The Birth Control Thread - Because Aunty Flow Motherfucking Blows
- Thread starter lurk_moar
- Start date
Just to counter this I say don't have kids at all. Unexpected and even planned children more often than not tank lives. but...
I agree with this statement so I really have nothing to say.
Normally I would agree, but look at this gudboye below...
Thank you for sacking up for your girl. You'd be surprised how few men are willing to do so.
Isnt it uh, natural for a boyfriend to look out for his gf?Normally I would agree, but look at this gudboye below...
Thank you for sacking up for your girl. You'd be surprised how few men are willing to do so.
Sriracha
kiwifarms.net
Birth control is kind of a roulette.
It'd be good if you're consistent with condoms but I cannot stress enough how fucked up she'll be after taking Plan B if the condom slips or you end up not using one on a whim. Plan B is rough on the body.
If she does end up going on birth control, try out the pill for a month and if she has a rough reaction to it, don't let her keep using it and try a different birth control. Every one I've spoken to has said that hormonal birth control wise, they were most comfortable with the Depo shot but every single time one of my friends has accidentally gotten pregnant, they were on the shot. IUDs are great and very effective and it's also the smallest amount of hormone out of all of them but the first 6 months are absolutely shit. I wouldn't recommend the non-hormonal/copper IUD because periods are fucked when you get them.
As an added precaution I'd tell her to install an app like Flo so she knows when she has to be a bit more careful. It's not 100% accurate by any means but it's a helpful guideline.
Thanks, I'll be sure to send this right on over to her.
I wanna make sure she lives a comfy life with me.
You'd be surprised how many guys prefer to bareback in a committed relationship because HUR BURF CUNTROL (ha ha) and never realize how shitty hormonal BC can be for some women.
Other women do fine on BC and don't like condoms either, so YMMV.
I just think it's sweet that you're considerate about this issue without her even having to say anything.
Well I try my best, that and I don't really wanna knock her up and ruin her plans at life.
Even before this thread I was always super cautious during sex.
Lichen Bark
kiwifarms.net
I always thought hormonal birth control reduced your sex drive. Then again I'm learning there are about as many hormonal controls as there are jellybean flavors. On the one hand no condom feels breddy gud, but then conversely you're also not as hot n ready anymore...Is this a common thing? If you go off and on it, do you notice a change in sex drive?
I have to say though, with the internet, you have access to like 8 million different condom types, and believe it or not, after some trial and error you can find some good ones.
I have to say though, with the internet, you have access to like 8 million different condom types, and believe it or not, after some trial and error you can find some good ones.
Autopsy
kiwifarms.net
Hello, non-uterus haver here to drop sound advice because at least the first couple pages of this thread are a bit odd.
Many of the people in this thread are taking the pill to stave off PMS, which is a valid reason to prefer that form of contraception. IUDs, even copper, are a peculiar recommendation because (while imminently effective) they worsen PMS and the procedure isn't exactly the safest.
If you are in a stable, monogamous relationship, or if you have regular fuckboys who are at least sane, you should consider the best form on contraception, pulling out™.
Just kidding! The real trick to contraceptive safety is combination of methods and reliable practice. Fertility awareness is incredibly effective with perfect use and should be the base of any combination, including being "on the pill," which has its drawbacks. The FDA has finally approved an app that allows you to track fertility with no special knowledge on your part, because we live in the future, where smartphones know when you're going to get knocked up. You can also track it yourself for free with a bit of a learning curve.
Combining perfect use of this method (no "cheating") with pulling out, and emergency contraceptives when your partner fails to pull out, is approximately as reliable as an IUD alone, and requires none of the risks/downsides. Adding on condoms and using them reliably, or using them in lieu of pulling out, drops the rate to near-zero pregnancies per hundred per year, which is far better than the pill. If you have a chunk of cash, lambskin condoms don't feel like latex do, and you can hardly tell they're there once they're wet. There are other alternative materials/formulations as well, so if this is news to you, take a look.
As implied above, I recommend avoiding hormonal therapy if you don't have pressing need for it, there are legitimate issues with long-term and constant use. As with any therapy, weigh the ups and downs. Lifestyle modification as above should always be your go-to first, but if you feel that you can't handle nonpharmacological means of reducing PMS pain/they're ineffective, or that you don't have the time & effort to put into fertility awareness (this is nothing to be ashamed of), birth control is a legitimate option and likely the best for you.
Edit:
Just to address some of the fear, I am not aware of a single case of a rape victim with an IUD already planted becoming pregnant; in fact, sexual assault is one of the compelling indications to get an IUD*, which is why you should always tell your doc these things even if you don't go to the cops.
