I’ve been taking Depo for ages, maybe a decade? I tried a bunch of different pills before that but it was all hellish. Vomiting, migraines, depression - I was mess. Depo has been heavenly. I have no side effects that I can tell except for the blessed fact that I no longer get a period or any of the monthly nightmares. My doctor sort of wants me to try out some of the newer things like Nuvaring. I’d be willing to try it or Mirena if I could skip the periods. But I sort of figure that I have a system and it’s working great for me, so let’s not screw it up.
I do think if I had a daughter, I’d tell her up front that periods are unnecessary and if it makes her miserable she’s free to skip it with my blessing. I put up with that shit for twenty years and I am never going back. If she were concerned about being pregnant, then pregnancy tests are a far more reliable indicator. If you’re really concerned, then take the money you’d spend on tampons and buy a good spermicide lube.
Docs are leery because getting an STD when you have an IUD can be some very, very ugly stuff. Some of them do indeed do insertions on single/non-monogamous women and even teenagers, though–one of the nurses at my husband’s clinic did an insertion on a 14yo a while back. It’s a judgment call, like so many things. You have to weigh the likelihood of them being able/willing to use other bc properly and the consequences of pregnancy against the likelihood and consequences of getting an STD and go from there.
The main problem I see with putting an IUD in this girl is that she doesn’t seem likely to use condoms reliably for disease control, and as I said, the consequences of picking something up with an IUD can be quite bad.
Are there any studies that link prolonged bc pill use with any problems, particularly later in life when you want to have a kid? I’ve been on the pill for a year and a half now but lately I’ve become unreasonably paranoid about not being able to have a kid later in life.
ETA: Never mind, I was being lazy - just googled it and found stuff. :smack:
FWIW, I had great experiences with Depo like yours, and am tickled pink with the Mirena. In my informal polling of girlfriends, the ones that weren’t happy with Depo didn’t like the Mirena, and the reverse held true. So you’d probably be just as happy with it as you are with the shot.
My issue with Depo was a OB/GYN office that had very strict policies that made it highly inconvenient for me to get the shot. I had to make an appointment, no walk-in even though it was a 2 minute thing, and they refused to make appointments past 4:30, with no weekend or evening hours available. So I wound up needing to use up 4 of my 5 personal days each year just for birth control and that was crazy. Now I get the Mirena checked on when I’m already there for the yearly and it’s all good.
Knowing how much work it takes so many women to find the birth control that works for them (if any) makes me even angrier that, once you’ve stopped bleeding/crying/cramping/taking time off work/spending money/having unplanned pregnancies, some douche can still refuse to sell it to you.
This, which a few people have mentioned, is a really good point. So it’s down to Implanon. Not a bad way to go, I guess. Hugely expensive off the bat, but amortized it’s not so bad.
Sigh. Without hijacking too much, I’ll just say that I’m right with you on that.
needscoffee, did you specify why Nuvaring was a bad choice for her? She’d only have to remember once per month; she could totally avoid her period if necessary. It’s inexpensive - at least compared to the implant.
My wife was diagnosed with high blood pressure and was told ‘No More Pill’. That was in February. I am still fertile and she has said that she doesn’t want me cut. She has decided to go copper IUD and has an appointment in April to see if it will work.
My worry with Nuvaring is that she can remove it herself. Considering her situation that might well be a concern. Alternately, she may have serious issues with reaching into her vagina like that/worries that it’ll get stuck or lost (that explanations don’t help with), etc.
I’ve been having a lot of breakthrough bleeding, even on continuous oral contraception, so (after assuring my gynecologist yet again that no, I really don’t want to have children, I realized in high school that I had zero desire to ever be a mother) my gynecologist recommended at my age that I look into Mirena + endometrial ablation via the Novasure procedure. This latter part is not a reversible option. I have timing issues plus I’m a little concerned about insurance due to some network questions, so I’ll see. Considering that I’ve been bleeding a little bit every day for a month or so, I’m getting more motivated to go with this “scorched earth” type of technique.
I’m not too worried about the pain of insertion of an IUD. I’ve had a catheter/other tube put in through the cervix twice now (once as part of an ultrasound, once for a biopsy sample) and it wasn’t that big of a deal for me, so I suspect this will be bearable.
I was on depo for years. It worked pretty well for me, but I switched doctors and the new one had the do-it-yourself shots you give yourself and, well, that was a disaster. I am too stupid to give myself a shot, apparently. I would explode the stupid shot giving thingie. But if you like depo and don’t want to see the doc every three months, the self-administered shot might be an option.
Now I’m on Seasonale/Jolessa. It’s one of the three months on, one week off type, though I generally skip the week off. I do get breakthrough bleeding at times, very light, but when it happens I tend to use the week off around then.
I’m a period avoider. I get devastating cramps and vomiting, so I need something that will suppress that. That plus only fifteen dollars for a three month generic pack is pretty awesome.