Post-Baby Birth Control Problems
Take the SAME time EVERY night!
Hormonal birth control typically makes me a mad woman. A couple fights short of a stay in the funny farm, or a court room in divorce court. It just makes me not myself.
For the first time since having children, my husband and I feel like we are right back where we started before having kids, and there is no way I am going to let birth control hormones get in the way of our insanely happy marriage. Yes, we have become that disgustingly in love couple again… I guess that is what three kids do to you!
So yesterday I went to my six week postpartum check up, although Addie won’t technically be six weeks old till this Saturday.
But the point of the appointment was not only to make sure humpty dumpty was put back together again, but to make some serious arrangements for birth control. We are done having children, but at this point not comfortable with any kind of permanent birth control measures. We are just too young still to consider it.
After a lengthy talk about hormonal birth control, the pill, depo, nuvaring, and different types of IUD’s we decided I would give the mini pill a try for a couple months, and when I go back for my annual pap in September we would either place the mirena IUD which has hormones, but less incidents of spotting and bleeding in between cycles, and prolonged periods, or the paraguard IUD which doesn’t have hormones, but I have heard more negatives about long term.
My OB/GYN suggested the mirena because of my history, but doesn’t want to actually place it before we see how I handle the actual hormones. Plus, the hormones in the mini pill are actually higher than the mirena IUD so if I can handle the pill, I won’t have any issue handling the IUD. Plus, I will feel so much more comfortable in the long run knowing we are far more protected against another unexpected pregnancy.
I downloaded a neat app on my iPhone called My Pill to remind me to take it daily. Yes, I had to be that woman… if I didn’t do that you can be sure I would completely forget to take it and end up between a rock and a hard place for sure!
What did you do for birth control after your children?
How do you handle hormonal birth control?
You are going to think I am crazy, but after I decided a few years back that I didn’t want to be on the pill anymore…we started using the age old withdraw method. We were baby free until we got married, and then got “sloppy” if you will (sort of doing the “let’s see what happens” approach), at which point I got pregnant immediately. Withdrawal works for us as a BC (and I’ve read some studies that actually suggest it gets a worse rap than it deserves). I guess after our baby comes along we will see if it works as well again!
I have the mini pill but haven’t started taking it yet. I hate being on the pill. But I am about to start and we will see. I am just scared to have anything placed inside me even semi-permanently. Because if i don’t like it, my insurance won’t pay to get it out.
@Autoclave239 – My husband and I used natural family planning, and condoms successfully for about 18 months and got pregnant while using condoms during a time I should not have been ovulating… Enter child #3
You can certainly see why I won’t be taking any chances this time around! LOL
I had the Mirena for years pre-baby because I wasn’t “allowed” hormonal birth control after a blood clot in my leg. While Mirena does have some hormones, the amount is so low that it does not put me at risk for another clot like the pill does. Anyway, the Mirena was great–no monthly period, no cramping, and better yet, no need to remember to take a pill every day. And it had no effects on my fertility… in fact, I got pregnant within a month after having it removed. I got the Mirena put back in after baby and although I had more bleeding initially, it has been great since. Oh, and the insertion is a piece of cake after having a baby.
I used the Mirena IUD because I couldn’t take anything w/high doses of estrogen (I have a blood-clotting disorder and b/c pills caused a DVT)… I had no problems and was period-free for 5 years, which was awesome… I think once we have another baby, I will definitely go that route again because there’s no pill to remember to take and you can “do it” whenever you want…
i’m on the mini-pill right now with a 6 month old. i HATE being on hormonal bc, but the only other option was paragard (didn’t want the metal in my body), or condoms (which, let’s be honest, was not consistently going to happen). i’m still bf and haven’t gotten my period back, but i don’t know what my plan is for when i do. i’m still researching and chatting with other mamas. having to take the mini pill at the exact same moment every day can be tough, it’s quite unforgiving. we got pregnant with our 6 month old when i was on orthotricyclen … so at this point we feel like we have no control anyway
I am dealing with this issue right now. I went back on the pill-the one I have been taking since I was 16 (I had my baby 2 weeks before you did) and 3 days later had 3 panic attacks.
