Ablation? Mirena? Help Please!

My choices were, Mirena, shots or Hysto. We are done with kids and hubby has has vasectomy.

I was only 30 at the time, so i was afraid of Hysto, and chose Mirena. It has been great! i have only had at the most 3 days of any bleeding since the inital bleeding stopped and it will be 2 years in October.

My problems were more pain, heavy bleeding, unpredictable periods. I have still had cramping but not as bad as without it. I just don't know what will happen in 3 years when it is time to take it out.

Make sure you do a little research on your own before making your own decision. Both options have pros and cons and can affect each person differently. I wish I would have asked more questions before I had my ablation done, but thankfully, I am very happy with the results. Myself I was having about a 14 day period with some very heavy bleeding days each month and 1 to 2 weeks later would have it again. Hormone birth control was not an option for me because it affected my moods horribly. These were two of the options my doctor had discussed with me also (ablation or mirena). I chose the ablation because it doesn't change your normal hormone cycle. So far I LOVE it (so does the hubby), and it has been over a year now. My sister also had it done back in November and loves it. The recovery time was amazingly short. I was up cleaning house about 4 hours after I got home. She had a little longer recovery because she had a tubal with it. I still get moody before that time of the month, but the moods are not like they were when I was on hormone birth control, and I do still get a period. Not everyone is lucky enough not to get them at all. Mine is at most 3 days with about one hour of normal bleeding the rest of the time just spotting. Much better than 14 days (or more). I knew this was a possibility, but this is also where I wish I would have asked more questions. This method is not a fool proof birth control. In theory, you can still get pregnant. It goes in and burns out the lining, but if part of the lining gets left or grows back you can still get pregnant, but it would not be a viable pregnancy. And since I do still get a period, I have to think there is something in there I am shedding that a pregnancy can attach to, but because my husband had a vasectomy my doctor never mentioned me being sterile as well. However, I am a realist and if my husband were to ever leave me and I remarry (no I am not planning this or feel like he is unhappy with our marriage either, but who knows down the road), but if I were to remarry and my new husband did not have a vasectomy then I am not sure I want to worry about a miscarriage even though I do not want more kids. I don't want to know I lost one either. A question I would have for you is if they would be able to get all the lining with it being so thick. With some of the ablations that they do they prefer it to be right after your period when your liner is at its thinnest. I am no doctor, but that would be a question I would have. I do recommend the ablation despite my negativity. It is great, just be informed. I think the D&C and Hysteroscopy is standard with the ablation. There are a lot of informative websites if you google it, and there are even some sites that give you the questions you should be asking. (I found them the day before my surgery so it did not help me any). Whatever you decide. I wish you the best.

Since I don't have the heavy bleeding, my situation is slightly different from yours, but I am having a similar problem making a decision.

I had been on different birth control pills for the last 6 or 7 years, and kept having the breakthrough bleeding, regular almost like a 2nd period. 3 years ago, my lining was 8 mm but it hasn't been checked lately. I kept trying more different pills, loestrin 24 helped some, but then my insurance stopped covering it so I tried yaz. The nurse practitioner recommended Mirena because she uses it herself, but I didn't want to try it since the hormones are similar to the pills that didn't work. Another thing I ought to do is try to lose weight and exercise more and see if that has any effect. I had pain and cramps, which they were able to identify as coming from the left ovary during the ultrasound. I have some small fibroids now that they didn't find 3 years ago. Plus I'm 38, and the pills are supposed to be riskier as you get closer to 40. I wanted to see what happened if I went off the pills. My husband has not had a vasectomy, so the gynecologist wanted me to have an ablation or tubes tied before I tried going off the pill completely.

This was where I was having similar trouble making a decision. Would I need a D&C, ablation, and/or fibroids removed? Did I really need permanent birth control and could I talk my husband into getting a vasectomy if it meant I avoided surgery? Would the breakthrough bleeding stop once I was off the pill, or would I have problems with heavy bleeding?
I chose to go off the pills, but delay any surgeries or permanent birth control. It's only been 3 months, but my cycle is normal again, and only slightly heavier than before. The only wierd thing is that it was 2 weeks off from when it would have been with the pills. I will still have to decide what to do next, but I have put off the bigger decisions for now.

