If you don't want to know about my method of birth control then I urge you to stop reading now!
I thought I should share this story in case it can help someone else out there.
While I was still pregnant Chris and I discussed birth control options with my OB (as ridiculous as it sounds that someone who had to endure 3 rounds of IVF to even get ONE positive pregnancy test should worry about getting pregnant naturally, we would be the ones to get pregnant accidentally when we didn't want to). We talked about a tubal while I was in for my c-section but she talked us out of it and into an IUD (a small t-shaped thing that they put in your uterus). I had it put in at the end of June (about 12 weeks post partum). I have yet to have a period.
By the end of July I had gained 20 pounds and went from a size 8 to a size 12. I was really frustrated with that because I really wasn't eating poorly and I was more active than I had been since high school.
Also at the end of July/beginning of August my mental health drastically declined. Since I had experienced post partum depression in the first few weeks post partum, everyone thought that's what it was. I was out of control anxious. I wanted to rip my skin off. My memory was literally non-existent. I was so scared. I took myself to the hospital. I got hooked up with a therapist who prescribed a great drug called lexapro and after about 4 weeks I was fine. By November I was starting to feel bad again though. I dealt with it until February when I realized I just need to up my dose and there was no reason to suffer. So the therapist upped my dose. So since February I've felt great.
A friend of mine went off birth control last year. She was always skinny but after going off the birth control she became noticeably thinner. She thought it was from the stress of building a new house and moving to another state. Then she realized it was the lack of birth control. As soon as she said that I immediately realized what had caused my 20 pound weight gain!
So I googled Mirena and weight gain and found heaps of info about people who were going through exactly what I was not to mention learning that some people suffer from depression and anxiety. It's all obviously hormone related and since I have PCOS (rendering my hormones passengers of the short bus) my body just doesn't know how to handle birth control.
I finally got up the courage to talk to Chris about it. I was afraid he wouldn't believe me that this was all related and as this was the birth control method we had agreed on he wouldn't want me to get it out. He admitted that he had already thought of it and had been researching himself. The poor guy was afraid to talk to me about it because he didn't want me to feel bad that I had gained 20 pounds.
So I'm going to make an appointment to have it taken out ASAP. But here's the kicker. At my last pap the OB (a different one than the one that put in the IUD) said he couldn't find the string that hangs down from the cervix that they use to pull it out. I had to have an ultrasound to make sure it was still in my uterus and that it hadn't fallen out. It is indeed in there but now I have no idea how they are going to get it out!
5 comments:
This doesn't really apply to me but I think it's really interesting and I'm glad you shared it.
I'm about to start BCP on Sunday for a week and it always makes me blow up like a balloon - thank God it's so temporary.
I don't know if I should be jealous or concerned about you still not having a period yet.
I know a lot of women who have the same type of issues with birth control. I tried one of the "new generation" of Pills -- where you only have a period every 3 months -- and I couldn't handle it. It was the most painful flood of my life, and I gained 10 lbs. So now I am back to the old fashioned one pill a day, and everything is fine.
Can you go au naturale (i.e. no protection)since you aren't concerned about the possiblity of getting pregnant naturally?
Okay, you know this already, but don't go no protection (Shannon's suggestion)! There are way too many stories of women who were told they could never get pregnant, had twins through IVF, and then a surprise sibling within 2 years. Unless you want that...
That is really scary. I hope going off it gets your system back in line. These female hormones are really nutty. I'm scared to stop nursing because I think things will change a lot for me... I think I'm a kinder, gentler person while I'm nursing than I ever was, even with sleep deprivation!
OH we're not going no protection. We would totally be the ones to get that surprise pregnancy.
Hormones are a crazy thing and very underestimated by most people.
Yeah okay, so like I totally forgot that some couples still have sex after twins! :) It's an urban legend in our household, unfortunately.
So, yes yes use some protection if you are done having kiddos.
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