Birth Control Concerns

Have you considered Ortho-Evra. It's the patch. Put it on on Sunday and wear it all week and then change it next Sunday. It's a easy way to remember it.

There is a birth control that is in a patch form. It is called ortho evra. After i had my first son i wanted to go on some form of birth control but i knew i wouldn't remember taking a pill everyday so my doctor put me on ortho evra. All you do is change a patch every week and then you don't wear one the week of your period. It was very convienient. I did this after both of my children.

my name is T.. My husband and i have been together for almost 10 years and we have been married for almost 7 years. We have a son who is 4 and a daughter who will be 2 in May.

Hello J.. I would never recommend the IUD to anyone. My sister had 3 miscarriages while she was on it in 3 years. I saw all the pain and suffering that she went through and it broke my heart. She had a lot of bleeding while she was on the IUD. After she finally had her 3rd child, she decided to get her tubes tied so she wouldn't have to go through any of that ever again, plus I think 3 kids was enough for her. As for a form of birth control, before I had my son, I was on the patch and I LOVED it. I only had to worry about it on Sundays. I always kept in on my hip bone, I switched sides every week. I felt that if I could always keep an eye on it, then I would feel better. When my husband and I decided to have a baby, it only took 2 months for us to get pregnant. I know there are a lot of warnings out there for the patch, but there is for the pill as well. I am on the pill right now and hate it, soon I will go back to the patch. But looking through everyone elses response, they are all having good luck with it. It's totally your decision and what you feel comfortable with. Good Luck!

First off congrats, May 08 is a great time to get married, I am too. LoL. Now i knwo your ? was abotu the IUD but if it is such a risk for you to get pregnant again and you have so many concerns about the possibility of it happeneing you could get a tubal, you're young I know and it is a big choice and you never know what the future holds but it is a very effective option and would mean you could just stop worring abotu it. I got mine tied at 21 after my third birth control baby, it seems I fall into that .1% no matter what I take. As for your concerns about miscarriages it's not common but it does happen on any birth control and can even happen with a tubal, but again it isn't likely. a tubal like the IUD can also make cramping worse, or it could not, it depends on the person, everyone reacts differently to these things, generally though if a form of birth control makes bleeding heavier in the begining it is just temporary and it will stop. If I were you I would look at how my body responded to other forms of birth control I had been on and go from there instead of worring about how other ppl reacted to it, heck I had a perfectly healthy, full term, baby girl with an IUD in so anything can happen. good luck deciding. KAri

J.- I had similar concerns and as old-fashioned as it sounds, I ended up getting a diaphram. A good option if you don't want to mess around with your hormones:) good luck- S.

I had an IUD put in last May. And yes there is some slight discomfort when inserting it. And yes there was some annoying bleeding for a couple of months. But ever since then, I have not had any issues with it. Even during sex. You have to check the string every month. But other than that, I have had no adverse side effects. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact me.

M.

I understand your concern, I myself had an IUD for over a year. There is some discomfort when it is inserted, and some mild cramps for a day after, but that is it. I loved it! My mother told me not to get it cause she heard of people having miscarriages with it, and i did discuss it with my doctor, but she assured me that the IUD has come a long way since it was first used. The point of the IUD is to change the condition of you uterus so you cant get pregnant, now it is possible, but she said it has the same possibility of getting pregnant as with steralization. At first I did notice some changes with my period and some spotting. But after a few months my periods were very light and started to completely dissappear. 80% of users dont have periods after a year. And if you decide you want to get pregnant it is very possible after it is removed. I got pregnant with my son 2 months after having it removed. Hope this helps! Good Luck, and take some tylenol/motrin before you go.

Hi J.. I understand how it goes with the pill. After my last one was born six months ago my husband and I have been using all forms; I am breastfeeding, taking birth control pills, and I make him wear a condom. Four children is all I can handle :-)! One mom suggested the Patch and I would advise against it. There is a major lawsuit because of deaths linked to Orthro Evra Patch and I didn't even realize it was still on the market. With the IUD I think you should discuss it with your doctor or nurse at length, get all the facts, and make a decision with your fiance. Best of luck and Congrats on the new baby and marriage.

Hi J.!
My best friend has an IUD & has nothing but problems with it. Bleeding & constant pain. I have used arm implants & the Pill. Now that I'm older I prefer less hormones. My husband & I are very happy with the sponge. Congrats on your babies & your engagement! Let me know if I can help you with wedding ideas, arrangements, favors, etc! You'll be amazed how fast it will be here, never too early to start! Best of Luck, S.

I had the Mirena put in after having my second baby. It did take awhile to get use to it- had frequent periods the first six months...but after that things are great. My periods are only 3 days and only happen every other month....for me it was a great alternative after trying the pills and the patch...

Mirena has a great website - or you can check out some medical websites regarding the IUD's. Mirena is the newest IUD out and I was considering it just over a year ago, after I had my 3rd child. My husband is adamant about having 4 children so my dr didn't want to put an IUD in me if I didn't want it for the full 5 years (we're planning for the 4th sometime in 2008) so we opted for the ring instead. Mirena is supposed to be different than all the other IUD's out there - it's more comfortable, less side effects etc. Original IUD's were considered bad for many people because they basically cause a miscarriage if you do get pregnant (they work 2 ways, to prevent pregnancy and if that doesn't work, then they will eleminate pregnancy) Just do your research first, let your concerns be known to your doctor and know that this is what you want before you go thru with it - if you decide against it, you can research other options. Have you considered the patch? I tried this and it didn't work out with my sensitive skin. Go to www.webmd.com and type in birth control, there are some great articles, and since this is a decision you have to mostly make on your own, you need to know your stuff. Good luck.

