Gabriela DeBues–Stafford opens up about the injury keeping her out of world champs
Persistent post-injury pain after DeBues–Stafford's recent races in Europe led to a surprising discovery about its source
Photo by:
Kevin Morris
The two-time Olympian and seven-time Canadian record holder Gabriela DuBues-Stafford will miss the World Athletics Championships for the second year in a row after recurring pain in her sacrum, but this time she discovered a surprising source–her IUD.
IUD, or intrauterine device, is a long-lasting and trusted form of birth control; most IUD’s can be left in place for years before needing to be replaced, and many athletes find them to be a convenient and reliable method of birth control. In 2022, DeBues learned she had a stress reaction in her sacrum shortly before the world championships in Oregon. While she recovered from her injury and returned to competition, DeBues–Stafford found herself once again dealing with sacral pain.”My SI joint got extremely inflamed and painful to the point that I could not walk,” she shared on Instagram. “Thankfully, an MRI and bone scan showed that the sacrum was healthy, but the osteitis pubis (inflammation of the pubis symphysis) was still present.”
While DeBues-Stafford and her coaching team were relieved she was not suffering from another stress fracture, they were frustrated with their inability to relieve her pain. “This was extremely discouraging and puzzling as this pain was not responding in a predictable way and didn’t really make sense,” she says.
Prepared to try anything, DeBues–Stafford decided to have her IUD removed. “I was hopeful that removing the IUD would allow me to better and more efficiently recruit these muscles in my pelvis,” she explains. “What I was not expecting, was that within 90 minutes of having my IUD removed, the persistent pain that I had had in my SI joint for the past 5+ weeks was nearly gone.”
DeBues–Stafford says she was reluctant to share her experience, because she has concerns about contributing to fear around the topic of birth control. “I know so many people who have really bad period symptoms where performance suffers, and getting an IUD is a game changer,” she told Canadian Running. “However, I also think it’s important to have an open discussion about potential weird side effects one can have.”
While DeBues–Stafford won’t be ready to compete in the 2023 world champs this month in Budapest, she is relieved to have discovered the source of her pain and to be able to return to training. “I can now see a path forward to full recovery,” she shared. “In my runs, I feel connected to my body and recognize the way it moves again, and that fills me with so much hope and joy.”
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