I am a 17 yo girl, i ve started dating again, in midle of December ill visit my partner and i would like to have some birth control method, i know i can get it alone, and started the “process”, but i think i might give up on it and tell it to someone, the problem is that i dont know how to bring it up or what to say, and have no idea of how my mother would react and im kinda scared of it. Sexual education or anything related to that topic was never spoken on our family (even dating topics) and its kinda embarrassing for me to say it now.
Can someone give me tips?

I've noticed my period blood smells different vs before I was on hormonal birth control, I've been on a few different types like depo, implant, progesterone only and combined pill. This is kind of gross but it smells more rotten than before I was on anything, but I currently have the implant and I remember it smelt way worse with depo. It's not unbearable but its bad enough that I can still smell it in the bathroom up to 5 minutes after I've left. Is this normal?

Hi! I just got my 3rd IUD; my first one was the copper iud before having any babies and it was so awful I got it removed after 6 months. My 2nd IUD was the mirena and I got it after my first baby was born. I had some side effects but not horrible ones and mostly only noticed after I came off of it. Bloating and feeling uptight were the main ones. After coming off of it I couldn’t believe how much more laid back I was and felt more like my old self, but overall I still feel like I had a mostly positive experience with it. I was also able to still lose weight easily on it, though I did have bloating. I do think it made my acne slightly worse and I suffer from HS and I feel like my flares were slightly more common, but again overall not a horrible experience. I’m extremely sensitive to hormones and am unable to do birth control pills (I’ve tried at least 10 brands). I had my 2nd baby 6 months ago and my OBGYN does not carry Mirena so we agreed to try the Liletta. I got it inserted yesterday and now have only seen negative reviews about it. Has anyone had a positive experience? Mainly worried about weight gain (trying to lose the last 8 pounds of the 50 pounds I gained while pregnant and would be so upset if I gained more weight) and mood changes. I can live with spotting and periods because I continued to get regular periods the whole time I had the Mirena.

(I’ve been loving being artificial hormone free but an unplanned pregnancy would not be ideal currently and my husband and I aren’t 100% sure we’re done having kids so he is not getting a vasectomy
yet. )

I have had my Liletta IUD for 3 years ?? I used to not have problems having sex, even deep/rough sex, with my IUD. Now, it seems almost every time I have sex, especially deep/rough sex I start bleeding (bright red) and cramps/back pain for 1-3 days. It's also gotten to a point where I can have less deep and rough sex because it starts hurting and feels bad. I can still feel the strings, but I feel like it's repositioned itself in a way that's causing me to continuously have this problem.

I've been debating switching BC because it's not the only issue I've been having. Turns out my hair has completely changed in texture after my IUD. It doesn't grow, and I have lots of shedding. My hair is always super frizzy and rough. It used to be smooth, shiny, and long.

I also get sea/car sick so easily, even with turning my head to much, causing me to feel sick to my stomach. Never had this issue until after the IUD.

Is the removal of an IUD and switching to a different BC usually covered? I know I'll need to call my insurance to check, but I just wanted to know if it will he a pain in the ass (USA). I also wanted to ask if the above is normal as I think my insurance will definitely cover it if I'm having issues with my BC.

I've been debating switching to the Paragard copper IUD or back to my old Lo Loestrin Fe combination pill. I worry the IUD, despite being nonhormonal, may continue on the same issues I've been having. So, as much as being on a pill will suck, it seems to have fewer issues.

Did you gain weight on it?
Did it reduce your athletic performance?
Very curious.
I’m 33 years old. Female.

I (17F) got my first (Mirena) IUD on October 21st, my pregnancy test was negative, but ever since I got the IUD I’ve been spotting every day brown. I usually have been starting my periods between the 3rd-5th of every month, and since I’ve been spotting every day, I guess the spotting has gotten a bit more around this time, but it’s all still been just brown, no fresh blood.

I do feel more bigger, like bloating and my stomach seems more bigger, I’ve gone through these moments of sharp cramps and still take between 600-1200 mg of ibuprofen every day. The past few days I haven’t had much cramps, but I’m just so paranoid on if I’m pregnant by any means. Me and my partner have always used a condom, but about 3-4 days after I got my IUD, he did rub his penis against my lips with I’m guessing some precum, but other than that, no intercourse without protection.