I don't have an answer for your specific problem... but I would just encourage you to get at least a second opinion, maybe a third. I don't understand why it would be either ablation or Mirena (of course I'm not a doctor either!).

Also, there have been a couple other questions in the past regarding the Mirena, so you could look those up and see a lot of comments on that.

I wish you all the best.

My mother had heavy bleeding every other week for over a year, causing her to be so anemic she was to the point of needing a transfusion! She too had an endometrial lining that was too thick, and her doctor felt that a D&C and ablation would be best. I'm unsure if Mirena had been given as an option. Her recovery was a quick one and she hasn't had a period for over three years! She is no longer anemic and is very happy with the results.

Two of my sister-in-laws used Mirena for birth control. One only used it for a short period of time as it caused discomfort for her spouse during intercourse. The other sister-in-law had some cramping for a few days after it was placed, but eventually her cycle became very light and lasted three days at most. She was happy with this form of birth control. After having it removed to conceive her 2nd child, she has chosen not to have it done again because of the hormones. The levels are lower than most forms of birth control. Please consider some of the side affects if you choose this method. Perforation of the uterus can occur, though rare.

I wish you luck and good health!

Have you considered lysteda? It has just hit the market and it is non hormonal. It is for heavy bleeding. I don't know if dr feels ok for your needs but I suggest that it wouldn't hurt to loook at info and see. I will admit that I work for ad agency that is working on it's launch so some may consider me biased but it may give you another alternative.

My situation was a little different than yours, but I've been using the Mirena for about 18 months now, and I love it. No problems. Mood swings and other pill side effects are gone. Periods are so light I barely notice them. I love it!

I had an ablation done and I absolutly love it! The recovery time was very minimal to none. Although I do still get a period, it is sometimes only 1-2 days and sometimes not heavy enough to even make it necessary to use a pad or tampon. My doctor didn't even suggest the mirena (I had my tubes tied) but he was suggesting a hystorectomy. The ablation was a much better choice for me.

I had my tubes tied and the ablation last year and cannot be thankful enough!! YEAH!! YAHOOO!!!! Can you hear me singing from the rooftops?!!

If you are done having babies - have the ablation - I wish I would've done it YEARS ago!!! My mental state would've been a lot better if I had done it sooner!!!

I had heavy periods from day one as a teenager and they just got worse with each child. My options were birth control to regulate me, Mirena or Novasure ablation. I didn't want birth control or Mirena as I didn't want to deal with the hormones at all. I chose the Novasure ablation and couldn't be happier! I was told that it's purpose is to lessen heavy periods and PMS symptoms that go with it. I got best case scenario as I haven't had a period in over 2 years. I was 36 when I had it done and have never regretted a second of it. I had slight bloating for a couple days after and minimal cramping, but NOTHING like what I experienced monthly when I had a period. After my 2nd child in 2005, they were 7-10 days long with the first 3-4 I was not only doubled over in pain from the cramps, but so bloated I looked like I was due to deliver. Those first 3-4 days, I was also bleeding so bad I used a tampon and a pad and still changed every 1-2 hours. It made living a regular life with two active kids very difficult.

I think you should do research on both options and see what is best for you. If you don't mind hormones and still the slight period here and there, go with the Mirena. But if you are done having kids (as you said you are), go for the ablation. It was outpatient and little to no recovery. I had to be at the hospital at 6:30am for an 8am surgery. It just took a few minutes and then off to recovery where I was a little over an hour. I was home well before noon. Any other questions, feel free to ask.

Check out the risk and side effects with Mirena, not only is it hormones, but it can cause injury, I know several people who have had issues. I also know a woman who recently had an ablation done, she to is done having kids and had heavy periods. She has had no complaints, it eliminates your period where mirena may eliminate the bleeding, after time, but it doesn't always completely eliminate your period. While my friend has mentioned no side effects hormonally, I do not however know the hormonal side effects of an ablation. If it were me though, I'd rather just be done with it, than worry about the mirena floating around for the next few years.