By Lucie Bulois
March 1, 2019
Buzzworthy

“It was 2016, and I had been suffering from excruciating periods for months when I was diagnosed with endometriosis, a disorder in which tissue that normally lines the uterus grows outside the uterus instead. The pain often made me throw up, left me unable to move, and over time became debilitating. In an attempt to ease the pain I depended on warm showers and Percocet, but that clearly wasn’t sustainable.
On recommendation, I visited an OB/GYN surgeon and got a formal diagnosis. We removed a couple of cysts via laparoscopy and placed an IUD called Mirena to alleviate some of the endometriosis symptoms. My surgeon didn’t speak with me about potential side effects and even recommended not to Google them. Little did I know, this little piece of plastic I saw as my savior would slowly make me its prisoner.”
read the article for details about joint pain, arthritis, nausea, dizziness, panic attacks, brain fog, memory loss, etc….

He asked me to explain my symptoms, and right away reassured me: “You’re not dying, you’re having a panic attack.” He recommended I take a Xanax and try to get some sleep. But when I woke up, I wasn’t the same girl anymore. Overnight, my body’s chemistry had changed. I was constantly panicked, anticipating another attack every minute of every day. My brain didn’t feel like mine anymore. I was foggy and confused, like “high” on something, similar to a bad trip. I couldn’t focus. I couldn’t relax.

“Even looking in the mirror, I didn’t recognize myself. That feeling was both frightening and confusing in a way that’s difficult to verbalize fully. I was in a constant state of disassociation, both with my surroundings and with myself – half waking dream state, half Alzheimer’s. That neurological condition called derealization-depersonalization disorder was the scariest of all my symptoms, and by the end of summer I had it 24/7.
One day, I randomly stumbled upon an article stating that more and more women under hormonal birth control were complaining about mental health side effects. I googled ‘Mirena’ and ‘Anxiety’, ‘Mirena’ and ‘Depersonalization’ and found dozens of articles about women suffering from the exact same symptoms as me, as well as the other ones I had experienced: joint pain, nausea and dizziness. I wasn’t alone. I immediately scheduled an appointment with my OB/GYN surgeon to remove my IUD. I could tell he didn’t believe Mirena was the cause of my problems, but I listened to my gut and went ahead with the procedure.”

”Little by little I reconnected with my old self, or my new self actually, as after this traumatic experience I doubt I’ll ever be the same again. But I want to believe that along the way, I learned many lessons on what’s important in life. That I’ll eventually become stronger and healthier because of it, and not in spite of it. It’s now March 2019, and I’m about 70% back to myself. Almost a year after my life took a turn, I’m finally starting to glimpse what ‘normal’ feels like again.

With everything that happened, my goal is now to spread awareness on the potential side effects of Mirena. If you’re experiencing the same symptoms as me, you are not crazy, it is not your fault, and yes it will go away – it just takes time for your body to heal. Personally, connecting with other women through Facebook support groups helped immensely. If you want, you can also join one of the many class action lawsuits against Bayer, Mirena’s manufacturer.

…….. Ladies, just make sure to do your research – I sure wish I did mine.”