Let's Dissect the Vasectomy
Wednesday, June 1, 2011 A couple of weeks ago when we were having one of those peaceful family dinners, I asked my partner if I could blog and tweet about his vasectomy, which was scheduled for the next day. My mother, who was staying with us, choked on her wine. My partner, much less phased by this request, said "sure, if it will help someone else."
Being Done
"Vasectomy should be considered permanent and irreversible. Don't be fooled by claims of reversible vasectomies...there is no such thing. If you attempt to reverse your vasectomy within the first three years of having it done, you have about a 70% chance of success (this falls considerably after ten years)." - Vasectomy.ca
The decision to get married, to have a child, to have a second child, and to be done having children all seemed to come fairly easily to us. The timing of each either made sense or felt right or both. We always had practical reasons for making those decisions and the emotional side seemed to follow along fairly easily.
I'd love to have more children. The sensation of snuggling up with and nursing a fresh newborn baby is something I would like to do over and over again. But, doing that would mean giving up other goals and dreams and making other substantive changes to our lives that neither of us is prepared to make.
We have two wonderful and exhausting children that complete our life. We were ready to make the permanent and irreversible decision to close the book on baby making.
Why a Vasectomy?
For every man who has a vasectomy, four women have a tubal ligation. - Joy Thompson from Planned Parenthood in Toronto Sun
A lot of people asked why we opted for a vasectomy. The answer seems fairly obvious to me. First, I had taken care of birth control for the past 16 years and as a couple that believes in equality, I guess that means it is his turn for the next 16 years.
In the man's case, it's a vasectomy. A quick, internal snip in the scrotum with a knife using a local anesthetic. It takes about 10 minutes, results in a few days of discomfort and heralds a condom- and baby- free future. Unfortunately, according to family therapists, some men believe a vasectomy will make them less of a man and refuse to take the plunge. For women, sterilization isn't quite as simple. Tubal ligation, as its known, requires surgery under general anesthetic -- in itself more risky -- to sever the fallopian tubes. - Steve Payne for the Toronto Sun
Second, if a man can undergo a short (less than 15 minute) outpatient procedure with local anesthetic, why should the woman be subject to major surgery? The third issue is the cost. Although both procedures are covered by public health care in Canada, the cost to the health care system (and therefore taxpayers like us) is about five times as much for a tubal ligation as for a vasectomy.
Ultimately, while each couple needs to make their own decision, I don't see any reason why someone would opt for tubal ligation over a vasectomy, except perhaps in cases of abuse where a woman is trying to ensure her abuser cannot get her pregnant again. Maybe there are other reasons and I'm sure my readers will enlighten me if there are.
The King of Vasectomies
Ottawa has a king of vasectomies. Almost everyone (like 99.9%) of people here seem to go to Dr. Weiss, who has performed more than 31,000 no-scalpel vasectomies from his office on a residential street in the Glebe. No hospital, no long waits, no astronomical parking charges, no knife. There was no question. We went to Dr. Weiss.
Q. What happens if I get an erection during the procedure?
A. Funny you should ask. Out of some 31,000+ vasectomies, I have seen this occur only once. It is not an issue. - Vasectomy.ca
Preparation
My partner had to pick up a preparation package in advance of his vasectomy. It included detailed instructions (with visuals!) on how to shave, a surgical razor, a support to wear on the day of the vasectomy, a prescription for the Valium to take an hour before the procedure and pain medication for after the procedure, an ice pack and a few other random items.
V Day
My partner had the "all in one" vasectomy, which means that he had his consultation and vasectomy all in one day. "Consultation, what consultation?" is what he said when I asked him about it. Essentially, he registered online, was given a time and date for his appointment,picked up the preparatory package, shaved, popped a Valium, and went to his appointment.
I had no interest in "cutting the tubes," so this wasn't an issue. When we arrived at the clinic (about 25 minutes early), we had barely sat down when he got called in. The procedure itself took no more than 10 minutes, didn't hurt at all, and he got a Coke when he was finished. All in all, less pain and less fuss than giving blood. We then had to sit in the waiting room for another 15 minutes before we were allowed to leave. We left the clinic before the actual scheduled time of his appointment. Easy and quick.
Having this procedure, like any other, obviously requires you to trust that your health care provider knows what they are doing. With 31,000 vasectomies behind him, we felt pretty confident going to Dr. Weiss.
