‘I knew it was still inside me’: Doctors ‘lost’ contraceptive coil inside 29-year-old mum-of-one… until a chance X-ray 12 years later revealed it was lodged in her bottom
A mother of two claims she had to play hide and seek with her contraceptive IUD for 12 years after doctors lost it.
Daniella Hampton had an IUD inserted into her uterus in 2009, but she says she was told six weeks later that the IUD had fallen out.
The 29-year-old woman from New Orleans, Louisiana, US, explained that doctors told her they could not feel the threads attached to it and that nothing could be seen on an ultrasound.
But the health insurer said she “never stopped believing” the IUD remained in her body and that she felt “rejected” by doctors who never took her claims of pain in her rectum seriously.
For nine years, she couldn’t understand why she couldn’t get pregnant. It wasn’t until she had an X-ray after a car accident in April 2021 that the IUD was discovered in her colon. The IUD had migrated there after perforating her uterus.
Daniella Hampton, 29, had an IUD inserted into her uterus in 2009, but claims she was told six weeks later that it had fallen out.
In April 2024, she finally gave birth to her second son, Champion Hampton (pictured)
For nine years she couldn’t understand why she couldn’t get pregnant and it wasn’t until she had an x-ray after a car accident in April 2021 that the IUD was discovered in her colon, having perforated her uterus.
An operation to remove the IUD in September 2021 brought ‘relief’ for Mrs Hampton and three years later, in April 2024, she finally gave birth to her second son, Champion Hampton.
“It was crazy. It was more shocking than the actual injury,” she said.
‘The doctors told me they had noticed a misplaced coil. Then I looked at the x-rays myself and thought, “Wow, that can’t be in me anymore.”
“I finally felt like I wasn’t crazy. The surgery was optional, but at that moment I just wanted that foreign object out of my body.
‘The strings and everything was still intact, the doctor pulled it out.
‘There was a sense of relief that I knew for sure it was gone. It was scary though.
“I definitely felt better once I got it out and knew it wasn’t in there. I was curious to see if I would feel any different.”
The health insurer said she “never stopped believing” the IUD remained in her body and that she felt “rejected” by doctors who never took her claims of pain in her rectum seriously.
She had an x-ray done in April 2021 after a car accident and the results were ‘more shocking’ than the injuries
Mrs. Hampton explained that the coil was still intact, including the strings, which doctors had been unable to find years earlier.
She took to social media to share photos of her x-rays. In the Facebook post she said: ‘Trust your body ladies. I always knew it was in me but I couldn’t prove it.’
In the message, Ms Hampton said: ‘It was like playing hide and seek with the IUD for 12 years. It was quite traumatic. I had an implant in my arm for two years at the same time.
‘I felt my hormones going crazy. I had mood swings. Now I know I was on two forms of birth control that definitely went hand in hand [until I had the implant removing after two years].
‘I never stopped believing it was still there. I had told other providers, but when I told them I had had the ultrasound, they thought nothing of it.
‘In the years that followed I had sharp pains in my rectal area. I always felt like it was there, but I was told it wasn’t.
‘I felt absolutely rejected and unheard. It was discouraging. I just went along with it.
‘I was going crazy because I was like, “What’s wrong with my body?” I couldn’t understand it. It was really crazy.’
Mrs Hampton, pictured with her 15-year-old son Tyrik Jones, was originally told the coil had simply fallen out
Three years after surgery to have it removed in April 2024, she finally gave birth to her second son, Champion Hampton, who is not yet three months old
Ms Hampton admits the experience made her stop using contraception and she regrets not trying to prove to doctors that the IUD was still inside her. She urges other women to trust their bodies.
Ms Hampton admitted that she believes the IUD prevented her from getting pregnant for nine years, as it was no ‘coincidence’ that she did get pregnant after the IUD was removed.
“I was told that wasn’t the reason, but to this day I believe it was,” she said.
She added: ‘I tried to get pregnant for nine years and it didn’t work. And here I am now… I don’t think it was a coincidence.
‘It was unknown if I would be able to get pregnant again. I thought “am I crazy, what am I doing wrong”. I was in my fertile years. It’s a happy ending’
However, she admits that the experience has made her stop using contraception and she regrets not trying to prove to doctors that the IUD was still inside her. She urges other women to trust their bodies.
Ms Hampton said: ‘I think it’s brave when people insist and go the extra mile to get it investigated. I certainly should have done that. I was young and naive and trusted my doctor. I believed what she said.
‘I really feel like everyone’s body is different, but this is definitely not the first time I’ve seen this happen. I feel like it’s my duty to share what happened to me.
“It’s gotten me off birth control. The only form of birth control I use that I feel comfortable with is the pill, because I know I can stop it at any time.”