No libido - is copper coil the answer?

[moniacho]

I'be read an article today about a mini-pill. The progestin (not sure if I remember the name correctly) in it, which is a synthetic progesterone, stops the body from producing its own progesterone. As a result we get oestrogen dominance and loss of libido. The author suggested that hypo ladies, whose hormonal balance is so delicate anyway, should avoid hormonal contraceptive altogether.

I've been thinking about switching to copper coil, but I don't know enough about it and I don't want to switch one evil to another. Does anybody know about any negative effect of copper coil on thyroid?

[Hidden]

Hi I first had a copper coil fitted when I was 21 that was 50 years ago. I then had another one fitted at 27 and another at aged 36. ( three in total)

The gaps were childbirth. I never had any negative effects, personally.

As soon as I had them removed within one to two months I was pregnant.

I only started having problems with my thyroid 3 years ago I am 71 years old now.

[moniacho in reply to Hidden]

Thank you Hidden , glad to hear you had no problems with it. I hear so many mixed opinions, really don't know what to do now. But I really want to stop the hormonal contraceptive... just looking for good alternative

[Hidden in reply to moniacho]

Unless you have an overload of copper I can't see a problem. I used it because I didn't want the contraceptive pill. I know I am lucky and have never had any problems you could try it and see what happens.

Mind you I had never taken any medication in my life before 2015 when I had my thyroid removed apart from the odd sinus spray.

[Rarararara]

I had some issues with the copper iud. Incredibly heavy and painful periods (the pain was debilitating) and Infections. I also expelled 2 of them. I would never have one again. Copper leeching into your body has some dreadful side effects which I hadn't realised at the time, I had mine removed 6 years ago. I just found this article online and realised I had a lot of the other symptoms mentioned, just never made the connection until reading this tonight complete lightbulb moment for me. Your body your choice but here's the link to the article. Food for thought. samanthagilbert.com/copperi...

[moniacho in reply to Rarararara]

Thank you Rarararara , interesting article. The only thing that worries me is that the person presents a problem and then sells a solution (low-copper cook book). I wonder if presenting the worst-case scenario sells more books... But it is worth knowing both sides of the coin of course. I just wonder if it's better to have your hormones all messed up or your copper/zinc ratio.

[Rarararara in reply to moniacho]

I thought exactly the same thing when I saw her plugging her book but as I read on through the article it became really clear to me that I had been affected in much more significant ways than I had realised. It was around the same time that I had my copper iud out in that I became emotionally volatile anxious and depressed. I had a lot of gastrointestinal upset however I had my gallbladder out that same year so that's hard to really factor in. I was diagnosed with postnatal depression and put on antidepressants. My youngest was nearly a year old at that stage and I had been doing fine before that, my marriage fell apart over the course of the next 2 years that had otherwise been perfectly happy until then, I changed, I changed a lot over the 6 years that I had the iud. I was all over the place. Your question has helped me to understand finally where everything started going downhill for me. Thankyou so much, I would never have looked further into it had it not been for your post. The only reason I had it removed was because my current partner of 6 years had a vasectomy long before we met so it wasn't necessary to have to think about birth control. I have also not needed antidepressants since either. Remember too that the copper works by causing inflammation in the uterus. Definitely do as much research as you can before making this decision, I didn't. like you the pill didn't agree with me, the mini pill was fine but it caused me to have continual spotting throughout my cycle so was a huge inconvenience and the depro proverb injection sent me off the deep end bigtime emotionally. I'm fortunate enough to not have to be the one responsible for contraception anymore which with all the hassle it was For me I am so grateful for. This is just my personal experience, everyone is different but at least you will be aware of the possibilities and what to look out for if you do go ahead and don't feel right within yourself. It might be perfect for you.

[moniacho in reply to Rarararara]

Oh, Rarararara , I'm sorry you had to go through all of that. But I'm happy for you that you put your life together again I didn't know that copper coil causes inflammation, I have to investigate that further as inflammation in general is not good for hypo thyroid. You mention antidepressants, I was on Fluoxetine for a while few years ago. I learned here recently that it is based of fluoride and very bad idea for hypothyroid patients as it makes hypo symptoms worse. It was that time for me when I started feeling much worse... Check what you were on as it also may have affected you badly. Thank you for sharing your story, I will definitely wait now and do much more research before deciding...

[Rarararara in reply to moniacho]

I tried several over a 12-18 month period and then went several years without only to go back on them for 6 months prior to removal. It was a long time ago now but I think I initially started with lexapro, then went to stemetil briefly and then to Effexor which I what I also had the 2nd time around. I will definitely look into that though thankyou

I prefer to use only natural remedies, I don't even take panadol or nurofen. So I wasn't keen on taking medication. I did find that vitamin supplements helped though like zinc magnesium and vitamin d

[Angel_of_the_North]

Any coil is bad for you. I had a copper 7 for many, many years (it had to be removed under general anaesthetic as it was so embedded) and although I had reasonable libido for my age, I had terrible menstrual cramps (fainting with pain terrible) and having a "piece of string" sticking out of your cervix isn't really conducive to good sex (sorry TMI). When you get it removed, you realise that your copper/zinc metabolism was completely messed up. Still probably better than fake hormones.

[moniacho in reply to Angel_of_the_North]

Thank you Angel_of_the_North , the thing is no libido at all (may be due to hormones all messed up) isn't conductive to sex at all. Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate your advice, it's just that I have to make choice between two evils, wondering which one is worse... will I be able to correct copper/zinc ratio by supplementing zinc while having copper coil? I can't to much to correct the hormonal imbalance due to the pill, and it would be pointless anyway if I want the pill to work.

Note to myself-have to find some reliable statistics about the numbers of happy/unhappy users of copper coil

[blondpalomino]

I tried the mini pill,but it gave me terrible headaches.I also had the copper coil for a while, but as someone else mentioned it made my periods a lot heavier, and I was told that it can cause erosion at the neck of the womb. I have had the mirena coil for about 20 years now,they have to be replaced every 5 years which is not pleasant if you haven't had children! but once it's in I have had no problems,and no periods since.I think it only releases a small amount of progesterone,and not the same as the mini pill. I think it has helped my headaches by stopping the periods,during which I used to suffer with bad migraines.