After 6 years on the pill which was great and worked perfectly for me, I decided to come off of it as I wanted to experience my body naturally and also it caused me to develop a cervical ectropion (although harmful).
I tried out the contraceptive patch and nuvaring both which didn't work for me, I've decided to go for a hormone free method of contraception, a more natural method rather than pumping my body full of unneccesary hormones.They fitted me with the nova t 380 which apparently is the most suitable one available today for women who have never had children.
So far it's ok, although I only had it fitted this morning, I had a local anaestetic twice which didn't really do much and even still it was still quite uncomfortable but if it works for me than it'll all be worth it, even though I couldn't leave the fpa clinic for more than half an hour afterwards as I kept going all dizzy and having hot flushes, feeling faint, But, the doctor was lovely and understanding, and after a little lie down and a couple of painkillers, i was ready to go home.
I just wondered if anyone else has or has had the copper coil and what your experiences were and did it work for you?
I have the copper coil, I have had it in since october 09. The pill didn't work for me, neither did the min-pills. I wanted a contraceptive that had little or no hormones it in which is wht I chose the copper coil.
My experience with having it put in was of course painful, I took some tramadol and had some sleep, in the morning it was fine.
I haven't experienced too many problems with it, I have a little crampier periods but not all the time and they are heavier but shorter which is good. They are getting lighter now though and still as short.
I have my period within 3 days each month, I have never missed one out.
A lot of the time the coil is the only contraceptive we use, after a year and a half I have never had any pregancy issues or scares.
Overall, it really works for me, I don't have to worry about it at all. There are no hormones which again work for me. I don't regret having it for a second, best contraceptive choice I have ever made.
Thanks MM, I will perservere and see how I get on with it. so far, so good. did you have much pain from it the first few days when the tramadol wore off? My painkillers are wearing off and it feels quite sore around my lower tummy.
I tried it, and stuck with it for almost a year, but had to have it come out. Instead of having a period, I just bled a little bit, all the time, and though they kept assuring me that my body would probably get used to it, it never did. I even went back on the pill for a few months to try to kickstart my body into going back on cycle.
It was never a lot of blood - just enough to need a pantiliner every day - but I got so sick of it, it made me feel gross and unsexy, and started to depress my libido. I was crushed when I had to have it removed, as I really wanted a hormone free method of contraception.
Hopefully you'll have much better results - mine are definitely not typical, and there are some reproductive health problems in my family line. But if you have to have it removed, you'll probably be pleasantly surprised that it barely hurts at all compared to the rather painful entry process.
thanks silverdrop. it was more painful when the doctor measured my womb with this 'straw' like instrument, when she actually inserted the coil it didn't hurt half as much and just felt a little uncomfortable. It is definately worth the seconds of pain if it works. did you ever have any pregnancy scares on it? that's my main worry as its not extremely effective and I worry in case it perforates my womb as my nan had one years ago and it did that to hers.
awww I'm sorry it didn't work out for you. I think this is the last resort for me, and if this doesn't work, me and my oh will just carry on using condoms. I don't like the other contraception methods available out there.
Yeah, that's what we ended up doing. I think eventually he's going to get a vasectomy, but that has to be his decision, so I'm letting him decide for himself when he's ready. I considered getting my tubes tied, but decided I just wasn't up for surgery.
me too, there should be more things available that are hormone free. another question, how long do you need to wait until you can have sex again? im not talking from a contraceptive point of view but I mean, the leaflet I recieved says to wait 7 days before I use tampons or have sex to let the iud settle down, but it is effective immediately for protection against pregnancy obviously. Other reasearch I've read online say it's wise to wait 24-48 hours to let it settle but is ok after then. I don't want to cause anymore unneccesary discomfort or damage in any way, but I don't think I can wait a week?! lol.
Thanks MM, I will perservere and see how I get on with it. so far, so good. did you have much pain from it the first few days when the tramadol wore off? My painkillers are wearing off and it feels quite sore around my lower tummy. External Media
rb
xx
Yes, it felt quite tender, however it wore off after about 3 or 4 days.
Ive had the copper coil.
I had it in for about 6 weeks maybe? I forget now (it was about 3 years ago). I had to have it taken out by my GP because I was pregnant.. I basically had a period but felt dreadfull.. sore boobs that went on for much longer, feeling sick, faint etc.. I felt seriously ill tbh. But on day 10 I decided to do a pg test and it was positive.. Emergency appointment with GP, then got rushed to hospital with an ectopic.
