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As someone who works in reproductive health care, I am genuinely impressed by the thoroughness and accuracy of the op. There are so many awful misconceptions (zing) about birth control that it's nice to know they won't be bandied about in this thread.
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Jan 19, 2011 01:13
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Sapphic Swordsaint posted:I'm an off and on again Depo Provera user. I get it for dysmenorrhea and it works wonders. I've never had a side effect off of it and would recommend it for this use. If things are that bad, have you tried contacting your local Planned Parenthood affiliate? I realize that there may be a distance thing because Arizona is so big and spread out, but you should never have a problem getting easy access to birth control at a PP affiliate.
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Jan 19, 2011 17:12
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Eggplant Wizard posted:
I should go ahead (without getting into too much detail) and say that I am not a licensed nurse or doctor, and that all of my knowledge comes from my agency's training programs. Having said that, I am dealing pretty much daily with a lot of these same issues and explanations, so this thread is familiar ground for me. So far it seems like all the answers given to the questions asked here have been satisfactory and well-informed, so good job! Having said that, it is important to remember that everyone's body is different, and as such will respond differently to the different types of hormonal (and even non-hormonal) contraceptives. If anything has you really worried, it's always best to consult with your doctor or clinician. Also, I didn't see much on weight gain in the op, but it's one of the most common concerns I deal with (sadly). The fact is that hormonal birth control methods do not cause you to gain weight. What they can do (which is why a lot of women deal with weight gain on hormonal contraceptives) is increase appetite, and most women will increase their food intake without even realizing it. One thing that's kind of interesting is that it is most commonly seen with the Depo shot, and to be honest I'm not sure exactly why. If anyone is interested in hearing more anecdotal stuff/stories/crazy misconceptions, let me know and I'd be happy to oblige. I just don't want to poo poo up the thread with funny stories if people are here mostly for helpful tips and advice.
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Jan 20, 2011 02:29
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Do hang around; most of us are just working from our own experience and research (as far as I know).
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Not Impressed posted:After 7 years on the pill, I'm seriously considering the Mirena. I've never had regular periods off the pill, so I'm a little concerned about the spotting that people report for the first months. I don't want to end up having spotting for the entire duration. How have other goonettes found the Mirena to be in the spotting/periods department? I can't really say anything about the Diva cup, and there's unfortunately no easy answer to the spotting question (especially with no history re: your past use of hormonal contraceptives), but the strings should be a non-issue for partners. They generally soften up/curl up, and if there is an issue they can sometimes be shortened if you and your doc determine that they are too long. e: I have heard some reports to the contrary regarding the strings or even the Nuva ring, but unless your partner is John Holmes or something, it's unlikely that there would be an issue. People tend to get really strange ideas in their head about these two BC methods for whatever reason. Professor Beetus fucked around with this message at 03:16 on Jan 20, 2011 |
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Jan 20, 2011 03:14
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Kerfuffle posted:Extreme weight gain via water weight isn't fake though. In the last thread someone gained an alarming amount of water weight in just a few days, and dropped it quickly after stopping the birth control. Right, which I is why I always try to point out that everybody's different. This is less typical than the average "I went on depo and gained 20 lbs" thing.
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Jan 20, 2011 06:52
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lou reed posted:Ah, that makes way more sense. Thank you! Depending on where you are, if your insurance offers no coverage for family planning, you may qualify for some kind of state program even though you have insurance. I'm sure the lovely folks at your PP can let you know what's available.
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Jan 21, 2011 06:05
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cheese eats mouse posted:I've been on the NuvaRing for almost 3 years now and despite the $40 a month I pay I swear by it. This past year I've been going a full 4 weeks on it along with skipping periods (there's enough hormone in the ring to last a full month). My doctor recommended this to me to 1. save money and 2. no periods yay! Of course if you go past the 4 weeks use a back-up method. Please ask your doctor before you do what I did. I've also recently found I need to have a period at least 4x a year or I get horrible cramps. I've known so many women who swear by the nuva ring, and it's really lovely that the pharmaceutical industry is so heinous. I know plenty of women who purchase it without going through insurance at Planned Parenthood because it's less expensive than the copay! That's loving outrageous and it's really too bad that contraceptive equity isn't a bigger issue politically.