Little background, we found out we were moving from Boston to Chicago 2 weeks before I had B. Ever since then, no anxiety. NONE. Then I go on the pill and BAM!
So, I took myself off and my OB prescribed a low dose pill. I decided to wait to take it after the move and when we’re settled. I don’t want to risk it.
I had terrible experiences with hormones and the pill so after my daughter was born I went on the paraguard hormone-free IUD. While at first my periods were unusually heavy, that only lasted for a few months and definitely after the first year everything was completely back to normal. I had the paraguard for 3.5 years and was very happy- in fact, I just removed it in hopes for a second baby, and I’d go back to it after without a doubt.
We use Natural Family Planning without condoms. The time after birth where my cycle is trying to start back up is really difficult. I thank God for a super patient husband; there are LONG periods of abstinence. However, neither of us is at all comfortable with birth control side effects. We are just not willing to sacrifice my body and my health for the ability to have sex whenever and wherever. Patience and self-control are virtues that we both value. I feel very confident with NFP that if I really don’t want to get pregnant, we won’t… because we are not relying on condoms which are notorious for failures outside the user’s control. (And, yes, I had an unplanned pregnancy (unfortunately miscarried), but it was the result of our sloppiness, not the method.)
I was on low- dose BC before my first pregnancy due to not being able to handle the regular dosage in normal BC. After baby I decided to go the Mirena route. I had it removed a little over a year after having it put in because it made me crazy. I found myself feeling more & more depressed each month in place of getting my period. No thanks! Not to mention the almost non-existent sex drive. I also began to get frequent migraines which I hadn’t had with low-dose BC at all. It’s been 3 months since I had Mirena removed and I feel like a normal person again!! So happy to have it out. I don’t think you can know how you’ll react to different types of BC until you try it for yourself. Good luck to you!
I had the paraguard IUD (I hate hormones and was nervous even about the small amount in the mirena). It was awesome! Like the previous poster, my periods were a bit crampier and heavier at first, but it evened out over time. I had it for 8 years, took it out when we decided we wanted a baby, and was pregnant 3 weeks later! Loved it – cheap, easy (no remembering to take a pill, put in new ring, get another shot, etc.), effective, and totally non-hormonal.
We’ll my story is shocking to most couples& women, I had a my second daughter (by csection) and we had choose to tie my tubes.. so after having that done my daughter is noq 2 1/2 yrs olds and I became pregnant of our third child. I felt all the sythoms but thought I was stressed and just hadn’t had my period for 2mths. So I decided to take a test @ the doctors office. Nurse explains I’m pregnant I’m in shock explained to her no way I can b, she explains yes there’s a 1% chance still after my tubes are tied. So she explains I should go to the er to make sure everything is ok with the baby. Sure enough we both are fine, my son is now 9mths old and my. Doctor check my tubel and everything was done correctly..
Ooh, I’m on that damn pill you’re taking. Mine is Jolivette, but I know there are others. Anyway, I’ve forgotten several times in the last 4 months and it’s because I am hard-wired to think that if I forget, I have some leeway (I.E. the normal pill). I’ve had pregnancy tests stocked for the past month and nothing yet, but I find it inconvenient! I’ve been at the store and forgotten to bring the compact with me, my alarm goes off and BAM! I’m all of the sudden chanting “I’m so stupid, I’m so stupid…” in the middle of Target and rushing to get that errand done and get home. Oh, I’ve also been at a family gathering out of town or sitting on my cell phone during the alarm and it’ll silence itself. It may sound silly, but I need all the help I can get and these 4 kids dancing around me don’t help me focus!
I was on a low dose pill when we got married and then the mirena iud after our first baby. I didn’t like the pill because I had zero sex drive. it was mostly the same with the iud, but a little better. I liked the iud because I have pretty heavy and painful periods and that seemed to help them calm down. I also liked that it didn’t take much time to get pregnant after I had it removed (like 2 weeks!). I think after this baby I will try the paraguard iud without hormones because I would love not to feel like an 80 year old woman. I’m sure my husband would love it too!
