“I passed out from the pain”: women talk about wearing a spiral

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Lisa Christ’s Instagram post begins with this: “Dear gentlemen, if you have sex with women or people with a womb and don’t want to have children, please read this post.” There, the slam poet and author recounts his experiences with birth control pills—or, as he puts it on the phone, his “road adventure”: “Since I was 18 years old, one birth control method has been chasing the other,” says Christ. “And with each comes a new problem.”

The problem in her case is primarily pain. Christ reports how painful the insertion of the hormone spiral is despite the pain medication. It was even worse with the “copper ball”, a method in which copper balls are inserted into the uterus. This happened with full consciousness: “It hurt me a lot. Also with painkillers,” the 32-year-old writes.

Now, six years later, the Zurich woman would have to remove the copper ball again. Except that the removal threads have disappeared, which is why Christ has to undergo an operation. “This was the last straw,” she wrote in her Instagram post, because in 2023 a woman shouldn’t be so “nonsense” about contraception that there aren’t even better alternatives for men. And because he didn’t want to believe it was an isolated case.

Many people report

The fact that it wasn’t, in fact, shows the close to 500 comments under the Instagram post that gathered together in a very short time, for example: “A few years ago I was rudely shaken and pulled and told while removing the spiral. I shouldn’t do that when I scream like spit,” writes one user. : “Despite the painkillers – I passed out while putting on the IUD from the pain. I was accused of hearing my screams in the waiting room.” Another woman: “I had more pain when inserting the spiral than in childbirth.”

Pain, anger, ignorance: the comments to Christ’s message are full of them. There, women also state that they clearly wanted local anesthesia but could not get it, although it is standard in other countries. Looking at the websites of the offices in Germany or Austria, it is seen that the IUD can be inserted under local anesthesia.

Many women not only complain that they are not given anesthesia. They also feel that their pain is not taken seriously. In fact, several studies speak of the so-called “gender pain gap,” where doctors tend to take women’s pain less seriously.

This was also confirmed by Carole Clair, a physician and co-head of the Medicine and Gender Unit at the Center for General Medicine and Public Health at the University of Lausanne.

Clair’s research covers issues of gender sensitivity and stereotypes in medicine. She says: “When women voice pain, professionals tend to normalize it. Others feel that these are overemphasized.” And this has consequences: Women were often prescribed fewer or lower doses of pain relievers.

They have special needs for such drugs. Because: Many studies show that women are more sensitive to pain than men. For example, the German Pain Society assumes that women have a lower threshold for painful stimuli than men and perceive less strong stimuli as painful.

Of course, pain should be taken seriously, says gynecologist Sibil Tschudin. She is a senior doctor at the Basel University Hospital women’s clinic. She has used many birth control pills in her 30-year career. “I always say insertion can be uncomfortable and sometimes even painful.” It depends on the anatomy of the uterus and also on the perception of pain, which is a very subjective thing.

Tschudin advises his patients to take pain relievers before and after the procedure. It is even more important to accompany the patient well: “I give information about each step during the insertion of the spiral, I ask how the patient is feeling, sometimes I stop when he needs a break.” This gives the patient more control. “If it doesn’t work at all, I’ll leave,” she says.

Local anesthesia is rarely appropriate

Local anesthesia is possible, but rarely done. According to the gynecologist, this is because anesthesia does not relieve pain on the inside of the cervix or in the upper part of the uterine cavity – both of which are particularly pain-sensitive areas: “Of course you don’t feel any pain with general anesthesia,” says Tschudin. But this is complex, expensive, and often not covered by health insurance companies.

Would the reality be different if men were given birth control? Carole Clair says at least the perception of pain will likely be taken more seriously. And Lisa Christ was convinced: “If men could get pregnant, everything would look different.”

The Slam poet does not want to generalize: “I realize that most gynecologists are doing their best.” Still, she wants to draw attention to the invisible pain suffered by many women.

“I’d love to see further development of birth control methods, including for men,” says Christ. Until then, women should dare to talk about their painful experiences.

Source : Blick