I got a copper IUD at the end of November 2007. I am 24 years old, healthy and never had any children. Yes, it hurt quite a bit, but it was over really quick. I fainted afterwards and the nurse informed me it was normal. It was crampy afterwards but I felt fine about three days later. If you've never had any pregnancies it will hurt but hey- you're a woman, you can handle it. Side effects I experience are heavier bleeding, cramps, lower backpain, and spotting between periods. Before the IUD my periods were light and painless. I deal with the changes by using better protection, taking a good painkiller, and always having a liner at hand when I spot. This usually is at its worse for about two days of my menstrual cycle. Besides all of this I am quite happy with the IUD. Many have the IUD removed within a year due to the abovementioned problems. The benefits the IUD brings outweigh the side effects, I think. Give it a try for about 6 months and see for yourself.

I had a copper coil fitted about 5 months ago. Insertion was surprisingly sharp, an acute pain (but I had it inserted at a Marie Stopes clinic whilst having an abortion so the pain could be attributed to that procedure). It has settled down quite nicely, heavier periods and spotting but I don't have to think about it or worry any more about pregnancy. You can feel the ends of it, like whiskers, inside you to check it is in place. I was searching on the web to discover why I was experiencing back pain after my period so am encouraged to read the above answer and recognise this is a side effect of the coil.

The pain is no worse than mild menstrual cramps. One of the side effects can be perforation of the uterus so you need to check it regularly. Another side effect could be lower back pain. Otherwise, they're very reliable, safe, convenient and a great option

Well I just had the copper IUD (Nova T) fitted 10 hours ago. It hurt much more than I thought it would. After reading experiences online, I didn't think it would hurt as much as it did. I immediately cried (I couldn't help it), and whined quite loud which was embarassing and I hoped the girls in the waiting room couldn't hear, but I literally didn't choose to whine or cry. It felt like she had a clamp on something inside me and was twisting and pulling on it. Later they told me it's because the uterus doesn't want things going in, just coming out, so it sort of recoils when you put the IUD in, so you have to grab around the opening to hold it still while the IUD is inserted. It was quick but very, very painful. I got it done at 8:30 AM so I could go to work afterwards but called in sick. I had to sit for quite a while so they could make sure I was okay. I took the bus home which bounced me around so much that I felt like I was going to faint and then had to walk home which took forever because I was taking such little steps. On top of that, you can't use tampons for the first 6 weeks and since I bled during the procedure I had to wear a pad which made it even more uncomfortable. It's been 10.5 hours now and I still have quite bad cramps and not always in the middle of my "gut", but to the sides as well. A lot of back ache. I phone in later to ask if it was okay to take more painkillers because the ones they gave me did absolutely nothing. They said I could take Ibuprofen and to follow the instructions on the box, which say 1-2 every 4 hours and no more than 6 in 24 hours. Not enough to keep the pain down. I'm not a drama queen by any means but I think girls should have realistic expectations for the procedure in terms of pain. I thought it would feel slightly painful and was unpleasantly surprised. However, so far I would recommend the IUD because the pain is worth knowing you're 99% less likely to have a child when you're not ready to dedicate the rest of your life to being a parent and giving up your dreams of backpacking, travelling, whatever your dreams are. Also it's not as bad as the pain of giving birth, so you take a small pain to save yourself from the big pain. Well I'll cut it short because my cramps are keeping me from sitting in any one position for too long!

I had a Minerva IUD places about 2 1/2 years ago. I have to be honest it hurt somewhat because I have had no children so my muscles are much tighter then women who have had children. But it only lasted about 20 minutes and I was good to go. I love it! No pills to worry about, very little chemicals and it has made my period lighter and my horrible cramps have not come back like I had while on the pill. I would get one again if I needed too.

I had a copper cpoil fitted 4 days ago. It was much the same as a smear test up to a oipnt but then it became more uncomfortable. I felt very crampy during the insertion, definately unpleasant but not propper pain. I just grit my teeth for a minute or two and it was done. Much quicker than i expected. Felt very crampy that day but fine the following day. Started my period as expected on sunday and it's completely normal and fine.

