Menopause due to Mirena

[veryearlymenopause]

I have a long hard story about my experience with the Mirena IUD.  I had my Son March of 2006.  He was a true blessing as he helped me mentally, emotionally, and physically.  I was very concerned about birth control after I had my son because I did not want to get pregnant any time soon.   I did not at all have any post partum issues it actually seemed that my hormones were even for the first time in my life.  My doctor suggested that I have Mirena inserted as it was good for 5 years and I wouldn't have to worry about all of the typical problems that birth control brings.  I wanted to do a lot of research because this was going to be a new part of my body and I was nervous, so I started out just taking the pill until I read all of the information possible.  In February 2007, I had Mirena inserted.  I had my period solid and heavy for 3 months, then did not get it at all.  In mid June, I noticed that I was feeling a bit down but blew it off thinking that I was just stressed.  All of a sudden I started to feel exhausted, wanted to sleep all of the time, I started getting severe hot flashes and night sweats, these funny brain tremors(can't even describe how bad that feeling is), losing my hair, mood swings, and absolutely no sex drive(my poor husband, he has been wonderful).  I went to my regular doctor who tested me for all sorts of things the big one being Thyroid, but everything came back normal.  Sleeping was non existant with the night sweats which made the mood that much worse.  I finally went to my OB in the beginning of November who did some tests on me and said that I was experiencing menopause.  I'm 25 and my son is only 1 1/2.  No freakin way!  He put me on Hormones (which by the way can cause every cancer in the book) and said that I will feel better within a day, but did not want to take Mirena out.  I said ok and went on my way.  I talked to many people for advice who told me to get it taken out right away and go off of the hormones.  I did that 2 days later, my OB asked no questions and I stopped taking the hormones.  I have noticed no change in how I feel, I still get hot flashes and night sweats, am still tired all of the time, losing hair, my skin is very dry and thin, I could go on forever it is only getting worse by the day.  I am strongly convinced that having Mirena in has caused the Menopause, I have had it out since the middle of November and the symptoms have gotten worse.  So my question is, has anyone or is anyone going through the same thing and does anyone know of a class action lawsuit against the makers of Mirena as there was nothing in their information that said this was going to happen.  I appreciate any feedback to ease the stress on me and my family and hopefully get some of a normal feeling back.

Thank you.

[girasole9]

Ladies I just wanted to let you know that I just got off the phone with BAYER regarding the Mirena. To file a complaint it is advised that you call this number (toll-free) 1-888-84-BAYER (1-888-842-2937) for the Adverse Department. Please, please call to file a complaint so that they have to send it to the FDA and we can get this ball rolling for a recall since they never listed the horrible side effects that we have had to endure.Make sure you keep documentations of what has happened to you and take pictures as well just incase a lawyers office takes on this case.

My symptoms were (are) dizzy
headaches
excessive bloating
excessive weight gain
no response to exercise
hair loss
insomnia
acne
anxiety
extreme irritability
joint pain
itchiness
loss of libido
estrogen dominance

[Nicki666]

Hi, Just want to add my story to this subject.  I had my Daughter in 2001 & had an IUD fitted shortly after which caused numerous infections and so I had it removed 6 months later, my Gyno in Greece recommended the Mirena and I had it fitted in 2002. I had all the nightmare symptoms in the beginning, painful breasts, abdominal pains, headaches, mood swings, weight gain, loss of libido etc, but I stuck with it and eventually it all calmed down, although my libido has never returned.  My periods began to be erratic and eventually in 2005 they stopped altogether, I was told this was OK, nothing to worry about and I left the Mirena the full 5 years, having it removed in September 2007.  The new Gyno I went to for removal was horrified that I had it, gave me a lecture on how bad it is to stop your periods like this and told me that here in Greece they have stopped using it since 2004. After an examination he told me there were no eggs in the ovaries, but that I would have a bleed because of the removal and then expect a period after a month.  I went away, had my period a month later, another 1 after about 3 months and my last one in June. I have just been back to him, because I have been feeling so tired, experiencing low abdominal pains and a general feeling of unwell.  The examination revealed again no eggs and the blood tests show that at 42 I am going into menopause.  My Thyroid was also checked, no problems there. My feeling is that the Mirena is responsible for this early menopause, my Mother & Grandmother were both close to 50 when they started and I feel devastated that I will not be able to have another child that my Husband & I had talked about.  I feel I am too young, so I can only imagine what it must be like at only 25.  I hope they recall it and stop all of this suffering, I wish I had never heard of it.

