no more condoms please

[Wade_Wilson]

my gf and i are tired of condoms and pills upset her stomach alot, can someone recomend a good birth control thats not the pill?

[sera300]

Iud........

[eminatic]

there are IUDs and there is also the Implanon rod. there are also things like spermicides and sponges.

does your gf take her birth control with food? taking it on an empty stomach can cause discomfort.

[Brandye]

The Nuvaring puts the lowest possible amount of hormone in her system and is as effective as any other hormonal system with lower side effects. It also bypasses the stomach.

The IUD suggested by sera is about as effective as hormones with or without the estrogen coasting. Vaginal spermicides - jelly, film, foam, sponge - are about as effective as condoms alone or not nearly as effective as hormones or the IUD.

[LadyBug02]

Try the Depo Provera shot. One good thing about the shot is that you usually end up not having periods after some time.

[Brandye]

Yeah, like sometimes for a year. Prescribers report more problems with Depo and patient adjustment than with most pills.

[browneyedgirl]

I'm on the ring (NuvaRing) and I really like it. I know I've advocated it in other posts, but still I think its worth saying. Low hormones, you don't have to worry about taking a pill everyday, I've had no side effects, and so far I'm not pregnant so it's working pretty well! I've been on the ring for about a year and a half now and I haven't had any problems with it. It's a small clear plastic ring that you insert in the vagina, leave it there for three weeks, and then you take it out and throw it away and have one week without it. At the end of the week you put in a new one. So, you have even less to think about than with the patch, and you don't have to have a big sticker on your butt. Anyway, good luck!

[bruins76]

All birth controls have different issues, it depends on what your GF wants to take or do. I have several friends who hate the ring but some love it. Others hate the shot (I hated that), and some like it. Same w/ the IUD, depending on which one, there's the copper w/ no hormones & the other Mirena has the hormones, a lot of people love the Mirena IUD because they say that they had a really small period from it. I would have loved to try it but again, it would have affected my blood pressure creating a whole list of other problems. If the pill is making her sick, you need to find out why (i.e. hormones). If she has an issue w/ hormones, she might not be able to take a lot of different birth controls.

Have her talk to the OBGYN about her options. Don't forget, there is always a vasectomy for you but that would mean no kids again. My DH just had his last month & I am thrilled about it as I can't take hormones (raises my blood pressure) & the IUD made me bleed something awful!

Is the man BCP out yet? I know they have talked about it a lot on the news & in magazines/books. That would be nice, then the men could deal w/ the problems & worries of birth control.