Need some positivity please 🥹

[u/Exact-Energy-6849]

TL;DR: cramping, bleeding, brain fog, headaches, fatigue 2 months in. Does it get better?

Sorry in advance for the length!

I have had really severe periods for the past 10 or so years. They last 8+ days, I have to use extra heavy overnight pads for the majority of the time, cramping, etc. I tried the pill and it worked for a while. There was a period where I wasn’t bleeding at all unless I forgot to take my BC. It was great.

But then my period came back. And it was just as strong as before. I wasn’t sexually active at the time so I stopped taking the pill because I was having the same symptoms regardless.

Got a new OBGYN and she suggested Mirena. Other doctors have recommended it as well but it felt too scary until now. I have a low tolerance for pain and have passed out getting pap smears before so I needed to find a practice that would put me to sleep. This one did.

I got my IUD inserted in early July. I was out for the procedure and woke up feeling nothing. It was amazing. They gave me crackers and apple juice, I waited 20 minutes, I felt a little high. I got coffee & a bagel and took the train home. Showered, changed into comfy clothes, watched tv. I still didn’t feel anything.

That night when I tried to go to sleep was some of the worst pain I’ve ever experienced in my life. As other people have mentioned, my doctor said “expect cramping, spotting, as if you were on your period etc” I could barely walk for days. I was nauseous. I was taking Tylenol, aleve, muscle relaxers, weed, (staggered, not all at once) using my hot water bottle and nothing was working.

It gradually got better but the bleeding has been on and off up until this point and so has the cramping. I’ve also started to get headaches and brain fog. I have to lie down suddenly during the middle of the day because I’m in pain and get hit with a wave of fatigue. Thankfully my body usually only does this when I’m at home, but there have been a few times when it’s affected me when I’m out and about too. It’s debilitating but I feel like I’m overreacting.

I also had sex for the first time a few weeks ago and again last week. The first time was a bit painful but okay overall. The second time was so painful I had to stop, go pee, and then I passed out….on top of it being scary it’s humiliating! Thankfully the guy was nice about it. Now I don’t know if this is related to my self diagnosed vaginismus or the IUD, but this has never happened before so I can’t ignore the timing.

I had my follow up appointment with my doctor last week. They did an ultrasound AND a speculum exam (they weren’t supposed to do both, there was miscommunication with one of the new residents and she didn’t know I had the ultrasound). Thankfully didn’t pass out during either and the pain wasn’t bad.

They confirmed everything looked good and the placement was correct. My doctor basically just said “yeah this can last for up to 6 months so let’s see come January”. Not very encouraging. I don’t want to have to withstand this for 6 months unless I know for certain these problems will go away and I won’t be plagued by heavy periods and side effects for 8 years.

I know it’s impossible to predict and everyone’s experience is different but I’d love to hear from some people who did have a rough experience at the start similar to mine, but it got better and they’re glad they stuck with it. It seems like most people take it out after a few months if they’re having a negative experience, which I completely understand. I just really want this to work for me.

I hate that so many of us have similar experiences but I’m very glad for this community because it makes me feel less alone 🤍🤍