I had my copper IUD fitted about 4 days ago, and I was suprised to experience the amount of pain that I did. Ive had many tattoos and piercings and it hurt more than anything ive had modified before. The feeling of the nurse opening up my cervix was horrendous - it was like I was giving birth, and made me fee nasaus and hurt at the same time. The procedure was over quickly, but afterwards I was faint and could hardly walk because of the pain, and when I got home I cried for an hour because I couldnt move and held a hot water bottle against me unable to move in bed for 3 hours. I wish somebody had prepared me for the fact IT WOULD HURT A WHOLE BUNCH, but instead the only advice I recieved would be that it may be uncomfortable. I know all us women are different and this is not the case for everyone. I am still experiencing back pain days later and my IBS has flared up due to the shock on my body.

I had mine fitted Monday and was completely naive about it only expecting some discomfort. The pain was excrutiating that I screamed and asked the doctor to stop. He said that he got it in but I pushed it out again. He got it in finally and afterwards and I got up without any rest, apologised for screaming and drove back to work. No body told me that you should rest and not drive straight after. For the remainder of that day I had period pains that were not much worse than the early days of having periods. I still have some cramps and the colour of the bleed has changed from dark brown to bright red, which I am concerned about. It is only now that I am looking at other peoples experiences and I'm thinking that I did'nt think it through properly. Oh well it is done now and I will see how it goes, but it has made me think that it is about time there was advances in male contraception!

hi i had a copper coil fitted yesterday,i was told by a few people that it would be uncomfortable,they obviously had a higher pain thresh hold than me! and iv had a baby!...obviously its not as harsh as childbirth,but it was a lot more painful than i thought,it was inserted quick enough but its best to lay down afterwards as more than likely u will feel faint afterwards,i cried a little on the way home,the pain was at its worse straight after,i took painkillers when i got home,and stayed on the couch for the whole day,the pain eased up with the help of a hot water bottle,woke up today still feeling a little sore but not half as bad as yesterday,at the most you will just feel very menstrual for awhile,but im glad i went and done it,its over and done with now.!good luck

Just thought I would report back on my experience. The bleeding and pain settled down after about 4 days, and its now 10 days afterwards and I feel fine. It's really nice to be off the pill after being on it for 12 years. It seems there are a lot of horror stories out there about the coil which made me think that I would have to have it removed, but now I'm over the insertion period I am glad I did'nt read them before else I would have had it done.

I had the IUD fitted 8 months ago and it really hurt. I never thought it would have hurt that much as when I read up on it, it never mentioned any pain. I had a period straight after it was fitted, but it only lasted for about 4 days. I am currently experiencing a few side effects e.g bleeding irregularly but they last only for a couple of hours. The IUD is a great as my partner and I don't need to think about me getting pregnant. I would reccommend the coil as you don't gain weight like you would with the pill.

I would chalk this up to being about as uncomfortable as the dentist- only shorter, (and at least in my experience) which much more pleasant personnel. The shot they use to numb the cervix is the worst part. If you have an experienced doctor the actual act of placing the IUD (which hurts about as much as period cramps, but feels a little odd to say the least) shouldn't take more than a minute. I was given a hot water bottle to put on my tummy and about ten minutes to relax then sent on my way. I had mild cramps for about two days and mild bleeding. I opted for pads over tampons as I'm a little paranoid about infections, and the cramps were taken care of easily with OTC medicine (they recommend Naproxin as it actually stops cramping). Easy as pie. Anyway, my only problem is with the side effects I experienced. I never had a very regular period to begin with, so I'm assuming my experience is a little out of the ordinary. My period has become lighter and subsided, however- it lasts a LOT longer. I'd go through about 5 days of PMS (with random short bursts of cramps, and random prolonged bursts of emotion) and then about 6 days of extremely light spotting as my 'period'. The Docs told me this would subside and eventually become non existent. I'm now in my fourth month of the IUD and have noticed that each month gets better. I chose the IUD because all other hormone based BC makes me off the walls crazy. I get anxiety and general depression when taking pills/shots/etc. I can say the IUD is the best choice if you have these problems, but I also can't wait for another few months to pass so I don't have to deal with a week of psychosis every month.