since Ive had the IUD out but already my mood is better - like it always was before I had the IUD. My stomach doesn't look as bloated but more importantly, the heart palpitations have reduced.
I can't say with any certainty, YET, that any of my symptoms have been caused by the IUD but I will give my body a couple of months to recover and monitor the progress.
The doctors told me mirena couldn't have caused all of the above......time will tell.

I'm a 37 year old mother of two who is fortunate to work in an OB/GYN office and have different BC's at her disposal. In the last year or so, I've tried Yaz (only stayed on for a month or so and quit due to weight gain and fatigue), the NuvaRing (had yeast infections) and now have just finished my 1st pack of Loestrin 24 FE. I have had spotting all month (enough to use a light tampon), severe mood swings (like a want to tell people off in a bad way!), severe fatigue (want to sleep right as I get home and be a couch potato) and WEIGHT gain (which I HATE!). I am in great shape and wear a size 6-8 but now feel more comfortable in a size 8-10. I know that you should give any BC at least 3 months to work but I don't know if the pros outweigh the cons. Also I did noticed a decrease in sex drive and the drive to want to exercise. I feel horrible after I eat and and feel constantly bloated even when I wake up in the morning and haven't eaten yet. I'm on the fence about staying on this BC.

I just gave birth to my daughter 6 weeks ago and after 2 weeks of giving birth, I put in the NR, which was the first birth control I've ever used. I went to the doctor yester for my 6 week checkup and my thyroid is swollen to the size of an egg. He suggested getting an ultrasound and bloodwork done to check it out and I will be going this week but I was just wondering if the NR could contribute to this swelling since they're both hormone related. I have other symptoms but I thought it could be because I just had a baby: constipation, diarrhea, I felt like I had the flu and it turned out to be an upper respiratory infection, tired, severely dehydrated one day to the point of extreme body aches and pain, congestion, and of course the swollen thyroid now. After reading this site I'm worried I should take it out but I don't want to get pregnant again and it's hard for me to take pills religiously everyday. I thought this was an easy solution to that. I just put in my second ring 2 days ago. We'll see what my results are from the thyroid testing.

Hi Im Jessica I'am 20 years old. I just had my 1st baby in January "09". I got The Mirena put in 7 weeks after I have giving birth to my baby girl. It first stared off with a 3 week preiod. i didn't really have no problems til the 2nd month Ive had the Mirena. One day i just woke up to answer my phone and I started to feel really weak and I blacked out for a few seconds. Ive just ignored it. Now that im in my 5th month of having the Mirena for the past 3 weeks Ive had nausea every day, When i stretch I get real weak and black out, Im usually a happy person but some times I find my self crying and don't know why.. I have mood swings, one week it look like Ive lost weight the next I look Like Im bigger then i was before.. Ive gotten yellow discharge from it..And headache's.. A couple of people said they actually have gotten pregnant with the Mirena.. So Ive started of thing maybe I was pregnant but ive gotten preg. test and token more then one Im not..So Ived looked up side effects and I see that a lot of yall have the same exact side effects as I do.. Im going to get this Mirena taken out as soon as possible.. But i wanted to know what are the side effects of getting it taken out? And why our doctor didn't warn us about all these side effects before we've gotten the Mirena put in?

After reading these posts I am more confused than before, because my experience is so far very different. I was diagnosed with DVT about two weeks ago and now take Coumadin daily; the Lovenox injections have been discontinued. The reason I'm so confused is I now feel the best I have in 5 (five) years.

Before being placed on the anti-coagulants I had memory and concentration issues that were progressively getting worse and greatly affecting my job, and had daily headaches. I had joint pain that made it difficult to get up after sitting for awhile; they felt constantly inflamed. I felt fatigued all the time and my muscles hurt like I had really pushed them; I just didn't have any strength, and had muscle cramps. I was constantly yawning and found my jaws hurt from clinching my teeth, subconsciously trying not to yawn. I was extremely sensitive to physical touch, even hugs hurt. I also felt extremely depressed and cried almost daily. My lips and left cheek tingled, as well as other parts of my body. Plus I would get the feeling of sudden pressure in my head (different from a headache) like it was going to pop off, and I my eyes didn't seem to track what I looking at and had difficulty in remembering or comprehending what I just read.

