Denied Numbing Shot and Terrible IUD Replacement Experience
I recently went to get my IUD, the Mirena, replaced. I got my first one while I was in high school and had it removed/replaced once before for reasons that don’t matter to this story. I mention this because I have experience with this process. I was expecting the sense of pressure and cramping like what happened last time, but this recent visit was absolutely terrible, and I plan to report my doctor for it.
I have experienced sexual trauma in the past, so I was more nervous about this whole process. I asked the nurse if there were any pain medications or a numbing agent I could take for the procedure. I had already taken some over-the-counter pain relievers beforehand, but I was hoping for something stronger. She told the doctor about it and the doctor agreed to it.
She prepared me by inserting that tool, I don’t know what it is called, but it’s the device they use to open you up basically. As I’m already half naked, with the tool inserted in me, in a very vulnerable position, she could tell I was nervous. She then said that she didn’t think I needed the shot of the numbing agent, I think it was lidocaine, because she was fast and that my fears were just emotional.
She said to me “Let us test your pain tolerance and see if you need it.”
I am angry at myself for not saying something against that or advocating for myself, but I felt so stressed already.
Then it felt like she yanked the damn IUD out. I immediately started tearing up and put my hands over my eyes to give myself some form of comfort. Then she said “Okay let us give you the shot since you are sensitive.”
I was so upset that she didn’t give it to me earlier. Like, why bother testing for my pain tolerance when I specifically requested the damn numbing agent? The shot itself didn’t hurt, but I was already crying by that point. She did the rest of the interaction quickly, and thankfully I didn’t really feel it, but it was already too late. I was overwhelmed and just crying.
After they got me cleaned up, I was just crying in the doctor’s office. I think the doctor realized she messed up because she told me I could stay in the office for as long as I wanted. I could also tell the nurse was not happy with the doctor’s actions.
They left, and after some time, the nurse and doctor came back separately to check up on me. I was in the office for maybe 10 minutes, just trying to collect myself.
I got home, and the doctor even called me to make sure I was okay. Physically, I knew I was fine because it was the normal feeling of having an IUD inserted, like the after effects. But emotionally I was completely spent.
I feel like I shouldn’t have to explain my life story just to get some form of pain medication and she should have just given me the damn shot when I asked for it. I don’t think reporting her will change anything. I think I just want to do it because it might make me feel better. I don’t have that much faith in the medical system, but part of me does hope that moving forward this doctor will just provide the shot when a patient asks for it.
She was so aggressive that I didn’t even experience the normal pressure and cramping feeling that I remember from when I got this done before. It felt completely different.
I am hesitant to say that I was traumatized by the experience, but I cried for like 10 minutes afterward, so I don’t know. Was I retraumatized? I honestly don’t know.
This just happened this week, so I’m still collecting my thoughts about it. I’ll definitely be talking to my therapist about it too.