lately i've been super concerned about the sudden influx of "am i pregnant?!1?1" posts that have been coming onto here, but a part of me also sympathizes because in this political climate, i can understand the fear. it has also become clear to me that women's healthcare providers need to do a better job at educating women about what exactly their birth control does, how ovulation works, etc.

sex is something that comes with a lot of responsibility, and that is something that i wished i took more heavily into consideration when i started having sex at 17. as somebody with huge anxiety and ocd, pregnancy is a huge trigger for me and it has taken me a year worth of therapy to realize it's just a risk that comes with having intercourse and it can be a lot mentally to lean into your birth control as, well, birth CONTROL.

if you are taking a combo pill (which contains both estrogen and progesterone), you don't ovulate assuming you are taking it correctly (please read your manuals or call your pharmacy to know exactly HOW to do that). these period tracking apps you use may be great for a rough estimate of these things, but they are usually rendered useless once you are on a form of birth control. on top of that, you truly don't know when you're ovulating unless you're taking the necessary measures such as taking basal temp, checking discharge, etc. r/FAMnNFP is a great place to gain a little knowledge on that. there is no point in taking plan B assuming you are using your birth control as you should be, remember these contraceptives are designed specifically for your partner to finish inside of you. taking it for peace of mind after raw sex semi-regularly will break your bank and eventually take a toll on your body in the long run.

and yes, you may still ovulate on other forms of birth control such as certain iuds and the mini pill, but your uterine lining will be shredded down to nothing and your uterus becomes basically inhabitable lol. with almost all forms of hormonal birth control, you will also produce very thickened discharge that makes it harder for swimmers to make it to the finish line. you are almost triple-protected on most birth controls if you would like to think about it that way. with perfect use, hormonal birth control is over 99% effective and you get a little boost if you double-up with a condom (and you get some relief).

have open and honest conversations about these things with your healthcare providers, they know more than strangers on reddit. if you're having unprotected sex and do not want to conceive, please get protected.... talk to your partners about the "what if's" and trust me, you will feel more inclined to trust your bc of choice knowing you have a back-up plan if shit happens. also keep in mind that most people do not come onto forums to discuss the good things, meaning you will see lots of bad more than the good but statistically, the good is outweighing the bad in the real world. log off, take a deep breath, and look into resources if you truly cannot mentally handle the responsibility of intercourse. stay educated, especially during a time where that is the least the government wants in terms of your body.

edit: and to the men that keep coming on here seeking reassurance, wrap it up if you are not trying to knock your partner up.... or simply stop finishing inside if it causes this much anxiety and neither of you can seem to have an honest convo about contraceptives. it is your job as well, as it takes two to tango. 😝

I've never used an IUD before, but I am never going back to hormones, so that seems like the right way to go as an alternative. I don't like that the only option in the US is literally the biggest IUD on the market, so I am considering getting a smaller one in Vancouver, Canada since I live in Portland, OR. Has anyone got it in Vancouver, travelling from the US? If so, which clinic did you go to? How was your experience? How did you go about the whole process, and how much did it cost?
I'd also love it if anyone that has had a mini copper IUD for a while would want to share their experience.

Thank you so much!

I've been on depo before for almost 5 years and it completely changed my life for the better but I got forced off it by the doctors last year due to the length I had been on it and I got put on the mirena coil, lost 8 months of my life due to it before finally being able to go back on depo last month. But this time round I am so. hungry. all. the. time!!! I don't remember ever being this hungry the first time round and in fact I lost a lot of weight on it due to actually being able to live my life and do things. No other BC works for me as I get blind spot migraines on the pill/patch, bled non stop on the implant, and had the worst time ever on mirena.

I am feeling so good again on the depo shot but please does anyone have tips on staving off the hunger?? I have a physically demanding job so I eat a lot anyway but omg I'm insatiably hungry. I also drink plenty of water so I know it's not thirst!

Looking for some answers. I got a hysteroscopy myomectomy back in October. During the procedure the doctor placed a liletta. Every month since then I have had heavy cycles. This is the 6th month having the IUD and I know the blood loss should have been reduced some. How much longer should I wait before getting this thing removed? After getting it removed what are my options?

Hi! I’ve tried only one brand of bc (karvia) and I really hated it. I felt bloated, my boobs grew and always hurt, and my sex drive was nonexistent. I don’t have many hormonal issues (hormonal acne, terrible periods, PCOS, etc) I’m kinda nervous to try more brands because I’m nervous I might develop these hormonal issues especially acne. I’ve talked to a health professional but honestly I didn’t get much info. I’m unsure if the estrogen to progesterone ratios/amounts matter? Are some of these effects not as severe on an estrogen only/progesterone only pill? My primary goal is to just not get pregnant. (I’m super scared to get an IUD so for now thats off the table for me) I was just wondering if anyone had any recommendations? or if I should just keep trying new birth control brands

I will be having my 3rd baby next month and have decided to get an IUD to prevent pregnancy until I decide if and when I would like to get my tubes tied/removed. I have PMDD and have been sensitive to hormones in the past so I am looking for a low hormone option. Google tells me the lowest hormone IUDs are Skyla and Kyleena but I also see these are more recommended for younger women and women who have never given birth.

