Depo-Provera shot

Rachael - posted on 02/23/2010

used them 8 years ago and had severe migraines daily, no weight gain, just migraines daily until it wore off. rejected pills too finally settled for tying tubes. best decision yet

Natalie - posted on 02/23/2010

I didn't gain any weight on it but the lack of sex drive was ridiculous. I didn't want to be touched at all for 8 months and i only had 1 shot. Im now on the pill and love it.

Amy - posted on 02/23/2010

I took it 10 years ago - one time only. I immediately broke out in a rash all around my midsection (stomach and back) and then had to get shots to fight the allergic reaction. I've never had an allergic reaction to anything in my life! And, like others posted here, I became a crazy woman, it was awful. And then there was weight gain. Nothing like being newly married, crazy, and gaining weight. I am lucky we are still married!

Sherell - posted on 02/23/2010

I was on Depo for almost 6 years and i didn't get no period but I did gain some weight and the side effect I got when I stopped getting it was being placed on Iron because my periods would be so heavy!

Teri-Lyn - posted on 02/23/2010

i gained a lot of weight so im not a big fan

Heather - posted on 02/23/2010

im on depo, and about to get off of it, just because i have been on it for 3 years. i LOVE the no periods. I HATE the weight gain and the fact that i NEVER want to have sex, and when i do if i dont use a lubricant, it HURTS! i dont really get the mood swings, except for right around the time i am about to get another one. they say that if you really watch what you eat and exercise daily you wont gain that much weight..

Nicole - posted on 02/23/2010

I got it in June 09 and within 3 weeks I had gained back all 20 pounds of the baby weight that I had lost. I also bleed more than 3 weeks of the following 3 months. It caused extreme hair loss and huge appetite. I WILL NEVER GET IT AGAIN.

Erin - posted on 02/23/2010

i have had it and i gained alot of water weight but the other thing is the effects it had on my moods it took almost a year to set in but it messed my hormones bad and i was having mood swings like crazy then i jsut started bleeding very heavy i now am using the iud and i love it i would recomend that to you

Jade - posted on 02/23/2010

Not a fan, i fell pregnant on it...i went crazy a few weeks after i had the shot. Almost ended my relationship with my fiance because i was that out of control...i only had it 3 times and i fell pregnant half way through my 3rd shot. I had them all on time so i was always covered. My doctor said i must have just got a bad batch. So i will never have that again. Everyone is different, you might not react to it and hopefully you wont fall pregnant on it. It is very rare though. I should have kept using condoms and i didn't.

Amy - posted on 02/23/2010

Yes Essure is permanent. I'm done having kids. If your not sure or want more then its not for you but I love the fact that I don't have to worry about this anymore and I didn't have to have surgery.

Lisa - posted on 02/23/2010

Has anyone have any problems with loss of sex drive on mirena?

Shelita - posted on 02/23/2010

I was depo for a year. I HATED it, i would not recommend that form of birth control to anyone. I was depressed the whole time while on it, gained weight, thinning of the hair, head aches. To many side effects with depo........

Teresa - posted on 02/23/2010

i used the drug for 1.5 yrs. I loved that it took my periods away and it worked great as a birthcontro., however the first month i was on it i was very moody!! (bitchy i guess is the term) i gained wt off of it and when i did go off to try and get pregnant, the drug stayed in my system for 2yrs making it impossible to conceive. There are other side effects re this drug. Check with your public health nurse or online. There are health condition that it could lead to as well. Have you looked into a IUD?? There are great ones out there that don't give you side effects and yet give you the protection you need. Get informed before you choose.

Serena - posted on 02/23/2010

I loved the shot, the first time around. I was 18 and stayed on it till I was 21 or so. It took awhile for my periods to go away (about 6 months or so...spotting mostly, annoying but nothing major) but after that it was smooth sailing. The only thing was I broke out (acne) pretty badly around my chin area which is directly related to the shot, but thats what foundation was for. I got off of it when medical ran out, had a baby and then tried the shot again. The dr said it was best for breast feeding because it didn't really mess with my milk supply like some other bc methods did. I tried got my period for 7 months straight and gave up. All of a sudden I was too fertile for the pill (since I have severe reactions to the pill, i have to use a small dose and it wasn't enough).
Everyone is different and their bodies will react differently and the circumstances around each person's experience is different. I thought it was the most convenient especially because my drs office would call and remind me of my appt, so I never really had to remember anything. But another method that you might like, that I absolutely loved and got me right on track with my cycle was the nuvaring. You insert it once a month, good for three weeks and then you get your cycle. I became so regular it was amazing. The only negative is it can slip out (usually due to sex or even a tampon) and if you don't reinsert within 3 hours, you will get your period within a week and need a new ring. But if you are trying to regulate yourself its great for that too. Good luck

Tracy - posted on 02/23/2010

After baby #2 I can't take pills anymore. For some reason my body just flat rejects them. Even the lowest dose ones. Although I was on Ortho-tricyclene when I got pregnant with #2 (SURPRISE!) After much reasearch, I went with Mirena. Until I can afford to tie the tubes, since my ob refused (health concerns).

Tabitha - posted on 02/23/2010

The one down fall is it will take along time ot get pregnant after the depo. Due to the amounts of hormones being put in your body. It took my husband and i 3 months of consistant sex every day to get pregnant and that was after being off it for 1 yr and a half almost 2 years. To each their own in these matters PLEASE dont let people scare you in there personal experience. If I were you I would google it and see the full list of syptoms and side affects see if it is best benefitial to you.

