http://ohmygeisha.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] ohmygeisha.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] vaginapagina2010-02-27 12:45 am

mirena iud expelling?

x-posted to iud divas

so, I have a Mirena and I've had it since the summer. July i think. I think it's expelling. And I'm not sure if I need to go to the hospital for it? Like, it's cramping really badly. For about 2 weeks I've been having spotting, one day I randomly thought my period was finally coming and so I put a tampon in because there was a lot of blood, and then, it stopped too quickly. Now I just checked to see if I needed to put another tampon in because I was cramping, and I could feel the strings were sticking out, and I've never been able to feel them ever before. Is this something I should assume is expelling? and what's the proper medical care for it?

fyi-i'm np

[identity profile] eunicemcgee.livejournal.com 2010-03-01 03:38 am (UTC)(link)
If you're currently using the mirena as contraception, I'd use some sort of back-up method until you can get it checked out. When you say the strings are "sticking out," do you mean sticking out of your vagina? Or that for the first time, you can feel them sticking out of your cervix? If you're relatively aware of your cervix position as your cycle changes, and your strings are significantly (2-3 inches) longer than they normally are, even if you can't feel the plastic tip of the IUD, it's potentially a sign of a partial expulsion. If you are expelling, proper medical care involves having a HCP remove the device.

[identity profile] eunicemcgee.livejournal.com 2010-03-01 04:18 am (UTC)(link)
Do you touch your cervix frequently and you know you've never had strings extending past your cervix, or was it just coincidence that you touched near your cervix and felt them? It's really common for strings to be lower when you're menstruating; if you're not familiar with where your strings normally are for any given point in your cycle, this may be normal for you.