Adventures in Babyproofing

I've made an informational post about Mirena, and an informational post about Paragard. Now comes time to talk about deciding between the two!

Mirena

-Some people who choose Mirena will experience reactions to the hormones, as with any hormonal birth control. These may include emotional problems and weight gain, as well as acne. It is also likely that they will experience unpredictable spotting for up to a few months after insertion.

+However, as a hormonal option, Mirena will ease your period and sometimes even eliminate it over time. My personal doctor said it's likely that after 6 months I will not have a period, and instead only light breakthrough bleeding on various occasions. It is also important to remember that the amount of hormones in Mirena is much smaller than in other forms of hormonal birth control. There are also reports and studies that indicate Mirena may decrease the risk of endometrial cancer!

Paragard

-Some people who choose Paragard will experience heavier and even more painful periods.

+Paragard is a hormone-free option, which is important to people who are uncomfortable with the idea of changing their body's hormones, people who are vegan, or people who react poorly to hormonal birth control. To a lot of people, it is a more natural, yet still just as effective, form of birth control than hormones.

Personal Decision

In the end, it's important to remember that every person is different and there is no one overall "best option" for birth control. The IUD is a very effective, low-cost (with insurance, and even sometimes paying up-front it becomes cost-effective after a few years when compared to regular monthly birth control costs) solution, but whether you believe Paragard is your choice or Mirena is completely up to you. I personally chose Mirena, but readers who use Paragard have spoken with me advocating its wonderful qualities also. It is important to consider both the positive and negative implications of each choice, but also to remember that these things are case-by-case, and you can't know how you'll react unless you try, or at least talk in-depth with a doctor.

Paragard

Glamour magazine ran a one-page article in the "September Mega Issue" about IUDs! It's all the same information I already know, but it's exciting to me that more women will find out about this really awesome option. Let's just hope more magazines and blogs and women decide to follow in their footsteps!

Had my two-week check-up yesterday! It was a little over the two-week mark, just because of scheduling conflicts. My doctor didn't even trim my strings, she said they were only about a centimeter long, so she had cut them a good length at the time of insertion and the IUD settled nicely.

Now I don't have to go back (unless there's a problem) for another whole year. I'm so stoked. She just said I have to be more careful about STDs because it's possible for them to become pelvic infections, which would be very harmful. But I already planned on being careful about STDs so this wasn't a stressor.

My doc's going to check that everything's okay, cut my strings a little shorter to cut down on their noticeability, and just talk to me about what to do if I encounter problems while I'm at school (750 miles away) this year. I'm really excited, and I have a feeling after that appointment, knowing that everything's okay, I'm going to be very, very happy. I already am, really. I'm proud of myself for making my own decision and being proactive about my body and the way I treat it.

The United States Department of Health and Human Services has signed off for private insurance companies to be required to cover contraception without copay.

This is an article about a fascinating new method of male contraception that is in development.