mirena problems?
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mirena problems?
| Sun, 12-17-2006 - 11:04am |
I have had the mirena IUD since about April. Since then I have had so many problems. I am in a faithful marriage, so no chances of any std's. I had a vaginal sore, (Tested negative for herpes), recurrent yeast infections, and a bacterial infection. Doctors have run all the STD tests (all along I've insisted that I don't have a STD) All the tests have come back negative. I can't help but think it must be the mirena causing all these problems. I can feel the mirena. I get little pokes on either side of my lower abdominal area. I feel the device pulling down occasionally. I want nothing to do with my husband, which of course makes the BC unnecessary. I also am having trouble sleeping. I have read some other message boards where women have complained of depression and insomnia. I have not read anything about recurrent yeast infections, or women feeling the device inside them. Any one with experience? I am hesitant to get it removed as it is not paid off yet!

Hi xoxo1974, welcome!
Jill
Hi xoxo1974,
I had my Mirena removed in August after a host of issues. The main ones being recurrent yeast infections, then severe vaginal dryness, bad breast tenderness (I only have small boobies, but I couldn't lie comfortably in bed for the majority of every month), and acne. I wouldn't say it caused depression as such, but I have a history of it, and with all the problems weighing down on me, I was definitely down in the dumps all the time.
Since then I haven't had a sign of a single yeast infection, the vaginal dryness has mostly cleared up, no more sore breasts and the acne has cleared up considerably. I'm now taking a women's multivitamin (that contains certain vitamins, herbs and minerals) to help restore the rest of my body back into balance, and I have noticed definite improvements over the last few days as a result (but I still have some other supplements to get yet, at the advice of a natural health practitioner, plus I need to encorporate more exercise into my lifestyle to improve blood flow to the area).
You could also talk to your doctor about a natural estrogen cream to help restore the vaginal tissues, but there are other things like Vitamin E supplements that can help to restore suppleness. Drink lots of water, avoid caffeine as much as possible.
To help get the vaginal flora back into balance you could invest in a good probiotic or acidophilus from a health store. You can also get herbal supplements that can prevent yeast overgrowth. A herb called Pau d'Arco is usually in these supplements, and I did indeed have some success with these when I was fighting off yeast infections. I think the tablets I took also contained Vitamin E and Vitamin C to help the immune system (but these were from a New Zealand company, where I live, so you would have to look into what is available where you are).
Oh and now, just looking back on your message about the insomnia, I did have a lot of trouble sleeping with my Mirena in the last few months. I've had much more restful sleep since I had it removed - even when I'm stressed. Even though I still get woken up in the middle of the night by the cat, I can get back to sleep quicker, and I'm not half as restless when I first go to bed. It got to the point where I was considering getting a herbal remedy to help me sleep (which I used to take a number of years ago), or sleeping tablets, because I could not drag myself out of bed in the mornings due to the restless sleeping at night. Since having it removed, I can't sleep past 7.30am in the morning!
I got the Mirena out today! It was amazing. Immediately I felt better! Like magic. I forgot all about the fact I had been unable to stretch (I got sharp cramps). I stretched with no problem. My mood has improved, I did not even know I was grumpy.
Interestingly enough, the Dr. told me that the Levonorgestrel is metabolized by some women into testosterone! The clinic says they see more mirena problems compared to paraguard.(Still not many complaints) She told me depo, and the new arm implant one....I forget the name, have the Levonorgestrel in it. I was considering the arm one. Not even going to go there!
Looking forward to being hormone free. (For a few days anyway!)
Hi xoxo1974, welcome back!
Jill
Glad to hear you're feeling better.
I don't recommend depo at all. If anything goes wrong, it takes your body 18 months to 2 years to get things back to normal. The side effects I had with Mirena were small in comparison to depo.
Have you considered Nuvaring?