Some people its worked fine for, others not, and some had the same experience as me.. So, not to scare you, but just thought Id let you know what happened for me
I remember it being tender, some period like pains after it was fitted.. but Im pretty sure it wore off within 48hrs.
Just make sure you attend your 6wk check up :)
I'm sorry to hear that sugar. did you fall pregnant just before you had it fitted then and didn't realise maybe? as 10 days into it seems pretty quick? it is kinda scary but it's a chance we all take no matter what method of contraception us women choose. Can I ask, was everything ok with the pregnancy in the end? I hope it went well for you.
No.. sorry, maybe I wasn't clear. I had the coil in for about 6 weeks in total.. I think I had 1 normal period, then on the 2nd things didnt seem quite right, so on day 10 of my period I decided to do a test (normally my periods last 5 days.. I was worried, but part of me thought I was just ill with a bug or something, hence feeling so ill.. but it turned out I was pregnant)
No.. I was in hosp for about 4 or 5 days while they worked out if Id miscarried or if the fetus was still growing, then when they realised it was I had to go in for an op. I was already bleeding internally and ended up having it removed along with my right tube. I can obv still get PG, but have to be careful now as the risk of another ectopic is a bit higher than before.
Im not out to scare anyone, like I say it works fine for some. I guess Id say just be aware.. and if you think something isn't quite right then get to your GP, or do a test at home :)
Thanks MM, I will perservere and see how I get on with it. so far, so good. did you have much pain from it the first few days when the tramadol wore off? My painkillers are wearing off and it feels quite sore around my lower tummy. External Media
rb
xx
Yes, it felt quite tender, however it wore off after about 3 or 4 days.
I hope it does. I think my painkillers have worn off now, and I don't seem to be getting any bad cramps or pains ect...
I did not get on well with the copper coil. I had it put in after an abortion so no problems with insertion as they did it while I was still unconscious. I had heavy bleeding for the next two weeks but obviously that was more likely because of the abortion than the coil.
However, every month after that I had an 8-10 day period that was so heavy I basically couldn't leave the house. Doctors kept telling me 'it's because of the abortion, it will get better'. Over a year later there had been absolutely no change except that I was now getting much worse period pain that meant I couldn't even straighten my body for up to two days each cycle, and I'd had enough and had it taken out. When I had it, for at least 5 days of my period I would have to use the largest size tampon with the largest size nighttime extra long extra wingy pad and that would last me 2 hours and I'd probably still spring a leak and have bloody thighs by the time I got to the bathroom. Not too bad if I could stay home and be going to the bathroom every hour but when I got a job it was really impractical to have to keep asking to leave the shop floor and I bled into my uniform more than once (good thing it was black, but I must have smelled awful :[ ).
Sorry for the totally gross TMI, but I really wanna stress it was the worst periods you can imagine, ever. I can't use hormones (even tiny amounts trigger migraines and the last pill I tried made me so depressed I couldn't cope with anything at all and had weird mood swings) so right now we're relying on condoms only - it's a situation where me and my husband don't really want kids right now but we probably do at some point and if I get pregnant, we'll panic about money a bit but just get on with it really so it's not as vital that we're super well protected. Once I've produced babby it'll be surgical sterilization for one or both of us.
oh no krys that's terrible. Hope fully I won't have the same experience. Thankfully my periods are very light and not painful at all. I used to get them really bad years ago so surely it can't be any worse than back then? I'm afraid that if it doesn't suit me, condoms will be our only and last option too same as you and your husband. If I get troubles with it, will they take it out right away? Obviously I'll perservere with it for a few months to see how it get on first though. Thank you for sharing your experience.
When I decided I'd had enough I was heading into the GUM clinic for a regular checkup, and when I got there asked if I could make an appointment to have it taken out, and they offered to do it right then and there. Only took a few seconds and didn't really hurt or anything :) A little bit of bleeding for a day or two after but aside from that no hassle and my periods went back to normal straight away.
that's not too bad then Krys. I went to my local gum clinic to get more info on it, and after I said that I definately wanted it they offered to fit it for me there and then, which was good. I still feel a bit tender though around my abdomen and I'm getting slight cramps. Is that normal? They say in 3-6 weeks to go back for a checkup but when would be best on the 3rd/4th/5th/6th week? lol. And how do they know that it hasn't caused any infection? It all just sounds very vague.
