What about IUD’s? Still have the possibility of side effects, but the hormones are localized and low dosage compared to the pill which floods your whole body. The copper ones don’t even use hormones, somehow the copper interrupts everything. Nobody knows why exactly. Yeah, my acupuncturist (ugh, doesn’t that sound so prissy) lately said that overwhelming-all-the-time fatigue I was having was due to IUD, and that birth control was unnatural. So totally not giving it up, just gonna switch kinds.
I am SO with you on this! Condoms and diaphragms make me break out in a rash down there. Birth control worked fine for years until suddenly one day I started having the same exact issue – it just wouldn’t stay down. Went through four different formulas and the weaker ones stayed down but didn’t control my insanely painful periods, and the stronger ones came back up every time. The Patch and the Depo Shot both put in hormonal depression. I have a crazy-sensitive uterus, so the IUD isn’t an option… Thankfully one doc suggested the Nuvaring, which actually works.
I wish that my husband could take a pill to stop his sperm production. But that sort of thing will never be created properly, because society tells us that a man without healthy sperm isn’t really a man. >_<
I don’t like the stigma attached to bcp, especially in the south. I take the pills therefore I MUST be having sex. I even got that reaction from my parents…what if I want the other benefits?
I fought my HMO to get my tubes tied when I was 25. I’m 35 now and have no regrets. Considering my family is quite fertile, I probably prevented an abortion or two.
I had an IUD for a few months while I was waiting for the surgery. I hated it. It hurt a lot when it was put in, my periods lasted a week, and I had to go on the Pill for a few weeks to stop the bleeding when I got it taken out.
Wild yam extract capsules can work for women to prevent pregnancy but probably are best for women already closer to 40-I used them from my mid 30′s until about age 45, and had no problems. It was a standardized potency product from Solary, the active ingredient is diosgenin.
Yeah, you ever see those commercials about how the pill (patch, Nuvaring, etc.) can cause blood clotting? That’s me. Forget it working for a year or two, I can’t take it for a month. And the reason that they cause blood clotting is apparently that they mimic pregnancy, so that’s not a happy answer even if I weren’t still extremely unsure if I’ll ever want to breed. So yeah, something better than condoms that my boyfriend could use would be SO much better than just trying to make us want to have sex.
Never never never NEVER take Yaz or anything even vaguely similar. My 23 year old girlfriend got to be a record setting youngest patient in the hospital’s vascular wing while she waited for surgery to clean out all the blood clots caused directly by Yaz. She’s still on blood thinners and her left leg (where most of the clots were) still aches horribly when she exerts herself.
They make non-latex condoms now; Durex’s Avanti Bare and Lifestyles Skyn. They are a tiny bit more expensive than the regular sort, I believe, but they work and they feel the same.
So, and I just found out about these the other day, have you heard of non-hormonal IUDs? My body reacts badly to hormonal imbalances of any kind, and condoms seem such a hassle… Well I know your next comic said you got an IUD, but I definitely suggest looking at the “Copper T” IUDs if the hormonal one makes you uncomfortable. It’s inserted into your uterus by a medical professional and is wound with copper wires that kill off sperm and discourage cell development. Works for ten years, easy removal, no hormones?
Ha, and no, I’m not a spam bot. That sounded really salesperson-ish :/
Love your comics Lucy, they are ridiculously good. The thought processes are fantastic.
I haven’t found a form of birth control that doesn’t make me sick or injure me (or in the IUD’s case, injure me AND my partner). I’ve tried everything except the shot and patch which are just too scary. Birth control just officially sucks. But it’s either that, abstinence and painful periods, or a never-ending string of babies I suppose : /
Regarding IUDs, first you need to buy one and last I checked, they ranged about 120-400$, with the non-hormonal being the most expensive. It’s okay if it’s gonna last you years, but you might very well reject it within the month, and it’s not like they can rinse it and put it back in. It also really hurts when they insert or remove it, enough that I passed out despite being given pain-killers. My IUD cost me 160$ and I had to have it taken out after 2 months of constant pain ranging from mild-and-annoying to unbearable (even though the thing was still perfectly in place — I nearly strangled them when they said “But it looks fine! Are you SURE?”). I can’t imagine how painful it must be to actually reject it.
Not to mention that sex with it was painful and became downright scary, both for me and my partner, who would get stabbed by the gross metal strings they leave out, which they assure you you’re not going to feel! I dunno about you, but I’d rather keep searching for pills that make me only moderately nauseous (-_-)
I can’t help but feel that, given men’s less chemically complex situation regarding reproductive processes, that there has to be some societal reason why there are so few options for a “male pill”. Why is there not a pharmacuetical spermicide? Is this a hold over from puritanical belief that men should be powerful and in charge, thus must remain potent even when it is clearly not to their advantage? I don’t believe a vastectomy is the only option that can possibly exist.
