I have spent the last 2 days reading through every post on this forum and while I am relieved to have validation that my IUD is causing my problems, I am very angry and sad at how much time I have lost by not having any of my doctors address this issue. I have had my Mirena for 23 months - placed 6 weeks postpartum. Like most, I too experienced the usual breakthrough and almost consistent bleeding/spotting for the first 6 months. Luckily, I didn't have significant cramping, headaches, or weight gain. What I have experienced is an overwhelming exhaustion that has not improved but gradually worsened.

Around 4 months PP I realized that something was off in my body. I did not have any energy, didn’t feel like myself, super emotional and no matter what I would try I could not gain motivation to accomplish the task of maintaining my house. I was struggling with a feeling of fogginess and cloudy thinking. For example, I could be in a conversation and not be able to complete my sentence for lack of being able to recall simple words like wall, door, etc. Months went by where I would point at objects to help others understand what I was trying to say. I experienced hair loss, increase in breakouts, dry and splotching skin. My fear was that I might have thyroid problems, PPD, or actual depression.

I addressed this first with my GP who passed it off to new baby, breastfeeding, and not sleeping through the night. 2 months later the symptoms were still not any better so I returned to the DR. At that time they ran blood work to rule out thyroid issues, diabetes and any other illness. All labs were clear. So once again everything was passed of to the fact I was still breastfeeding and my baby still not sleeping though the night.

During the first year I would have 1-2 good days in a week where I felt energized and I would be fooled into thinking that I was on my way back to the old me. I could accomplish things, rationalize clearly and deal with life. The rest of the week though would slowly slip back into a drained, over emotional foggy state. At 15 months into having my IUD in place, my days of productive were dwindling further and further apart.

I returned to my GP and OBGYN and listed all of my symptoms (overwhelmed, always tired, extremely emotional, cloudy thinking, loss of productivity and overall feeling of not being happy with myself). I still enjoyed sex (thank god I did not get that side effect), loved my husband, enjoyed my kids, liked going out but just didn’t have the energy to stay out long. I begged for something to help because by this point my drastic changes were hurting my parenting and my relationship. I was 2 days away from being placed on antidepressants and my OBGYN decided to run a B-12 test to check my levels since not all of my complaints and symptoms fell into PPD or depression. The test did show that my levels were low. I was placed on weekly injections for 6 weeks and I did see an improvement during that time. However, once I went on the maintenance doses I am right back to all of the constant tiredness, moodiness, sensitivity, and mental haziness. My B-12 level is checked regularly and is at a normal level so that is now ruled out.

I have been blessed to have a husband that truly loves me. However, even still he has had a hard time comprehending what I have been dealing with and it has taken a toll on us. He will often say you are just not a happy person no matter what. I know that I am not unhappy with my life in general, my husband or kids and yet he is right. This thing robs you of your happiness and sense of self.

For the past 2 years I have said over and over again that I know something is wrong. I simply don’t feel right. I have been very aware of the changes within myself. I have struggled to be an active parent to my three children and I have struggled with the most basic tasks. Things that use to take me 1-2 hours could stretch into days now. I was once this extremely productive individual that now barely is able to get the simplest of things done. I literally put all my effort into trying to accomplish things yet it barely makes a dent.

Until reading this forum there had not been an end in sight and I really felt like I was going crazy. These symptoms are so subtle and similar that they most often get passed off as PPD, or dealing with the pains of motherhood and stress of life. Up until 2 weeks ago I couldn’t even verbalize the fact that no matter how much I slept, took vitamins, or exercised that I still felt tired all the time and was experiencing an inability to be productive.

If you are hoping that your symptoms will pass I can attest that they do not get better over time. I have an appointment scheduled on Thursday to have my IUD removed and I am anxiously counting the days. I will never suggest to anyone that they have a Mirena IUD placed. I know that if my relationship had not been well grounded that we would not have made it through this. It has really been debilitating and feels like a silent violator that slowly robs you of your functional self. I thank everyone who placed they stories on here and I will update weekly on how things go after removal so that hopefully no one else will have to suffer as long.