It’s almost time for my six week post partum check up and I need to get serious about birth control. Not that having a toddler and an infant and a dog are not birth control in themselves.
I have done the pill for years, but really,don’t want to take this the rest of my life until menopause. The cost factors heavily into this. Hopefully I am past the zit phase in my life and don’t need it to clear my skin anymore ( didn’t do that much anyways before hand. Not that I’m a pizza face anyways.)
My doctor and I discussed very briefly while I was in labor (after epidural) about the IUD.
Anyone out there have one? I’d like comments back.
After that, I was thinking a tubal ligation…until I read the thread on Botched Tubal Ligations.
I have never let schooling interfere with my education. - Mark Twain
I was under the impression that while you’re breastfeeding (as mentioned in your other post) that you have a natural birth control in place (not foolproof, but then again what is?). Something about hormones, cycles, eggs, I dunno the specifics, but maybe you can check with your Dr.
Shirley, IIRC, the big problem with IUDs back in the eighties was the thread that allowed the IUD to be retrieved from the uterus. It was woven, and therefore allowed all sorts of bacteria to “climb” up the thread, into the uterus and cause a vicious bout of Pelvic Inflammatory Disease. Once they figured that out, they switched to a mono-filament thread, and the problem has pretty much vanished. Everything I’ve read on today’s IUD makes them sound safe and dependable.
Delays Fertility
Those women who nurse frequently during exclusive breastfeeding remained amenorrhoeic longer than infrequent nursers, introduced supplements later and did not resume menses as promptly thereafter. Duration of exclusive nursing and night nursing after supplementation were the major influences on amenorrhoea.
Source: Elias,M.F. “Nursing Practices and Lactation Amenorrhoea.”
If you’re not menstruating, then you’re not fertile, correct?
But most women will ovulate 2 weeks BEFORE their first period after pragnancy.
I went 32 months without a period:
9 months pregnancy #1
9 months breastfeeding baby #1
9 months pregnancy #2
3 months breastfeeding baby #2
2 months lag time
Some women who are breast-feeding show up at their 6 week post-partum check pregnant again.
Breast-feeding is NOT reliable contraception.
IUDs are making a major comeback due to improved safety. They are safe, reliable & can be discontinued at any time & have no systemic side effects like the Pill. They often do make periods heavier, though & can worsen cramping in some women.
Also some women feel that by preventing implantation of a developing zygote, IUDs cause unwitting abortions and for religious or moral reasons prefer a method that prevents fertilization.
Sue from El Paso
Experience is what you get when you didn’t get what you wanted.
The whole idea of an iud sickens me to be honest. You can, and DO still conceive, but the iud causes you to ‘abort’ the fetus avery time. I am not pro or anti abortion, but this seems pretty , well, sad. You could possibly create and destroy a new life every month. <shudder>
Please look into depro-provera shots. every 13 weeks, one shot, its cheap, and foolproof. As long as you get your shot, it is as reliable (more so actually due to no skipped pills) as the pill.
Or have the hubby look into a vasectomy. That way, you are not using chemicals on yourself, you arent creating any form of life.
Shirl, I must say I agree with kelli (on all her post actually) but especially the part about having hubby get a vasectomy.
They are a simple out-patient surgery that usually takes about 20 mintues.
Birth control has long-term health risks
As Majormd said, IUD’s can cause some menstrual difficulties.
Men need to take an active part in the birth control process.
Tubal ligation is NOT an outpatient surgery nor is it as safe as a vasectomy.
I know I’m not a guy and can’t understand their point of view entirely and the following is just my .02:
It is selfish of men to expect women to be the ones that bear all of the responsibility for birth control, especially since most of women’s birth control methods either have health risks associated with them (long term BCP use, IUD’s, etc) or are messy (diaphragms, foams, etc). I think that after a couple is done having children and if the woman and her physician decide that BCP’s are not a good option any longer, then the man should step up to the plate.
Don’t go and flame me! I’m not going to debate pros and cons. That’s my opinion and it stands.
My horrendous periods which used to be 3 days now last 6 or more days (4-5 of heavy bleeding).
My cramps are much worse.
