My name is Linda and I had the Essure procedure in Feb 2010 right before my 37th birthday and so I just turned 41 last month. I had known since my only child was born in 2000 that I did not want to have any more children. Then I met my now husband in 2009 who already had 3 older children and he also didn’t want to start all over again. We decided that since Essure could be done in the Dr’s office with minimal down time and should only take abut 10 min per side that it was the best choice for us. The morning of the procedure I was told to prep and take some vallium and pain meds an hour prior to arrival. Upon arrival we were told that they tried to reach us both and left a msg to come in an hour later as the Dr had an emergency, we never rec’d a call or a msg. So I sat for an hour longer while the pain meds where at there highest peak. When it was finally time for the procedure they had to give me additional meds as well as a shot for pain and we had to wait for it to take affect. During the procedure I cried with SEVERE pain and cramping. The Dr told me that my tubes had a very sharp curve and he was having a hard time getting the device through. Here I was in so much pain and discomfort that all I could think about was this is the only shot I’m giving this so if it doesn’t work I’m not going to go through this hell again. They asked me where the pain was and I told them I had pain on the left side, of which the Dr said that’s strange because I’m working on the right. After about 30min of the Dr trying to get the coils in place just on one side he was finally successful and moved to the other side. I was shaking and crying and asked for a break for a few min. The 2nd side took another 20 minutes of major cramping and pain. I can remember the Dr saying to the nurse this was the hardest one he’d done yet and I could see that he was wiping the sweat from his forehead, face and neck. When my now husband came in the room he was visibly upset. He said he could hear me crying during the procedure and the Dr told him the same things that it took so long because my tubes had a natural sharp curve to them and it tool a little more time than it should have and that I was ok but he had never had so much trouble before. What should have taken 10 min per side had me in so much pain for 10min shy of an hour! After the procedure I had such horrible cramping and bleeding for about a week. I remember spotting heavily throughout the 3 mo I had to wait for the hsg test to make sure my tubes were blocked. During the hsg the dr told me that the procedure was successfull and that my tubes were 100% blocked. We had already talked about doing a hydro ablation once we got the all clear on my tubes being blocked and so that was scheduled and completed. The cramping after the ablation was excrutiating. The drive home I was rocking in the passenger seat and crying my eyes out. I bled for about 5 days. After the albation, I didnt have a period for 14 mo. But when it came back, it was heavy, clotty and the cramps were crippling. My reg gyno put me on birth control to regulate my periods so that I would only get them 4x a year. (Seasonique) It did help at first, then my body wasn’t waiting the full 3 mo to have a cycle. I just started putting all of this together that Essure has been causing the following in the past 4 yrs: Chronic Fatigue, sever migraine headaches, 35lb weight gain, memory loss, brain fog and confusion at times, loss of hair, no energy, bloating from just under my breasts to my hips (I look 7 mo preg), pelvic pain that come and goes, joint/muscle pain, urinary incontinence and constant pressure on my bladder that I have to wear a maxi pad everyday-all day, my depression and anxiety have increased significantly that my meds have been increased, night sweats/hot flashes, rashes, barthollin cysts, lower back pain that feels like labor, leg/foot cramps,… After finding this page and the fB page I went in to see my Gyno to ask about a hysto. She wasn’t available so I had to see one of the other dr’s. I shared with her all of my concerns, health problems and what I’d learned about others with Essure complaining of and asked if she had heard of any of them being caused by Essure. She said Essure couldn’t possibly be the cause of my problems and that everyone’s jumping on this band wagon lately when there’s no proof and suggested I go off the pill so that I can have my hormone levels checked first to see if perhaps I am in perimenopause. I played dumb and asked some questions about having a hysto, knowing that if I could at least get these things out of me I’d feel so much better. She said she could definitely perform a hysto if that’s what I wanted. She said that would take care of my periods and get the Essure device out of me all in one shot. I asked why some patients leave thier ovaries and some do not as well as their cervix. She suggested that I leave my ovaries since I’m only 41 and when you take them out it puts you into menopause and that I should try to stay away from hormone therapy as long as I could. But also said if there was a history of ovarian cancer that she would recommend taking the ovaries. She also said she likes to leave the cervix for support. Support of what?? If everything else is gone then what’s left to support?! In a week I’ll be going off of the pill so that I can get my bloodword done. But not being on the pill is going to scare the heck out of me about getting preg. I have got to get this out of me. I just want to feel like myself again. My family can see the change in me and they are worried. My husband and I have only been married 3.5 yrs now and we should be out doing things together, but I’m so darn tired all of the time. I’m so tired of hearing myself say that I’m so tired, my back hurts, my head hurts or look at all of the hair in the drain. This bloating in my mid section is horrendous! No matter what I do, I cannot seem to get the 35lbs off that I’ve gained only since having the Essure. I had gastric bypass in 2004 and had successfully and healthfully taken off 108 lbs and maintained a healthy weight until the Essure. I’m sick to stomach all of the time. I can’t believe the hell I’ve gone through all because I didn’t want to have anymore children. I just want my life back. It’s that simple.