Q. What happens if you cut the wrong tube?
A. That would be terrible! If the testicular artery were cut, it might result in loss of the testicle. Fortunately, this is not a common problem and has never occurred in Dr. Weiss’ career. - Vasectomy.ca
Q. Can my wife cut the tubes?
A. Not unless you're having the baby. Secondly, did you ask her if she wanted to? Third, unlike a birth, everything is sterile...so, sorry, but no. Vasectomy.ca
The Recovery
"Mommy, you have to bring me to bed tonight because Daddy's tentacles hurt." - Julian, age 6
The day of the vasectomy, after I brought him home, my partner sat down on the couch and watched a movie. He iced the area off and on with the ice pack that was provided to him by the doctor, but didn't even need the pain medication. I did the dishes and put the kids to bed that evening, but otherwise he was relatively low maintenance. ;) Nowhere near as bad as a man cold. For several days, he had periods of feeling slightly uncomfortable, like he had sat down wrong, but otherwise said that it was pretty easy to deal with.
In addition to the physical recovery, there is the clearing of the tubes. It takes about 12 weeks until the risk of getting pregnant is gone, so couples who don't want a "surprise" baby still have to take precautions for a little while.
After the short recovery period, everything is back to normal. Life goes on, but no more worries about birth control after the 12 week waiting period has passed. I no longer have to pump my body full of hormones or jump through other hoops to ensure that I don't get pregnant again. We're done. :)
Q. Am I going to gain weight after my vasectomy?
A. Only if you eat too much and don’t exercise enough. - Vasectomy.ca
Q. Do I have to ejaculate 20 times before doing the test?
A. What you tell your partner is your business…but time is more important than the number of ejaculations. Do your test at least 12 weeks after the vasectomy regardless of the number of ejaculations, although I recommend as many as possible. - Vasectomy.ca
More Stories
You want to read more about vasectomies, don't you? Check out these other vasectomy posts from people in my social network:
- Andrea from a Peek Inside the Fishbowl: Dr. Snip
- Julie from Mabel's Labels: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Vasectomy Clinic
- Dani from Postcards from the Mothership: Beloved Visits Dr. Zap
- Karen from The Kids Are Alright: Worst Nurse
- Wildsau: V is for Vasectomy
- Matt Haughey: My Vasectomy
Image credit: kevjblack on flickr
Reader Comments (71)
Thanks for sharing this. I will be sending this post to my husband. We have been having the 'Big V' discussion.
We didn't go to Dr Weiss. (gasp!) ;)
I wonder if the the stats on vasectomy vs tubal ligation will change? I know nobody except one person in for a fourth and final c-section who opted for tubal ligation. We did the baby carrying, you do the snip snip snip. The end. ;)
Great post for with great info :)
My husband is hoping that the male birth control pill will come out before we talk of tubal ligation and vasectomies. That talk is very far off, seeing as we haven't started our family yet ;)
The reason to have a vasectomy is because it's way easier than for the woman to have a tubile ligation ... even if the woman was responsible for birth control less than 16 years. Guys, it's easy like Annie said, easier than donating blood. I know several men who got it.
Women though, may consider continuing to take the birth control pill because of certain cancer protective effects even if their husbands/partners had a vasectomy. I'm no doctor, but I hear periods are inconvenient and generally bad for the health. Menstruation cycles are the things that pump a woman's body full of hormones :)
Alex - periods are a way of a woman's body to cleanse itself and also the birth control is full of hormones, hence the not getting prego. There are now studies that are linking increased long term use of birth control to different cancers. Cycles do not "pump a woman's body full of hormones".
I got a tubal ligation, but it was logical in our case. Had it done during my second c-section. They were in there anyhow, so no big deal. Our deal had been that if the last pregnancy resulted in a c-section, we'd go for the tubal ligation, otherwise hubby had to get the vasectomy. It certainly worked out well enough. I just barely requested it in time for the required waiting period between the request for a tubal ligation and the operation. Our state has some pretty strict legal guidelines on how that's done, to avoid coercion I guess.
Thank you! We'll be following suit in the next couple weeks. Like you, I'm excited that 14 years of it being "my" responsibility will now be his. I've born three kids, it's only fair ;)
Menstrual cycle is regulated by huge hormone swings and is not for "cleansing" it is for getting pregnant. The "cleansing" is when the pregnancy fails to happen and all that preparation tissue needs to be discarded. If there is no pregnancy prep then there is no cleansing required. During the menstrual cycle women get huge amounts of tissue growth in the uterus and the breasts due to hormonal cycles. Taking the pill reduces some of these types of cancer (as far as I know, check into it with a doctor if you care to) and if you can eliminate menstrual cycles altogether then that is very helpful in reducing cancer of the ovaries and uterus, maybe even breast.
