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The original was posted on /r/twoxchromosomes by /u/xkdchickadee on 2023-09-04 20:44:45.
I’ve seen a stream of IUD horror stories in this group over the last few months and I wanted to see some different perspectives on this question I have been ruminating on for nearly a decade: Why aren’t more women using birth control implants?
I received my first in 2013 just as I was graduating college. I went into my gyno appointment to ask for BC options since I knew I would be horrible at remembering to take a daily pill. After chatting, I was between the IUD and the implant because they both provided long term protection.
The copper IUD was great because it was non-hormonal, but when she described the negative possible side effects, the phrase “perforation of uterus” had me doing a hard nope and selecting the implant. It’s now a decade later and I am on my third, no regrets whatsoever.
With my first, I was convinced this would become the dominant form of birth control within 5 years and I evangelized about my experience whenever it was appropriate. I assumed most hadn’t adopted it as it was relatively new at the time (US approved in 2006) so I figured more and more women would switch over in the next decade.
Yet, the IUD remains dominant despite the now-known drawbacks. For me, the most appealing part of the implant is that it has to be 100% covered under the ACA as there is only one implant on the market, and insurance companies have to cover at least 1 type of implant. Understanding that not everyone reacts the same to hormonal contraception, I haven’t come across even stories of women who tried it and then had it removed (whereas I have come across several such stories for the IUD)
So, would love to hear all of y’alls thought and theories!