A friend of my told me he and his girlfriend are traveling to Montreal for an IUD because they offer numbing and sedation. I was FLOORED. I’m furious that they feel they had to do this. I’m happy they have the means to. I’m furious again that this isn’t standard, at least in the States. Why is this so hard for the OBGYN medical community to wrap their heads around? We should be pointing our fingers at Canada and demand the same!
From some research online, pain experiences are variable and there is no singular approach to IUD insertion. There are some shortcomings in the first study as it doesn’t show pain levels in the days after, but it does a better job of quantifying that most women feel less pain than they expect to receive. Sedation should be available to those who need it, and I think our definitions of what constitutes as inhumane are different and I’m okay with that.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5683140/
https://www.cbc.ca/radio/whitecoat/iud-pain-birth-control-1.6480281
I appreciate the links. And yes, I agree there is no singular approach just like there is no singular type of uterus, cervix etc… I should clarify that I do agree sedation is an edge case necessity for some women. But something like a lidocaine paracervical block should be offered just like you would be offered it at the dentist for cavity fillings.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6438819/