Unlike the pill, this is a type of birth control that needs to be stopped at a doctor’s office. If you do get pregnant with an IUD (the chances are 0.2% to 0.8% in the first year and less after that), your risk of ectopic pregnancy is higher. Irregular bleeding and/or cramping that hasn’t gone away after three months may result in your doctor putting you on ibuprofen for one to three months to alleviate pain and decrease bleeding or temporarily prescribing birth control pills to help regulate your cycle. (NOTE: If the pain persists or gets worse and ibuprofen isn’t cutting it, and/or you’re soaking through a pad or more an hour, you’ll need to see your doctor right away). You can continue to take 600 milligrams to 800 mg of ibuprofen every six to eight hours for this as well, Dr. With either type (hormonal or non-hormonal), you may experience irregular bleeding and/or cramping during the first few months. “The evidence is mixed regarding whether NSAIDs actually help with the pain during the insertion, but it certainly helps with the cramping afterward.” You may experience some side effects afterward “I recommend that people take ibuprofen beforehand,” says Dr. The cons of IUDs Pain during insertionĭepending on the person, an IUD insertion procedure can be mildly to moderately painful. The copper IUD can be safely used for emergency contraception up to five days after unprotected sex or birth control failure. Newer evidence suggests that some hormonal IUDs work as emergency contraception, too. Research shows that hormonal IUDs may reduce your risk of developing endometrial cancer. They can be used in any age population, from teens to those nearing menopause. “It usually involves a speculum exam and then inserting the IUD through the cervix.”Īn IUD can even be inserted right after you give birth, though this does increase the risk of expulsion. “Generally, people just make a regular office appointment for an IUD insertion,” says Dr. You just have to make that initial appointment to get it inserted. There’s minimal effort required, an added bonus if you’re forgetful about birth control. Up to half even stop having their periods altogether after three years on Mirena, though this percentage is lower with other hormonal IUDs, notes Dr. Hormonal IUD use often leads to lighter, shorter, less painful periods, which is why they’re prescribed for people who have heavy, painful periods. There are options if you have heavy periods You can have an IUD taken out any time and your fertility returns immediately. “Just based on effectiveness alone, IUDs are one of the most effective and most recommended of the long-acting reversible methods of birth control,” says Dr. They’re more than 99% effective at preventing pregnancy, a figure similar to permanent sterilization. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved to last anywhere from three to 10 years. The pros of getting an IUD They last a long time Brant helps us go through the pros and some cons of these options and what you should know. Even so, there are some valid concerns involving IUDs that are important to know about before you choose. “It may also change the lining of the uterus a little bit so that the fertilized egg couldn’t implant, but this is a less likely mechanism.”īoth options can be effective birth control choices. “In this way, the sperm never make it to meet the egg,” explains Dr. Non-hormonal IUDs create an environment that sperm can’t survive in. They may also interrupt your ovulation, so an egg isn’t released from your ovary. Hormonal IUDs thicken the mucus on your cervix, which blocks sperm so it can’t reach an egg.
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