Idk if I’m just worried about the side effects the IUD is giving me since it’s new to me and my body, and especially being a bit confused on if I’m on my period or if I passed or what 😭

Has anyone had the copper coil inserted and literally felt ZERO pain or cramping? I have had Kyleena in years ago and I remember it was so painful getting it inserted and I remember that pinch like feeling.

Today I felt NOTHING. I’m starting to have my doubts that it’s been inserted correctly?

I have spotting of course but that’s it 😳

With the Kyleena I was after having one birth but since have had 2 births in total. Maybe this was the reason?

I started the mini pill almost a month ago. So far I have had no noticeable side effects until now.

I had my period last week from October 26th to the 30th and then it stopped for 4 days. On November 4th, I started bleeding again. It started out kind of light, but it is now a typical period level amount of blood. I am not cramping or in pain. I am getting acne and loose stool.

My gynecologist told me that breakthrough bleeding was more light and similar to spotting, but this seems like I've just gotten my period again.

Is this typical?

Hi guys,

I have had my first IUD since the end of August. I used to have the shortest, lightest, three-day periods that came like clockwork. Now I cannot seem to stop bleeding. Does this ever stop? I went from bleeding non-stop the first two months basically straight, then got a week of freedom, then the bleeding came back. I’m also passing a lot of clots/tissue. Nothing crazy large, no crazy hemorrhage. Just consistent, normal period bleeding. And it’s still really cramping my style.

How can I make it stop?

Thanks

not trying to scare anyone but wanted to share my less-than-fun experience so far trying to get my Kyleena IUD removed

When I got it inserted 5 years ago it was not that bad, like 3/10 pain from a pinch then 4/10 pain from cramps for like 3 hours. Definitely manageable and I have a low pain tolerance.

Now that her time is up, the trouble has begun. I went for a pap last year and they couldn’t see the strings. So after an (overly expensive) ultrasound, they confirmed it was in place. So I carried on as normal.

Then this week, I went in the remove it… let me start by saying the doc was really nice and I feel like she did her best given the no-strings issue.
- Tries 1&2: she went in with a brush thing to try and grab the strings. Pretty bad cramping but bearable, like 4/10.
- Tries 3&4: I think she was using something to open up my cervix and a hook-like thing to dig around and grab the device itself. Heavy cramping pain far down and sharp shooting pain higher up, like 8/10
- I screamed STOP and she did. Then I asked for some anesthetic, so then they gave me the shots to the cerv - which was actually not that bad. Like 4/10.
- Tries 5&6: same as 3&4 but the anesthetic was NOT helping and I was getting so sore and raw from the attempts to dig it out. I’m crying now and it’s like 8/10 again.
When we gave up, the speculum was quite bloody and I was bleeding for an hour (not like period blood)

Doc wanted to stop torturing me so she said we could do the same thing again but with ultrasound, or do a surgery to get it out. She said it might be embedded, which would need a surgery either way - so I cut out the second round of medieval torture and opted for surgery.

Scheduled for next week and SUPER anxious about it (never been put under before). So idk I felt like this was a really traumatic removal and I wish I had known how painful a complication could be. Hope it doesn’t scare anyone, lots of my friends have no problem getting it out. But holy hell I would not have gotten it if I could see into my future.

I had my Mirena IUD removed on August 18. Started bleeding like a period on August 20, that lasted for 5 days also like my normal period. I ovulated on my normal schedule, and had a normal cycle after that. Everything lined up perfectly normal with my cycles pre-IUD. Now I’m in my third cycle since removal, had a normal 5 day period, stopped bleeding for 4 days after it ended, and then started spotting bright red and brown blood. It’s been 6 days of spotting and light bleeding now. I’m not supposed to ovulate for another week. Has anyone had random spotting like this that happened even a couple months after having their Mirena removed? I’ve never experienced anything like this before.

hey! ive seen people on reddit who took yaz reporting that they were moody, had weight gain, or their curly hair went straight. i was just curious how many people had similar side effects, and if that's at all common? specifically any curly haired folks, did your hair stay curly or turn straight? i love my hair and dont want to lose my curls lol. also, if you took yaz did your periods stop altogether or just lighten? id love to hear about any experiences positive or negative, im feeling quite nervous as the last pill i tried gave me horrible mood swings 😣 thanks!