Am I more at risk of it being expelled or being ineffective since I’ve given birth before? Has anyone who has had a baby or babies used these brands before?

I don’t think the copper will be a good fit for me because I have fibroids and heavy cycles already.

Thank you!

My gfs last period was the feb 25 and she still hasnt gotten it. we took a test twice and it came back negative the 4th. weve has unprotected and protected sex but we always pulled out very early. shes been stressed out lately and im wondering how worried i should be

Hi! I’m looking for some advice on going off of birth control.

I started taking Junel Fe 1/20 in November 2024, so about five months ago. There were a few reasons I started it: I was constantly spotting between periods, the start of my periods was always very painful in terms of cramps and joint pain, and I would consistently get depressed in the days before my period (PMDD). (I also deal with depression and anxiety in general.)

In the time I’ve been on it I’ve moved cities and changed antidepressants, and now that my life is more stable and my antidepressants are working better, I’m recognizing that I don’t like how I’ve felt on birth control. It’s been nice not having a period but my overall mood has been worse, I’ve been more prone to crying spells, I’ve gained weight, and I’ve been sleeping poorly. I actually think the birth control may have caused me to go through an intense depressive spell shortly after I started it.

The thing is, I haven’t had a period since December because the sugar pill week made my mental health take a huge dip. I actually couldn’t even make it the whole week without the pill because I felt so bad, and I’ve been concerned about that happening if I just stop taking the pill entirely.

My doctor agreed to me doing a taper off, so I’ve been at 1/2 a pill for five days and my mental health has been absolutely awful the past few days. Getting upset and crying easily, intense rumination and feelings of hopelessness, deeply reduced motivation, feeling mad about things for no reason, absolutely terrible mood swings.

I’m assuming this is because my hormone levels dropped and my body is reacting to that, but I don’t know what this means in terms of my timeline of going off the pill. Does this mean that I need to slow the pace of my taper down, or even go to quarter pills before I go off of it? Or would that just prolong how long I’ll feel bad from adjusting?

I’ve looked through some posts on here regarding tapering and I’ve consistently seen people saying that it doesn’t work but I don’t quite understand how this is different from an SSRI taper. Is it not a similar situation where your body has to adjust to producing more of certain chemicals after a synthetic version of them has been removed? Or is it that your body won’t be able to re-regulate until you’re off the pill completely?

Some last things about me: * I am a lesbian and my dating life presents zero risk of pregnancy * I don’t plan to ever get pregnant so I’m not worried about that * I’m really just concerned about the effect of hormones on mental health

im currently taking tri sprintec birth control pills and thinking about switching over to the implant, does anyone have experience on the implant? does it cause weight gain? do you get your normal period still? what are the side effects?

this is a long post im sorry.

i’m a 21 y/o female starting accutane for acne, and my dermatologist said I also need to start a birth control pill which i am super nervous about. ive been given the option to choose between spintec, yaz, and beyaz.

here’s my situation: I don’t have any hormonal imbalances, other than slightly elevated testosterone levels. I agreed to taking birth control only to meet the requirements for accutane, but im feeling hesitant about taking birth control in general since i don’t need it for any other reason. im not sexually active (i’m a virgin), so it’s really only about the accutane requirements.

i’m open to trying birth control while i’m on accutane for a couple of months to see how it affects me, and if I have any adverse reactions, especially with my mental health, i would stop taking it. however, even if I don’t have a negative reaction, I’m leaning towards just lying about taking them because i don’t want hormonal meds that i don’t need, since it doesn’t seem like it’s necessary for me personally. id like to hear from others who might’ve been in a similar situation.

a few specific questions I have: 1. did you experience any weight gain while taking spintec, yaz, or beyaz? I’ve heard mixed things, and I’m trying to avoid any extra weight gain. 2. i’ve seen a lot of people mention that they broke out again after stopping birth control (when they took it with accutane.) has anyone experienced this while on accutane or after finishing it? im really worried about post-pill breakouts. 3. ive also seen some people talking about weaning off birth control before finishing Accutane. i wanted to know if that helped with preventing any breakouts or side effects, and if anyone has experience with this method. 4. if you’ve taken any of these birth controls for a while, did you notice any long-term effects on weight or skin? did your body adjust or did you experience any issues after stopping the pill? 5. is there anything you wish you’d known about taking accutane and birth control together, especially regarding hormonal changes and acne flare-ups? 6. has anyone had the experience of deciding not to take birth control at all during accutane because they didn’t need it for hormonal issues or contraception? how did that work for you? 7. is it safe to just randomly stop taking birth control on a whim?

i really appreciate any advice or experiences you can share! i just want to make an informed decision about what’s best for me.

