I’ve never been on any birth control so please feel free to give me a little educational lesson. Tell me your experience with the birth control you’ve been on and if you’d recommend it.

Ideally I don’t want to be on any birth control, I know there are too many long term side effects. Definitely looking forward to male birth control reaching the market so us ladies can catch a break for once🥲

38 comments

  3. Here’s the lame but true answer: Whatever works best for you.

    That might be pills. But some people react poorly to the pill and lose sex drive or gain weight. Try it. See if it is okay. Norplant is similar situation. Or a patch. So maybe IUD, but some people hate that, it hurts. So, condoms, but some guys hate condoms (tough! You are getting laid). Bonus on condoms is that they prevent numerous STIs, too.

    Timing and pull out methods are very unreliable. Don’t go that route unless you like getting Mother’s Day cards.

  6. Whatever works for you.

    For me the pill have worked for almost 10 years now. It had positive side effects. Helped clear up my skin and of course not becoming pregnant. Pretty big plus. Lighter periods and less pain. But I think my sexdrive taken a little hit. But it’s still worth it for me.

  7. Never had any issues with taking the pill (no noticeable side effects), but you have to take it every day consistently.

    IUD was very nice because I didn’t have my period for a few years and I never had to think about taking anything. But insertion was painful and it made me gain weight more easily.

    Side effects vary from person to person of course.

  8. I have migraines with aura so when I went to get birth control for the first time at 18, they somewhat pressured me into getting a hormonal IUD (the clinician refused to give me the mini pill even after I repeatedly said I wasn’t comfortable with an IUD so it was that or nothing). Pros: somewhat lighter periods Cons: Insertion was *very* painful. It migrated out of my uterus and into my abdominal cavity. I was bleeding/ on my period nearly continuously for 2 years and had to have it surgically removed. Given that it wasn’t where it should be in my uterus, it also wouldn’t have been effective birth control.

    Tried a low estrogen pill several months after that. Pros: Lighter periods. Cons: It somehow made me period super irregular despite me taking it exactly as instructed. Also made me severely depressed and suicidal. Symptoms stopped nearly immediately after discontinuing use.

    Basically between those two experiences nearly all forms of birth control are now ruled out for me which definitely sucks. Lots of people have positive experiences with birth control and I don’t share these things to scare people, just to be transparent about risks I wish I’d known more about. Most people don’t have such extreme issues. Hope everything works out for you 🙂

  9. Whatever works for you.

    I was fine with the pill until I always started forgetting it. I never had side effects from it.

    Now I am using a ring, which also seems like a good option. I was always scared I would maybe lose it while having sex, but I didn’t and you don’t even notice it while intercourse.

    Ultimately I want to get a sterilisation or if possible even a hysterectomy, so this would be the ultimate form of birth control for me – but not for ppl who someday might want children of their own.

    I guess the birth control with least complications would be a Vasectomy, but that’s on your male partner – if he wants to do it.

  10. I have the IUD. Thought I was gonna die when they put it in, but now I don’t even think about birth control at all. I have the non hormonal one too – so I’m not up and down with the hormones.

  11. Agree with everyone saying it’s what works best for you. In my case I love the copper IUD. I was on pills for years but was constantly stressing about interactions, taking it late, etc. The IUD insertion was awful but it’s a huge peace of mind now.

  12. It took a long time of trial and error. IUD insertion was hell, I wouldn’t recommend it. I have endometriosis so I need birth control to prevent periods – I have nexplanon and it’s worked really well for me. The insertion was not the best tbh, but worlds less painful than an iud. It was just directly beside my face and you see them to it which was not fun. I have much fewer periods now, often skipping them, and they aren’t as painful or heavy. It’s all individual but I highly recommend nexplanon.

