Periods symptoms and conditions

Thank you Thanks you Thank you!
I am literally crying - tears - reading all of your posts because I have been totally stressed this week trying to figure out what is wrong with me... I am 33 and mother of 3 so I just thought it was normal to be tired constantly. I had Mirena put in Dec of 2008 so almost a year now. At first not a big deal, slight spotting here and there. Now I am headed to the doctor with 100 symptoms. I have felt ALL the things you all are saying, the mood swings, random crampiness, feeling like a period is coming, but nothing happens. Cramping after sex and almost always spotting the following day. Low back pain, hip/groin pain too. Feeling bloated/ full/swollen in my low abdomen. I've had a headache just about everyday for the last 2 weeks and I have been nauseous (feeling like I'm preggo again) since I got the Mirena. Anxiety, dizziness, etc etc etc. Finally called the Dr because after 10 months of no periods, I have now been actually bleeding for a week. It has scared me to death thinking I have cysts, or worse!! It has helped tremendously hearing your stories although I am sorry that so many of us are going through this.
Of course my doctor won't get me in for another 6 days - but at least I am going. The nurse made it sound like the IUD may be out of place! I have felt uncomfortable all along knowing that there was this foreign object lodged in my body so I am sure I will be getting it removed no matter what they tell me. I just have to figure out what my next step is.... I am not prepared to have any more children!
3 is amazing, but just about all I can handle right now! : )
Thanks for your posts, they have calmed my fears tremendously.

I haven't found Mirena to be very invasive so far. I got it put in after my daughter was born and since then my periods have been few and far between, but I attribute some of that to breastfeeding the first six months. I have had the Mirena in for almost a year and the only thing I notice is that sometimes I feel moody and hungry and lethargic like I'm about to menstruate but then nothing happens. I haven't had weight gain problems and I do fight off some acne on my chin and sides of my face but I don't know if that has to do with the Mirena- I haven't always had the greatest skin to begin with. I got pregnant because I wasn't on the pill or anything, everything else before this has made me psychotic. Any contraceptive you use will have its drawbacks because you are messing with your physiology and biology and everything. This is the best thing I've tried- so far it hasn't been problematic enough to consider taking it out. I think I am a case of very mild side effects with this method. It sounds like some people's bodies are more sensitive and attack the device as a foreign object in their system. My body is less fussy apparently

Ive been sitting here reading all of your post and experiences pertaining to the Mirena..I'm 29 gave birth to my 1st child in Nov 03....I got the Mirena(5yr) inserted in Jan. 04. Just like some of your stories...I had minor cramping and heavy bleeding for a few days...after that things were fine...It has since been 5 yrs and I just got my second one inserted the same day I got the old one removed in Jan 09...Wouldn't do that again....cramps were a lot worse and lasted a good while..I had to get pain pills and everything....Few hours of that and things were back to normal. I haven't experienced Weight Gain....Loss yes!!! I don't have any major problems with mine. No headaches, stomach pains etc....
Periods are long gone...I may spot when I'm stressing about something but that usually last about couple hours or depending on my mood. Sex is great!!! One side effect though is that my partner can feel the string and SOMETIMES causes minor bleeding..Not enough to be like OMG I'm having my period...Right now I have the string cut as short as possible...
All in all the side effects for everyone is different...Based on my experience i would and have recommend this to my friends. I love it..
The first one did me good for 5yrs and I'm banking on this one to work wonders as well....Like I said I'm 29 with 1 child and second Mirena and no major problems or bothersome side effects.

I have had mirena for almost a year now! I received it after my first child. Not ready for another one so why not get a birth control that i don't have to worry about taking a pill everyday or getting a shot. I wish now i would have gotten on the pills. Apparently with the Mirena my periods are suppose to be not that heavy anymore. Ten months later i am still having to use a pad and a tampon at the same time when i start my period!! Seriously i am only 23. And this is the first month my cramps are bad like contractions bad!! The first thing on my to do list next week is to see if they can find out why i bleed so heavy. Oh and my face is now an acne town!! Never been this bad before!!!!