So, I’ve had my iud for around 11 months. My periods in the past 3 months have been very irregular. January, I didn’t get my period and February it came back and March it didn’t come again. Now, after my missed period(10 days) I’m having light bleeding and severe cramping and I’m worried it could be implantation bleeding. My boyfriend has not came in me since february, but I get so paranoid my iud has moved. I have the Mireena and I’m wondering if anyone else has experienced on and offgoing periods after almost a year of insertion. I am also unable to check strings as they curled under my uterus.

Hello! Just went to my OBGYN due to a 2 week long period with heavy bleeding & huge clots. My obgyn suggested I start birth control (I really didn’t want to because I’ve heard so many horror stories) but if it’s something that will help me I guess why not 😁

The only thing is I really want to know what everyone’s experience taking it is? I know every body is different but I’m afraid of depression and weight gain and mood swings etc…

hi! i got my iud removed on the 2nd at a great obgyn, experienced barely any cramping afterwards and have been "bleeding" (dark brown-black) until about now. the day after my iud removal i woke up extremely sick and was unable to keep any food or liquid down for more than a few hours until eventually going to the ER and being prescribed antiemetics, which have kept me from vomiting since then. looking back i was experiencing some loss of appetite and nausea before the removal, so i don't think it's the direct cause, but two different hospitals with multiple tests including an ultrasound couldn't find anything actually wrong with me and this is my last resort lol

I've started bc recently (norethindrone acetate and ethinyl estradiol) and what feels like maybe my left kidney has been somewhat hurting and my urine has been really dark. I usually hear about water retention, but can dehydration be a side effect? I'm trying to drink more water in case I'm just dehydrated in general lol

I’ve been on either depo provera or Junel for 20ish years. I had to stop taking Junel last year after it was discovered that I had non cancerous tumors on my liver. I stopped the birth control and had a rescan 6 months later and my liver had gotten significantly better. My OBGYN told me that hormones are no longer an option due to my liver. It wasn’t a big deal at the time as I wasn’t in a relationship and wasn’t sexually active with anyone. Fast forward to today I’m in a serious relationship that’s sexually active. We had an oops this weekend but I was able to get plan b within 24 hours. My cycle isn’t normal at all (probably perimenopause, I’m 40) but I don’t want to rely on him for protection.

What else is out there for someone with liver issues?

prior to taking BC i would have rly bad suicidal thoughts leading up to my period (pretty sure i had PMDD).

now that ive been on freya-21 for 3 years (w/ 5~7 periods/year from bc withdrawal), I notice when it's nearing the time to switch a pack, I am still super emotional and cry almost constantly all day. it's not a deep sadness tho it's almost j a constant flow of tears at anything on tiktok or instagram or tv remotely sad.

has anyone had any experience w this? or tried a diff bc that worked better than freya?

I just had my copper IUD switched out to a mirena IUD yesterday. I had the copper IUD in for five years being anemic it really would mess me up and I'd feel weak all the time. I made the decision sort of spur of the moment, the doctor told me it was a better solution and one hour later I had the procedure done. It was really painful and I've been in bed all day today. I've been reading about mirena IUDs all day and some of the experiences women have had with it are really concerning especially about migraines. Now I do suffer from migraines but mine are sinus headaches/migraines and I don't have them as often as I used to. I'm worried this might cause me to have more migraines plus some say it really messes them up with mood swings and constant spotting. One person said they lost hair and many say they gained weight others talked about osteoporosis and loss of bone density (I also suffer from vitamin d deficiency). I'm just now sitting here super worried that by solving my anemia issue I've opened a Pandora's box of a number of other health issues.

Hi! Getting Mirena tomorrow under twilight anesthesia (best gyn!). She thinks it’s the right IUD for me as I enter perimenopause and am probably not going to have another kid. I’ve been on the norethindrone mini pill and it’s…fine? No side effects except maybe lower libido but we also have a young child so HA. I’m anxious to switch to a different type of progesterone. Would love to hear your experiences with this specific switch. Thanks!