[kimmie08]

I became pregnant in 2002 at the age of 34. After my son was born in 03, I wanted to be on a safe and effective type of birth control. I am a smoker, and could not use the pill, and was not sure if I was going to have anymore children or not, so tubal ligation was not an option for me. My gyno suggested the IUC. It was placed in 5-2005, and my nightmare began. I started experiencing dizziness, feelings of faintness, blurry vision, anxiety, no period, fatigue, cramping, breast nodules, no sex drive, facial hair growth, weight gain, and numerous other side effects. The one that was the most debilitating was the panic and anxiety. I had every test done to mankind to find the reason, and everything came back negative. I can't count the time, and money we have spent trying to pinpoint a cause, and after three years of struggling, I finally had the thing removed two weeks ago. I don't know if it was what was causing my problems, but through the process of elimination, I totally believe it was. If there is a lawsuit on this thing with a recall, I would sure like to know about it, because it significantly impaired my life for the three and a half years I had it.

[boxergirl118]

I am a 39 year old mother of two healthy children, 16 and 11. After the birth of my eldest, I wanted to remain on birth control, but was unable to take the pill. That was when I had my first IUD put in. After the birth of my second daughter, my OBGYN suggested the Mirena. I have had it in now and have had no bad experiences with it.  Although my periods did stop altogether, I really was not sure if it was because of the IUD. I am an amateur boxer and am still training as if I was going to compete and due to my training routine, I was always sure it was due to low body fat. About six months ago, I started feeling very tired and yet could not sleep at night. I would go from being very cold to being very hot. I have also had more frequent headaches and had had low energy.  After going to the doctor on numerous occasions, I finally had the proper blood work done and when it returned, he told me that I was experiencing menopause!!!  Did I mention that I am only 39????  This is insane!!  Now looking back, my mood swings were quiet extreme. I don't know if my mirena could be the cause of this, but it seems funny after reading all of your comments. I wish all of you the best and hope that something can be done!!!

[39yearold]

I am a 39 year old mother of two teenaged daughters.  I had my original Mirena inserted in July, 2002 due to extreme bleeding for many months.  I would bleed for about 24 days out of every month and felt horrible.  As I was only 32 years old at the time, my GYN did not want to perform a hysterectomy and suggested the Mirena.  I bled for a couple of months after insertion, but shortly thereafter I had no bleeding and have had no period ever since.  This is the side effect that is fantastic!  

Shortly after having the Mirena inserted, my marriage fell apart and I was feeling very depressed, EXTREMELY EXHAUSTED and overall "crappy".  I assumed that this was all due to my life circumstances.  I gained significant weight in my mid-section, I had (and still have) constant headaches, I am always still very very tired, am dizzy, fuzzy-minded, blurred vision, achey (achy), etc. etc. etc.  I never once thought about the Mirena being the cause of any of these symptoms.

My doctor has checked my bloodwork numerous time to ensure my iron levels, etc. were okay as well as my thyroid - every time the results were normal so I thought it must all be in my head and all be due to me being somewhat depressed, etc. due to my marital breakdown.

I had my 2nd Mirena put in in December, 2009 as the first one was in for the full 5 years.   It was a little painful getting it taken out and the new one put in, but for me the pain was worth it to continue to be period-free for another 5 years!

