I had Mirena put in shortly after terminating an accidental pregnancy. I was told this would be my best option. I have always been a size 6, 135 pounds healthy active person. Shortly after Mirena was put in I began to gain weight so I stepped up my cardio and tightened up my diet, this helped me to stabilize my gaining. Then about a year after Mirena was inserted I could not stop the gradual but steady weight gain. It has now been nearly 4 years since Mirena was inserted I weigh 165 pounds and am busting out of a size 12, I don't consider 30 pounds insignificant weight gain!!!, I am bloated around the middle and look 4 months pregnant. I have tried EVERYTHING to lose weight. 13 hours of cardio (including trail running) a week, weights and 1000-1200 cal diets. I could not lose a single pound, in fact If I didn't do all of the dieting & working out I would gain more weight. I did not make the connection with Mirena until recently because my severe troubles didn't start until a year into it, but that is exactly when I stopped getting my period!!! I have been to doctors to get blood tests for my thyroid, I have had antidepressants shoved at me and been told" Well you know, you ARE getting older...." I don't have insurance so had to pay each of these incompetent & uninformed doctors out of pocket, not one of them even asked if I had an IUD in. I cannot even describe the torture I have been through these last 4 years, I felt so ashamed of my body that I stopped socializing with friends & family, I couldn't stand the sight of my body so never wanted to have sex with my boyfriend, this has put a HUGE strain on our relationship. Plus my sex drive has been zero. I have had heavy discharge 24/7 and an unpleasant odor, hair loss, migraines, mood swings and painful intercourse. As soon as I made the connection (& thanks to this site) I had Mirena removed. I immediately swelled even more and bled for 11 days (awful:dark & clotted, horrid smell) BUT my stomach then went down and I have already lost 3 pounds and its been about 13 days, my appetite has diminished and I feel better!