Woo, birth control has been a struggle for me. I was on the pill since age 15 to help regulate my periods and control bleeding. I had horrid periods. BCPs all through my 20s. Got pregnant w/in 3 months of stopping taking the pill. Then it all goes to he11 in a handbasket.
I’ve since tried…
Nuvaring – made me itch; fell out anyway w/o my knowing
BCPs – the same BCPs I was on pre-pregnancy gave me migraines and aura, so I had to stop that & can’t ever go back on BCPs
Mirena – after the twins wanted to do something a bit more permanent until we could decide whether we wanted to do something really permanent; I did ok at first, but I never stopped bleeding the year I was on it, and well, eventually I went flippin’ nuts; had that sucker yanked out, and I was back to normal crazy
Condoms & NFP – were always effective, but . . .
I’m 37 weeks pregnant with #4!!!!
We’ll probably have DH do a vasectomy, but even though I’m ‘old,’ I still don’t feel completely comfortable with permanently destroying our fertility. So, I don’t know WHAT to do. LoL!!
Hi,
I have been using iCycleBeads, the iphone app. It’s hormone free (yay!) I started using CycleBeads to keep track of my cycle after giving birth to figure out when my cycle was back to normal. When the app came out, I decided to rely on it for birth control and it’s been great. I know, I totally forgot when to take pills too. Ha! That’s great there’s a pill reminder app. There’s an app for everything.
I have the Paraguard IUD – I had more cramping initially, but that was the only side effect I noticed. I love the comfort and confidence it gives me (no pills to worry about) – what side effects are you concerned about? If you can get a yearly OB check up, that will make sure you are on top of any issues of it drifting where it’s not supposed to be – I check my strings monthly to make sure it’s in the right place, too. One commenter was concerned about removal – I think that this is a service Planned Parenthood offers, if you don’t have insurance to cover a doctor’s visit. I know PP funding has been drastically cut, so perhaps it isn’t best to bank on them being around, but it is one option!
I got the pill prescribed at my 6-week appt, but kept it in my medicine cabinet until my daughter was 7 months old (combo condoms and abstinence in the meantime). Within two weeks of starting the pill, my milk supply plummeted. We had a rocky breastfeeding relationship anyway, but had managed to make it to 7 months EBFing. Now, at 8.5 months, I only have enough milk for nighttime comfort nursing, no matter how much I pump/nurse. I’m still sad about it — I wanted to make it to 1 year — but glad that I made it as long as I did. Next baby, though, I will find a different method of bc.
We used the “if it happens it happens” method for a year and a half before we were blessed with our first pregnancy. mostly because my body does not handle well with birth control. we had used condoms but it would break me out like an allergic reaction no matter what kind we used. after our son was born i went onto the depo shot. in those wonderful 3 months i bled except for maybe a total of 3 weeks. so after that we went to the mirena IUD which worked wonderful at first it was placed march 5th 2010. didnt hurt to have it put in as bad as people said it would. was going fine took a while to get use to during sex and we had to change our sex life a little bit because certain things that were wonderful at first became uncomfortable. things were going great until november when i ended up with my very first yeast infection that was so bad it turned into a bacterial infection. not pleasant and freked me out due to i had never had anything like that before. went to the doc got treated. had 4 more and finally got into my ob doc and had the IUD removed because he said it had slightly slipped not enough to have caused damage but enough to throw my pH level off. so he started me on the pill since the shot and the IUD didnt work and he refused to let me use the patch or nuvaring saying more “accidents” happen with them than any other form of birth control. but the first pill he put me on made me bleed after 2 days of starting it until that month was finished and i stopped taking them. waited a week and stopped bleeding finally. got a different rx for birth control started taking it. it started making me bleed so i stopped before the month was up. the sad part of the last one is its the lowest dose of hormones that is on the market right now. so basically we’re back where we were before using the method “if it happens it happens.” however after we have one more the tubes are going to be tied. i know i only want two children and no more than that. if i change my mind in the future and want more and have the financial ability and so forth to have one i will adopt or i will foster, because there are plenty of children out there that need a family and a place to call home. but everyone is different and i hope you find whats right for you =)