Sex, Sexuality & Fertility

Posted on: Wed, May 21 2008 10:04 PM

Posted by: JS53 Posts: 25

I'm a 23 year old female with a rare type of CMT. I'm unable to walk so I use a wheelchair all the time. I need to go on birth control to regulate my cycle because I have headaches caused by hormone levels. My general doctor recommended the patch. My gynecologist won't put me on birth control because of the increased chance of blood clots since I'm wheelchair bound. Does anybody have any other ideas? I need to get my headaches figured out but I also need to find a contraceptive that will work for me. I don't think I could use anything internal like an IUD because of the position of my cervix due to scoliosis (insertion being the problem). My gynecologist is not incredibly helpful because she doesn't really treat me like her other patients (but she is a lot better than my previous gynecologist). 

Please help! Thank you.  

Posted on: Thu, May 22 2008 8:00 AM

Posted by: madmumbler Posts: 249

[[Edited by me - Mods deleted the message I was replying to, which was a VERY suspicious-sounding scam-esque message from a doctor in Ghana. But my warning still stands - PLEASE be very careful about anyone who replies to you in an email or forum message saying they can promise you incredible results for your problem. It's very easy to be taken in by scam artists if you're not careful!!]] 

BEWARE of any messages promising miracle cures.

Especially when they claim to be a doctor and yet write nearly illegibly. AND they've been a member for less than a day and have posted no personal info about themselves in their profile.

Posted on: Thu, May 22 2008 8:23 AM

Posted by: TOOTSIE Posts: 122

OMG! THERE'S ALWAYS A BAD APPLE TO SPOIL THE BUNCH! CALL A FRIEND A RELATIVE OR ASK UR DR. FOR A REFERRAL TO ANOTHER DR.PLEASE DON'T RESPOND TO SOMEONE U DON'T KNOW. ADVICE IS 1 THING ,BUT TO SAY UR A DR. & U CAN FIX SOMEONE IS TOTAL BS! WITH ALL MY HEART,GOOD LUCK,TOOTSIE

Posted on: Thu, May 22 2008 9:35 AM

Posted by: JS53 Posts: 25

 Oh I know. There are scammers everywhere unfortunately. 

Posted on: Thu, May 22 2008 2:13 PM

Posted by: Nightengale Posts: 799

I am acutally a doctor (pediatrician) as well as a person with a disabilty myself, but it is unethical to give medical advice over the internet.

However I can give medical information, although I don't know if it will solve either your cycle problem or your contraception problem.

Forms of birth control that regulare cycles are all hormonal.  There are two main kinds - combined and progesterone-only.  The combined estrogen/progesterone are the pill, the patch and the ring, and they all have that risk of blood clots which is higher in women who are not very mobile.  Some gynecologists will prescribe combined HBC to women who use wheelchairs but who don't have other high risk factors for blood clots (like smoking or family history.)  Pregnancy itself can also cause blood clots so it is a risk-benefit situation.  The patch has higher hormone levels than most pills currently in use.

Progesterone-only includes progesterone-only pills and the the Depo-provera shot once every 3 months.  I believe there is also a new 5 year implant that is progesterone-based.  Many women on progesterone-only methods stop having cycles entirely after a couple of months. 

An IUD may or may not help with the cycle problem (the Mirena might because it contains a small amount of hormones) but it sounds like those are not options.

Other forms of contraception that do not involve hormones at all are the male and female condoms, and the diaphragm, with spermacide.

This is all information your gynecologist should know much more about than I do and be willing to work with you on as much as possible.  There doesn't seem to be one obvious answer so you and she are going to need to have some discussions and try to work out something that is safe and will work for you.

Posted on: Thu, May 22 2008 2:44 PM

Posted by: Mshores Posts: 500

I'm not a doctor and don't know if this will help. I went on Deprovera shots before I had to have surgery for my new Achilles. This is birthcontrol but it stops my period which was why I went on it. The shot is once every 3 months usually given in my tush or arm. I had no side effects but I may just be lucky since it is rare for me to have any real side effects to meds.

Have you looked on WebMD to see what all they talk about under birth control?

Shelly 

Posted on: Thu, May 22 2008 4:09 PM

Posted by: TriDog Posts: 2,763

I'm not a doctor, but I do play one after a couple of pints.

You could try the old tried and true method of not having sex... 

Ha!  But what fun would that be? Seriously, I got nothing here...  

Posted on: Thu, May 22 2008 8:06 PM

Posted by: Kara Posts: 2,789

OK TriDog...I guess we'll try to give you a pass on that and not blame your gender as much as your failure to read her post! Birth control is sought for many more reasons than just to prevent pregnancy....that's actually an example of the judgemental attitude that women with disabilities often feel FROM their doctors and it prevents us from getting equal care. It's one of my top pet peves and I feel like a huge barrier to us ever achieving reproductive justice...ok but that's another rant!

I can actually personally relate to your search because I have these headaches too and my doctor thinks they're related to hormonal shifts so we've tried several different types of the pill....They are called different brand names but the ones that don't completely stop during the week of your period are supposed to help with headaches because your body doesn't have such an abrupt drop off in the hormones...I'd give you the "one" that worked for me perfectly but we haven't found it yet! I can relate to your frustration though (both with close-minded doctors) and these headaches! Mine are dull but last for DAYS...I go to bed with them and wake up and they are still there. I still go to work, write, etc. but they are distracting for sure. Good luck and I'm glad you posted this! I haven't heard from anyone else with these and working in the psych field-I always wonder if it's "in my head"--LOL!