What about IUD’s? Still have the possibility of side effects, but the hormones are localized and low dosage compared to the pill which floods your whole body. The copper ones don’t even use hormones, somehow the copper interrupts everything. Nobody knows why exactly. Yeah, my acupuncturist (ugh, doesn’t that sound so prissy) lately said that overwhelming-all-the-time fatigue I was having was due to IUD, and that birth control was unnatural. So totally not giving it up, just gonna switch kinds.
I am SO with you on this! Condoms and diaphragms make me break out in a rash down there. Birth control worked fine for years until suddenly one day I started having the same exact issue – it just wouldn’t stay down. Went through four different formulas and the weaker ones stayed down but didn’t control my insanely painful periods, and the stronger ones came back up every time. The Patch and the Depo Shot both put in hormonal depression. I have a crazy-sensitive uterus, so the IUD isn’t an option… Thankfully one doc suggested the Nuvaring, which actually works.
I wish that my husband could take a pill to stop his sperm production. But that sort of thing will never be created properly, because society tells us that a man without healthy sperm isn’t really a man. >_<
Have you tried VCFs or VCGs (Vaginal Contraceptive Films/Gels)?
I don’t like the stigma attached to bcp, especially in the south. I take the pills therefore I MUST be having sex. I even got that reaction from my parents…what if I want the other benefits?
I fought my HMO to get my tubes tied when I was 25. I’m 35 now and have no regrets. Considering my family is quite fertile, I probably prevented an abortion or two.
I had an IUD for a few months while I was waiting for the surgery. I hated it. It hurt a lot when it was put in, my periods lasted a week, and I had to go on the Pill for a few weeks to stop the bleeding when I got it taken out.
Wild yam extract capsules can work for women to prevent pregnancy but probably are best for women already closer to 40-I used them from my mid 30′s until about age 45, and had no problems. It was a standardized potency product from Solary, the active ingredient is diosgenin.
Yeah, you ever see those commercials about how the pill (patch, Nuvaring, etc.) can cause blood clotting? That’s me. Forget it working for a year or two, I can’t take it for a month. And the reason that they cause blood clotting is apparently that they mimic pregnancy, so that’s not a happy answer even if I weren’t still extremely unsure if I’ll ever want to breed. So yeah, something better than condoms that my boyfriend could use would be SO much better than just trying to make us want to have sex.
Never never never NEVER take Yaz or anything even vaguely similar. My 23 year old girlfriend got to be a record setting youngest patient in the hospital’s vascular wing while she waited for surgery to clean out all the blood clots caused directly by Yaz. She’s still on blood thinners and her left leg (where most of the clots were) still aches horribly when she exerts herself.
They make non-latex condoms now; Durex’s Avanti Bare and Lifestyles Skyn. They are a tiny bit more expensive than the regular sort, I believe, but they work and they feel the same.
So, and I just found out about these the other day, have you heard of non-hormonal IUDs? My body reacts badly to hormonal imbalances of any kind, and condoms seem such a hassle… Well I know your next comic said you got an IUD, but I definitely suggest looking at the “Copper T” IUDs if the hormonal one makes you uncomfortable. It’s inserted into your uterus by a medical professional and is wound with copper wires that kill off sperm and discourage cell development. Works for ten years, easy removal, no hormones?
Ha, and no, I’m not a spam bot. That sounded really salesperson-ish :/
Love your comics Lucy, they are ridiculously good. The thought processes are fantastic.
I haven’t found a form of birth control that doesn’t make me sick or injure me (or in the IUD’s case, injure me AND my partner). I’ve tried everything except the shot and patch which are just too scary. Birth control just officially sucks. But it’s either that, abstinence and painful periods, or a never-ending string of babies I suppose : /
Regarding IUDs, first you need to buy one and last I checked, they ranged about 120-400$, with the non-hormonal being the most expensive. It’s okay if it’s gonna last you years, but you might very well reject it within the month, and it’s not like they can rinse it and put it back in. It also really hurts when they insert or remove it, enough that I passed out despite being given pain-killers. My IUD cost me 160$ and I had to have it taken out after 2 months of constant pain ranging from mild-and-annoying to unbearable (even though the thing was still perfectly in place — I nearly strangled them when they said “But it looks fine! Are you SURE?”). I can’t imagine how painful it must be to actually reject it.
Not to mention that sex with it was painful and became downright scary, both for me and my partner, who would get stabbed by the gross metal strings they leave out, which they assure you you’re not going to feel! I dunno about you, but I’d rather keep searching for pills that make me only moderately nauseous (-_-)
I can’t help but feel that, given men’s less chemically complex situation regarding reproductive processes, that there has to be some societal reason why there are so few options for a “male pill”. Why is there not a pharmacuetical spermicide? Is this a hold over from puritanical belief that men should be powerful and in charge, thus must remain potent even when it is clearly not to their advantage? I don’t believe a vastectomy is the only option that can possibly exist.