Hormones do NOT mix well with me. The depo shot turned me into a mess, gain weight, crying and overreacting, bloated, hair thinned and i bled for two months heavy as hell. The pill i just couldn't remember to take and now it's too expensive to keep up with. I'm too much of a baby to get the implant those things freak me out. At the moment I have the copper IUD. I chose it for how long it lasts and that its hormone free. I've had it for over 2 years. I cramp all the time, i was told after a year they would go back to normal and that never happened. If i work hard and walk on my feet for long periods of a time i cramp so bad. sometimes it's so bad I feel like i cant stand up and it takes my breath away. I can't take it any longer, also getting it put in was the worse pain ive ever experienced, she had a hard time putting it in, i was shaky and crying. It's like $150 to get planed parenthood to take it out, and im so scared to its gonna be bad again. I really want to go birth control free, my boyfriend and I are not ready for a baby idk if we ever will be. not with my work and money struggles. Is it possible to just keep track of ovulation and and stir clear of windows that I'm fertile? does that work for anyone else?