OT: Ladies Only- IUD birth control

[kitbuddy]

I am seriously considering getting an IUD next week. I currently use NuvaRing, but I like the idea of not having to think about BC for 5 years. Plus, I get really bad endometriosis pain fairly often and Mirena is supposed to be the best for that.

Every site I've read talks about how painful the insertion is. I'm not worried about v* from pain, but I am nervous that I won't be able to relax enough to have the procedure. Plus, I haven't really had any serious side effects on NuvaRing (no weight gain, mood swings, etc) and I'm nervous that I won't adjust to a new kind of hormone as easily.

Does anyone have any experience with this type of BC?

[Collie]

I have the non-hormonal Paragard IUD, and honestly the insertion itself was quick and not that painful. I'm a big baby and I have a very low pain tolerance, so if I could handle it you can. If you're really worried about it, try to get some Xanax prescribed. I will warn you though that the cramps following the insertion are really, really bad. Like, my gyno compared the pain to mini labor pains. Its intense. Ask your doctor to prescribe you some heavy painkillers so you can get through it. I never would have gotten through those few days without strong opiates.

Regardless, I'm still so glad I got my IUD. I love not having to worry about birth control!

[NaiveAndTrue]

The ring made me into a complete nutcase. I tried for the Murena and couldn't even get through the 'sounding' process at first it was so painful. They ended up giving me pills to 'soften' my cervix, but the first one made me so n* I didn't take the second. The next day a different doc used the ultrasound to measure my uterus and it turns out it was too small, anyway! Ugh. I think every woman is probably different. I didn't v* from the first pill, or DH* just had waves of n*.
Turns out now I've been tested and have the MTHFR mutation and shouldn't be on BC anyway.

[AoD]

I got the mirena actually, I got it installed in 2011. It's really not that bad at the insertion, it wasn't "painful" just really annoying and it caused cramping (then again I have a pretty high tolerance to pain). You might feel faint after, that's normal. I had some minor period-like cramps afterwards during the day, but nothing as bad as endometriosis pain. The next morning I was 100% fine (except for some spotting that lasted a few days). I didn't have any major side effects except some acne but nothing major (basically cause I stopped the pill, even with no IUD I don't have perfect skin). You might get random spotting the first few months, be prepared for that. Otherwise, now I get my period only once every 4-5 months, and sometimes when I am under extreme stress or when I travel overseas (changing time zones messes me up, go figure). Also, your nuvaring already contains the same type of hormone (the progesterone) plus some estrogen. You'll just be cutting out the estrogen.