  13. I never see people talk about the patch as an option. Im currently on the patch and have been for about 2 yrs now, and has worked really well for me. You wear the patch for 3 weeks and the 4th week you dont wear a patch you get your period. Its less stress because you only have to change it once a week and you know when you will get your period. And whenever or if you ever decide you are ready to get pregnant, you get your fertility back quicker than with other bc.

    The only other bc I have used is the implant, i had to get off of it after a year because i didn’t stop bleeding. Im not good with taking pills at a set schedule so the bc pills were not an option😂.

  15. I got on with the copper coil for years after so many struggles with hormonal IUDS/pills! It was painful when it went in but then I didn’t have to think about contraception which made it worth it for me 🙂

  17. Condoms alone for us, at first. At the time I didn’t complain, but I’m glad we haven’t used them for about 30 years. We had one scare, but didn’t change anything even after that.

    Then she was on the pill until we started having kids. No other protection used for those 5 years. No concerns.

    After our last was born she got an UID. No secondary protection. Been good for 20 years. She had brutal periods but the Mirena pretty much made them disappear—she was happy about that.

  18. The arm implant is dope as hell. I didn’t have any side effects or pregnancy scares.

  22. I honestly don’t use birth control but track my ovulation + pull out and haven’t had any pregnancy scares in over 2 years. I use the FLO app and don’t have sex on blue days.

  24. Op, if your priority is to avoid side effects to your mood or sex drive, the copper IUD (paragard) is the only non-hormonal birth control. This is what I have and I’m happy with it

    Pros:
    only replace once every 10 years
    99.9% effective
    Non-hormonal so no mood side effects, only side effect is heavier period potentially

    Cons:
    Heavier/longer bleeding with period. I’ve found it starts out very heavy initially after getting the IUD but comes almost back to normal periods after 6 months. Anecdotally, my friend had the same experience. I had relatively light/medium period flow of 5 days total before IUD so maybe it would be a bigger concern for those with heavy flow /longer periods
    Rare potential of IUD displacement (to mitigate this there should be a 1 month follow up from the initial placement)

  26. This is really going to be a case of “whatever works best for you”. Personally, I never wanted to be on birth control, so I always just used condoms for birth control. I know that’s a bit riskier, but I was okay with that level of risk.

    I also read the book Taking Charge of Your Fertility to learn the fertility awareness method. The truth is, you can only get pregnant about one week out of the month. If you chart your cycles with basal body temperature and cervical fluid, you will know when it’s safe to have unprotected sex. With that said, I would only recommend this method if you’re in a long term relationship where a pregnancy wouldn’t be the end of the world.

    In most cases, I recommend just using condoms all the time, which also has the added benefit of protection against STDs. But birth control is a personal decision and you have to choose what’s right for you.

  27. I have the arm implant. I love it. I honestly forget it’s there sometimes. It didn’t hurt too bad when getting it inserted, and it lasts for three years. It’s 99% effective but you should still wear condoms IMO.

    I was too scared to have an IUD from all the horror stories I’ve heard, and I have a very low pain tolerance. I used to be on the pill but I’d constantly end up forgetting to take it.

    Just to reiterate what everyone else is saying, it usually comes down to whatever works best for you. I’d definitely recommend the arm implant tho!

  28. Birth control is very personal so I won’t push you in any direction, but this is my experience.

    The pill: it needs to be taken the same time every day for it to be at max effectiveness. I really struggled with this and was always terrified I’d messed up and wasn’t covered. It also would make me feel sick to my stomach sometimes.

    Nuva Ring: needs to be changed every few weeks. Can be felt during sex if by a partners penis or fingers. I liked it as a method though.

    IUD: hands down the best personal medical choice I’ve made. I have had an iud for the past 8 years and will probably have one until I decide I want kids. The insertion was painful, but luckily was a short process. I felt fine after a day or two. I love the lack of user error and feel completely covered pregnancy wise (does not protect against STDs). The strings can occasionally be felt by my partner during sex but they soften after a few weeks and aren’t very pokey anymore. Some people don’t get their periods at all – I occasionally get some spotting that lasts about a 2-3 days. Maybe once a year I get what I call a “full period” and will bleed for 4-5 days.

