Adventures in Babyproofing

Keeping track of my Mirena IUD one day at a time! Where It Started Planned Parenthood on IUDs Mayo Clinic on Mirena Mayo Clinic on Paragard Fears Facts Should I use Mirena or Paragard?

[iudorky]

Still all good on the uterus front. That's really all I have to say at this time.

[iudorky]

Oh my godddddd. I finally had an actual period and this is terrible and just so long-lasting! Why is it lasting this long? Sigh.

[iudorky]

Choosing: Mirena or Paragard?

I've made an informational post about Mirena, and an informational post about Paragard. Now comes time to talk about deciding between the two!

Mirena

-Some people who choose Mirena will experience reactions to the hormones, as with any hormonal birth control. These may include emotional problems and weight gain, as well as acne. It is also likely that they will experience unpredictable spotting for up to a few months after insertion.

+However, as a hormonal option, Mirena will ease your period and sometimes even eliminate it over time. My personal doctor said it's likely that after 6 months I will not have a period, and instead only light breakthrough bleeding on various occasions. It is also important to remember that the amount of hormones in Mirena is much smaller than in other forms of hormonal birth control. There are also reports and studies that indicate Mirena may decrease the risk of endometrial cancer!

Paragard

-Some people who choose Paragard will experience heavier and even more painful periods.

+Paragard is a hormone-free option, which is important to people who are uncomfortable with the idea of changing their body's hormones, people who are vegan, or people who react poorly to hormonal birth control. To a lot of people, it is a more natural, yet still just as effective, form of birth control than hormones.

Personal Decision

In the end, it's important to remember that every person is different and there is no one overall "best option" for birth control. The IUD is a very effective, low-cost (with insurance, and even sometimes paying up-front it becomes cost-effective after a few years when compared to regular monthly birth control costs) solution, but whether you believe Paragard is your choice or Mirena is completely up to you. I personally chose Mirena, but readers who use Paragard have spoken with me advocating its wonderful qualities also. It is important to consider both the positive and negative implications of each choice, but also to remember that these things are case-by-case, and you can't know how you'll react unless you try, or at least talk in-depth with a doctor.

Good luck choosing and I hope your IUD treats you well, should you make the choice to use one!

[iudorky]

Paragard

Paragard is a copper IUD that combats pregnancy by its physical position, like the Mirena IUD. It is inserted in the same fashion, and like the Mirena IUD it acts as a foreign object, causing the body to produces leukocytes (white blood cells) to attack the inside of the uterus, making it unfriendly to sperm and eggs alike. Unlike Mirena, there are no hormones in the Paragard IUD. Also unlike Mirena, the copper acts as a spermicidal compound. Paragard is 99.4% effective, as compared to Mirena’s 99.8%, a negligible to unimportant difference.

[aaabbbbbbiiieee-blog-blog]

Hormonal Birth Control for Men?!

[iudorky]

aaabbbbbbiiieee:

This is such an exciting possibility! Of course, I would still take mine, because I like being in control of my body and knowing fo sho that one of us is on bc (and it makes my period a breeze), but this is AWESOME!

I am both baffled and not at all surprised that they (scientists working for pharmaceutical companies) have not come out with this sooner. Let’s break this down:

BAFFLED - It just seems like a no-brainer. Like, why would they not do this? It seems obvious to me that men should also have hormonal options, so that people who aren’t using condoms/worried about STIs (and aren’t using spermicide) can have double-protection from pregnancy.

NOT AT ALL SURPRISED - Women are the only ones who get pregnant, so they’re the only ones who should have to really worry about birth control, amirite? Why have to go see a doctor and get a prescription/injection when you could just swing by the pharmacy and get a pack of condoms? Also, it just seems unnatural. Like, does it kill my sperm? I need to spread my seed! What if I don’t ejaculate when I orgasm? That’s just way too unnatural for me. I’m not down with it. Just let the women take care of it.

Note that the “baffled” expresses my opinion (and the opinion of most of my friends) whereas “not at all surprised” expresses (what I perceive to be) the opinion of the majority of Americans. Yay…

Also note that, as one of the nurses at the health office at my college said during birth control presentations, there really is nothing “natural” about female hormonal birth control either, so that argument against male birth control doesn’t hold water. Pumping one’s body full of hormones to trick it into not releasing an egg is not “natural”. (also, wtf do they mean by “natural”?)

If you’re interested, here are two articles about male birth control! One from Jezebel and one from The Mary Sue.

[thisismyspitesong]

[iudorky]

Just spent some time browsing the “birth control” tag, and reading people talk about the pill made me worry for a few seconds about forgetting… and then I remembered. I don’t have to.

[iudorky]

Yay Glamour!

Glamour magazine ran a one-page article in the "September Mega Issue" about IUDs! It's all the same information I already know, but it's exciting to me that more women will find out about this really awesome option. Let's just hope more magazines and blogs and women decide to follow in their footsteps!

(it's on page 266 of the issue if you want to look for it!)

[iudorky]

Oh, and I think my sex drive is a little bit heightened lately? I'm not sure entirely if that's possible, but there's been a noticeable increase in my desire to have sex. If you've experienced something similar while switching methods of birth control, let me know?

[iudorky]

One Whole Year

Had my two-week check-up yesterday! It was a little over the two-week mark, just because of scheduling conflicts. My doctor didn't even trim my strings, she said they were only about a centimeter long, so she had cut them a good length at the time of insertion and the IUD settled nicely.

Now I don't have to go back (unless there's a problem) for another whole year. I'm so stoked. She just said I have to be more careful about STDs because it's possible for them to become pelvic infections, which would be very harmful. But I already planned on being careful about STDs so this wasn't a stressor.

I plan on updating this blog every time something significant happens and every time i see interesting news or articles about contraceptives, so while it might be a while before I post again, be assured that you'll hear more from me. Especially if there's a new boy in my life this fall ;).

[iudorky]

I need to remember to be up and catch a cab for my appointment tomorrow. Eeps. So excited though. Guys I'm babyproof. Hooray.

[iudorky]

Check up Friday!

My doc's going to check that everything's okay, cut my strings a little shorter to cut down on their noticeability, and just talk to me about what to do if I encounter problems while I'm at school (750 miles away) this year. I'm really excited, and I have a feeling after that appointment, knowing that everything's okay, I'm going to be very, very happy. I already am, really. I'm proud of myself for making my own decision and being proactive about my body and the way I treat it.

I'm 19 years old, I'm not a virgin, and I am empowered by the fact that I am in control of my fertility.

[iudorky]

Seriously? I'm still babyproof? Fuck yes.

[iudorky]

I'm so beyond happy with my IUD. I wouldn't imagine complaining.

But it is just my luck that the week after I go and get mine, the whole birth-control-without-copay thing happens.

[iudorky]

I just keep thinking,

I don't feel babyproof...

[iudorky]

The United States Department of Health and Human Services has signed off for private insurance companies to be required to cover contraception without copay.

from Jezebel

[iudorky]

Male Contraceptive Gel - 'Vasogel'

This is an article about a fascinating new method of male contraception that is in development.

Essentially, the vas is coated with a gel that renders sperm immotile and ineffective. The procedure takes effect almost immediately (as opposed to the 3 weeks or so a vasectomy would take) and appears to be more easily reversible than a vasectomy, as the gel only needs to be flushed out.