I had Mirena inserted in May 2009. I did not have much pain at all with insertion, just minor cramping. I did bleed for almost 3 months after insertion though it was fairly light. After that I have only had 2 periods. They were fairly light and lasted about 3 weeks each. Then it seems like forever till I have another one...I should really be keeping track. But it seems like I go every other month and have a period. Sometimes I think I'm pregnant because my breasts get tender and Ive never been able to feel my string! It makes me nervous. Also I have terrible acne, and I never want to have sex! Don't know if that has anything to do with mirena but I want to blame it on something!
So my experience hasn't been a horrible one, and I enjoy not taking a pill all the time. But I'm thinking there still could be bad to come since it's only been 6 months ish. Are we supposed to get mirena check ups every so often? My doctors never said or scheduled anything about it. Well thanks.

bleeding,

I chose Mirena to help with my severe PMDD and heavy periods, as well as Birth Control pills give me migraines. Depo shots made me gain weight and lose sex drive.

Had Mirena put in this past July. I bled solid for 2 months. Stopped for a few days, started again. I now bleed 3 out of 4 weeks of the month, and my PMDD still comes as usual, though not nearly as badly, same as my periods. This is the only positive thing I've had. My periods had been so heavy they interrupted my life.

My sex drive, previously higher than my husbands, is now dead, and I hate it.

I've gained 20 pounds and CANNOT get it back off.

I'm always tired, wasn't before.

I have constant stabbing pains in my abdomen. After orgasms, it hurts horribly.

I will leave my Mirena in merely because even though I bleed all the time, it is preferable to the heavy bleeding I'd have before I had the Mirena inserted. I'm also willing to put up with the weight gain and sex drive loss, because to me, the lighter bleeding and lack of cramping outweighs the weight gain and sex drive loss issues.

I have been using Quasense for about 3 years now and the only side effect I have noticed is more spotting than usual. I sometimes have to double check the pack and make sure I didn't forget to take one! It usually occurs randomly and lasts anywhere from a couple days to a week or so. I love having 4 periods a year...so I have learned to deal with the unexpected spotting.

I had Mirena since Sept 2008. All I felt was a slight cramp when it was put in and a minor ache for a few hours afterward. I had some spotting for about 4 days after it and then nothing. Periods got lighter each month but the spotting got longer and longer.

I stumbled across this sight a few days ago when I was wondering if the Mirena could cause weight gain. After reading everyone's experience with it, everything started to come together. I got it 3 months after my daughter was born. I had gained 80 pounds while pregnant and lost 40 within 3 months. I then had that damn IUD put in. I gained it all back. I haven't been able to lose anything after gaining it all back. I have trouble just trying to maintain my weight. This is what I've experienced so far: weight gain, facial hair, cramping, sharp abdominal pains, joint pain, constant exhaustion, mood swings, bloating, tingling sensations, headaches/migraines, 15 days of spotting each month, constant hunger, no sex drive... I've had blood work, tests on my stomach and abdomen, iron infusions... All my doctor was telling me to do is change my diet and exercise when I went about the exhaustion. I've done that and gained 3 more pounds!

It's scheduled to come out December 4th. That day can't come fast enough for me!

I switched to Yasmin one month ago. I have terrible problems with ovarian cysts, cramps, back pain and mood swings all relating to my cycle/hormones. Before i was on Portia for a year and wasn't at all happy with it. I suppose I didn't realize how different bc's are from one another. Well, my gyno suggested Yasmin to help with all these. Because as soon as I go off the pill for my week of menstruation the stabbing pains in my abdomen start. (Literally the next morning after not taking the first reminder pill) She thinks it would be best to skip periods all together.

I have noticed being tired around the same time of day every day. I have always had motion sickness while reading so that remains. Overall I am happy with Yasmin but I will definitely look out for any side effects after reading these posts. Thanks you so much everyone for sharing! If I begin to have any of these unusual symptoms I'll know right away that it is the Yasmin.

