Is an IUD right for you? all you need to know to decide

Written By Brooke Van Allen

Contraception is a topic that should be not only taken seriously, but also personalized to your individual needs, concerns, and lifestyle. What is realistic and healthy for you may not be for somebody else. We have touched on previously how hormonal contraception can mess with your gut health, nutrient absorption, mental health, and more. We have also discussed FAM (Fertility Awareness Method) in a previous blog , but for some people this is not feasible to keep up with. 

What I like about IUD’s is that you have options. Our blog today is going to discuss your options when it comes to IUD’s and all that you should know and consider before jumping into a decision. 

Hormonal IUD

The 4 hormonal IUD’s offered are Kyleena, Mirena, Liletta, and Skyla. When people think of contraception in general they think of hormonal options. The reason that contraception will alter your hormones and introduce synthetic progesterone and/or estrogen is to prevent ovulation and stop a natural cycle from occurring so that your body cannot prepare or make way for a pregnancy. The IUD, however, does this a bit differently and at a lower level of intensity than the pill. 

Pros of Hormonal IUD: 

  • Hormonal IUD’s do not completely suppress ovulation. Mirena is shown to suppress ovulation in 85% of a woman’s cycles in her first year post insertion, and then 15% of cycles in years after that. This is good because our bodies need to ovulate 

  • IUD’s do this by not only using a low dose of hormones, such as Levonorgestrel, but they also make it difficult for the sperm to move and reach the egg. The cervical mucus is thickened to a point of stopping motility of the sperm 

  • Can significantly help in relieving heavy/painful periods, reducing menstrual flow by as much as 90% as a result of the Levonorgestrel hormone thinning your endometrial lining (meaning there is far less of it to shed every month). With an IUD you can have a cycle but not bleed, whereas the pill stops your cycle and causes a withdrawal bleed! 

  • Convenience: unlike having to remember to take a pill every night or keep up with tracking your body temperature and cervical mucus for FAM, an IUD can last 3-5 years. You also can get it removed whenever you want and your fertility should return back to normal 

  • Effective: hormonal IUD’s are deemed that most effective birth control option at 99% rate of preventing pregnancy 

Cons of Hormonal IUD: 

  • Although at lower levels, the impact of levonorgestrel is not just localized and the side effects are apparent. Newer research shows that the hormone can actually have a systemic effect on the body and cause side effects such as acne, hair loss, depression, anxiety, disrupted vaginal microbiome, and more

  • Small correlation with ovarian cysts in some women with a Hormonal IUD 

  • You may experience some spotting and irregular cycles in the first few months after insertion before your periods drastically taper down 

Getting a Hormonal IUD? How to Support Your Body: 

  • Eat an anti-inflammatory diet. This included a lot of leafy greens, cruciferous vegetables, whole grains, spices such as turmeric, ginger, and cayenne, berries, and fatty fish and nuts. 

  • Support your liver to aid your body with detoxing hormones, especially if you are experiencing symptoms or noticing a change after insertion. Supplements to support your liver include NAC, Resveratrol, Magnesium Glycinate, dandelion root (can be a tea!), B vitamins, and Calcium D-Glucurate.

  • Reduce consumption of inflammatory foods such as alcohol, ultra processed foods, and added refined sugars.

  • Use vaginal suppositories and/or probiotics targeted for the health of your vaginal microbiome if you are noticing an increase in BV or yeast infections. 


Copper IUD

Despite a lower dosage of hormones when compared to an oral contraceptive, there are still side effects and reasons you may want to opt for a completely non-hormonal option of contraception. The Copper IUD (ParaGard) provides that option. Instead of introducing synthetic progesterone, the Copper IUD works by slowly releasing copper into the uterus and produces an inflammatory environment that is toxic to both sperm and eggs. 

Pros of Copper IUD: 

  • No synthetic hormones, ovulation continues as normal 

  • Once it is removed, fertility returns immediately since your hormones and ovulation were not impacted

  • Deemed the most effective method of contraception with a failure rate of just 0.1-0.4%

  • After insertion, it can last up to 10 years without any action needed on your part 

    giving it the highest rate of satisfaction and the most popular method overall 

Cons of Copper IUD: 

  • Can make your periods significantly heavier and induce spotting between periods. Especially for the first few months after insertion, flow can be increased 20-50% 

  • Cramping can also be increased, more painful periods overall as your uterus is adjusting to the newly intrusive IUD. This typically backs off after a year or so 

  • Your vaginal flora can be disrupted, causing more prevalence of BV and yeast infections 

Getting a Copper IUD? How to Support Your Body: 

  • Consume an anti-inflammatory diet and supplements such as omega-3 fish oil, curcumin, ginger, NAC, cramp bark, Vitamin D, and Bromelain

  • Consider getting lab testing done to see how your body is adjusting to the Copper IUD. Include copper, zinc, and ceruplasma in routine testing and use low dose zinc supplement to counter copper as needed

  • Use vaginal suppositories and/or probiotics targeted for the health of your vaginal microbiome if you are noticing an increase in BV or yeast infections

  • Before having this inserted, assure your doctor screens you for STI’s such as gonorrhea or chlamydia as it can lead to Pelvic Inflammatory Disease 

  • Please note that if you are already suffering with heavy, painful periods and/or high inflammation levels, I would not recommend getting a Copper IUD


Overall, my goal is always to help you understand your options, and that the best option for you might not be what is best from your friend or people on the internet. An important note about about IUD’s is that despite having a very low maintenance, convenient approach once inserted, insertion can be very painful for some women. Be sure to discuss this with your doctor beforehand so you can incorporate a local anesthetic, pain relief, or even acupuncture during the process.

If this doesn’t sound like the pros are outweighing the cons for you, other options include quality condoms or the Caya diaphragm. Fertility awareness method utilizing calendar tracking, basal body temperature tracking, observing changes in cervical discharge, and observing changes in cervix position is always an option as well - one that I use myself! If you want to learn more about this, please be sure to read my past blog explaining it in detail. I also have a discount code for the Tempdrop fertility tracker using this link: https://www.tempdrop.com/discount/DOCTORPARIA  

If you want additional support, you can click here to schedule a discovery call

Brooke Van Allen
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