Paragard iud symptoms and conditions

Ok, I have to say I'm glad i did my research first and came across this site! Just yesterday i met with my gyn to discuss Mirena/IUD's. I'm in a monogamous relationship and not looking to have children right now. Condoms are a pain and I don't want any more hormones in my body so, no Pill for me. I'm not a candidate for Paraguard because I haven't had any children (FDA hasn't approved that one for women who haven't, only women who have had children). He kept pushing Mirena (I'm sure there are some motivation$ for him behind that too). I'm hesitant to put any more hormones in my body than i already have and all these posts I've read are exactly the reason why. I already suffer from depression (being treated with meds) and IBS (w/constipation). I also just lost about 25lbs recently that was bc related weight. There is NO WAY I'm willing to deal with weight gain again! MISERABLE! I can imagine how all you ladies feel and i know it's not good. All these bad side-effects far outweigh the benefits if you ask me. I've reached my conclusion: I'm not doing this to myself, I'd rather use pain-in-the-ass condoms than deal with hormonal bs. Thanks to all who posted!

Hi everyone, like almost all of you I was so glad to stumble across this site. I had my mirena put in 4 months ago and when I was getting it put in my partner took the day off work and decided to tell his boss it was because he was coming with me to get the Mirena (I was horrified that he told him at the time!). But it turned out to be a blessing because my partner came home 3 days ago and told me that his boss asked him whether I had been getting deep pimples that never come 'to a head' and that his wife had them all over her face and couldn’t get rid of them and that she had put it down to the Mirena. I said to him, "Don’t be ridiculous, the Mirena does not give any side effects", and that was that. See I was told from my gyno that "The Mirena is perfect" and she said that the only people that go back to her to go off the Mirena "are people that are never satisfied with any contraception". And then over the past three days I realized that the bumps on my face that are deep under my skin have only appeared in the months after I got my Mirena and I have had worse pimples than ever before, and they have been untreatable with new ones appearing every day and I had never before had lumps that remain under my skins for months. It also wasn’t until I got onto this website that I realized the anxiety I have been feeling in the last couple months, weight gain and itchy skin have also all come about since the Mirena. I am tired all the time and never want to move or do anything and hate getting out of bed even with 14 hours sleep!!!!! Also - I have been pulling clumps of hair out of the shower drain and my comb over the past couple months - yet have had the same hairdresser and hair routine for the last 6 years.... I could not figure out why I was losing my hair and ended up having it cut from a mid-long length to above the shoulders 3 weeks ago, because there was just hardly any hair left. Also - about 2 weeks ago I told my partner (in an emotional uncontrollable episode which has become a frequent event since Mirena) that I had no reason to live anymore and just didn’t want to go on. First time I have ever felt like this, it was awful. I am normally the happy person at work who gets along with everyone and yet now I cant stand the look of any of them or even the sound of their voice makes me want to scream at them. WHOA, CRAZY!!!!!!! I have also lost any interest in self appearance and in the past few months have completely let myself go. I have also had sex twice since going on it. YES thats right - SEX TWICE IN FOUR MONTHS, aaaaaarrrrrgh. And to the most disgusting part of all - I have been getting an awful discharge that smells bad. I am a really clean person and was considering going to my gyno in the coming week to ask why it was happening….. I have been on many pills and the depot and whilst I experienced side affects with all of them, none of them were anything like this, I would get a side effect here and there on the others, nothing like this. Biggest waste of $800 ever. p.s. I wear panty liners every single day and night of the week.

I've been taking Yasmin for 3 years now and have always experienced mood swings, uncontrollable crying, and severe anxiety since I started taking it. I discontinued my other medications systematically with no improvement, and am coming to realize this may be to blame on Yasmin.

I felt like the symptoms were much more severe in the days before, during, and immediately after my period. Has anyone else experienced this fluctuation in mood during and after your period? Do you think it's due to Yasmin? I know PMS is supposed to be normal, but this is ridiculous.

Another question: has anyone found another birth control that does not create these side effects? I've only ever taken Yasmin and don't know where to go next.

I'm 31 years old, in a stable relationship and had the Mirena inserted in April in order to lessen the amount of synthetic hormones going into my body. I'd also never really found an oral contraceptive that didn't have some major side effect (nausea every night 2 hours after taking the pill). My doctor told me that the chances of side effects I'd read about on the internet (acne, weight gain, loss of sex drive, depression, etc.) were statistically extremely unlikely.

The side effects didn't appear immediately, but after about 3-4 months, I got everything but the depression. I'm a yogi and practice vigorously 5-6 times a week but was gaining weight around the middle, I broke out in large, deep, incredibly angry pimples all over my chest, back and chin (places I've never had pimples). I hardly wanted to touch my boyfriend. The thing is, it wasn't until I went to see an acupuncturist for my acne that she pointed out that my change in birth control might be the source of some of my symptoms. Once I really started researching side effects of Mirena, I realized that my experience was not as rare as my doctor had made it sound.

