Positive Experience So Far - Less Than 1 Week Post-Insertion

After being on hormonal birth control (lolo pill) for over 6 years I had become tired of having to be consistent with the pill everyday. I liked that the copper IUD was protective for years at a time and hormone free. I found it hard to find many reviews online that weren't horror stories of excruciating pain upon insertion, cramping, and heavy bleeding for months on end. I thought to myself that if I am one of the people that it happens to, then I will simply remove it if I deem it too much.

Five days ago I went ahead with my insertion. I showed up for my appointment and the nurse had me give a urine sample for a pregnancy test and a self-performed vaginal swab to test for STIs. Next, I went into the doctors office and we discussed the procedure, then set myself up on the table. The doctor felt how my uterus was angled, cleaned my cervix, and then held it open with a device (see animation). This clamp was the first painful part, but I would not place it any higher than a 3 or 4 out of 10 on a pain scale (ten meaning the most pain possible). I would describe the pains from this procedure as a really bad period cramp with each lasting less than a minute. At this point I asked the doctor for a few moments to process the pain and breathe through it. Once I was ready the doctor proceeded to insert the IUD. This was the most uncomfortable part, but again, it was bearable and nothing that deep breathing and clenched fists couldn't handle. The doctor cut the strings to length and, just like that, the procedure was complete.

I was given a couple minutes alone to recoup myself and during this time I was sweating a lot and felt sick to my stomach. I got myself up off the table and went over to the garbage but didn't throw up. The doctor came back in with water and we chatted for a bit before I walked out of the clinic fine. The whole appointment lasted roughly 30 minutes from start to finish.

For the rest of the first day I had light cramping and very light spotting on my panty liner. I was expected to start my period this day. I kept a heating bag on my stomach which helped. The day after insertion I woke up with a bit of a flow but nothing more than normal. Later in the second day I had a few clots come out (which isn't common for me) and barely any cramps. For the remaining days (3 through 5) I have had a light flow and clots from time to time but it's taken care of with a regular pad. I am usually a tampon user but you can't insert anything into the vagina for the first week after the IUD is placed.

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with my lack of pain. I would highly recommend anyone considering the copper IUD to go for it to see if it's for them. I hope to continue to update you guys throughout my time with it because I don't think enough people share good experiences on this subreddit.

PS: As mentioned above, I found this video super helpful before my appointment to understand what the doctor was going to do. I had the copper IUD Flex-T300 inserted but the process is the same.