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klys (maker of Silmarils)6/11/2015 5:13:44 pm PDT

re: #172 Timothy Watson

Stupid question coming from a guy: Why isn’t more attention paid to IUDs?

I will get graphic, because it is a legit question.

IUD insertion isn’t fun. IUD removal isn’t fun. For some women, and I happen to be one of them, we move out of not fun and into DEAR GOD I AM BEING STABBED IN THE UTERUS which is so not fun it’s not funny. Both insertion and removal are things that have to be done at the doctor’s office.

It tends to be more painful for women who haven’t had children, and there are fewer studies done on how quickly the return to fertility happens, and it’s possible the body can say NOPE and pop it out on its own. The risk of ectopic pregnancy is also higher, and depending on the woman, some types of IUDs are highly not recommended because of undesired side effects. (The copper IUD - one of the older styles - can have the lovely effect of making a period heavier and/or accompanied by even more painful cramps. Highly not recommended for women who already have painful cramps, which is one reason birth control is frequently prescribed.) The hormone based ones like Mirena are fantastic but much more recent and most doctors will hesitate to recommend them to women just trying birth control or who may change their mind in the near-term future. It’s often helpful to have a baseline of how the body responds to the hormones involved before dealing with the hassle of insertion as well. Every woman’s body reacts differently.

In my case, I’d been on BC for 12 years before I got my IUD, and I have no plans to have children so I was less concerned about fertility down the road (although I think it is less likely an issue anyway, just something not studied as extensively). Still hurt like hell, but I did get it replaced when the 5 years was up because the upsides outweigh the downsides for me.