Tabitha - posted on 02/23/2010

Becki OH MY I am sooo GLAD I read your post. My sex drive has serverly gone down as well as my self esteem the whole 9. I didnt know or even relate the 2 but am glad now. IS there anything i can do to enhance it?? Please message me personally if you do not mind. Thank you .

Teresa - posted on 02/23/2010

Not exactly. My periods didn't start til I was done w/ the pill and on no birth control. It might be worth a shot to take the pill for a couple of months and then go off birth control completely though. Maybe it jumpstarted them that way.....

Tabitha - posted on 02/23/2010

I have been on it for a total of 6 years. IT IS AMAZING and has been my life saver. You get it every few months 2-3 and it doesnt hurt. I dont and have not noticed side affects. I am a very thick person in general with large breast and bad eating habits so that could be why. I would sooo recomend it to you. You dont have to remember to change a path or take a pill you stick it and forget it. :)

Dani - posted on 02/23/2010

hi teresa did you think taking the pill helped your periods come back then, i desperately want to try everything i can to get them back to start trying for baby no 2... any tips?

Teresa - posted on 02/23/2010

My advice... if you ever want to have kids again in the future... DON'T do it!!

I can only speak from my personal experience, but IMO that shot is evil!

Brief version of my story.... I was on the pill. Went off it to try and get pregnant. Got pregnant w/ twins first month of trying. After twins were born didn't want to risk another pregnancy right away. Went on the shot. Loved it at the time. No period (other than one or two days of light spotting total) the whole time. Went off the shot October 2004 and went back to the pill. Still no period. Went off the pill May 2005. Started periods 2 weeks later. Cycles ranged from 24-33 days (were right around 28 prior to any birth control and on pill). Got pregnant Dec 2005. Lost baby January 2006. Got pregnant November 2006. Lost baby January 2007. Got pregnant summer 2007. Finally had my son March 2008.

Maybe there are other factors contributing to my troubles, but I blame depo 100%

Dani - posted on 02/23/2010

DONT HAVE IT!! i had one shot in august 09 and havnt had a period since,i had the worst stomach cramps while on it and was a nasty cow to be quite honest. Now that i want to start trying to have another baby i have been researching why my period havnt come back and i have heard such horror stories of it taken women years for their periods to come back, it also hightens the risk of ovarians cysts aparently, seriously my advice would be to steer well clear of it!!!!

Iridescent - posted on 02/23/2010

Amy, you do realize Essure is permanent and you can never have children of your own once you've had it? It is a good option for some people, but due to being non-reversible it's certainly not for everyone.

Becki - posted on 02/23/2010

i had a rather good experience with the depo shot. i was on it for 5 years and i loved it! i never got my period, occasional spotting. the only side effect i had was a low sex drive. i didn't notice that until i got off of it. my only bad experience was after i got off we decided to have one more child. it took a miscarriage and two years but we did eventually succeed in that area. really weigh all your options and talk it over with your doctor. good luck on your tough choice :)

Amy - posted on 02/23/2010

I was on it before my wedding and I gained 15 pounds had to have my dress realtered which made me depressed and then when I went off of it I hemmoraged for two months. Which the doctors kept telling me was normal. Also the injection site was sore for four days. I had the Essure procedure done in september and I'm loving it. No more birth control!!!

Iridescent - posted on 02/23/2010

Mirena is an IUD.
http://www.mirena-us.com/
It's a really good option for some people. Just be aware of the side effects before going on it.

Summer - posted on 02/23/2010

What is Mirena?

Alison - posted on 02/23/2010

I used it for about 9 months. I did not have the side effects that everyone else is talking about. I found it super convenient and it was effective for me as well. I discontinued it because I lost my libido. Now I'm on Mirena and lovin' it!!!

Kristin - posted on 02/23/2010

I loved it personally. Had no side effects at all. Loved not having my period for years. The only issue I had was when I was ready to have another child, I had to get put on birth control to get my body to cycle again. After my second child, I went with the IUD because it lasts 5 years and I don't have to get a shot every 3 months. Also, since I don't plan on having anymore but didn't want anything permanent just in case I changed my mind. Good luck!

Iridescent - posted on 02/23/2010

I got pregnant while on it (I had been on it almost a year, got pregnant a month after my last shot, so should have been safe for 2 more months). It also caused me severe abdominal pain, which is a continuing issue (both with ovulation and with my period). I was told it's directly due to the shot. My periods did not stop but they were lighter while on it. I would never recommend it.

Summer - posted on 02/23/2010

Yeah, I was on it YEARS ago too, and I think it made me a tad crazy now that I think about it!! I was on loestrigen and dr put me on yaz three weeks ago and I have been bleeding for three weeks. Not fun! I am scared of weight gain, as I am trying so hard to loose my baby weight. Yaz is low estrigen and supposed to help with blemishes, and give shorter periods, but that has not worked out too well for me so far! lol

Susannah - posted on 02/23/2010

I liked it at first. Very convienient. But then I started passing very large blood clots every few days and my doctor was afraid I was losing too much blood, so she took me off of it. I'd say try it and see how you like it. It's different for everyone, and if I didn't have problems, I'd still be on it.

Tracy - posted on 02/23/2010

I was on it years ago. I loved not having a period but once every 3 months, but it usually lasted 2 weeks. And right after my shot I turned into a crazy woman. PMS on steriods and meth, seriously it was that bad. And, like Summer, I gained weight. Now I have the Mirena and LOVE it.

Summer - posted on 02/23/2010

I was not a fan! It is very convient, but I gained weight and when I stopped I hemriged. (sp)