How Long Until You Know if Your Birth Control Isnt Right
- Women who don't desire to get pregnant can choose from a wide variety of birth command methods.
- INSIDER asked two gynecologists how women tin can know when their current nascency command may non exist the all-time choice for them.
- It could be time for a switch if: your contraceptive needs have changed, you're struggling to use your current method properly, you're having bad side effects, your partner is interfering with your birth command, or you've experienced major health changes.
Today'southward bevy of nascence control options can be intimidating. Methods vary wildly — from single-employ condoms all the way to IUDs that last a decade — and each has unique pros and cons.
Whether you've been on the same method for years or yous recently switched to something new, y'all might be stuck with a nagging worry that you lot're not using the best one for your body or your lifestyle.
That's a question best brought to your own gynecologist, since your personal health history plays an important role in which type of contraception you choose. But INSIDER asked two women's wellness experts virtually some general signs that it may exist fourth dimension for a change. Here are five to look out for.
1. Your contraceptive needs accept changed.
A lot of women use birth control for its not-nascency-control benefits. Certain methods can regulate cycles, care for acne, and make periods lighter and less painful, gynecologist Dr. Mary Jane Minkin,clinical professor of obstetrics, gynecology and reproductive sciences at Yale School of Medicine, explained to INSIDER.
But — no surprise here — plenty of women use birth control specifically for contraception. That means a change in your contraceptive needs may signal a switch to a new method.
"If you are a person who has been on pills your whole life and you're certain that you've completed childbearing, you lot might want to switch to a more than effective method like an IUD or even sterilization," gynecologist Dr. Susan Due east. Pesci, clinical teacher and family unit planning specialist in theMontefiore Health Organisation, told INSIDER. (For reference: The pill is 91% effective; IUDs and sterilization are more than 99% effective.)
A change in your sexual action could likewise factor into the choice, Minkin added. Say you were using the pill because yous were having sex activity frequently, but now you're simply having sex sporadically. If you weren't thrilled with the pill to begin with, it might brand sense to employ a barrier method like condoms simply when you have sexual activity, rather than continuing to have pills 24-hour interval in and 24-hour interval out.
Not certain which method all-time suits your current contraceptive needs? A gynecologist tin assist you sort it out.
2. You're struggling to employ your current method properly.
Some birth control requires user effort, like taking a pill every day or correctly placing a diaphragm every fourth dimension you have sexual practice. Simply if you find it tough to handle that upkeep, it may be time for a lower-maintenance method.
Minkin said she sees this virtually unremarkably with the pill.
"Let's say [someone is] really having trouble remembering to take it, repeatedly skipping three or four pills a month," she said. "She'south somebody who I would have a long chat with and say, 'OK, do yous want to switch to something like a band or patch?' Or we may say, 'Let'south shift altogether and let's talk almost an IUD or implant.' That's something y'all don't have to think about."
Every bit a refresher: Rings and patches stay in place for three weeks earlier you supplant them, and implants and IUDs stay in place three to 10 years, depending on which blazon you choose.
3. You have side effects that you can't stand.
"I think physical symptoms are plainly going to exist the virtually mutual reason why people explore other options for nascency command," Pesci said. "[But] y'all shouldn't change your birth control unless that side issue is intolerable for you."
In other words, if a side result isn't bothering you, it's usually better to stick with your current method.
"By and far, the most common reason why people switch is irregular vaginal bleeding. And that's beyond the board for all methods," Pesci said. She added that some women also switch because of pelvic pain or weight gain — the latter is a possible side outcome of the birth control shot.
The good news is that these symptoms nearly normally develop within the first six months to a year after starting a birth control method. Both Pesci and Minkin said that if you've been using a method successfully for years, it's not probable that you lot'll all of a sudden have to deal with a new, intolerable symptom.
4. Your partner is interfering with your birth control.
Sometimes, men who desire their partners to get pregnant find means to demolition nascence control. It'southward office of a group of disturbing behaviors known every bit reproductive coercion.
"Frequently we see people whose partners are hiding their pills or putting holes in diaphragms or things like that," Pesci said. "That may be a good reason for exploring other [birth command] options. It's a sad reason, but it'south a reason notwithstanding."
And it's more mutual than you might retrieve. Previous studies show that 15 to 25% of women report birth control sabotage and reproductive coercion, co-ordinate to a paper published in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology.
"If y'all doubtable that your partner is doing that, then you desire to explore methods similar the implant or the IUD," Pesci said. Both methods discreet and should be extremely difficult for a partner to detect. Another good option is the shot, which lasts for three months.
five. Your medical history has changed.
Whatsoever time your medical history changes, it's worth re-examining your birth command.
For the users of the pill — nonetheless the almost mutual nativity control method among American women — Minkin said there are a few health changes that might necessitate a switch.
"All birth control pills have a slight increased risk of blood clots, and if you do get a blood jell that would mandate a switch to a different contraceptive method," she said. "Orlet'south say you are a smoker and you have [turned] 35. I endeavour to work on smoking abeyance with all of my patients, merely somebody who's 35 and above and a smoker is not a proficient match for the pill."
She added that certain types of migraines, lupus, or "uncontrollable" high blood pressure can increase the risk of stroke hazard for people on the pill.
And Pesci explained that women who take or had chest cancer may want to avoid hormonal contraception altogether.
But these are but a few examples. The lesser line is the same for anybody: E'er ask your gynecologist if changes in your health crave a change in birth control, likewise.
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Source: https://www.insider.com/signs-birth-control-isnt-right-for-you-2018-3
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