Essure Procedure

While I sit here in bed at 1pm in the afternoon, I felt I should take this time to write this story while I wait for the medication to kick in to dull the pain so I may be able to go about my day. Hopefully it kicks in soon.

I got Essure implants at the urging of my OBGYN back in 2009 or around that time to prevent pregnancy while my body was entering pre-menopause. I was having horrible heavy periods that were coming back to back to back, so after several MD’s suggested hsyter’s I was very impressed with this young eager female MD trying to save me the experience of instant menopause and the pain from having a major surgery. Her suggestion was to have a hydroablation with the Essure implants, it was an outpatient procedure with no general anesthesia, and costs a lot less so win win!!

Well I was so desperate to get any relief that I went along with it. As soon as I got the office I knew that something was up. A rep from Essure was there to stand in and observe her doing this, which I thought was odd, but being a nurse, I appreciate educational opportunities. As she started the procedure, I immediately felt a sharp cramping, that only proceeded to get much much worse at it went on. I told her on several occasions I needed to take a break, to which she responded, ‘almost over, just hold on’ and kept going. As it was explained to me, this was only going to take an hr to do, it ended up being 2.5 hours of pure hell on a hard cold table with all of the staff basically coaxing me not to get up and run out of the room! I don’t know what was going on, but it sounded as if my MD didn’t know how to do it, and kept having to go over and over and over the position of the coils with this ‘rep’. they were whispering and I was in so much excruciating pain, I couldn’t see through my tears or focus on anything else but just surviving it. I had NO idea that this was an unapproved procedure, she never told me that. She also never told me that I could suffer from abdominal pain, bloating, cramps, relocation of the coils or all the other potential risks that are now coming to light. I feel like I was used as an experiment! Now I struggle daily with lethargy, constant pain, horrible discolored discharge, a RUINED sex life, and no one to listen to me other than to say I’m ‘menopausal’ and its hormonal. I am disgusted, depressed and fed up and just want these things OUT OF ME as soon as I can. Unfortunately, I have wait until I can afford financially to have it done unless Essure steps up and does something.

I will say I wish I heard from other older women who have had this, it seems like most other women are still child bearing age and its difficult to gauge my symptoms according to theirs. Would you consider having a sub group for older women so we can support one another too? Menopause is awful in itself, but I can not relate to the 20 somethings who are having child bearing issues, it just breaks my heart too much to read on a daily basis the suffering they are having on top of my own issues that I am trying to deal with.

Thanks very much for all your hard work and dedication to this cause. I look forward to following this closely and finally getting some relief for all of us who are suffering in silence.