I am SO glad I found this site. I have had Mirena for 7.5 years and have had these side effects mentioned here by everyone. At first the Mirena was the wonder birth control method, no periods, no cramping- I thought it was the greatest, but then I had strange things happening. I asked my doctor about these on numerous occasions,and he kept saying "the hormone level in Mirena is so low it is not detectable by a blood test" and therefore could not be causing symptoms.

I've experienced a lack of libido, headaches, weight gain, hair thinning, sadness, fatigue, sleeplessness....an overall change I was attributing to getting older and going through my 30's.

OK- so why is my story like every woman's on here if there an no side effects as explained by my doctor?

After finding this site and countless others, I made an appt to have Mirena removed.

I cannot wait to feel like myself again.
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I had my mirena removed for about 3 weeks and I feel great! I had the mirena put in right after I had my daughter. I lost a lot of baby weight then as soon as I got my mirena, I couldn't lose another pound! I loved having no periods but I kept wondering if the mirena was preventing me to lose anymore weight! I put it out of my head until I got really serious about losing the rest of my baby weight. I ate great and exercised everyday and my weight didn't budge. After the removal, I have lost 8lbs! I haven't exercised either! Go figure? I think it prevented me from losing weight! I have had a normal period now and I feel like a new person!!

Hi everyone ~ I am so glad I have found all of you. I have an appt today to have the Mirena placed. I highly considering canceling the appt now. I have read probably 98% bad and only 2% good. can anyone help me decide what I should do? I was having it placed for my heavy, painful menses, the birth control is/was a bonus feature. really? I shouldn't do this eh? someone please respond.

i just stumbled on this site, SO i like to share my experience. I had the Mirena placed in Oct 08 and took it out recently Oct 09 so exactly a year within, that year: I was having the ose Headaches ever (i expressed this to my doctor but almost immediately he was dismissive on the idea that it was related to the IUD. I insisted it was because of it.. I also wasn't able to lose any weight, and had moody side effect. I now realized it wasn;t just me. There should be a more testing when producing a product such as this. I am just wondering is there going to be a time (soon) where there will be a recall on this product or are they going to keep this on the market until someone gets really ill or are they waiting for someone to die?.. Geez I am now going to do this the natural way. (calculate my periods and be vigilant as to when i am ovulating) these birth control assist with one thing and mess up 10

I had Mirena placed in August 2009. I was so excited when I first heard about it; shorter, lighter periods, decrease of cramping, no taking a pill daily, birth control for up to 5 years... Well I am so ready to have it taken out! My face broke out worse than a hormonal teenager and I have NO sex drive since it's been inserted, none. Also I have to wear a panty liner every day and night due to spotting. I didn't experience any weight gain but would rather take a few pounds versus all the side effects I do experience. I would not recommend Mirena to anyone and am scheduling an appointment to have it taken out asap.

I've had the mirena for only about two months now and about two weeks after it was placed my stomach ballooned to over twice the size it was before and I've gained about seven pounds that are unexplainable. I have not had a regular period which is understandable but I cant deal with the weight gain and bloating. I just had a baby four months and am trying so hard to loose the remainder of the baby weight,and I was doing extremely well until I got the mirena, and nothing drastic has changed about my diet or exercise routine.Does anybody have any idea how long this is suppose to last or what I can do to combat the bloating/weight gain besides getting it removed?

wow i cant tell all of you women how thankful i am that you posted on here, i started femcon fe a little over a week ago my ob/gyn had me on 4 pill for 4 days then 2 for 7 and then one after that well Saturday i got really sick vomiting blood and everything i cant keep any food in my stomach, so the on call doctor told me to stop taking then well my dr told me on mon to start them again but only take 2,,still nothing but sick she has me taking a pill for the nausea but that makes everything worse.. my emotions are way out of wack, im tired all the time and my periods are extremely heavy a lot of clotting.. i always seem to be in tears,, and its not helping my job at all.. im calling her tomorrow to get me off of this.. so thank you very much

