Mirena IUD & Depression - Follow Up

Last year I posted about my unfortunate experience with the Mirena IUD triggering depression. I recently looked at the traffic report for this site and realized that 90% of people who visit my blog get here by searching for "Mirena +IUD +Depression".

I still don't think there is enough information in the public domain about the risks of Mirena re-triggering depression in women with a history of depression.

Of course, if you want more information about a medication, you can always look it up on the internet, right? Not so fast... if you live in Canada, the Canadian Mirena website takes you to a secure location where you need to register along with the DIN (Drug Information Number) of the product "you have been prescribed".

That means that unless you have been prescribed the Mirena IUD and have the package sitting in your hand, you cannot log on to the Mirena Canadian website. How's that for transparency?

If you are fortunate enough to be able to download the product monograph you will find the following:

Patients with a history of emotional disturbances, especially the depressive type, may be more prone to have a recurrence of depression while using MIRENA. In cases of a serious recurrence, consideration should be given to removing MIRENA, since the depression may be drug-related. (Mirena Product Monograph, p.9)

It is interesting to note that the Mirena US site makes absolutely no mention of depression whatsoever. The US site also does not list depression as a contraindication, or as important medical history to tell your doctor about. On the other hand, the Mirena UK site lists depression as the third bullet point under "most common reactions".

So, if you are concerned that your depression might be a result of your Mirena IUD - you are not alone!

Tell me your story - please talk about your experience with Mirena and depression in comments section below.

forced to keep mirena?

Why do some health care providers feel that they are entitled to force their patients to keep unwanted Mirena IUDs?

I recently came across a blog post from a NP where she vents her annoyance about removing a recently inserted Mirena from a patient who was concerned about the side effects. The majority of the comments she received are almost more disturbing than the original post itself.

Tales like this are repeated frequently across the web - women told that they must keep IUDs that are causing them discomfort. Adding to this concern is the reluctance of other health care providers to remove an IUD that they themselves didn't insert.

I can't for the life of me understand why a provider would be reluctant to remove an unwanted IUD. It is a simple and quick procedure. Do they not believe patient's reports of side effects?

Am I alone in thinking that this kind of behavior is offensive?

mirena IUD & depression

Last summer I was finally starting to feel better. My energy had increased, my mood was stable, things were finally looking up.

My husband and I talked about the possibility of another pregnancy, but the postpartum depression was still too vivid in our minds to risk again. Still, we weren't ready to give up 100% on the idea of a future baby.

I visited my doctor to discuss an IUD (as I have clotted previously, the pill was out for me). She suggested I try the Mirena, an IUD that provides a very low daily dose of progesterone. I was told to expect that with the Mirena I would eventually no longer have periods (sounded good to me).

I had the Mirena installed on a Friday. By Saturday morning, it was clear that something was very wrong with me. I was in tears, angry, anxious. I felt like I wanted to crawl out of my own skin. I felt like I just didn't want to exist anymore.

My husband asked me if the dramatic return of my PPD symptoms could be related to the IUD. I hadn't even considered that! After googling for a few hours, I came to learn that Mirena wasn't for everyone. There were far more potential side effects than I had been warned about.

Searching for the product monograph online, I was shocked to find a clear warning that the Mirena IUD could re-trigger depression in women who had a history of the disease.

I was angry with my physician for prescribing me something that had undone nearly a year of healing. I was angry with myself for not doing the research on possible side effects myself before making my choice.

I tried to have it removed over that weekend, and I couldn't find anyone who would take it out!

First thing Monday, I was back at my doctor's office to have it removed. She apologized and told me that she hadn't considered the effect on my depression. I appreciated her honesty, and was just glad to get the damn thing out of me.

It took several months for my moods and my body to get back to where it had been pre-Mirena.

Many women use Mirena and have great experiences with it - to them, I say "wonderful"! I was not one of those women. I'm writing this post today to alert women who have a history of depression of this potential side effect of Mirena.

Please Note: I have updated this topic - Sept. 2010