Different pills work through different mechanisms mainly to prevent ovulation. Some work by sending pregnancy hormones, so the body think it's already pregnant and so doesn't send an egg and doesn't go through the uteral growth (through a hormone cycle). Others work by inhibiting any menstruation hormones at all so it's like the woman is in menopause. So yes, the pill contains a hormone, but that single hormone inhibits the entire menstruation hormone cycle/cocktail.
I understand that women can go on the pill continuously, without the normal placebo phase, to eliminate menstruation for long timeperiods. Woman biology is adapted to be pregnant every two years or so. Apparently it is actually harmful (from a uterus/ovary/breast cancer point of view) to have the hundreds of menstrual cycles in a lifetime compared to only a few tens in a lifetime of constant pregnancy for which the biology is adapted. As I understand, it would be best if women only ovulated when they intended to get pregnant.
Anyway, I'm not a doctor and these pills suppress hormones that are probably important to other parts of health like bones (ex: osteoperosis is common in menopausal women do to reduced estrogen). I was just mentioning it. VASECTOMIES ARE STILL BETTER THAN TUBILE LIGATIONS: MEN, DON'T ASK YOUR WIVES TO GET THEIR'S DONE, YOU GET YOURS DONE.
Thanks for sharing. We're about 99% sure we're done with kids, but for now I'm using an IUD (the hormone-free, copper kind).... which is another option I wish people talked about more, though I think it's becoming a bit more popular/known about. I only had to pay the office visit co-pay and am set for about 10 years. After that we'll reassess if I want to do another IUD or if we want to consider a vasectomy...
Oh--and it was HIS idea! I was starting to ponder the different options after this impending birth, and he threw the big V out there as his choice. Uh, YES. Let's do THAT. Easy, peasy.
Hi Annie!
Making these decisions can be really challenging. Both my husband and I were in agreement that when we were done having babies that HE not me would be going in to get clipped. I thought that pregnancy and birth was my contribution to make and his was his outpatient procedure when were ready to be done. That was before my second pregnancy.
Both pregnancies were difficult but the trend was from full bed(ar)rest at 31 weeks with my first child to contractions in week 16 that turned into partial bedrest at 17 weeks that turned into full bedrest at 29 weeks with my second. I needed to be sure that my body would never ever have to attempt to support a pregnancy to term again because I was (and continue to be) convinced that a third pregnancy would not result in a pre-term baby but with a loss.
My situation is extremely unique and my decision reflected that. I can't say that hubby was disappointed but i can share that he didn't volunteer to have a sympathy vasectomy either. LOL
I feel I have to correct your statistics on vasectomy reversal success rates. Those statistics were true over ten years ago, before the advent of microsurgical techniques that are slowly becoming popular in the US. There are several vasectomy reversal centers in the US that have pregnancy rates as great as 70% and patency rates (return of sperm to the ejaculate) close to 90-95% (patency does not guarantee pregnancy since the morphology of the sperm as well as the female partner's fertility plays a role). As a woman who married someone who had had a vasectomy eight years ago, under pressure from his ex-wife, and desperately wanted more children, I had to research high and low to find this information and spent nearly two years crying myself to sleep every night because I was told by the original surgeon that it would be too expensive and probably wouldn't work anyway. My husband's vasectomy was reversed in spring of 2010 and I was pregnant before the end of the year. While it definitely should be considered a permanent surgical sterilization, vas reversals are no longer what they were.
Links:
http://www.dadsagain.com/
http://www.harryfisch.com/vasectomyreversal.htm
Ha! My husband had one a few weeks ago. We have three lovely boys and are too weak to say no to another so this seemed like our only option to actually take control of our lives and hopefully achieve some of the (other) things we dream of.
My husband planned to have one done about 4 years ago or so. We were happy and secure with our two boys and for all the same reasons you articulate, we decided that the permanent birth control would be his responsibility. He never got around to it and now we have a beautiful baby girl as well. ;) He has since had it done and had no problems at all. It was definitely the best choice for us.
I have an IUD for now but eventually my husband will be getting the snip too. Just makes sense.
