Choosing a birth control method is a way to lead your sexual life and health with responsibility, protecting yourself from an unplanned pregnancy and a possible STD. Finding a clinic where you receive guidance and options in contraception methods is important as you explore adulthood, but luckily, if you’re in Lamesa, Texas, South Plain Rural Health Services delivers comprehensive solutions for prospective patients like you. In this article, you will learn about the variety of birth control methods and how to choose the right one for you.
What Is Birth Control?
Birth control or contraception encompasses a variety of methods to prevent pregnancy by disrupting or inhibiting ovulation, preventing your ovaries from releasing an egg, or adjusting your ovulation cycle. Through a device, medication, or a procedure, birth control allows you to control your reproductive health and the decision to start family planning.
Types of Birth Control
Through contraceptive counselling, you can work with medical providers to select an optimal, highly effective method that is efficient and safe for you. Birth control options include the following:
- Barrier method: Condoms work as a barrier method that physically prevents the sperm from entering the uterus during intercourse and helps you prevent STIs.
- Hormonal contraception: Hormonal birth control includes pills that stop ovulation, modify your cervical mucus, and thin out your uterine lining. Some of these options include the oral contraceptive pill, the progestogen-only pill, and contraceptive injections.
- Intrauterine devices: IUDs are small T-shaped devices placed inside the uterus to prevent pregnancy. Primary categories include the hormonal IUD that releases progestin to thicken the cervical mucus, and the copper IUD, which uses the material as a sperm-killer and disrupts fertility. Both of these devices provide long-term protection.
👪 Related: Family Medicine in Lamesa, Texas: Healthcare for Every Generation
3 Aspects to Consider When Choosing a Birth Control Method
Before choosing what birth control method works best for you, it’s important to consider many factors, ranging from your overall health conditions to your daily routines and how a contraception method aligns with your individual lifestyle and clinical needs. Doctors recommend evaluating these aspects before using a birth control method:
1. Your Hormone Tolerance
Hormonal contraceptives work by introducing synthetic hormones like estrogen and progestin into the body, preventing pregnancy by suppressing ovulation. While many women tolerate hormonal birth control, others experience side effects like mood swings, headaches, or nausea during initial use, breast tenderness, breakthrough bleeding, changes in libido, and fluid retention. Through medical counselling, you can avoid a birth control method that causes side effects that endanger your health.
2. Fertility Comeback
When you start a birth control method, you may wonder about your fertility “coming back”. While condoms and practicing fertility awareness allow for immediate pregnancy upon cessation, quitting birth control pills, patches, or hormonal IUDs takes a few cycles to restore your ovulation. In some cases, after stopping hormonal injections, it may take up to 10 months to restore your cycle.
3. Overall Health Influence
Beyond pregnancy prevention, choosing a birth control method involves searching for the non-contraceptive effects it has on your body. Most of them help you regulate your period if it’s heavy or painful, clear up acne, and ease PMS. Oral contraceptives are a standard first-line treatment for PCOS management and endometriosis, as it stabilizes hormones, reduce inflammation, and decrease testosterone production.
The Landscape for Birth Control in Lamesa, Texas
For the residents of Lamesa, Texas, birth control is a way to manage their sexual wellness and health, with the most common methods being the birth control pill, IUDs, and male condoms. In this rural area, people care about having multiple options at primary care clinics where they can receive guidance on which birth control method is best for their health, with South Plains Rural Health Services being a strong option.
FAQ
Are all these methods safe?
Birth control pills are not recommended for women who have high blood pressure, migraines, liver disease, or blood clots.
Can I conceive after stopping birth control pills?
Your body will start releasing eggs again a few weeks after you stop your birth control pills, as soon as you ovulate.