About 6 (six) days after starting treatment it completely changed and these symptoms are essentially gone. I have talked with my doctor and pharmacist and they are baffled. I am concerned this change, while welcomed, may indicate an underlying condition that is not yet diagnosed. Has anyone ever heard of such an impact from starting Coumadin treatment?

I am literally in tears after reading all of this, I'm beginning to think that Mirena ruined my life and I didn't even know it.

I stumbled upon this site while searching for Mirena side effects related to periods. I had mine inserted in October 2007, at my 6 week checkup after my daughter was born. I had severe cramping and irregular periods for about 3 months, but after that, my periods have been completely regular and pretty much the same as they had always been before my pregnancy and Mirena. But, just now, I've started my period 2 weeks early and was slightly curious if it may have anything to do with the Mirena. Apparently, it may. And now I see that having an early period is the least of my worries.

I've been experiencing so many of these side effects without even realizing they were side effects! I had put everything off on stress, disliking my job, then losing my job, the fact that "pregnancy changed me," and numerous other things. Now I feel sort of stupid for not even thinking that it could be Mirena.

I had my daughter in August 2007, at 23 years old. Mirena was put in during October of the same year. I was overwhelmed with motherhood and suffered from post-partom depression and severe anxiety attacks. I thought that this was what was causing my complete lack of sex drive.

Seriously, the thought of sex physically made me ill. And on the rare occasion that I did give in and have sex with my husband, it was so painful that I would cry. For a long time I thought that it was just because my body was not finished healing after giving birth. I had been told by several people that it isn't uncommon for sex to hurt for up to a year after giving birth. A year passed, and it still hurt. Now it's been almost 2, and it still hurts. I've probably had sex a total of about 10 times since I started Mirena. It's been 21 months.

On top of this, I've also had serious rage issues. I fly off the handle over the smallest things. For the longest time, this rage was directed mainly at my husband. Everything he did was wrong, hurtful, stupid, or just plain irritating. I'm even getting angry right now, just thinking about him. I left my husband 5 months ago, because I simply could not stand him anymore. But when someone asks me why we're getting a divorce, I really can't come up with a good reason. Sure, he made some mistakes, and did some stupid things (don't all men?), but he never really did anything terrible or life altering. He was always faithful to me, was generally a good husband, and loved me unconditionally. So why can't I stand him? Why don't I love him anymore? I can't logically explain it.

So now that I don't have him around anymore to be angry at all the time, I'm starting to direct my anger at my daughter. She'll be 2 in August, and has started that "terrible 2's" phase. I'm very quick to just completely blow up and yell at her for the littlest things. I've been starting to think that I'm just not cut out to be a parent. I love her with all of my heart but I have no patience with her at all. If this rage issue is, in fact, caused by the Mirena, I have to admit that I'll be somewhat relieved.

Other than anger, I'm pretty much emotionally dead. I've cried ONE time since my husband and I split up (well two now, since reading all of your posts actually made me cry). I'm jobless, husbandless, living with my mother, and pretty much have absolutely nothing going well for me in my life right now... and I have not cried. I don't even feel very sad. There has seriously got to be something wrong there.

I'm constantly tired, and if given the chance, will sleep 14-16 hours at a time. I don't feel like doing anything. I thought this might be signs of depression... but again, I don't feel sad. I can't keep up with my daughter. She's so full of energy and I often have to get help from my Mother. I'm 25 years old and I'm so tired I have to get help from a 48 year old woman!