My husband will probably get snipped at some point. But I must admit, the IUD I have is pretty awesome, 5 years and no periods!
My dad got snipped when my little sister came around 14 months after me! Of course my mom still ended up getting her tubes tied because my step-dad refused to get snipped. I don't understand it.
As a society I think we need to make information about long term birth control/contraception more available. I know vasectomy is permanent, but IUDs work for most women and are pretty foolproof. I'm also coming at this as an American - it's becoming increasingly difficult to obtain an abortion so preventing pregnancy is something I've given a lot of thought to.
We opted for a vasectomy too, I was still nursing and a tubal ligation seemed much more complicated.
I would love a new baby and have been struggling with that, I like how you said it would compromise other goals. You are right.
Sadly recovery was not as simple at our house. Smooth sailing now though.
I'm also going to show this to my husband. We're done having kids and I fully support it, but it has to be his decision. I have a copper IUD that is good for another 7 1/2 years, but the vasectomy would give me peace of mind. (I also wish more doctors would discuss the copper IUD as an option. I chose it because I can't handle the side effects of hormonal birth control, and it's worked great for us so far.)
I was also interested to learn that men are sometimes denied vasectomies. The husband of a friend wanted one after their third child was born and his doctor refused because of his age.
As for continuing the pill, hormonal birth control comes with significant side effects. Not for every woman of course, but I've heard enough horror stories about the Mirena IUD to stay far far away from it, and the pill was a huge mess for me. The jury is still out on what continual use of hormonal birth control or HRT means in the long term.
One more thought to add about IUD's...
When we started on the search for the best long term birth control option our doctor recommendeded we consider an IUD. My understanding was that it did not prevent conception only implantation. That wasn't a satisfactory solution for us. I wonder if that is the case for all IUD's? Either way we did not want any added hormones in my body, I have a hard enough time dealing with the ones I already have. ;)
This is a very helpful summary. I'll have to bookmark it for future reference.
I considered an IUD, but ultimately was too freaked out by the idea of having something inside me for a long period of time. Perhaps an irrational fear, but it bugged me enough that I couldn't do it.
"I’d love to have more children. The sensation of snuggling up with and nursing a fresh newborn baby is something I would like to do over and over again. But, doing that would mean giving up other goals and dreams and making other substantive changes to our lives that neither of us is prepared to make."
Wow! You have articulate my feelings better than I ever could.
I think my husband wants one. My anxious brain cannot allow it. I immediately think of some unlikely tragedy that would put him in a position of wanting more children (with or without me, depending on the tragedy) and not being able.
I realize this is kind of crazy... But this post was helpful for considerations in the future.
Alex:
The impact of oral contraceptives (the birth control pill) on cancers is mixed. It decreases the risk of certain types of cancer and increases the risk of other types of cancer. You can find details on that here: http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Risk/oral-contraceptives. Ultimately, I've taken the pill for long enough that I've already received the cancer reduction benefits that it brings and further use would only contribute to the risks.
With regards to the inconveniences and health benefits/risks of menstruation, it really depends on the woman and what her periods are like. That said, even if a woman has horrible periods, the use of hormonal birth control to suppress them isn't necessarily a good long-term solution, as they often have other undesirable side effects. I've decided that the undesirable side effects of menstruation are easier to bear than the undesirable side effects of hormonal birth control.
I had the copper IUD put in after my son was born. I wasn't crazy about it, as it gave me wicked periods, and when we were ready to try for #2 I went in to my OB/GYN to have it taken out. When I got to the appointment, I apparently needed some kind of "approval" from the insurance company to have it taken out (can you imagine?!) and the staff had misfiled the insurance request and would not let me see the doctor to take it out. At that moment I felt completely invaded by this device in me! I insisted they fix it immediately and take it out, which they did after some phone calls, etc. But I was soured on the whole idea of an implanted device in my uterus. Your fear is not irrational at all!
Great post, Annie. I think it takes a lot for a man to agree to a vasectomy, and we are both lucky to have a partner who appreciates the responsibility for reproduction that we have taken, and are willing to now take on part of it.
My husband put it very plainly and I will always love him for it: You've been pregnant 4 times [two live births], have had an unmedicated home birth and a scary emergency c-section weeks after your father died. I think you've done enough.
Another upside: spontaneous sex without worry of the outcome for the first time in either of our lives. Who could argue with that?