I started taking Loestrin24 Fe in July...At this point I'm on my 4th package....The first 2 months, I missed my periods (even though I had some bleeding but not when I was taking the placebo pills). I would usually get some bleeding on the 2nd of week of active pills. My third month was normal, I was so happy. Unfortunately, now I am on my 4th pack and 15th day onto it, I have some really heavy bleeding with terrible cramps (cannot deal without taking pain killers). Today is my 3rd day of bleeding and really bad cramps which makes me really scared.....Don't know what to do...Any suggestions???

I am 49 years old and got the Mirena for heavy bleeding / perimenopause systems. I was told I would probably stop having periods a couple months after insertion and that appealed to me. I had it put in place on Friday October 30. Insertion was uncomfortable but over quickly and I did not bleed much as a result. I woke up Saturday nauseous with a head ache and tingly feelings in my extremities. I also felt this thing inside me. I laid on my side, I could feel it. I felt a heaviness inside. I took tylenol and Pepto for headaches and nausea but it persisted. I felt very tired and my skin itched. Sunday the same thing. Tingling, headache, nausea and the sensation of having a foreign object inside. My abdomen hurt too. I took tylenol and Pepto but as the day went on I felt worse. I wanted it out! I called a Consulting Nurse who recommended I go to Urgent Care. I went to Urgent Care last night. My blood pressure was very high as well. The Dr said it was a reaction to the hormone. I got the think taken out and felt immediately better. Today my skin itches but that will go away. I have decided to try natural Progesterone cream and other natural methods vs. synthetic hormones.

I had the Mirena for the full five years and loved it once I got through the first couple of months of side effects. I actually lost about 15 pounds and maintained the weight loss the whole time. My sex drive improved over what it was on Ortho Tri-Cyclen and its generic. Now I'm struggling since having the Mirena removed at its expiration. I tried Seasonale for one pack, but it made me loss sex drive and gain weight. Now I'm trying NuvaRing, but having terrible headaches and nausea. I would have another Mirena, but I really expect I will try to have a child in the next year or so, so I don't want to spend the money for a short usage. My sister also uses Mirena and she likes it as well as I did. The best part was light or no periods for the around four years!

Mirena the BANE of our existence! I had mine put in January 2009 and then taken out this week. I thought maybe I should ride it out for awhile, see if some of the problems went away with time... and to be honest some of them did. The acne subsided, the cramps lessened and the periods became virtually non-existent. However, the headaches, the mood swings, the tiredness and depression and not to mention 20lbs along with boobs that went from C to DD, I couldn't handle them anymore. Removal was uncomfortable but 1/8 of the pain of insertion. I had some clotting but it only lasted a couple hours. I have been experiencing a crash in emotions but nothing worse than a "bad" day with Mirena. The only real problem I have run into was the PA that removed it. Please learn from this experience and don't become discouraged by ignorant and book smart doctors...
My doctor had the audacity to tell me that all of these "symptoms" were probably my body returning to it's natural state, that is to the way it was before I ever went on birth control. I was on Ortho for 8 years before I decided to give myself a break and insert. So what this woman was telling me was that there were no documented side effects to legitimize my issues. She was saying in no certain terms that from the ages of 13-18 before BC, I was fat, moody, irrational, with acne, craps and gigantic breasts. I was offended to say the least and tensely asked her to take it out and put me back on the pill. Now I am just praying I don't experience another catastrophe with whatever this "woman" has decided to prescribe me. You can be sure I will be doing my research before putting anything else into my system. Thank you ladies for your honesty and thank you medications.com.