I get headaches almost daily. Migraines weekly. I've got severe anxiety about just about everything. I freak out about driving, being around groups of people, anything new, anything fairly difficult, or anytime my daughter is with a sitter or relative. Even when my husband has her, and he is a wonderful father, and very responsible with her. If I had insurance, I would probably already be on anxiety medication.

I've started getting acne, which I never ever had. Not even as a teen. Now I get those really deep pimples that never come up to the surface, and they ache very badly.

I haven't had a lot of the physical side effects that have been talked about here. No weight gain or loss (120 lbs pre-pregnancy, 145 lbs at 9 months, 125 lbs now). No hair loss. No bloating. No breast swelling/soreness. Normal periods until just now. No pains or flutters or anything. Really the only physical symptoms I've had are the headaches, acne, and tiredness (all of which I attributed to stress) and the pain during sex.

Do you ladies think that my symptoms are all the cause of Mirena? Does my story seem to fit the bill? It seems to all fit, to me. But maybe I'm just looking too hard for an answer. Please give me your opinions! I need to decide if I should start saving up some money to get this thing taken out of me!

My OB/GYN told me to this pill, on the Sunday that i got my period. I took this pill and never stopped bleeding. i bled for a whopping 34 days. and it wasn't a light spotting either. i went through 6-8 pads a day. i had heavy cramping, almost like i was giving birth again. i took numerous trips to the ER and they just checked and seen how much blood i lost and sent me on my way. the last trip to the hospital was the last time I've taken this pill. This pill makes me feel like blugh!!! like i would have an i don't care attitude.

I had Mirena put in about 4 weeks weeks ago. Two weeks after I had it put in I got my period, so heavy at times I was going through a tampon per hour and I have been bleeding ever since! I am getting it removed this week. My hair has started to fall out and my sex drive is low too. I thought that this would be a great birth control method after giving birth to my third just 4 months ago. But I too will go back to the Billings Method, it never failed me before and is more than 99% effective.

I have had my Mirena in for almost 5 years. I had it put in 7 weeks or so after my son was born. It settled in the cervix within the first few days. The strings were too long and they were hanging outside of the vaginal area. It was extremely uncomfortable. I went back in to have them cut and the length was great ever since. Other than it was poking my husband during intercourse. That effect took about a year for the strings to soften up. The first 2 months or so I had bad bleeding almost what is was like after giving birth. I do sometimes feel it inside me, especially when I get cramps. Sometimes I go one to two months without a period then when it does come it's heavier than normal. But not bad enough where I can where a tampon. Within the last year and half I have become bloated most of the time. I go a week or so without bloating. I usually get cramps for two weeks before my period starts and it comes every 24-26 days. I'm cranky too. I cant' wait to get it out!!!

Hello Ladies!

I had my Mirena put in on 6/2008 after giving birth to my second kid on March 2008. Since then I was diagnosed with post-partum depression. Which came as a surprise to me since I didn't get this with my first baby. Doctors do say all pregnancies are different, therefor I figured my doctor was right. FOR A REASON HE'S A DOCTOR! But then I started getting severe head-aches, I have lost most of my hair, mood swings (which are the worst) and this stiffness on my upper back that won't go away even with 10 Excedrins. I have tried everything to get ride of this pain but everything is just temporary. I have had a dozen anxiety attacks. Like many of you ladies out there I blamed my job for stress, my husband for mood swings, and my kids for headaches. I had suicidal thoughts for no apparent reason. My life is great. No money problems, my husband and I have been together for 5 years and I have a great paying job but I am still not happy and I am on depression pills. I also had memory lost and I am only 26 years old. I was uninterested in hanging out with friends, having drinks, talking to anyone or going out at all. last but not least I have been wearing prescription glasses for a whole year straight because my sight is foggy. THAT' IS NOT A COINCIDENCE! After reading your comments, I have decided to have this monster taken out. I had to beg my doctor to do it since he insisted I was wrong about the mirena and that I am only depressed. Well, I know my body better then anyone else and I know for a fact it was THE MONSTER making me feel like this. I finally had it removed today and I already feel a little better. I am getting cramps but nothing major. I forgot to tell you I also gained 15 pounds out of nowhere because I eat like I did before my pregnancy and after dieting and exercising I couldn't loose the weight. I am hoping this will help you all and I will post my post-mirena symptoms in 2 weeks.

