mirena iud weight gain

:P
I had mine in for 4 months, and could not figure out what was happening to my body! I am a trainer and very careful of what I eat and workout religiously. I had gained 10 pounds and put it all on in my upper leg/hip area and lower belly. I always felt bloated and uncomfortable. I just didnt feel like I was in my own skin.
Now after reading these posts, I know why I was breaking out sooo bad and my emotions were out of wack!
I took mine out about a week ago!!! Best thing I could have done. The bloating feeling was gone in about 2 days. I did have a heavy period, but that was probably due to not having one for so long. I dont know I think its not normal to stop mother nature. My stomach feels flater and have lost 3 pounds this week.
Finally an anwser. I know everyone is diffrent, but for me The IUD was the worst thing I could have done to myself. My doctor, is still trying to tell me it was not the IUD!! HA!! YEAH RIGHT

I cant beleive this, I have just read all of your comments and I have put on about 8 kilos since having mirena inserted 12 months ago, my gyno says its not the mirena though!! I went yesterday because I have been having severe cramping pains like a period x 5 it has been really bad, so we decided it should be removed. The gyno could not get it out so now I have to have a op to remove it and a D&C Im really scared and when I saw the doc I was in shock and now I have so many questions.. Like how does this happen? The worse thing is she couldn't schedule the op for 3 months so I have to put up with the pain until then.. Please tell me it gets better :-(

You gals have no idea the relief it has given me to sit here and scroll down reading you all's messages. I have been so down in the dumps and weight loss has consumed my mind for the past month or so. I have four children and usually after each child I would loose back down to atleast close to my regular weight and be fine with that. After my last child me and my husband decided not to do the tube-tying thing ( it just seems to permanent) so I decided to try the mirena. I was dealing with the cramping and spotting after all I was told that these all were side effects but it also said no significant weight gain was caused from this device. So i was okay with that. Every since I have had this thing put in at the end of January I have gained close to 20 lbs! MInd you I had lost all my baby weight and some by the time my baby was 4wks old I always do because I breast feed only and try to eat mindfully of that. Well since the day of insertion I have been battling depression, moodswings, no sex drive hardly at all (that's very unlikey for a woman who has 4 kids right?) and I have just really been stressing and beating my self up about this significant weight gain in such a short time frame. I started craving and eating sweets like crazy but I have always had a sweet tooth and I'm a christian so I even whent so far as to thinking I'm just not disciplined enough and started getting all spiritual about it. My friend kept telling me well don't beat your self up it could be hormones or even that device you got, but i just wouldn't listen. My babes asleep now but when he wakes up I will definately be talking to him about other birth control options. But I still think God because have been seriously bugging him about me being unhappy about my weight and I knew he would give me a solution and I actually got online about something else and I don't even know why I began to search about this iud but i thank God that I did. To you all out there, count up the cost. If being worry free in the bedroom is worth it to you then by all means keep doing what your doing. But never compromise your happiness and self-esteem because in the long run you gain alot more then just a few pounds. Before you know it you've gained insercurities, a lack of confidence, self consciousness, and most of all the inability to love yourself. And to me its just not worth it. I struggle enough with not being able to fit into my size 9 and 10 pants any thing else would probably kill my Personfor good. Sorry about the spelling when I get on the roll all grammar is out the window. I don't know why but I just wanted to leave my email to anyone who needs to talk about any thing.

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 Gina :D

I also have had the Mirena for 3 years and I am sure that the weight gain is from it. I have gained 40 lbs.since and I always feel bloated and my breasts always feel huge!! The mood swings and bouts of depression are also horrible. I have absolutely no sex drive and my husband is very disapointed...he is willing to get a vasectomy.

I went on weight watchers and was walking 2 miles 3-4 times a week and still nothing! My mom was doing it with me ...she lost 45 lbs. and I lost 7 in a 8 month period. I am currently on a 1200 calories a day diet and I am gaining weight still!

I too don't get a period and I think that the only choice left is to have this thing removed ASAP.

Thanks to this forum I don't feel alone anymore...good luck to all of you!

Wow I wish they had all of these comments on the mirena web page. I thought weight gain was virtually impossible. Before having my son I was on birth control for 11 years and did not experience weight gain. I have only had mirena for 2 months and I have gained over 14 pounds and now look 5 months pregnant. I'm really frustrated and upset because I had lost 10 pounds and 2 dress sizes before having it inserted. I also have acne now. I feel ugly all over and the over the counter water pills are doing nothing. I made an appointment to have it removed and considering a pill like yasmin or yaz because of the diuretic effects. I did have the nuvaring before the mirena but it kept falling out. I hate the day I saw the mirena commercial :'( :'(

I kept reading all these posts hoping that someone would completly confirm that after they took their IUD out that they lost all kind of weight, but I haven't seen that yet. :'(

