Prolonged, heavy & irregular periods

[Mummybear0213]

Hello.

Just wanted to hear what other ladies thoughts are on my situation.

I had my 4th child almost 2 years ago via emcs. At 6 weeks pp I had the copper IUD put in. The procedure went very smoothly, I didn't even bleed afterwards. But, my periods have been havoc since I had the coil fitted/had the baby. They've gone from being normal, lasting 5-7 days and every 28 days on the dot, to extremely heavy and painful, lasting over 10 days, sometimes lasting 14 days, and turning up a week early or sometimes a week late.

GP has referred me for a scan so I'm just waiting for that, but I'd like to hear if anyone else has had similar and what the explanation was.

Just to add, I have undiagnosed hypothyroidism, which I know can cause heavy periods too. But getting the GP to take me seriously on that subject is another story.

[Floralsummer]

hi, so I’m not sure if you were told at the time but the copper coil, a non-hormonal form of contraception, can significantly impact menstrual patterns. Unlike hormonal methods, the copper coil’s influence on periods stems from the reaction of your body to copper.

According to an article published in the Clinical and Experimental Obstetrics and Gynaecology, the copper coil leads to an increase in the copper content in the endometrial tissue. This causes extra endometrial growth factor secretion meaning there is more endometrium to shed…. And hence the likelihood of heavier periods.

The mirena coil is hormone based but this one lightens/stops your periods.

Hope that helps!

[Mummybear0213 in reply to Floralsummer]

Thank you for your reply, I really appreciate it.

I was told they could be heavier for a while but it would subside after a few months once my body adjusted to it. It's been the opposite for me, they've just gotten worse month by month!

I am switching to the Mirena next week during a surgery I'm booked in for so I suppose once thats done I'll know whether it was the copper IUD causing them or not.

I can't help but worry it's something more serious 😩

It took me years to get pregnant with my first child, I never knew why. Periods were fine but something was obviously not right. I'm wondering if there's been an issue for a long time that's reared it's head maybe.

Or I'm probably overthinking haha.

[IPNH]

It seems pretty obvious that the iud could be a factor. I did not have an iud but I was severely anemic from them. I would get the iud out. Take oral contraceptives to even out the bleeding and see if you need to take iron supplements (under provider's care). You can take about 600mg ibuprofen at start of period and then 200mg maintenance doses for first couple days which can decrease bleeding a lot. It decreased mine to about half. Idk the system there, I'm in the US. Luckily my OBGYN advised me to have my tubes out and to have a uterine ablation. I opted to have the surgery and I have not had a period since 2021. Also no longer anemic. If your doctor won't listen and you can find a private doctor then I would definitely try to have the ablation if you don't want to have periods. Otherwise taking oral contraception could be a good option

[Mummybear0213 in reply to IPNH]

Unfortunately most other contraceptives don't agree with me, I've tried everything (except the injections which sound horrendous) I get migraines with aura so unable some are not an option, and the rest just make my periods go haywire. I had the implant and that stopped my periods for a year completely, then out of the blue I started bleeding constantly so had to get it removed.

I have thyroid issues so I get my bloods checked frequently, and yes I am low in iron. I'm waiting for a heme iron supplement to arrive so I can start on those (doctor gives me the cheapest and worst supplement possible, Ferrus Sulphate) and I'm on a few other supplements due to deficiencies. So I'm pretty aware of all that stuff. To be honest the last 2 years my iron levels have been terrible. I lost almost 4 litres of blood during my emergency C-section and needed 3 transfusions and an iron infusion which wore off after a few weeks.

[IPNH]

I had heavy periods and it made me dangerously anemic. There are other options. An amazing obgyn suggested removing my tubes and a uterine ablation. It's been a life changer no need for any bc and no more periods. They don't tell us women that we don't have to suffer! It's been so freeing I can't even tell you. You should do whatever you can to get those procedures. I know this is UK based so you might have to go private but it would be worth it. I'm in the US so the system is a bit different