Birth control?

Barbara!

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#1
What sort of birth control do you use or have you used? What's your review on it?

I want to get on birth control immediately after Ryland is born. I have been considering the IUD, but I've heard some horror stories.
 
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#3
Implanon (the bar that goes in your arm). End of May will be 1 year since I had it implanted. So far, top notch. It doesn't keep the acne at bay like Yaz did, but I don't have to remember to take a pill. I've also only had 2 periods since then and they didn't include crippling cramps, so I'll consider it a success.
 
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#4
I've taken the pill for the last 5 years or so. I have horrible cramps/pains/bloating when I get my period (usually), so I was really hoping it would help. No side effects for me and no periods when I don't want them. When I do get them, they're mild. It's great.
 

k9krazee

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#5
Mirena IUD for 4.5 years. Spotting for 6 months straight then no periods since (until now...I think it might be time to remove it :-/ ). No side effects, it actually helped stable my bipolar tendencies and even though I no longer need BC, I am considering at least 5 more years with an IUD.

There are many birth control/IUD threads with lot of good info!
 

stardogs

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#7
I was on the BC pill for about 5 years, but now have a Mirena IUD.

The pills worked great for the first few years, but then I switched brands and had issues with breakthrough spotting. Remembering to take the pill was a pita at times, and I always worried about user error to the point that we used back up methods most times.

I love my IUD. It's been 3 years as of December and I haven't had a period since two months after placement. I lost 10 lbs within a month or two of going off the pill, too! I have noticed more cramping during what would normally be "shark week" over the last 6 months, but no spotting to date - I suspect that its a result of the hormone levels being gradually depleted over time. I'm also back to having acne since the hormones aren't systemic.

I do know that my doc was hesitant to place the IUD before I had a kid since that makes it more uncomfortable to place, and she did say it's something she is also more cautious about using with women who aren't married or in an otherwise long term relationship since the risks associated with uterine infections are much higher with an IUD in place. Certainly worth discussing with your doc!
 

Julee

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#8
Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo. Anything other than a pill wigs me out super bad.

So far, so good. Been on it since August.
 

milos_mommy

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#10
I have a super crappy relationship with birth control. I react horribly to lots of them, ranging from seizures to worsening of bipolar symptoms. I'm not really willing to "experiment" with different pills anymore, and longer-term things like depo, IUD, etc. aren't an option for me.

Yaz made me completely lose my mind, and Alesse gave me seizures. The nuvaring wasn't terrible, but when I went off of it it was really bad, and I couldn't afford to stay on it.

I went back on alesse after I started taking seizure meds for a while. APPARENTLY 467 medications interact with alesse/birth control pills in general and make them not work. Neither my gynecologist, neurologist, or psychiatrist thought that was worth mentioning.

After I have this baby...I don't know. I was on no BC for 4 years and didn't get pregnant...then I got pregnant 6 weeks after starting the pill. I might use the nuvaring again, but i don't even know if that would work with the medication I take.
 

eddieq

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#11
Condoms exclusively. We have 2 children and no unplanned pregnancies.
 

Beanie

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#12
I've been on depo for approaching 10 years now (not continuous.) I went off it and tried Nuvaring, had a terrible reaction to it including depression and it took me a while to even figure out it was the Nuvaring making me depressed. Next we tried the Mirena IUD and it was okay, but I didn't love it, had tons of discharge while on it (another forum, a girl said "it's like my hooha constantly has a runny nose" and that's EXACTLY what it was like... ugh) and finally I just had it removed and went back to the depo.

That said you should also always use condoms on top of whatever else you are using... a friend of mine conceived two of her children while ON depo, which in theory should be impossible, but obviously nothing is 100% except not having sex. And on Mirena, the risk of an ectopic pregnancy exists - one of my radio station co-workers went through it and it was devastating. So whatever you go with, no reason not to wrap it up too.
 

*blackrose

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#13
I've just been on the cheap generic pill (Sprintec) for the past year + condom usage 90% of the time. No issues so far. It still hasn't quite regulated my periods (although they are much more regular now than what they used to be, down to a 2-3 day period instead of a 2-3 week period), but overall no issues. Go in for my physical sometime in the next month, so we'll see if the doctor agrees!
 

momto8

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#14
Before I had my tubal I did depo shot. Loved it very easy and no periods :) only side effect was minor weight gain
 

stardogs

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#16
Barbara, keep in mind you might need to be careful about which BC you use if you're breastfeeding - systemic hormones are tricky when it comes to that from what I've heard. I also think I remember reading that you have to wait 6 weeks after giving birth to have an IUD placed.
 

DJEtzel

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#17
I've been on a few different pills over the last few years. I can't remember the first, but it made me very moody. Zarah, (generic yaz) that I'm on now is great so far... it's been about 2 years. No kids, yet. Sometimes I forget to take it though so we always use a back up (usually just pulling out) because I definitely don't want kids. My acne is neither worse nor better, and I've gained some weight, but I don't think it's because of the pill. XD
 

AllieMackie

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#18
I've been on a few different pills over the last few years. I can't remember the first, but it made me very moody. Zarah, (generic yaz) that I'm on now is great so far... it's been about 2 years. No kids, yet. Sometimes I forget to take it though so we always use a back up (usually just pulling out) because I definitely don't want kids. My acne is neither worse nor better, and I've gained some weight, but I don't think it's because of the pill. XD
Pulling out? Uh.

Just wrap it up if in doubt. It's 100% more effective. :)
 

milos_mommy

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#19
Condoms aren't even 100% effective with proper usage, and with how often they break, it's realistically about 80% without backup.

Pulling out, if done correctly, is 100% effective. The idea you can get pregnant from pre-ejaculate is a myth. The only problem with it really is that you're relying (as a woman) on someone else.
 

JessLough

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#20
Condoms aren't even 100% effective with proper usage, and with how often they break, it's realistically about 80% without backup.

Pulling out, if done correctly, is 100% effective. The idea you can get pregnant from pre-ejaculate is a myth. The only problem with it really is that you're relying (as a woman) on someone else.
No, its not. Nothing is 100% effective except abstinence.

If used correctly every time, withdrawal is about 96% effective.
If used correctly every time, condoms are about 98% effective.

I'm not sure where you are buying your condoms from, or how well you are checking expiration dates on those, but if you break them 20% of the time, you're either using cheap condoms or you're doing it wrong.

percentages used are going by memory and may not be exactly accurate. College was a long time ago. :p


As for the OP, when I was on BC, I was on Alesse. Can't be on anything hormonal right now, though, due to drug interactions.
 

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