The IUD

Once again, I feel like I have been through a lot…

My new doctor suggested that we think about trying the mirena IUD since I have had so many side effects from the oral form of progesterone, megace (30+ pounds up, heartburn, etc, etc.). He thought that it was equally effective but without the systemic side effects because it puts the progesterone directly into the uterus, right where it needs to go.  That sounded awesome to me.

Hubby and I discussed it and decided it was worth trying. We were a little hesitant because we knew that the megace has been (slowly) working and we didn’t want to jeopardize that. But the prospect of going off megace while still using something equally effective was enticing. So we decided to try it. I even thought I could lose some weight, get rid of some of the side effects (and the medications to treat them) before my next surgery and be more healthy before potentially starting IVF. 

Honestly, I was really excited about the IUD.  I mean, I would basically be like a normal person on birth control. I know lots of people with the mirena!

My doctor has a nurse practitioner in his office who has put in thousands of IUDs so she was the one to do it. I had it put in on a Thursday. That was definitely not the most comfortable thing but it was quick so not a big deal. I had BAD cramps afterward but they said that can be expected for a week or so. 

For the next week the cramps weren’t too bad but after that, they just seemed to get worse and worse. I am not a stranger to cramps so I knew this was bad - before I was diagnosed my period has gotten really awful and I had horrible cramps constantly. A week after I got the IUD, I was out of town at a resort in Florida for a family reunion weekend, and I could barely function without continuous high doses of motrin. I called the doctor’s office and they recommended I come in to be seen when I got home and again said that cramping can be normal. 

On Tuesday, a week and a half after I got the IUD, I saw the nurse practitioner again. The IUD looked like it was in the right place so she wanted me to hang in there for a few days. If it didn’t get better she would do an ultrasound on Friday to verify that it was in the correct spot (where else could it be?). On Thursday it was still BAD so I scheduled an ultrasound for Friday. On Friday, I woke up in such horrible pain that I couldn’t even get out of bed. I took multiple medications and they didn’t even help. The doctor’s office decided to scrap the ultrasound and just take the thing out since I was so miserable. My husband left work and came home to drag me out of bed and drive me to the doctor.

The second they removed the thing I felt better. Not a single cramp afterward…  I think my uterus was just pissed, “what are you doing to me now?” The whole 2 weeks were pretty exhausting emotionally and physically.

So it was back to megace for a very disappointed patient. I did manage to lose 7 pounds in the 2 weeks that I was off the medication though...


P.S. One thing that I should add - this was not a normal reaction to an IUD. Most people tolerate them well. The NP who had put in thousands said that she had never had a patient with a reaction like mine.  Just my luck - I am special again. Who knows - could have been the megace, coming off the megace, the fact that my uterus is not normal...