Recently I have been experiencing hot flashes and night sweats so I asked my doctor if I could be going through menopause. She ordered bloodwork to check my hormones and informed me last week that yes, in fact I am quite far into menopause!!! (remember, age 39)!  Because I have not had a period in almost 6 years, I did have the early warning signs of menopause such as missed or irregular periods.  

I wondered why I would be going through it so early so googled "Mirena and early menopause" which brought me to this site.  When I started reading all the side effects, I wondered if it was maybe the Mirena that cause a lot my problems over the years and it wasn't in fact the disolving of my marriage and change in life circumstances.

I now have to decide what to do.  My doctor stated that I should (because of my young age) go on Hormone Replacement for quality of life.  (I am close to my decision and believe that HRT is beneficial for me) - hopefully this will help with the terrible symptoms of menopause I have been having.  

I am wondering if having the Mirena inserted had any part in accellerating my body into menopause.   I am thinking of having it removed before starting HRT because even though the doctor told me that there is a very low hormone dosage in the Mirena, I don't want to over-do it with hormones as that could cause me even more problems.  It would be amazing if I had it removed that I would feel the way I used to feel back 6 years ago (minus the husband)

FYI, before I had the Mirena inserted the first time I read and re-read the pamphlet which contained all the possible side effects, etc.  But, as I stated above, my life changed dramatically very shortly after insertion so it never occurred to me that some of my problems may be related to the Mirena.

If this device does accelerate a woman's body into menopause, this should be well publicized as it would be tragic for young women who use this as a form of contraception early in their life to only find out later that they are no longer able to conceive due to their body going though "the change".

[mimopena]

I had Mirena inserted in May 2008, I was 35 at the time. Shortly after I started getting hot flashes, severe joint pain, anxiety and panic attacks and problems sleeping. I never thought it was due to the Mirena because my doctor told me the hormones in it were going to work "locally" in the uterus and would not go to the rest of the body. After several blood tests and two ultrasounds everything came out normal. Doctors thought it might be depression and started me on antidepressants. But the symtopms continued and I started to look back to what I did differently after I started feeling ill. The only thing was the Mirena. I did some research on the internet and found out many people had problems with it. I went to the doctor and he told me that he had placed at least 300 of them and nobody had complaints. I told him that maybe I was the only one, but I wanted it out. I had it removed on October of the same year I had it placed, only 5 months later. The symptoms continued and started having shorter periods. I went to a different OBGYN and had a vaginal ultrasound done and he said my ovaries looked very small. He ordered blood tests to check my hormones. And, guess what? it was menopause. I'm only 35 and have no family history of premature menopause. I'm on HRT and started feeling better immediately. No hot flashes, no joint pain and sleeping through the night. Thank God I already had the children I wanted to have. I'm sure the Mirena made me go through early menopause. Now I have to take HRT risking cancer problems. I also have to take Calcium supplements for osteoporosis. It's really sad.

[holliethompson1987]

I am 22 years old and have a 2 year old daughter and a 7 1/2 month old son. My husband and I were planning to have one more baby, just not right now, in a few years. I got the mirena in March of 2009 because my doctor said it would be great for me since I am so young and do want more children later. So after reading the information she gave me at least 20 times my husband and I chose to go this route with birth control. WELL....this was a big mistake! I have absolutely no sex drive, I have hot flashes, night sweats, my hair is falling out by the hand full, my husband and I argue almost constantly, I can't sleep even though I am exhausted....I could go on forever but it seems like I am not alone so I'm sure everyone knows the list of complaints!
These symptoms have been going on since about a week after I got the IUD put in. So this is about 6 months of suffering through this and I went looking for anyone else having the same problems.
I am horrified after reading ALL the women going into early menopause because of the Mirena....I am only 22 and it seems like this is possibly what is wrong with me right now. They need to recall this thing so nobody else has to go through this nightmare. I think I better get to my doctor, get it removed, and get everything checked out.
Thank you all for sharing, it helps to know I'm not alone.
I have to give my husband credit, he has put up with so much from me in the past few months. I have said some horrible things to him and kept him awake all night because I couldn't sleep, froze him because I have to have a fan on me and the air conditioning turned up way high to keep myself cooled off at night.
Hopefully I can get it removed and return to something close to normal for the sake of my family.

