birth control preference and reasoning

theres plenty of pros/cons listing for a choice of birth control.

whats your birth control preference, why and are you satisfied with you decision

Let's see...I did depo shot in high school. That made me get my period for 6 months straight.

Then, I tried Estrostep FE. That worked for about a year, then the same thing happened.

Went to Ortho Tri-Cyclen Lo, which made me gain a bunch of weight, but my boobs did get bigger !

Finally, I'm on Yasmin now, and I love it! I've lost 2.5 pounds in a week just from switching pills, and my skin is clearing up already.  I also like it because the urge to ...ya know, do the thing I need BC for LOL, has gone back up, as it had kind of faded on the Ortho.

None until they come out with one that won't give you a risk of blood clots.

Original Post by cptbunny:

None until they come out with one that won't give you a risk of blood clots.

-condoms

-diaphragm

-sponge

-copper IUD (though with your pelvic pain I would not recommend it)

Original Post by cptbunny:

None until they come out with one that won't give you a risk of blood clots.

What about the copper IUD? I'm pretty sure, since it's not hormonal, that that isn't one of its risks. :D

OP, I've only been on one type of hormonal birth control: Alesse (? I think that's how it's spelled...it's been a few years). Liked it when I was on it, but I gained weight, had major mood swings, and really wasn't myself on it. I didn't realize this until I stopped taking it, and I was off it for at least three years before I got pregnant with this baby. Husband and I avoided sex/used a condom/did other sexual activities than vaginal intercourse during the times I could get pregnant up until December 2007, when we decided we would begin trying for kids. That December I conceived my first pregnancy, miscarried that January, and then he was deployed for 7 months. Resumed trying when he got back. =P

We hate condoms. It ruins the whole experience for us, and we only used them when we really, really needed to.

I plan on getting the copper IUD after I give birth--I want to avoid hormonal birth control, and being aware of my fertility and avoided sex when I could get pregnant is too risky for me. I don't want two kids back to back.

Generic Ortho-Lo and condoms (just in case)

Will be gettin' fixed as soon as I can :)

condoms

why I'm s satisfied: Leaves my partner & I equally in control of the birth control. I don't have to be on hormones or have something stuck inside me that my partner feels. PS. we use very thin condoms and he says it feels like there's nothing there.....If you search you can find a good brand...

Hubby got a vasectomy

No risk of blood clots, no forgetting to take a pill, no recurring pharmacy costs, no foreign metal objects in my body, no pausing to insert/slip on something, no messy gels.

But before hubby and I stopped having kids, I was on Ortho Tri-cyclen - it got the job done, but I'm glad I don't need it.

Original Post by trustwomen:

Original Post by cptbunny:

None until they come out with one that won't give you a risk of blood clots.

-condoms

-diaphragm

-sponge

-copper IUD (though with your pelvic pain I would not recommend it)

I meant hormonal. Because I'm very low on estrogen.

Original Post by bootser1:

condoms

why I'm s satisfied: Leaves my partner & I equally in control of the birth control. I don't have to be on hormones or have something stuck inside me that my partner feels. PS. we use very thin condoms and he says it feels like there's nothing there.....If you search you can find a good brand...

These good brands do exist, yes. But my husband, when we were preventing pregnancy, was a very paranoid man. He wouldn't use the thinner condoms because he was paranoid they would tear. Also, for us, it's more the interuption that occurs when he has to put a condom on that throws us all sorts of off. Before I was on BC, we used condoms very, very briefly. Once I was on BC, no more condoms. Got off BC and when we DID see each other, and we needed condoms, it was like pulling teeth to get him to put one on. So I learned how to watch signs for my fertility, so he wouldn't have to use one all the time.

If one has a regular period, learning the signs of when you ovulate, and planning around the time you expect to ovulate, surely helps. But not everyone has a regular period. Not to mention, it's a lot of work. I employed a "we can't have sex during this week each month, because that's the week I'd get pregnant," rule up until we decided we wanted kids. Obviously, we were still taking a risk that I'd ovulate unexpectedly during the rest of the month. =P I'd like to rely on this method again, but I don't want to risk getting pregnant right after baby #1, so copper IUD it is. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't put anything in my body.

Condoms

Am not sexually active, but Im on Loestrin FE 24 for endometriosis and bad cramps. 

It's worked really well for me - annoying spotting in the beginning, but now just a 2-3 day period. No weight gain or weird side effects. 

I use a Korean brand that is the same as Yasmin or something (I forget which US brand it's the same as... they just changed the name here). I don't like taking it just because I don't like the fact that I'm taking extra hormones. I've had no weight gain on it but it's been harder to lose weight. 

Nuvaring. Number one reason being I don't have to remember to take a pill everyday. Also it's a steady release of hormones vs the hormone spikes and drops you get with the pill. I also can not have an off week for three months, meaning I only get my period four times a yr

Depo.  Nothing beats not bleeding.

Original Post by lysistrata:

Depo.  Nothing beats not bleeding.

Bone loss, loss of libido? I think I prefer to bleed.

I love the pill!

Currently on Ortho-cyclen. It has improved my skin, it makes my periods way lighter, I feel like it makes me less PMS-y, and I know exactly when my period is coming. Im monogamous, so STDs arent an issue.

Is anyone using a non-hormonal copper IUD? Id be interested to hear testimonials...

The Implanon Implant. 

For 3 years:

No Period (maybe a bit of spotting for the first few weeks), no period pains, no forgetting to pop a pill.

I found it a godsend after trying a bunch of stuff that either made me feel like eating was going out of fashion, or made me emotional, or that didn't stop the body crippling pms that used to send me to hospital. 

Original Post by cptbunny:

Original Post by lysistrata:

Depo.  Nothing beats not bleeding.

Bone loss, loss of libido? I think I prefer to bleed.

I think if it was really that dangerous they wouldn't be giving long term contraception away for free like sweeties to young girls, on the NHS. Times change and medical advances persist. And loss of libido? That's an old wives tale 

I'm on Yaz, both for preventing pregnancy and cramps.  We also use condoms just to be safe (really can't afford a baby at the moment).  I like Yaz because I barely get a period.  Just a bit of spotting for maybe 1-2 days, if at all. 

See, I rather enjoy getting my period.....lets me know things are working they way they should (no surprise!) 

I do hate remembering to take the pill everyday....though it sure beats the alternative