I had it taken out today and a Paragard IUD (cooper, without hormones) put in. Even then, the doctor was extremely resistant to even the idea that Mirena had anything to do with any of my symptoms. He was actually rather condescending and aggressive towards me. He did point out that when I had my Mirena put in, I stopped taking Oral Contraceptives and that loss of those hormones could be the cause of my acne. I admit that it could be a possibility, but my acne is worse than when I was a teenager (when I wasn't taking birth control) and in places that I've never had a problem with before. And the loss of hormones don't explain weight gain, vaginal dryness or loss of sex drive. I'm open to the possibility that the Mirena isn't the source of all of my problems. It probably works very well for a lot of people. However, my personal experience along with the other women on this site should be taken seriously by the medical community instead of cast off as "unscientific." I know my own body and I think that often, our gut feelings are dismissed because there isn't a readily available scientific explanation. As we've seen through history, medical opinions change and known effects of drugs/hormones/chemicals are slowly discovered. Doctors should be open to the possibility that we actually know our own bodies.

I am so glad that I found this site. I was beginning to feel like I was losing my mind. I have been on Yasmin for only 2 months but have been experiencing many of the side effects mentioned- fatigue, chest pain, irregular heartbeat, anxiety, dizziness, and flu-like symptoms. I had these same symptoms when I was on Yaz last year. I wound up going to the hospital for shortness of breath and chest pain. The doctor thought it may be blood clots, but after testing he diagnosed me with bronchitis and asthma (I am 26- never had either in my life). There is definitely something wrong with these pills. I do have anxiety and currently take Xanax. But I have not had panic attacks like this since I was on the pill last year. Sometimes I need to think about breathing to catch my breath and lately it had been hard for me to sleep because my heart is racing. My periods have been lighter and my migraines less severe, but it is not worth it to continue on Yasmin.

I had the Paragard IUD for a year and 5 weeks ago I had it removed and replaced with the Mirena. Since then I have had acne all over my face and back which is uncommon for me and have had absolutely no sex drive. I want a good birth control with fewer or no periods but the acne has too stop. They say it's not from the IUD but what else can it be from? Did I just waste $1,000 or can I get my money back or a new birth control in place of this one?? Please help me, I hate the acne!!

