How does mirena work

Mirena IUDs work to prevent pregnancy by thickening the mucus in the cervix, which stops sperm from fertilizing an egg, and thinning the lining of the uterus, which suppresses menstrual bleeding.

The Mirena IUD releases the hormone levonorgestrel, a synthetic form of progesterone. Levonorgestrel works by thickening the cervical mucus and thinning the lining of the uterus, which prevents pregnancy from taking place. This synthetic hormone can also prevent ovulation, though it does not always have this effect.

The majority of IUD users do not experience weight gain. Copper, non-hormonal IUDs do not cause any weight gain, whereas about 5% of patients using hormonal IUDs report weight gain. Since Mirena is a hormonal IUD, Mirena weight gain is possible, if unlikely.

MIRENA, when inserted according to the insertion instructions, has a failure rate of approximately 0.2% at 1 year and a cumulative failure rate of approximately 0.7 % at 5 years.

Just ask freelance writer Amy Gibbings, who fell enceinte while on the Mirena (a type of IUD) and didn’t know about it. It almost cost her her life. About three months ago, she was camping with her boyfriend when “a deeper, harder penetration caused sudden, excruciating pain in my cervix”, she says.

Yes, you can get enceinte while using an IUD — but it’s rare. IUDs are more than 99 percent effective. This means that less than 1 out of every 100 people who have an IUD will become enceinte.

According to Mirena, which makes a hormonal type of IUD, fewer than eight out of 1,000 women (0.8 percent) become enceinte over five years using the device. Still, in rare cases, pregnancy can occur.