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Implanon, Mirena, Depo
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Thanks for sharing about the Keppra. So far, my BF hasn't had the side effects that badly. I think it does make him a little grumpier than usual, but I haven't seen the Keppra rage yet. He's only been on it about ten months. We're hoping he can step down the dosage and get off it completely within a year or two. Thank all the gods his sex drive seems to be just fine. No weight gain either, but then again, he works out six days a week, for at least 4 hours a day — teaches martial arts and is learning a new one (to him), so he's pretty ripped.
Good to know info, thanks again. And good luck with your BC quest.
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Umm, just my two cents here but- I found taking the pill (or any hormone-based birth control) was really bad for me. I'm naturally high in hormone, runs in the family, and seriously, the pill messed me up and I didn't know it. My monthly cycle was weird, I would get crazy PMS for two days to a week before, and I'd just be intolerable. And, it was a factor in causing my depression.
I gotta say, I am WAY happier without extra hormones. Everything seems to work fine without it…other than the occasional crushing pain of my monthly cycle, and that hasn't happened for almost a year now (I just realized that!).
Have you considered other options? Things like, perhaps, a diaphragm, or using (ugh) contraceptive foam plus condom? It's not pleasant, but it does work!
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I am running out of the house right now, but will come back and comment more on this later.
I took birth control a long time ago, and it screwed me up. It raised my estrogen level soooo much. I am now dealing with the side effects. My estrogen is 3 times the normal level. The doctors checked my blood twice cuz they said they have never seen it that high. I barely have any progesterone (aka the happy hormone.) I have been taking progesterone for almost a year, but according to the blood work, my body isnt absorbing. Not sure what else i can do, but its driving me crazy. I recently spent $1500 for the specialist, and the stuff isnt working.
If i could change back time, i would NEVER EVER EVER take birth control. It can screw u up for life.
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Birth control pills actually lower your estrogen levels (those that contain estrogen). I know that sounds counter-intuitive but it is true. Estrogen production is a cycle with peaks and valleys. Without these spikes and valleys then the reproductive cycle is confused. BC keeps your levels constant so you do not get the valley which signals estrogen production.
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Runemist – I need to be on birth control for seizure control. I have "catamenial epilepsy."It's really common for women with epilepy. It just mean that my seizures are associated with my periods. Progesterone helps decrease seizure activity, while estrogen makes it worse. I am also on a seizure medication that makes deformed babies, so I need to prevent any chance of me getting pregnant, and hormonal contraceptives are more effective.
Lizzy – Wow, that just goes to show how differently we all react. I've been on the pill since I was a teen (for cramps and acne) and I've never had a problem. I love it. Maybe you are going through early menopause? My mom's friend went through it at 30, and I have a friend going through it at 27. She has always had really random periods that are REALLY heavy. She had all of her babies really prematurely too.
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In regards to comments about the Mirena strings, they seem almost wiry when your doctor takes it out of the package but those strings soften up once they’re inside you. They can cut the strings shorter if you or your partner are bothered by them but usually this isn’t a problem (little hint: don’t warn your partner about it and he might not mention it, if he’s trying to convince himself that its there then he might complain – obviously if he says something hurts/irritates then fess up).
In terms of checking for proper placement, I also have a tipped uterus so it’s tough to find my cervix for doctors so I’m certainly not gonna have any luck trying on my own! If you just get your doctor to check sometime in the first few months after getting it then its usually not that important to keep checking afterwards.
Perforating the uterus is a very small risk, and it can happen to a woman who has already had children too. It’s not a big enough risk that to be concerning. If you are worried, just try to arrange to have an OB-GYN insert it instead of a family doc because they’d have more experience (mine was a family doc and no issues).
I would ask your neurologist what they recommend regarding progesterone and whether or not Mirena is a good choice. You can’t really compare the dose between Mirena, the pill, Depo etc because they are different modes of delivery so their absorption rates would be different.
But in terms of preventing pregnancy because you are on a teratogenic anti-epileptic (as in can cause deformities), Mirena is the most effective method out there! -
@dedejoy – there could be differences in policy/practice between Canada and USA that can explain why you never heard anything about osteoporosis risk with Depo. Or maybe it could be that there wasn’t such strong evidence (research) suggesting that risk at the time you were going through that. Im not sure how recently this has come to light.
I would just say that you easily could have gotten lucky, it’s a significant risk but still not as high as 50% even so obviously it doesn’t happen to theK majority of women.
If you have a family history of osteoporosis, then maybe just be more vigilant as you get older, especially after menopause. -
Depo does ahve a black box warning on it. The nurse told me yesterday that they tell the girl to take something like 2,000 mgs of calcium a day while on the shot, so it IS policy here to tell girls about the osteoporosis risk.
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I should clarify. I was made aware of the risk of osteo and advised to take calcium supplements, which I did not do because I get in a lot of dairy. What I meant was, nobody said I had to come off it after five years. I'd even asked a couple times about long-term usage, so it's possible that was so long ago that the studies and literature weren't out or well known by then. No docs ever ordered a bone scan or suggested they saw signs of it at all. No family history of it, but there is family history of breast cancer, so I've been avoiding excess estrogen wherever possible.
I suppose this is another really great reason to keep poling: building strong muscles builds strong bones. Strength = good. Weak bones = bad.
LOL
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I had two different side effects with implanon the first and most annoying issue was random spotting of blood every now and again for the first 8 months, but i didn't have periods every month back then either. The second issue i had was that the first 2-4 weeks i was more emotional than i had ever been in the past, i cried at silly things and felt a little sad. This soon sorted itself out though.
I've had it in my arm almost 2 years now and am back to having regular periods which are alot lighter than they use to be. Apparently its the same the progesterone only pill but in an implant format so if you have had that type of pill (I haddn't) it shouldnt be much of a shock to your body.
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Scarlet – Had you been on any birth control before you got the implant? Also, which arm did you et it in (your dominant or non dominant?) I was thinking of getting it in my right arm seeing as I would use my left arm for the teddy (I'm right handed.)
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Dede – I want to be off all medications, but I don't know if that is possible for me. When my seizures started, before I got diagnosed, they were getting progressively weirder, more intense, and they were changing. I did meet a woman who has the same type of seizures that I have and she said she had them for a few years, then went sevral years without them, then they started up again. I've thought about asking my neuro if I can try weaning off all my medications (except the birth control) and see what happens. I've thought about trying marijuana (the CBD's in it can stop seizrues) if I DID have a seizure, although it isn't really realistic for me to be high all day. It's probably wishful thinking, but I'm kinda hoping my brain will just fix itself.
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My personal experience, Depo = fat crazy no period no sex drive and took over a year to get my period back after I stopped taking it. Mirena = convenient spontaneous & no hormones (my goal). However, I went from a light 3 day period to a Heavy 7 day period with really bad cramps. For me the good outweighed the bad. If you have not had kids be warned, insertion is pretty intense and lots of cramping. This was my experience with both and everyone is different. Good luck!!
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RedSteph-did you get the Mirena or the Paragard? The Mirena has hormones and typically reduces bleeding. The Paragard is the one that is known to cause heavier bleeding and cramping and is hormone free.
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I’m not familiar with that other one’s brand name but it sounds like a copper IUD, which have been around a lot longer and do tend to increase bleeding. They do not have any hormones.
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