“There are some things to consider with every birth control – whether it’s routine use, or having to insert an IUD, or having to go to the clinic for injections every few months,” Dr. De Say – Lin.
3. You just want something that you don’t need to think about.
Some people have no problem taking their pills every day, while others would rather give little thought to their birth control. For the latter group, LARC methods like IUDs and contraceptive implants are ideal because you can basically set it and forget it, Dr. De-Lin said. They’re also hard to screw up, which is why their “perfect use” and “typical use” are basically the same, while other methods, like pills and condoms, can be significantly more effective if not consistently used correctly every time lower, according to the Guttmacher Institute.
4. You are experiencing side effects.
“Most people have little to no side effects, but a small percentage of people experience some side effects or very unpleasant side effects, i.e. intolerable,” Staci, a board-certified gynecologist Tanouye, MD, tells SELF.
This may include severe mood changes, headache, nausea or irregular bleeding. While mild side effects are not uncommon when you first start birth control, they should subside within the first few months. So if you’re really in pain, or if they don’t seem to go away, be sure to raise it with your provider. “Things like this are definitely worth discussing: Do we need to change the dosage, do we need to change the brand, or do we need to change the approach entirely?” Dr. Tanouye said.
5. You want birth control with fringe benefits.
Pregnancy protection is a given, but you can get other benefits from various birth control methods. For example, maybe you want a method that makes your period easier, like a hormonal IUD. Or maybe you want to switch to a combination birth control pill (a birth control pill that contains estrogen and progestin), which is especially good at suppressing hormonal acne or PMS symptoms. Maybe you want to use birth control entirely to skip your period, which is something you can do with certain methods (such as some combination pills and IUDs and patches) (check with your doctor first).
6. Your health does not apply to your current approach.
Every contraceptive method has some contraindications, just like any other drug. You might look at this list with your doctor when you first started birth control, but if that was a long time ago, it’s worth discussing it again. This is because certain health conditions may determine which birth control methods are safe for you to use, and you may have developed these health conditions while on birth control.
For example, if you have a blood clot, if you have migraine with aura, or if you currently have multiple cardiovascular disease risk factors (eg, high blood pressure, diabetes, etc.) Disease Control and Prevention The Centers (CDC) do not recommend taking estrogen-containing birth control methods, such as the combined pill, patch, and IUD, because these methods may further increase the risk of stroke. Having breast cancer is often another reason to stop taking hormonal contraception because it could be a hormone-mediated cancer, Dr. Tanouye said.
