Depo Provera

I have commented on many threads about birth control about my experience with Depo Provera and figured I'd share my story. I was on it for about nine years, and after I had been taking it for about six years, the FDA issued a new side effect warning saying it could cause bone loss. My doctor wasn't worried, so neither was I. In 2010 I fell at home and had to be rushed to the hospital for what turned out to be a broken hip. I was 28. I had emergency surgery and soon learned I had developed osteoporosis similar to that of an elderly woman. I spent an entire summer in a hospital bed in my living room, getting out of the house mainly for physical therapy.

My doctors believe Depo contributed to the bone loss, and I switched to the pill. I had been taking calcium, but my vitamin D levels were low; calcium doesn't get absorbed into your bones property without enough D. I changed my diet and exercise, and still take calcium and vitamin D. My bone mass has improved only slightly over the last five years and I'm likely to have osteoporosis for the rest of my life.

My endocrinologist has never put me on osteoporosis drugs; there is little research about how they work in younger women, especially those of child-bearing age. I put off TTC until last year, when my last bone density scan showed some improvement. I felt it wasn't a good idea to add a baby to the mix while I was still working on me.

My husband and I are expecting our first child, a boy, in early December. My obgyn isn't worried about my hip or osteoporosis, but I will admit I'm a little concerned. I truly regret ever taking Depo, and a hip fracture is not how you want to discover you have osteoporosis. I wish my doctor had thought to send me for a bone density scan before it was too late.