Tell me about your IUDs

Tennee

Mirena is going to very, VERY much have a YMMV component to it in terms of its impact. 

frillyfun

I think a Mirena is going to have a lot less of a damper on your sex life than bleeding heavily for 10 days.

redheaded_woman

I had no negative effects from my Mirena.

Didn't lower my drive at all.

redheaded_woman

@legs I didn't experience any kind of high/low hormone wave on it.  

My weight gain/loss has happened with and without it so I don't feel like it had any negative affect on me at all.

Redford

Same here. No negative effect from my Mirena. 

No effect on libido whatsoever. In fact, our sex life implroved tremendously after the Mirena because I wasn't bleeding like a slaughtered pig for a quarter if each month. My sex drive is the same as it was. 

No effect on my mood. I do get mild mood changes right before my period, but that was always the case. It didn't change after the Mirena. 

My weight has been stable. I can't say that the Mirena has xhanged anything about that. 

I'd say that half of my friends have a Mirena. I know For certain that all of them have a very active sex life. None of us seem to have had a change in our libido. 

I think it's a case-by-case thing and generalization shouldn't be made about Mirena. 

Crash34

My wife, who has had the Mirena around 5 months, has had a similar experience. The good thing is she says her orgasm are much more intense, but the better the orgasm she will generally bleed longer and heavier. 

Crash34

@Legs From what I've read, the theory is that since Mirena acts to thin the uterine lining the heavy contractions associated with orgasm actually sheds the lining creating the period-like sypmtoms. She has a follow-up scheduled with her GYN so we'll see if that could be true.

memorialmed91

I have had the Paraguard (copper) for 4 years. It's nice not having to worry about taking the pill and overall the insertion wasn't that bad. I hear its easier for women who have had vaginal deliveries but I've never been pregnant. The down sides are that my FI can occasionally feel the strings during sex (it's like fishing line), which freaks him out. Also my periods are heavier and last 7-10 days and cramps are 100% worse. I thought I had bad cramps before but these are in my stomach back and even radiate into the soles of my feet. I'll be switching to the Mirena over the summer because I really can't handle the increased flow or cramps anymore. 

RedIsTheNewBlack

Because the small level of hormones are released locally, Mirena (or other hormone IUD's) shouldn't be anywhere near as bad as BCP's, shots, or implants at decreasing libido or other hormone related side effects.  I was thrilled that it was still an option for me despite my hypertension, high cholesterol (both well treated), age (51), and smoking.  Those factors nix any other hormonal method. 

I chose Mirena because of very heavy flow and for birth control which I hope will come in handy post divorce from a sexless marriage.  I can say my desire is still high, but I have no actual stats from what it may be doing to my sex drive in a practical sense.  Copper IUD's can make flow even heavier, so that wasn't going to solve one of my problems. 

I'll add my "IUD falling out" experience.....it came out wrapped in a 4 inch long clot, the size of a medium sized pickle.  I know that I haven't had anything between my legs for quite some time, but I still think that would be hard for anyone to miss. 

That should clear the room of any male lurkers ;-)