Scarleteen

Hello,

So after talking with my dr about anxiety over pregnancy fears, I decided to get an IUD, and it was inserted today. I was really nauseous, lightheaded, and crampy afterwards and was in no position to try to feel for it in the office though so the nurse didn't show me how to feel for the strings, and just explained it to me instead and gave me some of the strings as an example of what to feel for. Now at home, I can't feel them! She said sometimes they curve up around the cervix and the doctor said he has never had a patient that has had it move, but shouldn't I still be able to find them? I have a follow up in few weeks, and plan to use condoms on top of the IUD anyways, but just curious what normal experience is.

It's likely that you aren't feeling the string either because of the curving your nurse mentioned, or because her explanation didn't explain the process of checking as much as the physical demonstration would have. I'd give it another day or two of trying on your own, and if you still can't feel the strings at that point you could call the doctor's office to see if they think you should come back in for a quick re-check before your next appointment. It does take some folks a little time or experimentation to get used to checking the strings so I don't think this is particularly worrisome, though.

I have an IUD and I've found that the best position for checking the strings is squatting on the floor (feet flat, hips/butt below knees), which effectively shortens the distance between the vaginal opening and the cervix. My strings barely poke out past my cervix, so if I reach into my vagina standing up my fingers are not even long enough to reach them.

Hope this helps!