My doctor cut the strings too short and now, 4 years later,they can’t find the stupid thing. My OB (the one that put it in) moved 3 years ago, and I’ve been going to a GP for my checkups. He assumes it in place, though. He said if it had perforated my uterus or something like that, I’d be in terrible pain. He’s not really prepared for finding it, but wants to try again (for the 3rd time).
This was 28 years ago BUT I had one put in at my postpartum checkup. Never felt a thing but when I went back again 4 weeks later, the doc couldn’t find it! Xrays showed that it had passed thru my uterus and hooked itself on a nearby ligament. Doc said my uterus was still much more “spongy” than expected at that point.
If you’re sure you’re happy with the size of your family, I, too, recommend the vasectomy route.
Good luck with your decision.
SDMB’s oldest living female!
Acclaimed author of: No Bad Brontosauri
365 Ways to Cook Sabertooth Tiger
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the Wheel
Why don’t you just get your tubes tied,?? (then you can screw screw screw and not worry about another kid to put you bankrupt) rater than inquiring about a dumb device from the past.
This was 28 years ago BUT I had one put in at my postpartum checkup. Never felt a thing but when I went back again 4 weeks later, the doc couldn’t find it! Xrays showed that it had passed thru my uterus and hooked itself on a nearby ligament. Doc said my uterus was still much more “spongy” than expected at that point.
If you’re sure you’re happy with the size of your family, I, too, recommend the vasectomy route.
Good luck with your decision.
SDMB’s oldest living female!
Acclaimed author of: No Bad Brontosauri
365 Ways to Cook Sabertooth Tiger
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to the Wheel
“The whole idea of an iud sickens me to be honest. You can, and DO still conceive, but the iud causes you to ‘abort’ the fetus avery time. I am not pro or anti abortion, but this seems pretty , well, sad. You could possibly create and destroy a new life every month. <shudder>”
Er, Kelli, you do know that this is pretty much exactly what most forms of long-term non-surgical birth control do, right? The pill for instance simply prevents the fertilised egg from adhering to the uterine wall, meaning that you could conceivably(heh, I made a pun) well, concieve every month, you just would never cause the body would flush the fertilized egg right out.
I’m not sure of depo-provera, but I’m guessing that it probably works along similar lines.
Actually, I beleive the pill prevents ovulation, AND makes the uterus an inhospitable place so if, IF, you actuall fertilize an egg, it wont implant.
My understanding of an iud is that the fertilized egg implants, starts to grow, and then cant complete. (I could be a bit off on that)
I realize it may be splitting hairs, but a fertilized egg, IIRC, does not do more than poof become fertilized, until it implants, at which time it begins to divide and grow.
On depro, I do not ovulate, menstruate, nothing. I am as barren as the Saraha!
In any case, I would NEVER trade my period-free, cant-get-preggersif-the-rubber-breaks life for one of LONG crampy periods…No Thanks!
Wow, some great thoughtful replies and everyone of them are appreciated.
Hubby is considering a vasectomy as I am considering a Ligation. The whole thing about IUD’s and heavy cramps is not really appealing. I think some more research is needed on our (hubby and mine) part.
Kelli,
You’re partly right, but not exactly. With an IUD, the environment of the uterus changes and an egg can’t implant.
It is sort of like an abortion, but if no egg implanted in the uterus, you were never actually pregnant. Maybe it’s more like a “morning after” thing. I don’t know.
I have an IUD now. Someone mentioned Depi and abortion. Here’s the thing: I was on Depo. My ankles were swollen, my body was acting weird, so I peed on a stick. At first it s negative. Later I looked and it turned positive. So I was pregnant! Or so I thought. I got a blood test done, my pregnancy hormone was at a 3. Not pregnant. My Mom is an LPN, I was educated as a Medical Assistant, you can NOT have pregnancy hormone in your body without having a fertilized egg. I mentioned this event to my OBGYN she said that I had a chemical pregnancy. It was prevented from attaching because if the Depo.
IUDs prevent pregnancy by 3 different situations, it stops the eggs (UNFERTILIZED) from meeting with the sperm, it thickens the mucosa in the cervix which makes it hard for the sperm to get in the cervix to the uterus. I forget the third.
