You Do You-Terus: My IUD Journey Part 2

Hey loves!

Today's post is different from what you see me posting normally, but this topic is so important. My lovely friend Lora will be detailing her experience with her IUD, one of the many methods of birth control out there. I personally am on the pill, but when I think about merely the experience of getting on the pill, I'm baffled by how little I knew about birth control. After getting on the pill, my mom has even asked me questions about how it works. She doesn't even know anything about birth control!

I could write so much about why it's ridiculous that I knew nothing (Health tends to be focused on the male body, rather than on both the male AND female body), but instead, I'm gonna hand over the reigns to Lora. Learning about birth control, and more generally, how your own body works, is so empowering, so I'm so glad that Lora approached Katiee and I with this idea. Read on to learn more about her IUD Journey! 

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Hey everyone! My name is Lora, you can find me posting on the gram or blogging over at www.mylifeaslora.com!

Normally, I’m a travel and lifestyle blogger. However, I’m also an intersectional feminist and that’s something really important to me too. The process of getting my IUD was something I wanted to share with everyone, especially the college aged girls that will probably read this, because I think it’s important.

Before I start in on the process, I just wanted to thank Annabelle from Mixed Hues and Katiee from Life Starts with Coffee for letting me have a voice and allowing me to guest post on their beautiful feminist friendly blogs. <3

This post will be split into two separate posts. You’re currently reading Part 2 and you can find Part 1 on Katiee’s blog.

Part 1 is all about:

  • How I found out about the IUD

  • Research I did to figure out how it was the right choice for me

  • Research on how to afford it

  • Who I talked to and what I learned

Part 2 is all about:

  • The process of getting one

  • How it feels after

  • How I feel now that I’ve had mine for six months

I’d also like to add that I am not by any means an expert on this topic. This is just my experience and you should definitely consult your OB/GYN or doctor before making any decisions. We all have extremely different bodies and different cycles. At the end of the day, you do you-terus.  (See what I did there? Haha… okay moving on!)

The procedure

I know what you’re wondering… did it hurt? Yes. It hurt. Very bad. However, fear not. It’s all worth it in the end. Basically, when the doctor placed the device in me, I felt a veryyyy strong cramp. I bled a bit. I felt nauseous. When I walked out to the car I puked. I was in pain. I then experienced terrible cramps for hours. So yes, it hurts. But you’ll live, I promise. Just please make sure you take the day off from work, have someone drive you there and home, eat lots of mac and cheese or smoothies, and just chill that evening.

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After the procedure

So like I said, I experienced terrible cramps for hours after the procedure. I took a bunch of ibuprofen and took a nap. When I woke up I still felt pretty shit but better than I did earlier. I ate some mac and cheese and went back to bed. The next day I still felt a little rough but I did feel 100% better than the day before. I went back to work that night and while I wasn’t feeling my best, I was fine!

Six months later

For the first month after I got my IUD, I bled (mostly spotting) most days. I wore a panty liner to deal with this issue. However, after the first month, all bleeding stopped and I’ve only had spotting one other time since then, about two months ago. I experienced cramps a lot in the first month and have had zero since. My overall experience with the IUD has been really great. I feel like my sex drive has gone back to normal and it’s nice having a birth control method that doesn’t depend on me to remember a pill every day. All in all, I’d recommend an IUD to any person that is looking for a way to control their cycle without taking pills.

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If you have any other questions or want to talk to me about any of this, you can always message me on my Instagram!

lifestyle, feminismAnnabelle SchmittComment