Renda's Story

I knew that I didn’t want to have children. Then I married my husband and he didn’t want children either so it was nice that we agreed.

I was tired of being on temporary methods of birth control. I had tried so many types of birth control over the years. I have been on several different types of birth control pills; I have tried condoms and sponges. I had the Norplant inserted in my arm and was on high levels of hormones for a couple of years. That was unpleasant. I had to have it taken out early. I had tried creams and foams, but I am allergic to some things. I was tired of dealing with it all.

My husband had planned on getting a vasectomy, but I was nervous about that because it requires an incision. On my annual checkup with my doctor, she asked me if I was happy with my current form of birth control. We started discussing our decision not to have children and she told me about Essure. She knew a doctor who performed the Essure procedure and she referred me to him. My husband was very supportive of my decision.

I went to the doctor’s office and they gave me I.V. sedation; I’m a big baby and can’t stand the thought of pain. The procedure went well. My husband took me home and I took a couple pain pills over a 24 hour span and then I took Midol and Pamprin a few times after that for cramping. I was back to my normal self in 24 hours.

The HSG test after 3 months was a little more painful than I expected. I think this was due to me not having given birth to children and also because I didn’t have pain medication. But it was really interesting to watch on the screen. I was relieved that 20 years of taking birth control was over for me. The HSG gave me the confidence that I could close that book in my life.

At first I didn’t tell a lot of people because people who have children want you to join them in having children. But, one-by-one I told my friends and they were extremely accepting of the decision we made.