Women's Health Issues: LadyGardening for Dummies

intheclouds

rainbow kirby wrote: »

I know you said you'd prefer not to get a coil, but the copper coil is a lot cheaper than the Mirena and contains no hormones. It also lasts a very long time.

Yes. I havent had children and I know some places dont want to fit it for women who havent had children. I also dont want to encourage heavy periods which can be a side effect. How expensive is it do you know?

But mostly, I dont want it in me. I really feel squeamish about having something inside me like that (which is why Ive just stuck with the pill til now).

Realistically I probably only have a few years left where I may get pregnant too.

I have also considered tubal ligation but given my age, I may as well wait it out at this stage. Himself has offered to look into a vasectomy, but if we could both avoid surgery thatd be better I think.

fits

intheclouds wrote: »

Why would they be reluctant to prescribe it?

Since I have posted I have made an appointment with a womens health clinic and one of their advertised contraceptive options is a diaphragm.

Why would being irregular affect diaphragm use? I didnt know that..

They can be reluctant to prescribe diaphragm as its perceived efficacy is lower than other methods. I have used one and it was fine. It could be a good solution for you.

My comment about not being regular referred to the book, not the diaphragm. If you are not having periods, you wont know when or if you are ovulating, so maybe another method might be more suitable. Doctor is best person to talk to probably.

intheclouds

fits wrote: »

They can be reluctant to prescribe diaphragm as its perceived efficacy is lower than other methods. I have used one and it was fine. It could be a good solution for you.

As for the book, if you are not having periods, you wont know when or if you are ovulating, so maybe another method might be more suitable. Doctor is best person to talk to probably.

Yes, Im hoping to discuss all options alright.

I suppose my main areas of consideration are that Id like to get off hormonal contraception altogether if possible, I dont want a coil in me, and I have a latex allergy - so whats left?

rainbow kirby

intheclouds wrote: »

How expensive is it do you know?

Generally around €150-200 total (including insertion) depending where you go.

Neyite

intheclouds wrote: »

Because of my age my fertility is probably on the decline anyway (early 40s).

Be careful though. There have been anecdotes of women experiencing a short burst of fertility in their 40's, and fallen pregnant. Kinda like Mother Nature shouting last orders in a pub .

I know quite a few women who had fertility issues throughout their thirties, and were unable to get pregnant even with treatment only to fall pregnant naturally in their 40's.

intheclouds

rainbow kirby wrote: »

Generally around €150-200 total (including insertion) depending where you go.

Ill put it in my notes to chat about it at the appointment.

My mother had one and never went to have it removed, so years and years later she suffered some vaginal bleeding and the gyny examined her, removed it, held it up and said "wow - we could put this in a museum, its a relic!".

However, she suffered really nasty periods so Id like to avoid that!

intheclouds

Neyite wrote: »

Be careful though. There have been anecdotes of women experiencing a short burst of fertility in their 40's, and fallen pregnant. Kinda like Mother Nature shouting last orders in a pub .

I know quite a few women who had fertility issues throughout their thirties, and were unable to get pregnant even with treatment only to fall pregnant naturally in their 40's.

Absolutely! No guarantees at all!

I just wish you could flip a switch and not get pregnant!

baby and crumble

intheclouds wrote: »

I just wish you could flip a switch and not get pregnant!

If you don't ever want kids, op, then there are surgical options.

intheclouds

baby and crumble wrote: »

If you don't ever want kids, op, then there are surgical options.

Yes, I have been thinking this over as well.

Obviously Id rather avoid surgery though. Especially to resolve something that will not be a problem anymore in another 10 years or so?

Actually, Im a bit embarrassed to say this, but I know literally nothing about the menopause, when it starts, how long it lasts etc...so maybe its still going to be an issue for longer?

Lady is a tramp

intheclouds wrote: »

I have also considered tubal ligation but given my age, I may as well wait it out at this stage. Himself has offered to look into a vasectomy, but if we could both avoid surgery thatd be better I think.

As far as I know though, a vasectomy is a fairly minor procedure and could be worth looking into. I think there may be a thread in TGC about it (could be wrong though!)

anothernight

There's also non-latex condoms.

If you're absolutely sure that you don't want to have children, the surgical option is a no brainer imho. 15 or so years may seem like a short time compared to a lifetime, but that's about 5000 days where you can potentially fall pregnant by accident if you're not careful!

Out of curiosity, if you're squeamish about getting a copper coil, would you be squeamish about fishing out a diaphragm?

intheclouds

anothernight wrote: »

There's also non-latex condoms.

If you're absolutely sure that you don't want to have children, the surgical option is a no brainer imho. 15 or so years may seem like a short time compared to a lifetime, but that's about 5000 days where you can potentially fall pregnant by accident if you're not careful!

Out of curiosity, if you're squeamish about getting a copper coil, would you be squeamish about fishing out a diaphragm?

Ive tried the non latex condoms, didnt like them.

Yes, perhaps I will explore the surgical option a bit more thoroughly, you make a good point.

No, I dont mind fishing things out at all, its things inside that might migrate off and embed painfully somewhere that freak me out a bit!

intheclouds

Lady is a tramp wrote: »

As far as I know though, a vasectomy is a fairly minor procedure and could be worth looking into. I think there may be a thread in TGC about it (could be wrong though!)

My issue with the vasectomy option is that its not permanent for ME. What if we got divorced or he died? I still want to resolve it for me.

Lady is a tramp

intheclouds wrote: »

My issue with the vasectomy option is that its not permanent for ME. What if we got divorced or he died? I still want to resolve it for me.