As for why, it's because that scenario is a cross-section of two rare happenings, and IUDs only fail about 0.5% of the time (1 in 200) as long as they are changed out at or before their expiration date.
It should also be said that this failure rate is not evenly distributed across patients. If you have had sex several times and didn't get pregnant with your IUD, you are even more unlikely to become pregnant from further occasions, because failure is foremost a facet of IUD placement and movement within the body during the procedure, not sudden random chance sperm going Super Saiyan and surviving the copper. For example, with the ParaGard, the majority of unintended pregnancies happen in the first two years, with the rate dramatically decreasing after that (because those patients clearly have well seated/appropriate IUD).
I would not recommend ablation in addition to IUD unless you fall into the category that has a compelling need that outweighs the risks, which is women with debilitating PMS. It's more of an alternative for people who use hormones for PMS control, but where hormones have totally failed.
*IUD double as emergency contraceptives in the same timeframe where emergency pills work, and are more effective & reliable than emergency contraceptive pills, so the health calculus starts to lean in its favor after an assault despite the inherent risks of the procedure.
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Medical professionals giving actual advice 'n shit are exempt from the non-uterus rule.
Autopsy
kiwifarms.net
In the case of PCOS, hormonal contraceptives are elevated from a second-line therapy for PMS distress to a valid first-line therapy, also assisting with other menstrual problems, acne, inappropriate hair growth, etc. endemic to PCOS. Answering your question more directly, "it makes PCOS suck less."
You should take hormonal contraceptives at the same time as you practice lifestyle modification (weight control & better sleep), not instead of it. PCOS requires both.
If you have other problems that preclude taking birth control, or don't want to take contraceptives because you do want to have kids, you should take metformin alone and see how it goes. (+-letrozole to promote ovulation)
If you can't take hormones but you still don't want kids, the combo is metformin+spironolactone, provided with an effective contraceptive that isn't hormonal (because spironolactone is dangerous to fetal development).
Metformin may be reasonable to add to therapy with standard hormonal contraceptive therapy if you have D2M, or feel ill at higher glucose levels.
Edit: while I'm at it, I should clarify that these are all referring to oral progesterone birth control.
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183 baras
kiwifarms.net
Worked like a miracle: ovaries returned to normal sizes, no cysts inside and on them, no soul crushing pain with vomiting and fever. Quality of life is greatly improved.
Sadly, birth control can punch you with side effects and sometimes it punches you hard. Like hypercoagulation. If I had a choise, I'd avoid oral birth control, honestly. If your PCOS is severe, then you really should visit your doctor for ultrasound examination and blood tests.
Autopsy
kiwifarms.net
Not all progestogens are created equally, and as with many types of medication, patients may see benefit from "shopping around" for the one that has (subjectively) the fewest side effects.
Without going into much detail on why, GPs and even some specialists have the unfortunate tendency to wait months while their patients are on the same medication, waiting for their side effects to magically ~go away~, and then abandon the drug class entirely when that doesn't happen. In reality, you can get fantastic results by quickly swapping between drugs in the same drug class or similar conforming drug classes as unacceptable side effects arise, and finding the one that "for whatever reason" feels best to you. Sometimes even a different formulation (in this case injectable progesterone vs oral progesterone) can make a difference.
Talk with your doctor about moving to a different contraceptive, especially a testosterone-derived one (norgestimate) or a 19-nor derivative (trimegestone), what that might do to your side effect profile, and what types of side effects (nausea, bloating, mood issues) you personally find most/least acceptable.
Be aware that doctors' recommendations typically factor in price and accessibility as a primary goal of their initial drug choice, and tend to be unaccustomed with the idea that patients may be willing/capable to pay slightly more every month if it means a better QOL.
183 baras
kiwifarms.net
In my case that's just an unfortunate combination of PCOS and gene mutation. I'm taking blood tests and on contact with hematologist, with additional meds everything improved. I'm also not in EU or US, so my choice might be short anyway, but thank you for the information, I'll look into it more!
georgyjobe
kiwifarms.net
My experience with hormonal BC seems to be in the upper percentile of "good times," but I lost a substantial amount of weight without trying, regained my period + had period regularity so better iron, greatly improved my acne and cysts, and possibly stabilized my mood (possibly because I was, I think, 20 when I started, so I might have just been stabilizing in general.)
I've switched brands a few times but have always been on the combo pill btw.
