Has anybody found either of the above works ok with Hashimotos and underactive thyroid?
I’m really struggling with heavy periods and bad pms my Gp has suggested the Coil and I am worried about having it in.
As I have Underactive thyroid, Hashimotos and Sjogrens disease I can’t seem to tolerate some of the previously tried contraceptives including desogestrel and cerazette.
Any advice would help as I need to try something out. Thanks
Hey, I'm sure someone will pop on with some advice. I'm hyper and had serious issues with the mirena coil, if you have autoimmune problems it's not always advisable to have a a 'foreign body' inside you as it can trigger your immune system (hope that makes sense).
Plus the copper coil can cause heavy periods so may not be what you're after.
I've had problems with very heavy frequent periods since having children and was advised the implant would most likely make my periods heavier as mirena actually didn't stop mine and made then heavier and more frequent. I'm on cerazette now and it's helped with my periods and I have minor side effects.
If you've previously reacted to progesterone only pills then depo might also cause you issues. I don't deal with my GP for contraceptives as they just weren't helpful and went to the sexual health (family planning) clinic in my area instead. I would absolutely recommend if you can speak to someone that specialises in contraception.
mistygrey
I don’t know which would be best because I haven’t used any of those but if the only reason you are considering them is for problematic periods, you may find your periods start to improve once thyroid hormones are optimal.
Your previous posts state you are still titivating doses and even when your sweet spot is found, symptoms can last for many months after good biochemistry.
The HPA axis and HPT axis should work in parallel, and cortisol and TSH should correlate. Many hashi sufferers end up low on cortisol and as all hormones are dependant on each other, any deficiency (or elevation) has repercussions further up the line.
Steroid hormones such as oestrogen & progesterone influence immune cells & modulate the output of the immune system. Many immune cells even have receptors for O & P.
O & P also activates some of the specific genes that play a role in hashi symptom flares & that is why many members find they become more hashi symptomatic around their period time.
I have Hashis too.
I tried both methods and neither suited me.
I bleed continually on the coil and absolutely ballooned on the depo 😱
I didn’t have painful periods but the mini pill worked well in terms of ensuring no more babies 👶
Having said that, when I eventually gave that up (good old menopause) I was amazed to see my waist reappear and my thighs ‘normalise’.
Have tried the Mirena coil for heavy, prolonged periods - had it removed after 6 months. In that time I only didn’t bleed for around 7 days total. I used an app to track bleeding and it used to send messages telling me I was plotting bleeding incorrectly 🙄. Haven’t tried other methods to make bleeding manageable. My GPs attitude means I’ve just about given up even trying to discuss it with him.
I used the mirena coil as I had almost non-stop bleeding and it worked really well for me. At the time I hadn’t been diagnosed with hypo/Hashimoto’s, although I’m pretty sure I had it then. Hope you find something that works for you soon x
None of the above! Coil will make heavy period worse (even one without hormones if they still make them) - fake hormones are never a good idea. Can you get a referral to gynaecology to find out WHY you have heavy periods - might be iron deficiency or fibroids. PMS can be treated successfully with alternative/complementary/dietary protocols - mine was - but that was 40+ years ago.
Has your GP bothered to have your sex hormones tested? An imbalance of hormones can cause heavy bleeding complete with clots. When it happened to me, my OB/GYN sent me for blood tests and determined that my estrogen levels were too low. Going onto HRT taken continuously fixed the problem by eliminating periods altogether.
These are all pretty drastic forms of contraception, and all have the potential to make your existing problems worse. I agree with advice here to check the relative levels of your oestrogen and progesterone, and to optimise your thyroid hormone replacement. Hypo in particular can cause very heavy bleeding with pain.
I agree with the replies above that you'd be better off finding a root cause such as fibroids. The minerals, magnesium and zinc in combination with p5p (I love p5p - it's a type of b6 that has no side effects) are very good for adrenal health and are also beneficial for PMS. Get hold of Marilyn Glenville's book about it. It was published in 2002, but should be available second hand. For heavy periods it is definitely worth getting an iron panel done. The body is sometimes very illogical.... and losing so much iron this way will lead to worse thyroid function.. which leads to heavier periods...
I hate being negative about these things cause I think that they can be great for some people, but I had the implant put in and had a really bad experience.
It might be a coincidence (my GP insists it is) but my thyroid symptoms that had been stable for 5 years, came back within 2 weeks of me having it, & I’ve been in a severe symptom flare and thyroid imbalance since then for 2.5 years (despite having to have the implant removed after 6 months because I bled the entire time.)
It might be a complete coincidence & I’ve no real evidence! but I’m convinced that the implant caused some imbalance that affected my thyroid hormones & caused me to become so ill again.
Everyone’s different though I know and I think they’re so wonderful for some folks!
Transaemic acid GP can prescribe. Made my periods light. Life changing. Only need it for a few days a month
To avoid the possibility of confusion, may I check that you do mean:
Tranexamic acid
Depo has worked well for me on and off for the last 30 years. 6 years ago the hospital offered a coil or an ablation to stop my heavy prolonged bleeding which I didn't want. I spoke to GP and went back on the injection. Hey presto, no bleeding or side effects as usual. Stopped a year ago and still no bleeding which is not unusual as it can take time to get back to normal or maybe I've gone through menopause (no symptoms?)
Be aware that as it is in your system for 3 months it can be a miserable time if it doesn't agree with you
Thanks, do you have hashimotos or underactive thyroid?
Both hashi and underactive. Undiagnosed for almost 30 years before getting treatment. Now successfully treating myself with t3 only.
Thank you ☺️It may be an option for me I will look into this, I don’t fancy the coil either!! My doctor keeps pushing it but I want to get my thyroid levels and iron levels better and then I may try one of them but not the coil I don’t know why but I’m just not keen on that one!
I know what you mean about the coil. I can't really put into words why I didn't want it but just don't like the idea of a foreign body inside me. I know some swear by it but no, not for me. I'm in my 50s now but have been having the injection on and off since my early 20s. This last stint on the injection was due to constant heavy bleeding. I hadn't been diagnosed hypo at that point and Dr didn't know about the link between the two so I often had prescriptions for iron tablets but my levels are good now.
**Edited to add
I was unaware when I had my first injection that there were any side effects so just blindly had it. Luckily I was OK and always have been. I've known people that have had a rough time on the injection so I'm not going to say try it. However those who didn't feel well for 3 months have now ruled it out as an option
Just added an edit to last post. 🙂
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