  31. Copper IUD is what I use and it works great. The insertion sucked and my period is pretty gnarly, but at least I’m not pregnant, I don’t have bad side effects, and I don’t have to think about it.

  32. It’s not available everywhere but I have the dermal implant Nexplanon. The procedure itself was relatively pain free as they freeze the area but if it’s not wrapped taut after you’ll have a wicked bruise. From day of insertion it’s good for 3 years & is progesterone only, so safe for people with migraine with aura. I originally had it in my left arm but have some nerve damage that it seemed to exacerbate; had it removed and then another implanted the following year in my right and haven’t had any issues after just over 2 months. Periods are a still all over the map but previously it took 4 months and then I was down to a 2-3 day but some people don’t have one at all. It’s super small, kind of fun to show people? Haha. I hate taking a pill everyday and had bad experiences with IUDs so I’m happy to have found something that works for me/my life/my body.

    Hope you find something that works for you!

  34. I also have the arm implant and I love it. Insertion wasn’t bad at all and took like 2 minutes. I absolutely cannot get any IUDs because anything internal in that area freaks me tf out and I’ve heard stories of it migrating or dislodging or getting hit during activities. I didn’t want the shot because I didn’t like the fact that if I had a bad reaction to it I couldn’t take it out or stop taking it, just stuck with it til it wears off. I took the bc pill in high school and it worked fine but I was too young to really care or pay attention to if it did anything to me. I also wasn’t very good at taking it at the same time every day. I went on a crunchy phase and didn’t want anything hormonal, because I thought it caused my hormonal acne so there was quite a few years I wasn’t on anything. After having my second baby I decided to try bc again because I don’t like condoms and I was afraid of getting pregnant right away. I also have migraines with aura so that ruled out the pill, and I was breastfeeding so they didn’t want me to take that anyways for a few weeks. Implant it was and I’ve been very happy with it. Usually my acne comes back when my period comes back after having a baby, and idk if it’s because I’m breastfeeding still or a combo of that plus the implant but my period hasn’t come back yet and I hope it never does. 14 months pp (it came back at 9 months with my first when I wasn’t on any bc and breastfeeding the same amount. )

  35. So I was around when pills were developed (yup, that old). The hormones were stronger than they are now. Dosages got refined over the years. Still, the only side effect was slight weight gain (5-8 lbs) and besides the obvious benefit, my periods lessened in flow & pain.

    At 35, because of age & I smoked, had to go Low Dose pills. Same benefits & side effects. Problem for me was you’re supposed to take it same time every day and missing one day compromised effectiveness…which terrified me.

    If I missed a day, I would use a contraceptive Sponge, single use BC, which I could get Over the Counter. No side effects, easy to use EXCEPT could be a challenge to remove sometimes.

    So ended up changing to Depo Provera, a shot 4 times per year and absolutely LOVED it. Again, no side effects and since no ovulation, no periods. Stayed on this until past menopause (well & truly past, so no oops babies).

    You know, gathering opinions is fine but good research with reputable resources is better. Remember, everyone is different, so the only opinion that matters is yours (& your Gynecologist).

    https://www.plannedparenthood.org/learn/birth-control

  37. Vasectomy. Depending on your age and your relationship situation have your person get a vasectomy, its relatively painless, more discomfort than actual pain for 2-3 days, is basically 100% permanent and for my wife and I (no kids, never want any) it’s been a godsend for us both to never have to worry every month whether she’s pregnant or not.

  38. I love my copper IUD. Yes, insertion hurts, but 5 minutes of pain is totally worth non hormonal bc for 10 years.

    I was on the pill for a long time and just didn’t want to deal with the side effects anymore. I was on this one pill, I forget which one…if you looked at me wrong I’d start crying 🙄

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