IUD Myths You Need to Stop Believing

News

08/06/2018

Mamello Sejake is new to the #Shugafam and she’s here to dispel a few myths about IUD.

We learned a lot about contraception during #MTVShugaNaija. Many myths about The Pill (and the Morning After Pill) were put to bed but there were still a few questions around the IUD.

Towards the end of the season, Yasmin’s sister Fatima, along with her husband, decided to find about the IUD as a method of family planning. Their storyline felt familiar and it took me back to when I was considering getting an IUD.

I was much younger at the time, so I turned to my older cousins for advice. Unfortunately, their perceptions of the contraception were clouded by myths about it. I was not confident enough to go to the local clinic to get more information on my own.

However, over time I have encountered the IUD and finally had the chance to learn more about how it really works. There are two types (and several brands underneath those two types) – Hormonal IUDs and Copper IUDs.

Read More: MTV Shuga has discussed IUD in the last two seasons and wrote a guide to the contraception last year.

One thing that hasn’t changed is the fact that whenever the IUD comes up as a topic of discussion, several myths are mixed up with the facts. I’d like to take a moment to clear up some of those myths:

Myth 1: “The implant can passage to another part of your body”

You can rest easy. When inserted properly, there is no way that the IUD can journey with your blood into another part of your body. It may move slightly, but not by more than an inch from where it was initially inserted. The best thing you can do for yourself is to make sure that yours is inserted by a qualified medical practitioner.

Myth 2: “Inserting the implant involves a long surgery”

Depending on which implant you get and your medical practitioner’s skills, fitting the IUD can take a matter of minutes. In most cases, however, you’ll feel a slight pain a few days afterward but this will usually be temporary.

Myth 3: “You can only take the implant out after a certain period of time”

That’s not true! You get to decide when you take it out. Some people decide that they want to have a baby at a certain point in time while the implant is inside of them. When you decide that your journey together has come to an end, then having it removed will only require a that you visit your medical practitioner.

Myth 4: “If you have an implant then you don’t need to use a condom.”

The implant can only protect you from getting pregnant. It cannot protect you from contracting STIs. Inasmuch as condoms prevent you from getting pregnant they also provide essential protection against other illnesses that are spread through sexual fluids.

Myth 5: “If you keep the implant in for years you’ll struggle to get pregnant”

Implants immediately stop working once they are removed from the body. It’s important to remember though that because of our hormonal make-up, people’s bodies react differently to different treatments. Even with that said the hormones that the implant releases shouldn’t remain in the body for long after it has been removed. If you opt for the Copper IUD, the effects should cease immediately.

If you’d like to know more about contraception we’ve got some useful reading material on the website for you:

The MTV Shuga Guide to Contraception
IUD: Everything You Need To Know 
Bonus: 5 Reasons why your Pull Out Game is Weak (please don’t rely on “pulling out” and rather contact your local clinic for safe, reliable contraception options!)

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