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Birth control. A contentious topic, but today, that’s not what it is about. I would like to preface and say this isn’t about politics, it’s about providing information to women. For some, birth control is a medication. For some, it’s not a part of their life, but for most women, it is a necessary part of life. Contraceptives come in a lot of different forms, the pill, IUDs, a shot, a patch, etc. Now, women are even using natural methods (I personally don’t think this counts as a contraceptive, but whatever floats your boat) in order to prevent pregnancy without putting extra hormones into their bodies. The point of birth control is to allow a woman to choose when she wants to have children.
Even when you’re proactive and on birth control, things can go wrong, so it’s important to have something like Preventeza™ on hand – to not replace your birth control, but to make sure that you’re secure when life happens. The risk of birth control failure is always possible, so it’s best to be prepared for when those times happen.
As a young woman, I have been faced with a lot of choices, especially when I got to college and when I started dating more. I’ve been very lucky that I have not had a medical condition such as endometriosis or PCOS that requires me to take birth control. I have many friends who do, so taking birth control or not was never an option. Many women don’t realize that birth control products aren’t just designed to keep your body from creating a tiny human, and there are so many other reasons, both medical or not, for women to take birth control.
Talking about birth control is frustrating because while women do have a lot of choices, sometimes, it feels like nothing works. Often times, the burden to prevent pregnancy is put solely on the woman, when there are two people being intimate. Sometimes, doctors can be really confusing when they talk to you about birth control options. When you’re young, especially during your teenage years, those different options don’t always make sense.
There will always be something that works better for someone over others. I may be someone who reacts better to the pill than my friend who uses an IUD, and my friend who uses an IUD may like that better than taking the shot. It’s about finding what works for you and making that decision for yourself. Take your time to research each option because there are so many of them, even if it means visiting a clinic or family planning center like Planned Parenthood. Those places aren’t just designed to help people in couples figure out how to plan on kids, but also to help people who don’t think a baby is in the books for them right now how the best way to handle that situation.
The decision to use birth control or not can be really scary! You’re putting something in your body that is supposed to prevent pregnancy, but what happens if you miss one? Is your entire life turned upside down? What happens if there are poor side effects? What happens when you decide to come off of birth control? Those are all things to consider when looking into birth control in addition to cost.
In the US, we still pay way too much for birth control, especially if you don’t have access to insurance. Cost really is a factor. Some insurance companies can’t be used for certain types of birth control, so that is a factor. Most schools don’t teach young women about birth control when they do sex ed (I know my school didn’t). I was taught that abstinence is 100% effective, which is true, but by not teaching women about birth control, young women aren’t able to make informed choices about their bodies and sex becomes stigmatized in a way that doesn’t allow young women to see that you can have sex and be safe.
What even is out there?
I have never been on birth control. When it came down to it, I never used it because for most of my life, I wasn’t having sex. I’m going to be very open and clear about that because I know many people who will say I can’t talk about it because I don’t use it. I did a lot of research when I was younger to come to that decision, both with my dad, who was an OBGYN, but also with my own doctor. The biggest thing I will say about birth control is that it is your personal choice to go on it or not. If someone is pushing you to start birth control, whether to avoid using a condom during sex or just because they don’t want to be reliable for when life happens, it is still your choice.
No form of birth control is 100% effective. While there are low chances of getting pregnant while on the pill or using condoms, nothing works 100% of the time, even when used correctly. There are emergency contraceptives out there that help women stay prepared for these moments in life. As I talked about in my previous post, about 1 in 2 women may be faced with these choices in their future. It’s nothing to be afraid of, but you can be prepared for it.
Vagisil created Preventeza™, an emergency contraceptive designed for the first 36 hours after one of these situations happens. Let me be explicitly clear, Preventeza™ is not a form of daily birth control. Vagisil designed Preventeza for those moments you can’t plan for. Being prepared for these situations is powerful and beneficial to your health. You get to choose what happens in these moments. Being prepared for the unexpected is something that can really help you not panic in those moments.
Why does any of this matter?
I’m a firm believer in letting everyone make their own choices. I also believe firmly in providing everyone with the information necessary to make the best choice for them. I’m not a doctor, so I can’t recommend specific medications. I can just recommend that you go look into each option so you can make a decision for your body. Making these choices is an individual thing. You can prepare for those moments when life fails you. I’m really excited to have worked on this campaign with Vagisil. They are working to remove the stigmas around women’s issues and that is something I can stand by. I’m glad that I was able to work with them on this. I’d love to start the discussion around this so please drop some comments below and let’s have a productive discussion!