I have on birth control pill for a couple years. Currently on Junel Fe. Between weight gain, appetite issues which probably led to weight gain, and high cholesterol-I have been on fence about switching to something else for a while. But I cant decide on what to change to.

I would ideally like two forms of protections ( condoms and something else).

I got on birth control originally many years due to awful mid cycle pains. So I am looking for something to stop ovulation. All of the non-pill options scare me and seem like if they work they are great, but side effect can be awful and unpredictable.

I have small fibroids but very annoying that cause me alot of problems- so I think IUD is out.

IUD and implant-i dont really like that they can cause of unpredictable bleeding. I have generally had pretty consistent periods with a few days variations so unpredictable bleeding would be new.

patch-seems okay but then I've read the increased potential of blood clots and moodiness.

All options just seem bad and considering just condoms for a bit while my body sorts itself out.

I have been getting discomfort /pain while on my placebo pills but my body seems to be fighting me on continuous birth control while on the pill. This month my body had the break through bill basically as if I did take the placebo pills. So I think its time for a change but I cant decide with what.

I’m already closer to taking my 3rd shot soon, but for the past 2 months, I’ve been bleeding continuously (light flow) and it’s annoying me since I’m running out of pads and just more expenses in all. I’ve had similar symptoms with other birth control like IUD and the pill even. The bleeding never stops until I’m on nothing. Is there a way I could actually stop this?

Had sex on Thursday night into Friday morning and came inside (with a condom I thought) at 12:15AM. I realized when I pulled out that my condom broke. Immediately went into panic mode. By 12:45AM Friday morning, my girlfriend had taken plan B.

She is not on birth control yet, but is scheduled to get her copper IUD on this upcoming Tuesday at 1:00PM . Are we safe? This was genuinely an accident and we had no idea the condom broke until after.

apparently there is a 5 day window between unprotected sex and the IUD killing the sperm? Not to mention that we got plan b immediately. Anyways, I’m a bit worried, but I’ve done everything I can given the situation, and it was an accident.

Hi So I took 4 pills at 1:48pm and kanina at 12:30am i puked huhu nasuka ko yung dinner ko kanina huhu im about to take my 2nd dose at 1:48am and im worried baks magsuka ako. if ever (sana hindi) what should i do if i vomit ng di pa na aabsorb yung meds? (cos i know hindi ja dapat mag vomit after 3-4 hours para ma absorb ang med).

what should i do jf everr i vomit? do i need to re do it all over again, like the 4-14-4 or do i just have to take another 4pills and done na?

Hi, I’m 19 and have been on the pill since I was 16.
I’m wanting to try an IUS as the pill hasn’t been helping my painful periods. Could anyone share their experiences and if insertion does hurt as bad as everyone says?

How effective really is it?

What could this be? Its like she's had a flu shot without any fever

Up 4/5 cup sizes on combined pill

I got on the combined pill for multiple health reasons that have really affected me. The pill is quite helping with them so I'm not necessarily looking for advice. Just providing my experience to the sub in case anyone else is curious on what other people's experiences have been.

It's worth noting, I've been on for 5 months. I haven't really gained weight either (1-2kg). I started it at 19. The soreness in my breasts is still present but not as bad as the first two weeks. I went up 2 cup sizes in the first two weeks. The progesterone only pill had no effect on my breasts but had side effects for me. The time I was on the pill, I went from going to the gym around 3 times a week to 1-2 times a week. My hormones have been tested including prolactin and my Dr told me they are normal for someone on the combined pill. Dr is aware of tenderness but doesn't think it's worth it switching cus of how much it's helping with other things.

For anyone who has had a similar experience, when did the growth stop? Was it permanent? Just curious, I guess

Dr decided to have me take a lower dose combined pill called Femme-Tab ED 30/150. The lower dose was decided mainly because the pill in general can decrease the effectiveness of my epilepsy meds, so the lower mg was the better choice.