Katherine:
To clarify, those are not "my stats", they are the stats from the biggest vasectomy doctor in Canada.
I looked at the sites that you provided. The first one seems very biased in terms of trying to recruit patients for a vasectomy reversal.
The second one says: "Following microsurgical vasoepididymostomy, sperm appears in the semen in approximately 65% of men. Approximately 20 percent of couples subsequently achieve a pregnancy."
That isn't all that different from the stats that I presented in this post.
Have to agree it was more about burden of risk than taking turns in responsibility for our family. A tubal libation is far more invasive especially for someone not having it at time of csection. That being said we went to dr.Weiss and my poor husband has had complications infection, pain discomfort and some nerve impairment. Rare but it happened to us. The other issue is while it's true there is generally a 12 week waiting period it's more about ... Ahem.... the number of ejaculations post-surgery (sorry if tmi)
I meant to say a tubal ligation! Darn autospell on the iPhone! ;)
Lara:
I'm sorry that your husband had complications from his vasectomy.
With regards to the 12 week waiting period versus number of ejaculations, I actually included a quote from Dr. Weiss on that topic in the post. He says time is more important:
Q. Do I have to ejaculate 20 times before doing the test?
A. What you tell your partner is your business…but time is more important than the number of ejaculations. Do your test at least 12 weeks after the vasectomy regardless of the number of ejaculations, although I recommend as many as possible.
Advice given very early to me was that the person who most did not want any more children should be the one to have the longer term contraceptive - that was definitely me. Having a tubal ligation was my ticket to freedom - four children was enough. Plus the reaction my husband has to getting a cold is enough to convince me that his milking the after effects of a vasectomy would make me kill him. I love him dearly, but believe me, it was a win win ;)
My gyn told me with the kind I have, the copper IUD, it creates a hostile environment for the sperm. So while conception is not impossible, it is unlikely. I don't know about the hormonal IUD.
For the first 6 months, I had a day or two of incredibly heavy bleeding and wicked cramps. Now 2 1/2 years in, my periods are easier than ever and only last about 4 days.
I had an IUD for a little over a year. There's something that's often not talked about, with respect to them: they fail. Often. More often, I think, than the stats given in the office. And unlike with a missed pill or a broken condom, you have no way of knowing it failed until you miss a period.
I and EVERY woman I know who had a copper IUD ended up with an unplanned pregnancy. So I would seriously recommend monitoring your cycle and using backup birth control during your fertile days.
My husband had his apt booked and was ready to go, but I convinced him that I'd take one for the team (again!). I had a scheduled c-section and the Dr did it then. I figured there was no point to both of us having to go through a procedure.
And what about those women who are coming off birth control pills to get pregnant? It can take several months for their bodies to adjust to being off the pill. I would know--it has taken me close to six months to adjust. There were other side effects that I had while taking birth control that I didn't even realize I had until I stopped taking it because I started taking them before I was married.
Saying periods are always unhealthy is like saying that childbirth is a pathological condition that women must be "saved" from.
By the way, a woman can only go three consecutive cycles without having a period on birth control pills. If she goes anymore without, then serious health conditions can ensue. Women need to have periods. Those pills (like Seasonique) make it so women only have four periods a year, not none. They still give me the heebie-jeebies though.
Thank you for sharing your family's experience. Although we do not have children now we plan to in the future. I am taking care of the birth control now, but I have discussed a vasectomy with my husband when we are done completing our family. As you state, I think it's only fair and it's a lot easier and safer than methods we women would have to employ. All the best to you and your family. Thanks again for another informative post!
Sounds like we're in good company! About 90% sure we're done with having kids, but going with a copper IUD until we're 100% sure. At that point, the game plan is to have the vasectomy. Loving the IUD, but I've always had long-term birth control (got a Norplant, then the Mirena, then this, and never had trouble with any of it). We'd have snipped immediately, but my mother made me promise we'd wait until the kiddo is three, just to be sure we don't change our minds as he gets older. It's a valid point; I didn't think I wanted kids, and it took almost ten years for me to change my mind!
Thanks for posting this. My husband and I have decided that he's going to get a vasectomy when we're done having kids. He's fine with that, but we both feel best about medical procedures when we've done research and also heard personal anecdotes about them. Thanks so much!