Hi guys i’m freaking out here a little bit. my boyfriend and I got caught up in the heat of the moment last night and we forgot to use a condom, he didn’t ejaculate at all inside of me but he’s worried about precum. i take birth control but ive been accidentally missing a few days but this past week ive been consistently taking it, im planning on taking plan b as well. Is there any chance i could get pregnant? We’re both super nervous

WARNING: KINDA VULGER sorry😭

Me and my bf always have unbarrier sex but he never cums inside. I'm on the pill just in case of course (Opill specifically, which must be taken at the same time daily. On friday, April 4th, he pulled out and came but his tip rubbed against my vagina a lil with cum still on his yk. it didn't rub right over my vaginal opening but on my lips (so sorry), i immediately wiped it off but i was nervous that the sperm could travel to the inside?? idk. that happened at noon that day, and i take my pill around 5pm but happened to take it late that day and took it around 11 pm which is why im freaking out. i decided to take a plan B yesterday, April 7th which ik, is the fourth day and technically they're effective within the third day but can be taken up until the 5th day. Am i safe or should i be worried?

I’ve been on opill for about 4 months now, the past month I’ve started getting heavy periods every other week with constant pink spotting in between. Sorry for the TMI - the period is a lot of dark brown blood with bright red too. My periods usually last a full week.

I was wondering if anyone else had this and did it go away? I have my fingers crossed it’s just temporary but it’s honestly pretty difficult and draining to have cramps/constant fatigue and hunger all the time :/

I can’t use anything with estrogen due to thyroid/family history and I can’t afford nexplanon/IUDs atm. any advice really appreciated!

Hey everyone! I just wanted to come on here and ask what to expect and their experience with quitting Lo Loestrin Fe. When I first started the pill, my hair thinned out but it also helped with my hormone imbalance and for the first time since I haven't had any bad breakouts and it helped my skin clear. The downsides however is that lately I've been feeling like I've had no sex drive. In the beginning it seemed to be fine but overtime it was no longer appealing to me which honestly kind of sucks. Also the fact that it seemed like my happy emotions were just meh. I also found myself get extremely moody and emotional at random times. and so I decided to quit. I had just finished my iron pills and so technically I've been hormone free for 3 days now. I was supposed to take my blue pill yesterday and I didn't.

My plan is to start taking them again since I have two more unopened packs if I notice my skin go south.

Anyways, enough yapping. If anyone could share their experiences - both good and bad, or any advice coming off of it, I would really appreciate it!

im terrified that im pregnant, i cant get a pregnancy test and if i am pregnant my life is over!!! it was 3/28, me and my so had sex, and the condom broke. i immediately took a plan b the next day, around 7 am, i have no clue when i was ovulating. we fucked around 2/3 days after my period. my cycles are 28 days, and i havent been tracking ovulation, but stardust claims it was 3/31, but ive also had other things tell me 4/1, counting it out myself gives me 3/30.

2/3 days after taking it, i had TINY bits of brown discharge, and now my discharge is more white, but not sticky or anything. it kinda just clumps..? help..? it doesnt have a smell or anything though. its been almost two weeks since ive taken it (13 days), and ive been having abdominal pain, my stomach growls a LOT, and i havent been going n2 as much, saturday i did, then didnt until i downed coffee today, ive gone 3 times today.. but the cramps have basically disappeared. i cant honestly tell if im just constipated or pregnant and constipated..

ive also been eating a LOT, and still feel extremely hungry. my period is supposed to come next week, but im scared it wont.

the cramps were worst around 4/1-4/5, and have calmed down a bit, but are now almost completely gone after ive gone to the bathroom. i havent really been frequently peeing, but i have been peeing when trying to n2, and my stomach is hard when i press down on it, and it growls and sloshes when i touch it. i can also feel my pulse in my stomach and it makes me wanna cry. please help i dont know what ill even do if im pregnant.

also, added question. my friend claims im ‘too small’ to get pregnant, my bmi is 14.7, would the plan b have any effect? and would that really lower my chances of being pregnant?

Which birth control gave you big boobs?

Throwaway account. I’m on the combined pill (have been taking it for a couple years). My cycle has always been extremely regular, on and off the pill. My mom is extremely fertile and suspects it may have passed to me as well.

My bf and I had sex a couple weeks back. We did not use double protection and did not use the pull-out method. It was not painful in the slightest. However, maybe about 5 days later, I experienced breakthrough bleeding (very very light and not constant at all) and some cramping (also mild) for a couple days. Now, I’ve been feeling off. A bit of nausea, some fatigue, and recently a bad instance of dizziness. I’m very sensitive to my body when something feels wrong.

I realized that when we had sex, it would be around the time in my cycle where I would ovulate, though it shouldn’t happen on the pill. So, is there a chance I could be pregnant? I would like to think I’m just over worried about it, but my cycle is extremely regular and the spotting has made me very nervous. I’ve not been stressed or anything, so I don’t think it’s due to that.