Poll: Birth Control

Chookie wrote:
Fatigue, backed up by condoms :-)

LOL, I've got a Mirena IUD, which with I am very happy so far (only had it a
month). Condoms suit neither of us, we're not allergic, but we get some
reaction.

Anne

Amy wrote:
What sort of birth control are you other nursing moms on?

Condoms. I wasn't going to risk my milk on the pill, and we agreed that
contraception should no longer be my responsibility. He had the snip way
back in June but according to the lab reports there are /still/ swimmers in
his tubes so we're taking no chances!

"Amy" wrote in message
oups.com...
What sort of birth control are you other nursing moms on?

When I'm really concerned about it, condoms. But not terribly worried as my
body is pretty much its own contraception. Took 10 years to get this little
guy.

Melissa
(Mom to Connor born 05/24/05)

"Amy" wrote in message
oups.com...
What sort of birth control are you other nursing moms on?

I'm on Ortho-Micronor but I don't like it. I don't get a period, and I
am just sure that I'm going to start showing any minute now because
I've gotten pregnant again and don't realize it.

I doubt that it's the Micronor that's keeping you from having periods. I was
on it for 10+ years as I can't take regular BC pills (put my BP through the
roof and change my personality in very unpleasant ways!) and I always had
periods. It's much more likely that you're not having periods because you're
still in lactational amenorrhea. I bet you wouldn't have periods if you were
taking regular BC pills because you're not building up a uterine lining to
shed during the "placebo" pill week anyway.

I don't remember exactly how old your baby is, but the AVERAGE time to go
without periods if you're breastfeeding is 8-9 months. Some women get their
periods back much earlier than that and some much later (mine came back at
8mo., 19mo., and 10mo. respectively--I was tandem nursing the second time,
which probably accounts for the exceptionally long amenorrhea), but it just
wouldn't be surprising at all for you to have no periods at all without
being pregnant and without it being a side-effect of the Micronor.

He said I could
have the shot or the pill.

I can't fathom why he didn't offer you an IUD. As a woman who's had a
full-term birth, you're an excellent candidate for one. Others have
mentioned that they're using the Mirena, which releases a small amount of
progesterone in addition to its IUD effect. After my third baby, I decided
to go from Micronor to the copper-T because I figured at almost 40, I'd
probably had enough synthetic hormones coursing through my system. It's the
best form of birth control EVER! Completely worry-free. Just check after
your period to be sure the string's still there and you're in business. No
pills to forget, no barrier to forget to put on. It's great.

I find myself forgetting pills, because I'm more worried about the baby
than myself at bedtime.

This is how I wound up having child #2 about a year ahead of "the plan" (but
I'd had my period back for 7 months when I got pregnant, so it wasn't quite
like your current situation, so don't panic!). Micronor is pretty fussy--you
really need to take it within a one hour window for maximum effectiveness,
and a three hour window is about the widest margin you can safely have on
any given day.

I want something easy, don't we all.

IUD, IUD, IUD. The only thing that could be easier would be surgical
sterilization, but you obviously don't want to go there if you want more
children.
--
Be well, Barbara

"Amy" wrote in message
oups.com...
What sort of birth control are you other nursing moms on?

I'm on Ortho-Micronor but I don't like it. I don't get a period, and I
am just sure that I'm going to start showing any minute now because
I've gotten pregnant again and don't realize it. I tried on a skirt
yesterday that's a little tight (odd, because I'm smaller now than I
was pre-pregnancy) and I flipped out that I might be PG again! ACK!!!
I am SO not ready. (It's probably just the X-mas cookies, I've been so
bad).

I went on a Mirena-progesterone only, so it won't interfere with nursing,
and it's an IUD, so there's double protection. I had some cramping for about
a week and a menstrual cycle, but otherwise, it's been great.

The reason your skirt might not fit is because your hips are a little bit
wider now.

Jess

"Chookie" wrote in message
...
In article .com,
"Amy" wrote:

What sort of birth control are you other nursing moms on?

Fatigue, backed up by condoms :-)

LOL - that sounds like me! Poor dh. ;-) But he is going to get a
vasectomy in a couple of weeks, so a few months after that, we will be
carefree re bc - if only my energy and desire levels would rebound . . .

Me too - so far I love it, though the insertion of it was VERY painful for
me and i cramped for a day or two afterwards. Still I like not having to
think about bc.
"NL" wrote in message
...
Amy wrote:
What sort of birth control are you other nursing moms on?

I've got the Mirena IUD. I've had it for 4 years now and I'm really happy
with it. Nearly no period (used to have really heavy periods with lots of
pain), no pain. I love it.
I was scared at first because of the "no period" aspect (Yes, I took a
couple of pg tests because I was scared I might be). But I've gotten used
to it now and honestly, I haven't had a regular period in 6 years (I had
my period maybe twice or three times before getting the IUD because I was
bf'ing.)

I find myself forgetting pills, because I'm more worried about the baby
than myself at bedtime. I want something easy, don't we all. WHEN ARE
THEY GOING TO COME OUT WITH A PATCH FOR MEN?!?!?!

Yeah, I'd love for that to happen, too.

take care!
nicole

"Amy" wrote in message
ups.com...
Those of you with IUDs, how bad did the insertion hurt? Like, on a
scale of one to ten, ten being labor?

Threeish. There was a minute or two of "breathe" in there, but I've had
menstrual cramps that were worse.

Get ibuprofen for the cramps and pop one before you go in.

Jess

CY wrote:
Me too - so far I love it, though the insertion of it was VERY painful for
me and i cramped for a day or two afterwards. Still I like not having to
think about bc.

Excellent lead-in to my next question...

Those of you with IUDs, how bad did the insertion hurt? Like, on a
scale of one to ten, ten being labor?

Thanks for all the help. I'm thinking that an IUD's the way to go.

Amy

Mine was like a 6 or so. I've never had menstrual cramps that were anywhere
close. It was pain in my cervix though as opposed to the uterus. But I'm
a big wimp for pain and need to a Tylenol for a stubbed toe, lol!
"Jess" wrote in message
news:fkIpf.3604$NS.163@dukeread04...

"Amy" wrote in message
ups.com...
Those of you with IUDs, how bad did the insertion hurt? Like, on a
scale of one to ten, ten being labor?

Threeish. There was a minute or two of "breathe" in there, but I've had
menstrual cramps that were worse.

Get ibuprofen for the cramps and pop one before you go in.

Jess