A woman whose birth control proved ineffective is calling her newborn baby her “Mirena baby.”
Lucy Hellein of Fort Mitchell, Alabama, gave birth to her son, Dexter, on April 27.
A photo uploaded on Hellein's Instagram account shows the baby was 9 pounds, 1 ounce and was 21.5 inches at birth.
But there’s something unique about Dexter’s birth -- behind the placenta, which is attached to the wall of a pregnant woman’s uterus, doctors found a Mirena IUD, fully intact.
The IUD was placed in Dexter’s hand for an ironic photo opp.
Hellein said Dexter, who was born at Martin Army Community Hospital in Fort Benning, Georgia, is a blessing. She jokingly called her son’s birth a “Mirena fail.”
“It’s next to impossible (to get pregnant),” Planned Parenthood nurse practitioner, Laura Ghasseminia told WTLV in regard to IUDs. “You have a better chance of winning the lotto.”
IUDs are said to be one of the most effective forms of birth controls. Mirena is said to be over 99 percent effective.
Hellein told WTLV her doctor thinks she might have gotten pregnant three weeks after the IUD was placed. Ghasseminia said Hellein may have been pregnant before the IUD was inserted.
Dr. Leena Nathan, an OBGYN and assistant clinical professor for the University of California at Los Angeles told Snopes that though it's rare, doctors sometimes find failed IUDs in a pregnant woman's uterus after her child is delivered. Pregnancies with IUDs still in the uterus can be risky.
Hellein told WTLV that doctors knew about the IUD in her uterus during her pregnancy but couldn't find it when they went to remove it.
Hellein told WTLV her original due date was May 4, also known as Star Wars Day.
“So, the doctor was like, ‘The force is strong with this one,’” she said.
Hellein, who already had three children, said she has effectively used Mirena in the past.