basically, this was my experience with the paragard:
1. Dec 2004 - Paragard iud was placed post-partum after my 2nd daughter was born. i was breast-feeding, and had no noticeable symptoms until Nov 2005.
2. Nov 2005 - had my first period since my daughter was born. it was heavy and crampy, but i thought "i haven't had a period in 2 years, so this is the price i pay..."
3. Each period hence was heavy, long at 6-7 days, and cramps were intense. again, i just decided that i could manage.
By the end of 2006, my periods were so bad that my husband and i decided i had to see the doctor.
4. Jan 2007 - saw the doctor about removing the copper IUD. she said that the paragard should not be causing such bad symptoms, and since i was did not want to get pregnant, she decided we should try to control the symptoms with birth control pills and Prometrium. I did not want to try Prometrium since I was unsure of how I would react to the hormone. she believed that i might be suffering from severe pms, called PMDD. note that i loved and trusted this doctor - i had some complications during my 2 pregnancy, and some problems post-delivery, and she was attentive, personable, and caring. i was very comfortable and trusting, so i listened to her recommendations. i tried yaz, yasmin, and 2 other pills over the next 3-5 months, but was extremely nauseous and sick with all of them (plus break-thru bleeding).
5. Feb - September 2007: i started having pre-period symptoms of nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea, abdominal cramps, severe fatigue. the first 2 months that i had these symptoms, they were so bad that i believed that i had an intestinal virus - same cramping, throwing up, and bad diarrhea, plus this was BEFORE my period. I then made the association between my symptoms, and the fact that they occurred 3-5 days before my period, and then they would subside about 3 days after my period started. my periods were still long with heavy bleeding.
6. September 2007 - was having same symptoms, but started 7-10 days before my period, and they were so bad that my husband had to take off from work to take care of our 2 girls each month (i stay home with them). i went back to the doctor during September, and was told to modify my diet (no white flour, sugar, low fat, high protein, lots of water) and to try some vitamin supplements since i didn't want more medications. she again recommended taking 100 mg Prometrium to help ease the symptoms. I asked to remove the IUD, again, and she said that "before she took out something that expensive, she wanted to make sure that something else was not wrong" - I was shocked at her statement, but agian I liked her and trusted her, so i went along for the sonogram.
7. October 2007 - In the meantime, I was desperate, so i took the vitamins and Prometrium, which sent me into what i can describe only as a psychotic episode. i had severe emotional outbursts, i was irrationally angry and irritable, and had absolutely zero patience. i am usually a smart girl, and in my normal "mental state" would have associated that the Prometrium had caused this severe reaction, but I was no where close to my normal state of mind, and i just thought that my physical symptoms were now affecting me mentally.
8. LAte Oct 2007 - BY this time I am so down and really ready to get my life back. I am still sick with nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, severe abdominal cramps, severe fatigue, and now my abdomen stays sore and tender through the whole month. FINALLY the doctor calls with the ultrasound results. she said that there were 2 small ovarian cysts - and i was relieved - i thought that FINALLY, we were getting somewhere - but in the next sentence she said that she didn;t think that they were responsible for my symptoms. i was deflated - and at such a loss of words. i listened to her tell me how she thought that i had IBS, and that she was going to refer me to a GI doctor. i know that IBS is a catch-all category of symptoms that some doctors throw on people they can;t diagnose. and remember, i was just a few days out from recovering from 1) having a severe personality reaction to a drug, and didn't know it was because of the Prometrium - i thought i was going mad, and 2) i was just getting over being sick before my period - AGAIN.
I finally called her back a few hours later and left a message with the nurse "since she doesn;t think that the cysts are causing the symptoms, could we please remove the copper IUD?" i never got a reply.
I called my niece who is an RN at a respected women's health center in NC and cried a lot and told her what was going on. she got me an appointment with a doctor there for mid nov 2007.
10. Mid Nov 2007 - tell the NC doctor my medical history, and she says "we need to get that IUD out". in less than 30seconds it is gone with minimal discomfort, 25% of the abdominal soreness and tenderness is gone within 24 hours of removal, and completely gone within a week. THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME IN MONTHS THAT MY TUMMY WAS NOT TENDER OR SORE!!!
i have a follow-up appointment for mid Jan 2008 with the NC doctor and possible placement of the Mirena
11. Nov 29, 2007 - have my first period in over a year where i am not sick etc - it is heavy and a bit crampy, but is shorter in duration.
12. mid dec 2007 - i start to suspect i may be pregnant, but think that we have been cautious, and my period is probably going to be irregular with all of the crap that has gone on
13. jan 5 2008 - yep - i'm pregnant!! but that was ok - we wanted another anyway.
14. jan 7, 2008 - catch the respiratory flu that has been going around and stay VERY sick for 4 weeks, and i just know that something is unusual - i can't eat i am so sick and am so weak that i shake whe i stand up - call a new local OB doctor and see them.
15. jan 30, 2008 - have miscarried the pregnancy
16. April 2008 - the new ob doctor places a mirena
17. first of may 2008 - my husband is asking if i feel ok, that he has seen similar but much less severe symptoms in my mood as when i was on the Prometrium. i have never had acne this severe on my face, neck and back - it actually hurts and i have some scarring even though i have not picked at it.
By the way, my new local OB told me that HE WILL NOT PLACE PARAGARD COPPER IUDS FOR HIS PATIENTS BECAUSE THEY WORK BY CAUSING INFLAMMATION IN THE UTERUS.
however, he also said that i shouldn't have any issues with the mirena, and now i am starting to wonder if i am going slightly mad...
i want my life back...
i now realize that there is a side effect to EVERYTHING that you put in your body...
i am terrified of getting pregnant right now even though a few months ago i was excited about this wonderful possibility...
i am now talking to a counselor to try to work out the events of this past year+ so i can move on...
i feel like my voice was NOT heard or even acknowledged...
the reality is that WE are ultimately responsible for our own well-being, both physical and mental, and that doctors do treat with preconceived notions about the way health should be and how medications and devices should work...they listen to pharmaceutical reps and not their patients...
i don;t know what to do about birth control now...i suspect the mirena is making me feel this way, but i am terrified of getting pregnant, i can't take birth control pills, and am hesitant to put any thing else in my body that is a chemical...however, i have no libido anymore (my poor wonderful husband) and i use to enjoy the closeness and intimacy of being with my husband...
i don't know how this affects your decision about the copper iud, but i just caution about 1) be careful with sex after the mirena is removed and 2) be mindful of anything that we eat or place in our body.
i do know that i could not find any other information from women who experienced my symptoms, but i find it very difficult to believe that i am the only one who experienced this.
lots of luck, and thank you for sharing your experience with the posting site! it has helped me make an informed decision about removing the mirena, and i hope that the information here will help you make an informed decision about the copper iud.

I made my appointment today to have my Mirena taken out in 2 days.
I have had similar symptoms, low libido, hair loss, and weight gain.
I have been on Weight Watchers since Jan. the same time I got my Mirena inserted and I am at the same weight. I am so frustrated with the weight and the other symptoms I just want it out.
But I did like not having to take a pill everyday. Is anyone considering having the Copper T inserted? It releases no hormones.
Just wondering.

I've been on Yaz for 1 year now. I've been in a deep depression since September ( 6 months on Yaz) for which I've had to seek treatment. It took 4 months to get me straightened out on medications and still daily I struggle with it.

Also I've noticed right shoulder pain, weight gain (60 pounds), no libido, chronic fatigue, bloating with horrible gas.Is all of this from the Yaz or is it my depression or what? I'm having a really hard time sorting thru all of this.