Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Feeling calm.
For the most part, I feel like my hormones have balanced out and I'm slowly starting to feel like me again. It's not easy getting to know yourself again. But it's great to have energy to do things again. Yesterday I worked out in our yard. Mowed the lawn, planted grass seed, and enjoyed it! And for the first time I didn't feel like I had pulled my IUS out of place. When I used to work in the yard it would always feel like I had knocked it around and caused me a lot of pain. It's great to be free of that!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Yank that thing out of me!
So here I sit, two days after the removal of my IUS (aka IUD) and I may be bleeding but I'm not broken! I went in to see my doctor after making an appointment for an IUD removal. The first thing she asked me, "Why do you want it out?" I went into detail with my long list of symptoms. After the stories of all these women (Mirena Side Effects) I was fully ready to hear her tell me I'm crazy and not remove it. To my surprise, she simply said, "Okay. You're not the only one I've had in here complaining of these side effects." I was relieved.
She had me lie back and relax (as much as you can in this situation) and proceeded to do what she had to do. She was in mid-sentence when I felt a sudden cramp and then she sat up and said, "That's it." I was shocked that something that had caused me so much pain going in, had caused so little coming out. In short, DON'T BE AFRAID TO GET IT OUT. The cramp lasted only a few minutes and then it felt as though my body relaxed. It was truly a great sensation. Granted, some of it may be in my head, but it felt good to have the thing out of me.
She had me lie back and relax (as much as you can in this situation) and proceeded to do what she had to do. She was in mid-sentence when I felt a sudden cramp and then she sat up and said, "That's it." I was shocked that something that had caused me so much pain going in, had caused so little coming out. In short, DON'T BE AFRAID TO GET IT OUT. The cramp lasted only a few minutes and then it felt as though my body relaxed. It was truly a great sensation. Granted, some of it may be in my head, but it felt good to have the thing out of me.
The Tiny Monster rares his ugly head...
A few months after my periods stopped, it seems, so did my sanity. Here is my list of side effects: I began having mood swings and depression. I became very high strung and irritable. I would have panic and anxiety attacks. The acne I had as a teen came back full force and then some. In a year I gained over 20 pounds. Granted, I was really tiny before I got it in, but 20 pounds is still nothing to sneeze at. I felt tired and listless all the time. I began to grow hair in places women don't want to have hair and losing the hair off my head. And then there was sex, I had no decrease in libido, but every time I had sex with my husband it was very painful.
I began to be irritable about every little thing, things that had never bothered me before. I was almost always depressed or withdrawn in myself. I felt as though my husband did not love me. With the added effects of the the Mirena, I was a basket case. Please keep in mind, I had not connected any of the side effects (aside from weight gain and acne) to the Mirena.
I was lonely, depressed, and just in a very bad place in my life. It was then that I really started to deeply at my life and myself as a person. I started researching the side effects of Mirena and found a site (http://www.medications.com/se/mirena) that had hundreds of women who have had very similar stories (well, side effects at least) as mine. As I read through them, I was bawling because I began to realize that this monster I was acting like came from somewhere. My emotions had been in hyper drive since getting the tiny monster put in. I decided to have it out and called that day to make an appointment.
I began to be irritable about every little thing, things that had never bothered me before. I was almost always depressed or withdrawn in myself. I felt as though my husband did not love me. With the added effects of the the Mirena, I was a basket case. Please keep in mind, I had not connected any of the side effects (aside from weight gain and acne) to the Mirena.
I was lonely, depressed, and just in a very bad place in my life. It was then that I really started to deeply at my life and myself as a person. I started researching the side effects of Mirena and found a site (http://www.medications.com/se/mirena) that had hundreds of women who have had very similar stories (well, side effects at least) as mine. As I read through them, I was bawling because I began to realize that this monster I was acting like came from somewhere. My emotions had been in hyper drive since getting the tiny monster put in. I decided to have it out and called that day to make an appointment.
The Rising Storm
This will not be one of those blogs that blames everything on Mirena (God help those people who use it to justify their lives!!) however, this will be a shared experience of my life with the Mirena. Disclaimer: This will be very detailed.
Growing up I was the girl who stayed home from school one or two days a month because of cramps so bad I couldn't walk. In my late teens I tried taking Ortho Tri Cyclen (pills) to help regulate my periods and clear up my skin. This pill did neither for me. Since I was not (shock I know) having sex I decided to just quit taking them. A couple of years went by with me just dealing with it as it is.Then, I started getting serious with my now husband and he soon proposed to me. So at the age of 20 I went to my obgyn and discussed my options of birth control. I decided to go with a pill again. I can't remember which pill it was, but I will never forget what it did to me. I was throwing up every day and the nausea never went away. So I went back to my obgyn and they switched me to Ortho Tri Cyclen - Lo, because they believe that I don't tolerate high doses of hormones. Same results as before, the toilet was my friend.
At this point, the wedding date was getting rather close and I was desperate to find something I would not be miserable with. So I started researching more forms and found Mirena. It was like hearing about a fruity cocktail for the first time, I was sold. The possibility of no period? Check. Never having to remember to take a pill? Check. Of course, in 2007 there weren't many side effects reported and doctors discredited most that were. So I made an appointment with my general practitioner to be recommended to an obgyn that would give me, a young lady with no kids, an IUS. (What is IUS? http://www.birth-control-comparison.info/iudinfo.htm) My doctor, and got my Mirena inserted. I had no more than the predicted pain from this. I cramped for two days and then was back at work.
Over the next 6 months I was constantly spotting and then had my period heavy once a month still. Talk about a honeymoon! My poor husband had to deal with all that is gross throughout all of that. Finally, one day... it was as if the sun began to shine... there was no more blood! I was, of course, very excited and pleased I would be saving all that money on tampons and panty liners. However, my excitement was short lived. What happened next will haunt me the rest of my life...
Growing up I was the girl who stayed home from school one or two days a month because of cramps so bad I couldn't walk. In my late teens I tried taking Ortho Tri Cyclen (pills) to help regulate my periods and clear up my skin. This pill did neither for me. Since I was not (shock I know) having sex I decided to just quit taking them. A couple of years went by with me just dealing with it as it is.Then, I started getting serious with my now husband and he soon proposed to me. So at the age of 20 I went to my obgyn and discussed my options of birth control. I decided to go with a pill again. I can't remember which pill it was, but I will never forget what it did to me. I was throwing up every day and the nausea never went away. So I went back to my obgyn and they switched me to Ortho Tri Cyclen - Lo, because they believe that I don't tolerate high doses of hormones. Same results as before, the toilet was my friend.
At this point, the wedding date was getting rather close and I was desperate to find something I would not be miserable with. So I started researching more forms and found Mirena. It was like hearing about a fruity cocktail for the first time, I was sold. The possibility of no period? Check. Never having to remember to take a pill? Check. Of course, in 2007 there weren't many side effects reported and doctors discredited most that were. So I made an appointment with my general practitioner to be recommended to an obgyn that would give me, a young lady with no kids, an IUS. (What is IUS? http://www.birth-control-comparison.info/iudinfo.htm) My doctor, and got my Mirena inserted. I had no more than the predicted pain from this. I cramped for two days and then was back at work.
Over the next 6 months I was constantly spotting and then had my period heavy once a month still. Talk about a honeymoon! My poor husband had to deal with all that is gross throughout all of that. Finally, one day... it was as if the sun began to shine... there was no more blood! I was, of course, very excited and pleased I would be saving all that money on tampons and panty liners. However, my excitement was short lived. What happened next will haunt me the rest of my life...
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