to all the girls - contraceptive implant

hi,

i'm an 18y/o and i'm in a long term relationship. i have been on the contraceptive implant (nexplanon) since april of this year. this is my first form of birth control and i decided on this as i don't really like the sound of having to constantly take a pill a day. i'm very forgetful, and i would just rather have something that i don't have to worry about as much.

i was originally gonna go with the injection but i decided not to as i'm moving out and i'm gonna have to change GP's anyway, so i figured if i wanted to change my form of birth control i'd just do it once i move out, since i know that you do have to go back to your GP every 2 or so months to get another one, and i didn't wanna have to deal with that in the middle of moving out all of my things, on top of anything else that may come up.

the thing is, although i'm aware of all the possible side effects that come with this form of birth control (as well as other forms), i thought i'd be able to cope with it a lot better than i am.

i don't have any serious side effects, my mood hasn't changed much, i feel like i'm still as emotional as i was prior to getting the implant (although i can't really tell lol, but this isn't my concern). i haven't gained weight, in fact i've lost weight but i don't really blame this on the implant itself, just my eating habits. the problem is i've been bleeding almost every day since i've gotten this implant put in. i spoke to my GP about this prior to getting it fitted and she said it's a common side effect, and even spoke to her a few months after and she said that it could take 6-12 months for your body to condition itself to the hormonal changes caused by the implant. okay, that's fine. it hasn't technically been 6 months yet, but i'm already quite fed up of having to deal with the constant bleeding. sometimes it's less severe, sometimes i don't bleed for a few days straight, and other times i might as well be on my period for an entire month. luckily it doesn't come with any of the regular symptoms that come along with a period, such as cramps and so on, just consistent bleeding.

the implant hasn't directly affected my libido as far as i can feel, but the constant bleeding just makes me want to have sex with my boyfriend a lot less. he doesn't personally mind that i'm bleeding so it is more of a me problem, but regardless, it's just uncomfortable and annoying, plus i'd rather not have to constantly wear a pad or a tampon.

if anyone on here has ever had or has the contraceptive implant (nexplanon) have you had a similar experience? if so, did it settle down after the 6-12 month time period?

i'm really thinking of just changing my form of birth control, but i'm not sure if i should perhaps just wait it out and see if it does eventually settle down.

all advice is appreciated!!

Reply 1

Anonymous #2

I haven't had an implant, but I have had a mirena coil, which is the same hormone but at a lower dose . It took 6 months for my cycle to settle, but it did eventually - I had one normal period, then no periods for 4 months, then around 4 weeks of constant spotting, after which I went back to having monthly periods again (and they were lighter than than my periods before the coil). So I would give it a bit more time.