I have had a weight gain of about 50 pounds over the past 5 years since I had my mirena put in. I just chalked it up to genetics (mother was very much over weight) and I don't know...destiny I guess. 8-| But after reading all of this I am about convinced it is the IUD. My stomach is huge and bulging over my jeans and no matter what I do I can't seem to lose weight. I have done WW and would lose 5-10 pounds and then they'd slowly but surely creep back up on me. I had lost and gotten down to 130 after my second child and now I'm up to 170 and have been up to 180 at a point. My husband has volunteered to get a vasectomy but I just don't want to do that because I know how he is and I'm afraid that it will affect him emotionally (thinking he's not a man and all) I've heard about this new thing called essure. It is done in the office and there are no hormones involved, but it is permanent. I have made up my mind to not have any more children, but I just don't know if I'm ready to take that plunge. Does anyone out there have any stories to tell that they have lost a significant amount of weight since removing it. It would be totally worth it if I knew for sure it would make a difference, but the no periods sure are convienent.

1eh Yeah

Is the author of this quote, speaking from experience with any IUD?

Curious.

I have had Mirena in since 2005 and have gained 60+ pounds, my doctor tells me its not the Mirena but im beginning to the otherwise.

I have been so puzzled about my rapid and excessive weight gain over the last 6 months. I had not changed my eating habits and I am as active as I have always been. My husband told me that I was gaining weight faster because I am getting older! I actually thought that maybe (for once) he was right. But then I started to think about how my weight has increased. Turning 27 couldn't have been the answer. I knew that his theory was ridiculous! Then, I had a revelation. I had my Mirena inserted in October 2007. Since then, I have gained 30 pounds! This had to be it. I googled "Mirena IUD and weight gain"... I uncovered atleast 400 women blogging about how the Mirena has caused them to gain weight so rapidly. Finally I don't feel alone. I could just cry when I think about how long I let this affect me and my life. In addition, my skin has suddenly become horrible. I made it through puberty without a single spot of acne, and now all of a sudden, I'm breaking out all over my body! Another listed side affect of Mirena!!!

Has anyone had their Mirena removed, and had success in losing the weight afterward?

I got my IUD out after not losing anything fo rMONTHS, i lost 8 lbs in two weeks doing exactly what I had been doing with the IUD in. My dr insisted it could have NOTHING to do with it, but I am proving her wrong!

:D WOW...... I have had the mirena for a little over three years and i have gained nearly 60 pounds. I am 5'2 and have alway been tiny (115 pnds). I never really thought that the IUD could be causing the weight gain but after reading all the posts, I would have to agree that it does cause weight gain. My neighbor mentioned it the other day because she researched it and a light went on in my head! :D I have also had other side effects like mood swings, depression, decreased sex drive, bloating, sweet tooth craving and just really emotinally unstable. I SERIOUSLEY look like I am 5 months pregnant and I have stretch marks now and I dont even have any kids! I am constantly wearing baggy clothes so I can hide my tummy and legs. I have been asked on quite a few occasions how far along I am and it really is a blow to your self esteem. I have not changed anything with my diet and exercise and I have also been checked for thyroid problems. I got it becaue I was having really heavy uncontrolable periods and my doctor chalked it up to be the BEST THING ever! I only paid 55 dollars for it and I think I got my use out of it! My sister also got one and gained almost thirty pounds. She got really sick, not sue to the IUD and had it taken out in NOV 07 and has since lost almost all her weight that she gained. :!: I am going to really think about taking it out and seeing what it does. I do have to think about my options though and talk it iver with the hubby. I wish there was a pill or something they could take! LOL Thanks to everyone who posted on this and GL to you all! I will post again and let you know if taking it out is what I decide to do and what I noticed!
Chantel

I recently had my Mirena taken out at the 5-year expiration (4/22/2008) and I'm glad I decided NOT to get a new one. I'll share my story too...

When I had Mirena inserted in 2003, I was 33 years old, no kids by choice, and had been on tri-phasic BCP for 15 years with no real side effects until just before I chose Mirena for birth control. For the previous 3 or 4 years I had been dealing with some emotional and physical issues that I thought were related to the pill (some loss of interest in sex mainly, and the fact that I smoke and was getting to the age where strokes are a risk with BCP).

My OB GYN and I decided to give the Mirena a try (I suggested an IUD in the first place), and so I had it inserted (worst pain in my LIFE!). After the initial pain and discomfort, I still felt like something was wrong, but I attributed it to having an object in a uterus that has never had anything in there before. I dealt with the fact that any pressure in that area was likely going to hurt or at least be uncomfortable, and so started wearing looser fitting clothes.

Really, during the whole time I had the IUD (or IUC as it's called), I never minded the spotting (very light) or even the cramping (even though it didn't seem worth it to have cramps but no period). Sometimes, I'd get a really bad cramp that would travel down my thighs, but some deep breathing usually helped me through it. My BF would sometimes feel the strings poking or scratching him--but he just refrained from "certain" positions and everything was hunky-dory (or so I thought...). Not that it mattered much, since my sex drive literally TANKED and quite frankly even the thought of sex sometimes disgusted me, which previously would NEVER happen--I have generally had a very high sex drive, of course up until the previous few years with the Pill.