[miraclen4]

im 30 and been told i am in menopause, and i am in total aww i had my tube tied 3 years ago and then in may of 2006 had mirena put in due to heavy periods and it did nothing to lessen them, so in jan of 2009 it was taken out since it was in there for no reason. Well it is now oct of 2009 and still I have had no period and a few weeks ago my doc did some test etc. and is saying im in menopause, I am really really mad, and if he looks back I was having my normal heavy periods I've always have had since age 12 unless for a given reason till this mirena was removed and wow removing that put me into menopause, there is really something wrong here, please is there anyone that can help me....email me ***@****, if you have any info on this or a story of a kind. I though you had to be period free for a yr to determine menopause and mine hasnt been a year yet.

[harleygirl0143]

I am 45 beginning menopause and I smoke. I also have endometriosis which can be very painful. My dr. today metioned mirena for the endometriosis.Estrogen is out of the question because I smoke. After reading all of your horror stories I think I will wait until the end of menopause to see if the endometriosis syptoms (symptoms) subside.

[Dazon50]

I am glad I found this thread...didn't have a clue about mirena & menopause.  Mine was inserted in Oct. 2007 due to a blood clot after a car accident Aug. 31, 07 and having been on the pill.  They told me stop taking the pill & suggested the Mirena.  I have it in for 5 yrs., so still have nearly 3 to go.

My cycles are not completely gone, but are much lighter than they used to be.  I was more afraid of it piercing the womb or something.  I have some of the symptoms on the list but never associated them with the IUD.  Thanks for posting this information.

[JillianJ]

I am in tears reading this. I too am in menopause after having the IUD placed for irregular bleeding.
I have always had clockwork periods and then I started bleeding longer than I should. While it was no fun I could've managed it, but I would also sometimes go without a period for a couple of months. I believe that we all thought these issues were related to fibroids and my history of ovarian cysts. They told me that not having my period was dangerous as the build up of endometrium can actually lead to cancer. It seemed like a no-brainer, so I had the IUD placed. I never wanted it, but was told that I needed it!
Within a few months I had no bleeding at all, and have been virtually without a period for nearly the 5 yrs I have had my IUD. It was almost immediate that I no longer had a sex drive, I have been tired for years, bloated ( I even wondered if I had a tumor), I have crazy anxiety that hits in the middle of the night and is followed by hot flashes. I can be very moody!
My Dr. finally tested me after about 6 months and told me I was in early menopause. I was 39. I have not done much about this because I figured he was wrong. The lab test were borderline and that has allowed me to live in denial.
I should have researched sooner, and maybe I would be better off. This is not fair. I am upset and angry, I am too young and did not want to go through menopause at the age of 40! I wasn't sure that I was done having babies, otherwise we would've probably just taken my last ovary out.
I would like to be kept aware of any complaints/ class actions that are filed.
Thank you.
PS just made an appt to get the thing removed!

[skg808]

Thank you so much for all your stories, thank goodness I am not alone. After having my daughter in 1997 I started using Depo as the form of my birth control. I had to stop using it after 3 years because I had debilitating headaches and migraines. After the birth of my daughter in 2000 I started using Mirena.  I started having all these strange symptoms...headaches, hair loss, fatigue, irregular heart beats, night sweats, tenderness.  I thought that since I just had my daughter maybe some of the symptoms still lingured. It has been 9 years and I am still having these symptoms, but now they are even worse. Currently this is what is happening:

headaches/migraines
fatigue
dizzy/lightheaded (sometimes)
blurred vision (sometimes)
night sweats
insomnia
yeast infections
irregular heartbeats (which I was told by the doctor to just live with)
shortness of breath
depression

I am 33 years old and I am not suppose to feel like this. Thanks to all the stories now I can tell my doctor to test me for menopause to see if that is what's going on.

Thank you!