Ladies, some IUD advice?

So, about 2.5 weeks ago, I got an IUD put in for the first time. I did this only for birth control purposes; my periods, while irregular, have always been mercifully short and painless.

However, my first premenstrual period post-IUD has been rough. Frequent excruciating cramps. So I pose to you these questions two.

  1. What should I take for this? Is just a straight-up NSAID enough? I looked at Midol at the store and it seems to be either NSAID or tylenol plus caffeine. Is it really anything special?

  2. Will this go away in time? I know a lot of times with IUDs women will bleed a ton initially and then it tapers off (thankfully I haven’t had any bleeding issues). Same deal with pain?

Thanks!

  1. NSAIDs and heat packs. Get those nifty little stickum warmers that wrap around your stomach, take lots of hot baths or showers, and keep up a running stock of ibuprofen.

  2. helpless shrug Who knows? Some people have horrid cramps forever and have the IUD taken out because they can’t adjust, some people never get bad cramps to begin with, some people take anywhere between 1 and 9 months to “adjust” to having a new resident all up in their personal bits.

I’d say pick a date somewhere in the 2 to 6 months range where if you’re still cramping and perioding badly, you’re going to talk to whoever put the thing in, and discuss whether it can be adjusted or if you need to take it out and consider other methods. That way, if you feel better before then you’re all set, but if you don’t, you have a plan for moving forward other than just keep suffering.

Also, if ***excruciating ***is actually how bad it is (we’re talking “Oh God I’m literally passing out” levels of pain here) then consider that it may have shifted and pierced something. If you even SUSPECT that may be the case, hie thee to the OB and get yourself checked. Infections of the abdominal cavity from having your uterine wall perforated are not fun. I speak from unfortunate experience.

No, it’s not that bad (just “excruciating” to me because I’ve been totally spoiled by easy periods). I actually forgot to mention that I had some cramping after it was put in for a few days, and then that mostly stopped, and this new onset cramping is menstrual in nature. So it’s not just continuous cramping from day 1 of IUD.

I found the cramping was pretty bad for a while but it tapered off and pretty much went away with time. I also read somewhere that it’s better to go with acetominophen rather than ibuprofin, but now I can’t remember why. But yeah, heating pads, NSAIDs, and take it easy on the rough sex for a minute. :wink:

Like you, I was always blessed with easy, short periods, so heavy cramping was all bwuh? WTF? Give it a month or two. It can’t hurt to call the nurse at your Gyno’s office and just ask.

Naproxen Sodium (Aleve) has always worked the best for me. My periods were bad enough that my GYN put me on birth control pills at 13, and before that she prescribed naproxen for the cramps (this was before the glorious enlightened days when you can get it OTC).

Some formulations of Midol and Pamprin contain diuretics to ease bloating. If you don’t have bloating, then you can just use regular pain medicine.

If you are using a hormonal IUD, your periods will probably become lighter with time. If you are using a copper IUD, your periods may continue to be heavy and painful. Of course, this varies by individual, so you’ll have to wait a few months to see how it affects you.

After getting my copper T IUD, my periods were heavier and more crampy for a few months. But they just got lighter over time, and within 6 months or so they were back to normal. Totally worth it for 10 years of secure and worry-free contraceptive!

I have really bad menstrual cramps - always have. This stuff is the bomb, but I only use it at night because it makes me verrrrry sleepy.

It’s a generic version of what Percogesic (Not Percocet! Simmer down.) used to be - acetaminophen and phenyltoloxamine citrate (willing to be corrected on spelling). Percogesic changed their formulation to acetaminophen and diphenhydramine a couple of years ago, the jerks, and it no longer does a blessed thing for menstrual cramps.

My experience is like Palo Verde’s. I have a Para-Gard, and never had trouble with heavy periods. My first few were ridiculously heavy, and I had cramps which I’d never really had before. Now I’ve noticed, after a few years, it’s not as heavy anymore. I think gradually over time it shifted, I just hadn’t noticed as much until a few cycles ago.

I’m not sure which version you have: copper or hormonal, but I had the Mirena (hormonal) put in about three weeks ago (while on my period). I have intermittent spotting and random cramping. I figure the first 6 months everything is normal (as long as it ‘normal’ cramping and not debilitating pain) as my body adjusts to it.

I had pretty bad (for me) cramps on Saturday (took an Aleve and that worked), but I think I’m ovulating and am assuming that’s causing some additional issues.

I’m in month 4 of the copper Paraguard IUD and each month has been successively easier. This past period I finally did not experience clots as I had the first 3 (I never had clots in my life, beforehand on Yasmin or before that from age 12-20). I too had very easy periods in advance of the Paraguard.

Advil or Aleve, pick your poison. And the heat packs that go on your lower abdomen. I find stretching (elbows locked, hands above head, reach straight back above head to stretch out stomach and uterus) helps as well periodically throughout the day.