Traditional birth symptoms and conditions

I chose to have the Mirena inserted in August of 2009. I found this site because I have been bleeding for three weeks straight, and the doctors were unavailable to advise me (holiday weekend). I see now that my experience is a side-effect of the IUD. I have also seen a diminished sex drive, fatigue, loss of energy, and constant cramping.

I was very hopeful for the Mirena. Five years without having to worry about birth control, wow! My first complaint is the pain involved with insertion. I was told to eat a big breakfast or early lunch before the procedure, and to take a few advils prior to the appointment. I did - however, I was still not prepared for the process. First, they measure your uterus to make sure that it is the right size, with an instrument similar to the IUD. I was in tears the entire time. I wished someone had told me to bring a friend or my partner with me to hold my hand. It hurt so much! The nurse was as understanding as she could be, but said that once the package has been opened, I would be charged the full amount. I went ahead with the procedure, wondering how I would reschedule during a period and with a busy work week. I was in pain the rest of the day, and felt extremely uncomfortable for a few days after. The pain and bleeding still did not go away, and after a week I made an appointment to check on the IUD's position, if there was any preforation of the uterus; etc. The strings were there, and they just told me that the cramping and spotting is normal. To me, it felt like the doctors tell you the best case scenario, and as you approach more and more of the side-effects, they confirm those as a possibility.

Before the Mirena, I have used DepoProvera, the NuvaRing, and Ortho-Tri Ciclen. I didn't like the weight gain from the Depo, the NuvaRing is somewhat expensive through my insurance, and the traditional birth control bills, like Ortho, are a hassle if you happen to miss a day. I thought that the Mirena was the best solution to my situation.

Be aware. I have been through childbirth, and this was a painful experience for me! I wish I would have read the comments on this site before opting for the Mirena... at least I would have been a more informed & educated consumer.

Hi All,

I have a personal and family history of depression. If I had known of the emotional side effects of Yaz I would never have chosen to change my birth control pill following the birth of my daughter in September 07. I had been on a traditional birth control pill prior to her birth. Yaz caused me to get so depressed that actually considered suicide which is something I had never done in any of my previous episodes.. I've been on Lexapro to control the depression along with very mild AD/HD since about 2004. I The AD/HD also began return recently, mainly impulsive. I've been pulling away from my husband and into myself. We live with my mother-in-law and the irritability was causing an emotional rollercoaster for my husband who is currently back in school. Also, I had 0 sex drive, my husband kept saying that our sex life was over at 33. As of this past Friday I am completely off of the Yaz and will be starting my previews birth control at my next period

I had Mirena put in three months ago after my doctor told me the hormones would not enter my bloodstream (I am very sensitive to hormones and reacted adversely to traditional birth control pills). I didn't notice the side effects immediately but they have progressively become worse over time. My side effects include bouts of constipation (2-3 days) followed by diarrhea, nausea, frequent (1 a month) vaginal yeast infections, abnormal vaginal ph (causes a terrible odor), pain in my abdomen so extreme that I landed in the emergency room once, irritability, depression, weight gain, thinning hair and acne like I've never had. My fiancee thinks I'm making all of this up but I am absolutely convinced it is caused by the Mirena. I'm having it taken out this week and will be back to share whether it has alleviated my symptoms.

Pregnant or not pregnant?

After reading the posts from women who have had negative experiences with mirena, it has helped me know I am not alone.

I had the mirena inserted three months after the birth of my second son at the end of 2006.

Everything "seemed" great. My periods were lighter, sometimes only spotting. And the mirena was preventing pregnancy which was why I had it inserted. I wanted a tubal, but my obgyn recommended mirena instead, saying she had it and it was great.

After over indulging at Christmas, I decided to do a bit of dieting right after. The number on the scale has gone down, but my belly size has increased significantly, and so have my boobs.

My period stopped completely in August or September. I was told this would happen, and I was glad not to get it. I'm not so sure now.

I have all of the signs and symptoms of pregnancy (I feel just like I did when I was pregnant with each of my sons). I can't get through the night without getting up to pee at least a couple of times. My boobs are sore and sensitive. I've had headaches. My lower back is killing me. I feel nauseous in the mornings. I'm ravenously hungry at times. I'm sooo tired. I feel little flutterings in my belly. My pre-existing stretch marks have stretched even more and are itchy as heck.

Two hpt's have shown negative results. I'm making an appointment today to see my gp and find out what's going on.

I used to be nicer than nice and noticed after the birth of my second son I lost a lot of my niceness. At first I thought it was post partum, and when my nasty spells continued, I chalked it up to having two little ones to keep up with and being tired and all. I NEVER tied it in with mirena. Now I see my moodiness is possibly related to it.

I had commented to my husband one day before Christmas that I was feeling really bitchy, and he commented, "you're always bitchy". His comment shocked me. He told me I'm mean. This so does not describe the person I used to be. I want the old me back. This isn't fair to me, my husband or my boys.

Also, since giving birth to my second son, I have had body aches like you would not believe. When I get up in the mornings or after having sat for a spell, my body (feet, legs, back, arms - everything) hurts. Once I've limbered up, I'm okay until the next time I sit or lie down. Again, I never tied this in with mirena.

If I'm pregnant, mirena didn't do its job, so I'll have it removed and after the baby is born, either have a tubal like I had originally wanted, or convince my husband to get a vasectomy.

If I'm not pregnant, I will still have the mirena removed, because these are side effects I can do without and I want my life back.

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.

Many strange things have been happening to me for the last year and a half, that I did not ever experience before. I just turned 38 years old. I am now suspecting these are side effects from the MIRENA. I want to get opinions about what I'm experiencing and what happens when it's removed.

The most profound thing is the feeling of being in a mental bubble. Even though I'm aware of it and I try to be alert, I feel cloudy minded and can't even rely on myself to remember things or commit to things because I never know how I will feel when I wake up each day. Some days are okay while others are completely LOST because I may have struggled to sleep the night before, sweating and soaking my pillow case and waking up with a rapid heart beat, panicking for no apparent reason right out of sleeping. Or, I'm irritable due to discomfort which takes several forms like these:
- major moodiness, like feeling totally peaceful one minute and then something small triggers me and I'm angry for hours, later realizing that I was overreacting
- visibly shaking hands, especially when I drink just 1/2 cup coffee.
- increased oily skin and acne on face, back, shoulders and even in ears, along with thinning hair around face
- fatigue and stiffness in the morning, so it takes me forever to get out of bed
- off and on fatigue that has me uncontrollably dozing off during the day
- bloated tummy (visible), gas and menstrual cramps in no predicable pattern, but I never go more than a week without these things
- strange libido, one day I wouldn't care if I ever had sex again, the next night wake up horny as heck at 2 am
- ears ringing, jaw pain, mystery pains in back and joints regularly

All along I've been assuming these odd things were stress and age related but the more I think about it, there's just too many things, and these things don't necessarily represent the stress of a typical stay at home mom.
Sure, I have had stress and anxiety in the past, but they could always be connected to something large going on in my life. Now, the anxiety and moodiness hit unpredictably and indiscriminately, it seems. For a long time now I feel like I'm a total mess physically and mentally, even more so because I realize something is wrong
I am pretty sure as of right now that I should get this removed. If the symptoms go away I'll then know what caused them in the first place.
I am wondering what happens upon removal, will it also be a roller coaster of physical and mental anguish???????? How long will it last?