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Jan 22, 2011 08:08
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" Any guy I've had sex with has never felt it with intercourse, and it's really great reassurance for your partner. No "Did you take your pill questions".
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Kerfuffle posted:Word. The problem is that rx patents are good for 20 years, and the Nuva ring came out less than ten years ago, so it'll be quite some time before there's a generic. NaturalLow posted:I wish her luck. When I went to PP, they used to charge me $40 a pack for birth control pills (Ortho Tri Cyclen Lo) and I didn't have health insurance at the time either. Unfortunately, PP is a national organization with local affiliates, and the funding available at the local affiliates varies widely from state to state, or even within the state depending on things like the demographics your clinic serves or even whether or not that location provides abortion. The local PP in my state can generally provide pills from 15-25 bucks a pack, and Nuva rings as low as 36 bucks depending on your monthly income (has nothing to do with whether you have insurance) but ymmv.
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Jan 22, 2011 16:25
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I wish there was a generic version or something, but Nuvaring seems like one of those cases where that just isn't going to happen.
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NaturalLow posted:Yeah, they started out at $15 a pack and then it went up to $40 after I had already started them. Luckily I didn't need the pill for contraceptive purposes at the time, since there was no way I could afford that. What state is this in? I'm just curious because the type of funding available is so different from place to place and I'm always interested to see how things are elsewhere.
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Jan 22, 2011 23:34
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lou reed posted:Seconded. They'll give you one (they did ask questions about new partners within the last three months... I don't if answering 'yes' would result in no IUD.) At the PP affiliate in my state, it's standard procedure to screen for gonorrhea and chlamydia prior to inserting an IUD for the reasons stated by Reene, but it takes two or three days to get those results tops. As always, depending on where you are, ymmv.
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Feb 3, 2011 07:32
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purity control posted:Has anyone done the switch from Nora-Be (POP) to Mirena? I got a Paragard inserted in December, but my uterus pushed it out. That was horrifying. So, I got a free Mirena through the ARCH foundation, and seeing as my period is coming soon, I'll be getting that inserted. My friend is convinced I'm going to have horrible side effects, but as far as I know, the hormones in Mirena are just the same as the pill that I've been taking for two years. It's correct that they are the same hormones, but as with anything bc related, everybody's body reacts differently yadda yadda yadda.
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Feb 12, 2011 01:32
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I know this isn't directly related to birth control, but I figured it's a good place for it. https://secure.ppaction.org/site/SPageServer?pagename=pp_ppol_ws_I_Stand_with_PP&s_src=istandwithPP_googad&gclid=CN3z7YqDl6cCFQpvbAodjn2iaw This is a link to a form letter to congress that you can sign on Planned Parenthood's behalf. Because of the recent attacks in the House of Representatives and the Live Action "sting" videos, Planned Parenthood is trying to shore up its defenses against funding cuts and bad legislation. If you've ever used their services or even if you just believe in what they do, now is a good time to sign the letter, or even contact your legislators directly to let them know that their continued assault on women's healthcare is reprehensible. Depending on where you're at in the US, there could be state level stuff going on too, so you can find your local affiliate at http://www.plannedparenthood.org and see if they need your help.
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Feb 20, 2011 16:21
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Eggplant Wizard posted:I used to put them in the recycling. No one needs donations of them because they are packaged with the pills in the first place. I asked my pharmacist once if I had to take another one and he said "We'd just throw it out too." This is why I always ask people if they need a new one before doling them out. With the amount that end up getting recycled I'm pretty sure I could build some cool forts.
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Feb 22, 2011 23:06
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Bagleworm posted:Can someone explain what's up with the anti-Planned Parentood stuff in the States right now? Did it pass in house and is now going through Senate? Is that how it works? It's probably not going to make it past the Senate, but it might behoove you to check out with what is going on at the state level regarding your particular affiliate. To be honest if there is something you can do to help your local affiliate, it's probably more useful than calling the office of your US Congress people. But I do recommend signing the petition I posted at the top of this page and getting involved any way you can. Even if that's reminding others in your life just how important PP is to so many people.
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Feb 23, 2011 08:31
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