Honestly unless your relationship is rocky, or unless he's ill, I'd just go with the vasectomy anyways. And reconsider your options IF the worst case scenario happened. A vasectomy is a far more minor procedure than tubal litigation. If it's quite likely that he's the only person you'll be having sex with until your menopause kicks in, then the vasectomy seems the most obvious option.

Of course, that's only if he's open to the idea!

intheclouds

Lady is a tramp wrote: »

Honestly unless your relationship is rocky, or unless he's ill, I'd just go with the vasectomy anyways. And reconsider your options IF the worst case scenario happened. A vasectomy is a far more minor procedure than tubal litigation. If it's quite likely that he's the only person you'll be having sex with until your menopause kicks in, then the vasectomy seems the most obvious option.

Of course, that's only if he's open to the idea!

I know what you mean. He is open to it alright.

Maybe it sounds mad but I want a resolution for myself, not someone else.

Addle

If you get a bikini wax once, and never again, will the regrowth be crazy?

Penny Tration

Addle wrote: »

If you get a bikini wax once, and never again, will the regrowth be crazy?

No, same as if you shave. Waxing doesn't make it grow back thicker or anything. It can be a bit itchy if you're not used to shaving or waxing

Dial Hard

Addle wrote: »

If you get a bikini wax once, and never again, will the regrowth be crazy?

No, you'll just go back to what you had to begin with. As Penny says, neither shaving nor waxing can produce hair where there was none to begin with. If that was the case, baldness would have been cured years ago.

Regular, waxing, on the other hand, will mean less regrowth over time.

Milly33

I was thinking about maybe coming off the pill, not for baby reasons but more to give my body a break for a while..

Did anyone notice any great difference after coming off the pill or like is just a a pain in the arse, regarding the montlys to do it?

I have been on yasmin id say now for 15 - 16 years..I use to be fine with PMT and things but the last few years it always changes im like so angry well not angry but just peeved off...

Good idea or bad idea

Milly33

thanks mod

IvyTheTerrible

Milly33 wrote: »

thanks mod

No problem, you'll get lots of answers in here, normally.

Faith

I'd been considering coming off the pill for a few years. I started noticing side effects and I was generally not happy with it. In the end, I opted to get the Mirena coil, thanks to advice here. Children aren't in my future, so I was reluctant to only use condoms, and the Mirena gives off such a small, localised dose of hormones that it really doesn't impact the rest of your body outside of your womb.

I have to say, I love it. I understand why everyone raves about it! Insertion was unpleasant, yes, but it only takes a few minutes and then you get 5 years of contraception that you never need to think about, and that has an incredibly high success rate. Apart from cramping and spotting in the first few months, I've had no problems with it, and I really feel like myself again

Milly33

I think my body is just giving up at the moment so thinking of taking a new swing on things and this was one..

Not sure how I feel about the coil, I don't have like a good image in my head... Do you mind me asking if kids aren't in your future why have the coil is it just for keeping the cycle on track? Sorry completely ignore that one if you want.. That's my biggest worry coming off it, is not know when they will arrive, im hopeless was actually going to get himself to track it for me as he is good...

Faith

I'm choosing not to have kids; there's no health issues preventing it. So I still need contraception!

The joy of the Mirena is that it typically stops your periods completely within a few months. I had one period after I had it inserted, then a couple of instances of heavy spotting, but nothing that couldn't be managed with just a panty liner. I'm ~6 months post-insertion now.

rainbow kirby

Faith wrote: »

The joy of the Mirena is that it typically stops your periods completely within a few months.

One big reason why I'm seriously considering getting one once I'm done with having kids. Very appealing

@Milly - didn't notice a massive difference when I came off Mercilon to TTC, cramps were a little worse in the one proper period I had but nothing drastic. It'll probably take a couple of months to settle down properly. If you want to avoid hormones completely it could be worth investigating the copper coil too, but that's likely to make your periods a little heavier.

intheclouds

I went for my appointment to discuss alternatives.

She more or less persuaded me to go with mirena. Said they needed to do std test first. Hurt quite a bit. Very sore after. Didn't feel right. Investigated and it turned out they'd left a piece of the instrument inside me. Hard plastic bit. Big enough!

I told them, they wanted me to come back in but I really didn't want them touching me again. Obviously I won't be going back there for mirena, God knows that they'd leave in you!

So back to square 1 for now.

Faith

That sounds traumatic! But you can always go somewhere else for the insertion

Milly33

thank you all... I was on the injection before and can say while it was great you didnt get them at the still time this cant be good for you body..Felt horrible after coming off it was convinced i was pregnant as your tummy goes rock solid..

I dont think id like to go back to not getting them as your body must need to opetate..I never knew there were differant types of coils though so thats a new one for me to look into..Thanks again ladies great help!!

purplecow1977

So I have to admit I am fairly clueless when it comes to contraception. I've been on combined pill for about 8 years- it's the first and only pill I tried and I've been happy enough. However recently I was denied ordering it from online doctor as my Bmi is between 30 to 40 and therefore clots can be more likely. Now, I've always been at a fairly similar weight and physical doctors have never questioned whether this was suitable for me, so I'm unsure why it's suddenly an issue.... I was at GP a few months ago and got prescription no problem after blood pressure check, but he did not weigh me .

The mini pill was suggested online and I am wondering if many of you ladies are on it and how you find it? Have any of you switched from combined to the mini? What is it like cost wise? I'm currently paying about 33 euro per 3 months for combined one.

Thank you. [I hope this doesn't break the charter as I'm really lookijg for personal experiences, I would speak with my doctor before changing but I like to arm myself with knowledge first!]

Mars Bar

Mod

Hi!

I've moved your thread to the existing lady gardening thread.

Mars Bar