Scarleteen

Hi,

I've been on birth control pills for over a year, currently taking three-month cycle pills and they've been working for me. However, I'm concerned as a woman in the US that my pills might become unaffordable after Trump takes office and tries to undo the ACA.

For that reason I was thinking of switching to an IUD, probably Mirena. I'm 20 years old and never been pregnant, and I know people have said you can still get an IUD if you've never had kids, but I'm a bit concerned about safety.

I've heard that some women are bringing lawsuits against the company responsible for Mirena because they claim that the nastier side effects (cysts, perforation, expulsion, etc) are more common than reported, and that not having given birth increases risk of things like perforation. Is this something to be seriously concerned about or are IUDs like Mirena actually generally safe?

Thanks

Hi Rose,

It is certainly scary to consider what will happen during a Trump presidency

I haven't heard of any increased risk, but you can discuss this more with your doctor to help make the best decision for you considering your concerns about safety.

If you are thinking about other long term methods, you might find this article helpful: Birth Control Bingo

We'd be happy to discuss it more with you

Adding to what Ashleah said: it looks like these kinds of lawsuits are not a brand-new thing. Given that I also don't know of any particular safety concerns, I'm rock-solid sure that there aren't big concerns over Mirena, because there's no way in any universe that Heather (our Executive Director) wouldn't have been all over that and made sure that a) we put that message out to our users, and b) made sure all the staff/vols know too. (Heather would likely know more about the situation with the lawsuits, but is away at the moment - I'm sorry I don't!)

From our page Intrauterine Devices (IUD, IUC or IUS):

The new generation IUDs we have today have been rigorously tested and have been widely proven to be safe.

Young people and/or people who have never been pregnant are fine candidates for an IUD. Increasingly, many professional sexual healthcare medical organisations and young people's sexual health advocacy organisations specifically recommend IUDs as a contraceptive method for younger people.

It's not completely risk-free, simply because no medical device or medication can be. It's more likely to have negative health impacts from a pregnancy than from an IUD, though. The main risk with an IUD is the possibility of a more serious infection because of a pre-existing STI or one picked up in the few weeks after insertion; being honest with your healthcare provider, getting any recommended STI tests before insertion and then being very strict about safer sex in the following month should take care of that. It's my understanding that the risk of perforation is extremely tiny indeed, and shouldn't happen with a competent and responsible provider. Expulsion can happen for a small number of people, but the issue there is inconvenience and making sure to get set up with another method, rather than health risks.

Also linked off our page is a report of a large study showing that IUDs are safe and effective, including for teenagers.

Thank you so much for your help!