My relationship was beginning to suffer greatly--to the point that my BF and I went from having sex 1-2 times a week to 1-2 times a month, and then after about 2 years with Mirena maybe once every 2-3 months. He was threatening to leave because of my "attitude", and I was, quite frankly, beginning to think I'd rather he was gone (we've been together for over 15 years!) so I didn't have to "deal" with him along with everything else. I started noticing my weight gain--I had always had a small waist, and now it was GONE, and I had rolls of fat on my belly--my pant size went from size 6 to nearly a size 12, and I was having to pluck whiskers from my chin EVERY DAY. No stamina--taking almost daily naps after work (which isn't usually a full 8 hours anyway), and generally feeling tired and grumpy all the time. I knew something was wrong, but what?

Did I ever think it was my IUD? NO. I chalked it up to getting older (at this point 36-37) and possible early or pre menopause, to life stresses, to genetics. Since I had been OK with hormones before, why would a SMALLER amount locally be a problem? Maybe I was just destined to be an overweight b!tch for the rest of my life.

Prior to having the Mirena, I had been seriously disappointed at going from around 105-110 lbs (5'2) in my early twenties to 135lbs by 30--again, I thought it was the BCP's. So I tried excercise and Atkins and managed to lose 10 lbs but that was all. Before I went off the pill, I had my thyroid checked--all normal, although slightly high T4. Again, about 6 months ago I started wondering why all my symptoms seem to be so much like hypothyroid and I had my levels checked again--still normal--even better T4 than previously! Again, I decided to try some weight-management and calorie reduction. Only slight improvement. So, here it is, 5 years later and I went to get my IUD replaced (replaced, mind you). When they weighed me (I don't use a scale at home--I go by my clothes), it turns out that I had gained 20 lbs during the time I was on Mirena. Imagine my absolute disgust to find that I now weighed 146 lbs!!!

Not only that, but now that I see it mentioned here, I did notice my BP seemed high the last few times I'd gone into the doctor. Not so good. I also noticed in the last six months of this 5 year period that I could no longer wear rings that I had been able to wear only 6 months ago because of severe bloating that never seems to resolve.

I have now had my Mirena out for almost a month. My sex drive came back almost immediately, and FULL FORCE (which sucks, because now I have to deal with some other form of bc and it's been my entire adult life I've not had to worry about getting preggers), my weight management plan is TOTALLY working--I've lost probably 50% of my gross fat gut, my arms are smaller, and my waist is returning. I've been feeling emotionally lighter, even though I didn't notice how "low" I was before. I have NO CRAMPS, and I LOVE SEX AGAIN, and my BF isn't seeming to be annoying at all anymore. :$

Ladies, they can tell you whatever they want--but I'm telling ya, I didn't ascribe ANY of these issues to my IUD until AFTER it got removed. I had NEVER had reactions to hormones before--I wonder if over the years I've just had too much. I wonder if I'll get a period soon; I did a couple days after the removal and I'm due for one soon but I've heard about erratic periods due to the hormones for up to a year (arghh!). If there is another form of bc out there, USE IT. I'm pushing for my honey to get snipped, but I think it will take some coaxing. At least I have a few sponges left to give him time to think about it (yeah, that's another story, lol).

I'm debating whether to tell my OB GYN about this experience--I think she'd be very interested to hear it.


Good luck to all of you--I'm glad I'm free of this thing. Hopefully back to normal soon! :-D

I had mine inserted in 10/2005. I spotted n cramped really bad for 2 mo.
Later it was better I had basically no period just mild spotting once a month. The bad part was I was cramping like I was in labor. I never had cramps before that. I have been suffering from severe depression n mood swings. I gained bout 40 to 50lbs in this time. I eat properly n do some cardio at least 30 mins. every day Mon-Fri. Also my husband has been complaining bout the string poking him like it was a needle. I had the string s shortened twice n he still feels the poking to the point were it's interfering w love making. I am having it removed ASAP! !

I had the Mirena IUC insertion on March 11, 2008. I have gained 15 lbs since then. What a dissapointment! My OB told me that I would love it and that it doesn't cause weight gain. That was one of the key factors as to why I chose it. The pill was giving me headaches and I was taking Topamax for my migraines and losing lots of weight because Topamax decreases appetite. but with Mirena, I feel like I am always hungry. I have started dieting and working out more, but it doesn't seem to help. I love that I have no period with the Mirena and that I don't have to worry about contraception and my sex drive is better since I don't take the pills, but the weight gain is so not worth it. I am considering having it removed. Any insight from others regarding the Mirena would be greatly appreciated. (I DO NOT APPRECIATE insight from those who know nothing about Mirena and haven't experienced what it does to your body)