Out of curiosity, were those failures because the IUD came out? Or a pregnancy despite the IUD still being present? I'm obviously curious because I have a copper IUD. It was the the best choice for us at the time (practically the only one really), but we still monitor my cycle and use caution. Just in case. Many of my friends have IUDs and while I know plenty of women who got pregnant while on the pill or Depo, and a couple post vasectomy too, I don't know any who had IUD's fail.
Mine was still very much intact. I had to have the doctor remove it after she confirmed my pregnancy. Then I had to wait and see if the removal would cause a miscarriage. Not a pleasant few days really.
When I told her it was still in, her mouth fell open in shock, so I thought I was unusual. But I've since met lots of women who had the same experience. I think they're still a really good option if you're in a place where an unexpected pregnancy wouldn't be the end of the world to you.
Couldn't agree more with this post. It was not even a moment's worth of discussion for my husband and me. We knew we were done at two and I simply said "I've taken all the responsibility for our entire relationship to ensure we either do or don't have kids, now it's your turn." And, I had a C-Section for my second child, so it would have been that much easier for me to have a tubal ligation. My husband NEVER gave it a second thought and there have been no ill side effects ;) I would also have to agree that there's been something very liberating about being able to say "we're done with having kids" and being able to move on in with other parts of our lives.
My husband had all kinds of complications too. Not fun.
Phdinparenting's partner here. I just wanted to add for anyone considering a vasectomy that the no-needle anesthetic is absolutely painless and freezes you within 5 seconds, unlike the needle anesthetic. You feel absolutely nothing during the 10 min procedure. In sum, I had no pain whatsoever at any point, just a little pulling sensation for a few days. Now for my dentist appointment on Monday, that will be an entirely different story ...
I used an IUD (for various reasons) from 19 until we decided to have a child when I was 40. One benefit of age turns out to be that after the arrival of the small person I had my very last IUD put in -- while it's effectiveness declines after 5 years, so will my fertility, such that I won't actually need a new one.
There is a failure rate for everything of course, including vasectomies and tubal ligations. For us the solution where no one had to get surgery was best. But of course we were together for 20 years without accident using the IUD, so perhaps that gives us more confidence than others.
Alex-I've also seen research indicating that the birth control INCREASES the risks of some kinds of cancer! It's definitely inconclusive enough that that's not an effective argument for the pill, in my opinion. But I'm opposed to birth control period, so I know I'm biased. I guess I just don't get how people could think that having a baby is such a horrible terrible fate that taking pills or having surgery to stop your body from functioning as it should is actually a better idea than risking getting pregnant!
As far as the period thing goes, I do think it's interesting that following God's natural plan for our fertility-getting pregnant several times and nursing the resulting babies for a couple years each-would supress our periods, resulting in the cancer protective effect without any of the side effects of the Pill or other hormone-altering birth control methods.
Just want to point out that not all hormones are created equal. I don't know as much in detail about the hormones involved in menstruation vs the progesterone and estrogen used in hormonal birth control... but I know that there is a lot of research showing that, for example, a woman's body reacts very differently to the natural form of oxytocin produced by her own body, vs Pitocin (the synthetic form often used in labor). There are many benefits from natural oxytocin that are not produced by the synthetic kind. I would not be surprised if our bodies also reacted differently to our own naturally-made estrogen vs synthetic estrogen.
There are birth control pills that let you limit the number of periods you have, or even eliminate them completely (Mirena, the hormone-based IUD, often causes women to have very light or no period at all). That I'm aware of, there isn't enough research to conclusively say whether more or fewer periods are beneficial/harmful to women.
That's horrible!! Sorry you had to go through that. =( I used a Mirena IUD between my 2 kids, and when I went to get it taken out (after only 1 year, less than is usually recommended) I had no issue whatsoever getting it taken it out.
I had a tubal. It was done with my third c-section. I certainly wouldn't have had extra surgery to get it done - hubs would've had the V - but as they were already in there, it seemed logical.
When was that? The current copper IUD on the market is Paraguard, was it that IUD or a different brand? That's the one I'm using now so definitely want to look into this...
I'm honestly not sure of the brand, it was 4--5 years ago, so it may have been a different brand.
I'm sure if you double up around the middle of the month, you'll be fine!
Not to mention that monthly periods are a way to eliminate excess iron. Women's heart disease risk goes up after menopause and no senior vitamin supplement contains iron.
Maman A Droit--It's a very personal decision. In our case, I suffered severe complications after the birth of my second. It would be very very bad for me to get pregnant again, but I'd still like to have a normal married life with my husband. To each her own.