The Mirena IUD is the best..there are two kinds of IUD available. In the past there was a huge concern forthe Paragard IUD. That device is copper and is inserted for up to 10 years. It was known to cause infection and other things. The Paragard has been redesigned and is way better now. However the Mirena..is easier to insert, you should be on your cycle when inserted for the least discomfort. Also take ibuprofen before you go..yes there is some cramping. As for the cramping after..when you have a cycle,there may be some cramping...the IUD has VERY lil hormones..so your cycle will not have the estrogen like a pill to keep you regular. However the lil progesterone that is in the Mirena will keep your lining thinned out to where you may not have a cycle after 6 months.I work for a well-known ob/gyn office and am very familiar with the IUD. I also had one myself. One thing to keep in mind is that your body has to adjust to having "a foreign object" you may notice more than usual cramping and/or discharge at first. Stick with it...it is MORE effective than a tubal and is reversible if you change your mind.

If you have ANY MORE QUESTIONS...FEEL FREE TO CONTACT ME DIRECTLY!!

C.

One of my best friends had the IUD. She had no problems at all. She said she couldnt even tell it was there. She had it removed when she was ready to try for another, and had no problems getting pregnant. And she was even told it could take a while to get pregnant after removal. I think the IUD would be good for your situation. Of course it will be different for every person, but for her it was great. I wish you the best!

Hi J.:
I had an iud for 5 years, and absolutely loved it. I had the Mirena. I haven't heard anything about paragard. I didn't have any problems with it, and got pregnant the month after I had it removed. I do have to admit, it was pretty painful to get it inserted, but it was only for a short amount of time. While they were inserting it, I did have severe cramping, but it only took about 10 minutes, so it was tolerable. And I had period like cramps for about 2 days after. But, from then on, it was great. I didn't ever have to worry about bc, and my period became much shorter and lighter. I wanted to get another one put in, but my insurance wouldn't cover it, and it is like $700 or something ridiculous w/o insurance. To make a long story short...I definitely recommend it. You always hear stories that scare you, but remember, those are the small numbers in the statistics. Good luck, and congrats on your new little one!:) K.

If you get the Copper T IUD, your periods may be heavier. The likelihood of getting pregnant is really small, but if you do, there is a high incidence of miscarriage. You can get the Mirena, which will result in light or no period, but there are hormonal side effects. Most people don't notice the IUD once it's in there, if the strings are cut an appropriate length. Men usually can't feel it. Make sure you discuss your concerns with your doctor.

J.,

I have the Paraguard IUD, I had it put in 6 weeks after my daughter was born. The only complaint that I have is that I get worse cramps than I did before. Other than that I have no complaints.....Good Luck

I have had an IUD for almost a year. I did have pain while it was being put in, but after the first day I haven't had much pain. I love it, and am soo glad I had it in...Let me know how it goes for you

Hi, I have Mirena, and I have had no problems. I have had it in for a little over a year. I had a little bit of spotting but nothing out of the ordinary. Good luck on your decision.

I don't know anything about the IUD or much on the topic at all except that I kept forgeting to take the pill on time so my doctor put me on the Ortho Evra Patch. I loved it! I just got off of it in December but was on it for over a year. It is much easier to remember once a week then it is everyday and if you forget it is ok because there is extra medicine in each patch so it can last an extra day if you forget. Just thought I would give you another option. :)

I just read your question and I don't have any experience with paragard itself but, I am actually also going to be using it soon. I had Mirena (another form of the IUD) and just had it removed earlier this week due to some problems I was having. I seem to be very sensitive to the hormones in birth control and am getting paragard because it does not contain any hormones. From what my doctor told me, Mirena is very similair to paragard except minus the hormones. It does cause cramping when the IUD is inserted but, it isn't really that bad and it only takes a minute. As far as the bleeding goes... I think it will be similar to your regular period (whatever that is like). I hope that I have been helpful in some way.

R. : )

Hi J., Congratulations on your new little one. Here's hoping you get some rest soon! Contraception can be complex. I do not personally know anyone using Paragard IUD.

I've been a NuvaRing user for 9 mo. and LOVE it--only have to think about it every few weeks, lighter periods, sexual side effects significantly less than pill. I used sympto-thermal monitoring with barrier contraception (see "Taking Charge of Your Fertility") btwn babies and it worked well, but you probably need something lower maintenance and significantly more "certain" (less dependent on your behavior) at this point. But that's me. You have your own decision to make. If I were you I'd be thankful if I remembered to brush my teeth once a day--lol.

The good thing about this IUD in theory is that it doesn't hormonally alter your cycle. The down side, from what I understand from their website and other things I've heard, is that it CAN (and may primarily?)work by keeping a fertilized egg from implanting--a blastocyst that becomes and embryo that becomes a baby. That would be a moral dilemma for me personally.

There's always vasectomy;)!! My recommendation is gather all the information you can from your MD and others and make an informed decision. That was long--sorry. N.