Can the Mirena IUD cause early menopause?

[jbloomfield]

I've read dozens of online testimonials from women claiming that the Mirena IUD sent them into premature menopause. I can't find any scientific research supporting this though. Anybody have any thoughts? Is this even possible?

I am very worried because I had mine removed almost three months ago, and still no period. I have also been breastfeeding for twelve months and I hope that is the reason. But I've had the occasional hot flash, terrible mood swings and thinning/graying hair. I'm only 30. Any advice?

[priya_ma]

You are not the only one. I was emotional mess when I had Mirena. My gynac told me its probably because other stresses. But I could cry at drop of a hat. I had Mirena for 4 yrs and looking back now, it seems everything I was going through was perimenopausal. I got off Mirena in May 2013 and around august 2013 had a sudden weight gain around abdomen and thighs. Got my periods back but they were lighter than what I used to have. All through 2014/15, I have had huge hair loss, sudden grayness in hair, skin and voice have changed. Dr says I am perimenopausal at 40. My mom started her around 50 and reached menopause by 52/53 like most other women in our family.
I am not sure how to get back to normal or what to do? I should have trusted my instincts and gotten rid of it earlier. I feel stupid for trusting the dr and not my own body when she told me it was not mirena, but something else going on with my life.
I read/research everything when it comes to kids health or any other things, since there is lot of information available online as compared to 10/15 yrs ago, but why did I not do this 5/6 yrs ago?
In last 2 yrs I have aged a lot, my friends, everyone looks the same. I look and feel 10 yrs older. My pcp has asked me to work out  more and am going to start with an 60/90 mins a day and see if it helps. Yoga seems to help with things related to pituitary gland issues, so will be trying that out.
Anyone out here, who can advice how to deal with this thing?

[LilyMila]

If you asked me about Mirena last year, I would have told you that it is awesome.  I am 37 and have two kids.  I had Mirena inserted in 2013 because husband and I decided that we don't want more kids.  I stopped having periods on Mirena and experienced no unpleasant side effects until September 2015.  I started to experience menopause symptoms such as extreme fatigue and hot flashes.  I had two tests to  measure estrogen and FSH and they both confirmed that I have the hormone level of a menopausal women.  Since I was perfectly fine before Mirena (regular period, very mild PMS, no infertility or any other female problems), I became suspicious of Mirena.  Maybe I was the small percentage of the population who have adverse effect on Mirena.  I had it taken out in October 2015.  I was planning to go on hormone replacement therapy until my period started in Jan 2016.  I even had an ultrasound to see if I have any kind of growth on my ovaries causing abnormal estrogen production and everything came back normal.  We will see if my body will cycle normally from now on.    

I can't find any papers from Pubmed regarding progestin (active ingredient of Mirena) causes early menopause.  There was one obscure paper done on animals regarding progesterone receptors downregulating estrogen, but I can't seem to find it again.  I do wonder if some of the rare side effects were deemed statistically insignificant during the research phase of Mirena.  Regardless if you think my experience was proof or anecdotal evidence, having irregular period before the normal menopause age is a sign of trouble.  Mirena stopped my period all together for two years, so I couldn't monitor my body until the symptoms became too obvious.

[Rosestlouis]

I am the same age has u and experienced the same problems.  I haven't have a period since I removed mine 2 years ago and now I am premenopausal.  I just started the hormone pills.

[mom2two73]

I also had Mirena put in right after I had my second child at 37 and within a year, had at least 35 hot flashes a day and a lot of anxiety.  After being told by my doctor that it couldn't be the Mirena, I insisted on having it taken out and within a month, the hot flashes went away but my FSH levels were tested at 70 which is high into the range of menopause. It's 4 years later and I now have to consider hormone replacement treatment.  Do not go on Mirena - I am completely convinced this was the reason why I am in menopuase at such an early age.  There is no history of early menopause in my family either.

[Soccermom76]

I am convinced mine began to trigger peri menopause. I experienced vaginal dryness, loss of desire, exceptional fatigue and hot flashes, weight gain at my waist alone- without changes in my eating habits.
Did anyone else have other symptoms like increased sensitivity to minimal sun exposure, cystic acne, acne in places they never had it before, PMDD diagnosis, sensitivity or joint pain with cold temperatures?
Also if you have had it removed have any of these symptoms persisted?
I would be interested in talking with an attorney if anyone is aware of one dealing with these issues as opposed to migration of the IUD. I was told  by my physician and the medical literature that it was safe with few to no side effects when I elected to use it in 2006/7.

[priya_ma]

In my case, the perimenopausal symptoms persist. I had it for 4 yrs. Although, I have to say I have less/minimal acne now than when I was on mirena.  I rarely had acne as teenager, a pimple once in a while.

[priya_ma]

Right, did not find any existing lawsuits for the issues we are facing. The ones that exist are for migration of IUD and other conditions. Adding these links here, so that we can see the other problems caused by mirena.
https://www.schmidtlaw.com/mirena-lawsuit/
http://www.drugwatch.com/mirena/lawsuit/

[priya_ma]

http://www.aboutlawsuits.com/mirena-iud-13909/

[TiffanyG76]

I stumbled upon this and it sounds like me!! I am 42 years old, had Mirena for 10 years and am told that I am post menopausal. I am suffering tremendously from this. Also was diagnosed with afib which is very puzzling to my doctors. Because of this I cannot take hormone replacement therapy to help alleviate many of these issues. I am VERY INTERESTED in joining forces with this group to investigate further!

[KGregory620]

I am considering having my Mirena removed.  Do you regret having yours removed?  I have been having issues for 6 months but I'm scared they'll get worse if I take out the Mirena.

[priya_ma]

I regret not taking it out sooner. Anytime I complained to my Dr, she made me feel its me and not Mirena. Trust your body. There are other contraceptives, go for the ones that are not hormone based.

[E1970]

I agree, I too only regret not going with my gut instinct and having it removed sooner than I did. Trust your body and don't let a Dr. shame you into keeping it in, or tell you to give it a chance.

[vlm310]

I got the Mirena IUD back in May for a few reasons, however, as soon as I walked out of the doctor's office and got on public transportation to go home - I passed out and came to with people standing over me and telling me that an ambulance was on it's way.  Fast forward to now - I have hot flashes daily, but that's not the worse part - I literally have night sweats EVERY nights & so I sat here at my desk and tried to pen point when my life physically turned for the worse & I realized it was after I got the IUD inserted.  I decided to google hot flashes and night sweats and all the answers are right here... going to call my OBGYN to have it removed as soon as possible... Thanks Ladies for sharing your stories.

[LilyMila]

How do you feel now?  An update would be nice.