I've had my Mirena for about 2 1/2 years. I've tried other forms of b.c. such as several versions of the pill, the patch, the ring, the depo shot, etc. Mirena has been the best choice for me by far. I am having it removed in the next month though not because of any dissatisfaction with it; my husband and I are ready to have our third child. Initially it did cause some severe uterine cramping; however, once that subsided it was fabulous. My periods are gone and I don't have to worry about keeping up with have I or haven't taken my b.c. There seem to be many women who have experienced severe side effects from Mirena. Just remember if it doesn't work for you there are many options out there. Once I have my third child, I will not get Mirena again. I want a more permanent solution, i.e. sterilization. Good luck to all in your quest for finding a b.c. that works for you!

I went on this POISON Yasmin for a year then went off after I gained weight. I proceeded to lose so much weight after I went off that I lost 40 pounds by doing nothing different over the course of three months. I got so skinny people became concerned but there wasn't anything medically wrong with me. However, I also didn't have my period for over a year after quitting Yasmin. I went to the gyno concerned but after a Progesterone test (which I failed) he suggested I just try going back on again with Yaz this time. I had my periods again of course but not on my own. They were hormonally controlled. After two months, I started craving food and getting anxious and stuffing my face as a way to cope with the mood swings and stress. This is was so not like me. Then I started to get horrible bloating and constipation. I had to use laxatives regularly to have any movement. After gaining 30 pounds and suffering in severe with the constipation, I decided it had to be the pill so I went off again. No surprise, I haven't had a period for 6 months since I've been off and while the crazy mood swings have gone away, I'm still having really bad GI problems. I have a sharp pain in my lower left bowel and I'm chronically constipated. After seeing doctors and running blood test which all ended up normal they still don't know what's wrong even though I tell them it's because of this pill. My gyno thinks I'm crazy, my GP thinks I'm crazy, and now I have a GI who thinks I'm crazy. IT'S BECAUSE OF YASMIN/YAZ!! This is POISON. Do NOT take this or give it to you kids. I'm just praying I can heal the pain and the constipation soon because I'm starting to limp and all the doctors have told me to do is eat a different diet. I've been eating cooked fruits and veggies for almost a month now because that's the only thing I can eat without severe pain. And I'm a 24 year old healthy girl who exercises every day. I am beyond amazed this crippling drug is still on the market place.

I got Mirena in May 2009 after I had my second baby in February. I really like that I don't have to think about daily or monthly BC, but I hate the side effects. I've gained almost 10 pounds since May, and I leak vaginal discharge like crazy. Every morning when I wake up, I can feel it pool out of me and it does it at other times too --- so annoying. I also was enjoying the fact that in the first month of having it, I did not get a period. But that soon changed --- I now get periods that I can't even call periods; it's either spotting or heavy discharge tinted w/ blood and it comes and goes as it pleases, there is no pattern and no warning. I'm not sure what I'll do at this point. My GYN said it can take up to a year to regulate, but if it stays like this, I may switch to something else.

I had terrible sinus problems combined with my deviated septum. Swollen nostrils, constant nasal drip, couldn't sleep at night, and terrible sore throat in the morning. Started taking nasonex two months ago... Stopped all my problems in a few days. After two weeks I was only spraying each nostril once about 2-3 times a week. My periods are always every 28 days and my past period was 10 days late, I am still waiting for this months period (over a week late). I realized it has to be the nasonex. Along with menstrual problems, I have had terrible nightmares, acne problems (for the first time ever, I'm 24), a few nosebleeds, headaches that have lasted over 4 days, and itchy skin. I didn't put it all together until I saw this website. I will not be spraying my nose again, from now on I will be using the nedi pot.

I haven't gone through to read all of everyone elses side effects yet but is there anyone who is getting migraines because of this thing? i feel like my head is going to explode and the come so frequently i have never had this problem before getting the mirena i have no clue on whether or not this is what is causing them but i am hoping so, that way i can get it taken out! i go through spurts of depression too but im sure that it is because of the mirena but i will admit i do love the no periods and that it has done its job in preventing another unexpected pregnancy i just do not think i will make it through another headache!