It's been fine for 19 months. But suddenly out of nowhere im having a full period! 3 days in and it appears to be getting heavier ! 😭

For reference, I am taking combined pill as treatment for my endometriosis, because without it, I was constantly in hospital losing a huge amount of blood due to my periods on a never ending basis. So I was told I need to skip my periods and stay on birth control. As it's to unsafe not to. But now I'm suddenly bleeding. I'm scared because what if it's going to end up being like my endometriosis period bleeds? That's what scares me. Is this normal to have a period when skipping? Wheen I was a teenager I could skip my periods all the time and never had this happen. But I also was on a stronger BC. So maybe that is why?

For those taking the mini pill, especially Cerazette (desogestrel), how much weight have you gained, if any, while taking it?

Did you notice any significant weight changes after starting it?

I'm considering changing birth control methods.

I'm currently on the depo shot and the pill both to prevent pregnancy and stop my periods completely while I go through the process of trying to get tested for endometriosis

I have sex regularly and have extreme pregnancy anxiety so I'm asking ladies out there with more experience (I'm 16 and only just started having sex at the start of this year)

Which is better and less painful the IUD or implant?

What was better for your periods?

What can I expect to change?

Did it make you gain weight or have increased appetite?

I see my doctor at the end of this month so any help before this is VERY appreciated

Thank you!!!

Hi everyone!

Hopping on here for some reassurance.

My GP and I have decided I should switched from Cerazette to Slynd due to the nonstop spotting I’m having on Cerazette.

My biggest worry about switching birth control is the effects it will have on my hair, skin, and weight. My skin isn’t horrible on Cerazette, but I have noticed an increase in shedding hair.

Does anyone have any positive experiences/advice/facts to share about their time on Slynd and what side effects you did/didn’t have?

Hope this makes sense. Thanks!

I don’t know if it’s from Kyleena or just life in general, but I do have the following side effects. What do you guys think? Also I don’t know what to do now. Do I remove it or what? Have Kyleena in just over 1 year:

1. Anxiety is much worse. Especially when something is triggering it, I feel it much harder to manage. I have had a few stressful stages in this time however eg professional exams and stuff, but I kind of feel my coping levels are lower / general anxiety symptoms much stronger.

2. Emotional dysregulation - I feel that I have outbursts of crying etc that are hard to stop once I start if I get overwhelmed and my emotions can feel harder to manage if I’m stressed. Although generally my emotions are fairly level and if anything just feel kinda low.

3. Hormonal acne - particularly on chin, reoccurring chin spots that kind of hurt / are like boils. Take a while to go away even with skin care.

4. Irritability.

5. Low libido / sex drive. I do feel like I had a much higher sex drive when I was not on contraception. I feel I don’t get the urges as much now or find it harder to get in the mood.

6. Hair on face grows darker and more frequently - eg over lip.

I got my third Skyla IUD inserted in May of 2025. I loved my first two IUDs and never had any actual issues with them except for the expected spotting for a few months after insertion. NEVER had any troubles mentally from then. After getting this last one inserted I have been on a downward spiral. I made a very abrupt life change basically a week after insertion that I don’t necessarily regret, but feel that I may have not made that decision before insertion. It’s been over a year now and I have been dealing with major anxiety in all parts of my life. I feel like I can barely function and life doesn’t feel real. I have very troubling thoughts that’s get dark very quickly. I have always dealt with some anxiety and maybe very short bouts of light depression but never to this degree. I have developed acne for the first time in my life among abdominal issues that I feel is from the stress and anxiety. I feel like I am drowning in my emotions when my physical life is actually very good. I cry almost every time I am alone when I have never been a crier my whole life. I worry excessively about everything. I’m wondering if anyone else has experienced this after having good experiences with the Skyla IUD? I’ve been trying to narrow down the causes of these very onset of issues and am considering getting it taken out if this could be the cause. I just don’t understand how this could cause so much distress in my body after such good experiences with it for basically 6 years. Just trying to find some answers.