Is nobody going to mention how hormones in the pill leak into our water supply and don't get filtered out? As much talk as there is about how men should have no say in the pill considering its indirectly contributing to the whole population's hormones being imbalanced, I think it needs to be discussed more by everyone. Alex Jones wasn't entirely wrong about the frogs turning gay. Look it up.
Azovka
kiwifarms.net
It's supposed to bring your hormone levels back to normal, and thus reduce acné, unwanted hair growth etc. It won't give you a cycle though - the bleeding you experience from the 21-day pill is just a "fake" period, induced by the hormone withdrawal, not an actual one. So basically, it won't cure PCOS, but it will lessen the symptoms that come with it.
With that being said, the pill does come with unwanted side effects that may or may not show themselves for you, so if it feels wrong, talk about it with your doctor and don't hesitate to change. There are two types of pills - "mini" ones that only have progesterone, or else combined (progesterone and oestrogen), and some might not work as well as others for your particular type of situation. And make sure to do blood work once a year at least to see if it impacts your cholesterol & triglyceride levels (it did for me).
Also, what I wish I had done before getting put on the pill was simply check my hormone levels. Like, it's pointless to do it when on the pill because your hormones are balanced artificially, but otherwise? It would've helped to see how bad things were or where I was at. So if you have the possibility to see an endocrinologist, you should probably go for it before starting treatment.
I was put on the pill as soon as I was diagnosed with PCOS, and the doctor kept saying "it's the only solution" etc. so I didn't really question it much. It didn't feel like I had any side effects, but it didn't really help either - I had to follow a 6-month Roaccutane (Isotretinoin) treatment to get rid of the acné. With that being said, I weighted about 100kg (220lbs), so my symptoms were no doubt worsened by the excess weight.
Now years later, I'm at 73kg (160lbs) for 1m75, which puts me in normal weight range. And yet, I did a routine blood test two weeks ago, and I have the cholesterol and triglyceride levels of a 50 year old obese diabetic - 2.97 g/l for the cholesterol when the norm is 1.60 to 2.20, and 2.56 g/l for triglycerides when the norm is 0.5 to 1.50. I tend to bruise excessively now, which never happened to me before. For instance, after playing volleyball for one hour, my forearms turn completely black and blue, when that shit never used to happen prior to taking the pill. And my knees get blue and bruised from sitting in seiza position.
And even with all this, the GP, gynaecologist, and dermatologist have all told me to "keep up the pill because PCOS", and dismissed my concerns about the blood tests and bruising as "just keep losing weight, duh". I already track my food compulsively, don't drink alcohol, don't eat fatty or sugary shit, no highly processed food, but it doesn't seem to matter to them. (I was at 67kg (147lbs) last year, but went to 73kg when I started exercising and building up muscle mass seriously).
Either way, I dropped the pill this week (I had been taking Yaz since August, and Cerazette prior to that), and I guess we'll see how it goes. As far as I've noticed though, the PCOS symptoms have been lessened way more by simply dropping weight and eating healthy than by the pill, so just keep that in mind.
hash-slinging slasher
kiwifarms.net
When I was on the mini pill (progesterone), I was so depressed that I couldn't function. The combo pill sucked for the first week or so (morning sickness and mood swings) but those side affects stopped. I'm grateful there's no history of strokes in my family or I wouldn't have ever been prescribed the combo pill.
My boss reacted badly to the mini pill too. She had angry outbursts for years until she switched to the combo pill. I feel bad for her. She started the mini pill when she was a teen to deal with her months long periods and had no idea that they were the cause of her angrily pushing everyone close to her away until she got older and switched medication. PCOS shouldn't exist.
Not pcos related but birth control related: I moved somewhere where accidental, unwanted pregnancies are common. One day, birth control came up in conversation and
you'd be surprised how many people don't know their insurance covers birth control. That's their fault though. They could've at least ASKED their doctor.
Edit:
My boss reacted badly to the mini pill too. She had angry outbursts for years until she switched to the combo pill. I feel bad for her. She started the mini pill when she was a teen to deal with her months long periods and had no idea that they were the cause of her angrily pushing everyone close to her away until she got older and switched medication. PCOS shouldn't exist.
Not pcos related but birth control related: I moved somewhere where accidental, unwanted pregnancies are common. One day, birth control came up in conversation and
you'd be surprised how many people don't know their insurance covers birth control. That's their fault though. They could've at least ASKED their doctor.Edit:
I'm mad that it took a random YouTube video to teach me this. My gynecologist did not mention how food affects pcos ONCE.
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