hello ladies I to had the mirena placed jan 27, 2009 after giving birth to my beautiful baby in December. Since having the mirena I have been extremely moody, extremely nauseous, depressed as hell and I feel tons of pressure in my uterus like im about to get my period but i don't get it. My lower back hurts so bad and to make the situation worse I can not get rid of BACTERIAL VAGINOSIS!!! If you r not familiar with BV its a bacterial infection caused by my mirena which gives my Vajay jay a foul smell, tons of itching and lots of disgusting smelling discharge. I hate this darn mirena and plan to get it taken out asap! Ladies who don't have it, DON'T GET IT!!!

I had Mirena inserted in 2007 due to a lack of tolerance to birth control pills. The experience was very painful for me. However, the doctor explained that the initial insertion process is different for every woman as we are not all designed the same. My cervix/uterus is oddly positioned. According to the doctor they are "crooked". As a result, the doctor had a difficult time properly inserting the mirena, which in turn resulted in major pain! But, this was just my personal experience. Not every woman will encounter this difficulty. However, I would recommend taking at least 2 ibuprofen before the procedure. Throughout the past 2 years, I have experienced a range of symptoms. Major depression, severe mood swings, acne, lack of energy, excruciating lower back pain which mocked mild labor pains, and the overall inability to function normally. I begged the Doctor to remove the Mirena 6 months ago, but she convinced me otherwise considering I cannot tolerate birth control pills either. Nevertheless, I am 35 years old, have one child already, and do not plan on having more. Well, last week, I was basically confined to my bed due to excruciating lower back pain, and severe bleeding. I called the Doctor, and they finally saw me today. I insisted on having the Mirena removed once and for all, and already feel 100% better just 12 hours later! The purpose of my message is not to discourage anyone, as we all have different levels of tolerance when it comes to pain, medications, etc.....Yet, I felt compelled to share my personal experience as it was not a positive one for me! The only "positive" symptom I obtained from the Mirena was a lack of periods. Unfortunately, there was a downfall to that as well. Due to a lack of a regular menstrual cycle, I felt extremely bloated, and had difficulty losing weight despite working out 5 days a week, and eating a proper diet. I sympathize with each and every one of you, and appreciate your efforts in sharing your experiences. Upon stumbling upon this website a few days ago, I finally found the courage to have this thing removed so I can once again "feel normal!" Good luck to all of you!

I've taken loratab for several different things, after Birth of my son, after gallbladder surgery, sinus infections and so on.. This may sound odd, and I will probably get alot of backlash on this issue.. But it makes me happy.. I would seriously like to see a doctor.. or even a pharmaceutical company hold a drug trial on how laratab can be used as an anti-depressant, I've suffered from depression almost all my life.. and have been on a plethera of anti-depressants, they always seem to work for the first month or so, and then "wear" off so to speak.. I have to either up my dose.. or change all together.. I don't have to do that with loratab

When I take it, I don't have any crazy side effects.. in fact just the oppisite.. I feel i have much more clearity, I'm happy and just have an all around "good" feeling. When at work.. I feel I give my co-workers and customers the best of my abilities.. and not to mention my home life.. I'm a better mother.. daughter.. sister.. and friend.. and what's really funny I don't have that "urge" perople say they get if addicted to a drug.. I can go for months without it and i'm fine.. but much better when i do have it..

I was on Mircette for 7 months. The worst 7 months of my life. I was absolutely crazy on this pill. I am the most laid back person, and on this pill I became very violent, yelling and screaming for no reason. I'd cry for no reason, and feel anxious a lot. I also had SEVERE stomach problems. The pain was very comparable to giving birth, which i have done twice. The only difference was instead of the pain being in my lower abdomen, it was just below my ribs and above my belly button. The constant mood swings and pain turned me off to Mircette. It has been 7 weeks since i have been off of all bc pills, and i feel great. I just wish my stomach problems would end. It's a lot less severe now, but I am going to make an appointment with a gastrointestinal dr.t. I would never recommend it to anyone. Ever.

I have 3 children. My last was born in October of 2003. Mirena inserted December 2003. It has been the "best thing since sliced bread" for me. I never had any significant side effects and it completely wiped out my period.( Ive always had a light flow anyway and never any cramps- yeah I'm lucky) and I of course never got pregnant over the 5 years it was in. I just had it replaced yesterday.

I think that having a light period & previously having children helped in my situation and maybe that is the case for those of us that have no issues.

I also think that having it inserted shortly after giving birth may have allowed me to chalk up some side effects to post partum. But still, nothing that I can remember.

I'm bummed to see so many complaints because it really has been a great experience for me.

Good Luck All.

I AM NOT CRAZY!!!!! I literally started crying once I read the first post. I started taking YAZ 6 months ago after giving birth to my third son. I cannot believe that I have finally found an answer to my insanity. I haven't taken my pill today and I will never take birth control ever again. I cannot believe that so many woman are having life threatening side effects and doctors are still prescribing this medication! I have had horrible mood swings, no sex drive, headaches, back and neck pain, fatigue, low energy, irritability, depression, crying spells, anxiety, pain whenever I do have sex, loss of hair, and hot flashes. I truly am elated to know that finally the clouds will soon disappear and I will see the sun again.

have to agree with Mrsbarrett's post right below mine...I have been a lurker on this board for the past couple of months and thank God for it or who knows how crazy i'd be right now!! Here is a list of my side effects and pertinent information:
DOI: October 2008
Side effects were gradual and most evident around the Christmas Holidays:
Dizziness
Weird eye/vision disturbance where i'd lose focus for a moment and then be okay.
Constant spotting of "old blood" nothing much but did require pantiliners 24/7
Anxiety
Hypertension (more than ever, like when I was pregnant, 150-170s/100)
Panic Attacks
Face Dryness
ZERO SEX DRIVE
No "natural" lubrication, but who cares when you have no drive, are spotting all the time, and it hurts to have sex
Vaginal Odor
Mood Swings
Depression
FATIGUE to the point of wanting to stay in bed despite having to care for my 7.5 year old.
Chest pains (kept thinking maybe I had heart trouble, had cardiac workup that came up PERFECT and bloodwork was perfect, Thyroid test was perfect)
Nausea (morning sickness type, would get slightly better in evening but not so much)
IBS symptoms (diarrhea)

DOR: January 23, 2009
2 days later heavy bleeding for a couple of days.....had somewhat of a "crash" the first week where I was still not better. By the 2nd week post removal I was still nauseated in the morning but improved in the late afternoon and got energy boost in late afternoon.By the 3rd week I was totally back to normal!!!!! (well what's normal for crazy me! hahahahha)

My husband came with me to the doc, and she had no problem with removal. I went back for a follow up this past Friday and she saw how normal I am and that I have lost several pounds as well. She realizes I am extremely sensitive to hormone changes but says i'm the only one that she has seen like that. (how many have problems that don't think it is the Mirena...that's what I want to know???)

Anyway, that's my story and i'm sticking to it!!! If anyone would like to chat or share please let me know. I will also add that I have a Masters in Physician Assistant Studies (just not practicing since becoming a SAHM) and so I looked up tons of information to figure out what was wrong with me, I really am thankful to have found this site....medical mumbo jumbo is NOTHING when you have your body telling you something and all you fine ladies......Thanks again!
~G