There are a few of us on the forum who KNOW we never want children. But I'm curious as to exactly how easy it's gonna be to go forever and not even accidentally get pregnant. I'm curious as to what type of contraception and birth control all of you use, and what you'd suggest, reccomend, and any tips for making sure you don't get pregnant. For example, I prefer condoms and the contraceptive film; I was on the pill and didn't like it because of weight. I'm also thirty, so I'm looking at about twenty more years of contraceptive use.

Does anyone favor any one form of contraception over another? Are there certain benefits to using any particular kind (rhythm method vs the diaphram, for example)? Do you take most of the responsibility for not getting pregnant, or does your partner? Does your child-free views and religious use of contraceptives put a damper on your love life...or does it make your love life better? Do you find doctors sympathetic to your desires to remain child free? Do you believe that not having children ill affects your health (example: the supposed breast cancer link; long term health effects of contraception, if there are any)?

I can't wait to hear from everyone!

I'm not currently sexually active, but when I was in a relationship, I preferred condoms exclusively. The pill made me gain weight and I could never remember to take it. I was going to get a depo shot but then one of my friends told me it was constantly making her bleed. I'm considering tying my tubes.

This topic is certainly not exclusive to a child-free lifestyle, LOL.

I do want to have children, but if I was positive that I did not, I would have a tubal done, especially bc I'm married and no concern of std's. The pill, etc are meant as bc that you can go off of easily in order to get preg

I tried the pill but it made me sick so that didn't work condoms have always worked well for me & backed up by the rhymth method. I have only ever had 1 time when a condom split and so as an emergency precaution I took the morning after pill. I am well aware this is not a contraception method but it's nice to know there is a back up.

Both My partner & myself have the same feelings on the matter so we take equal responsibility

Caxe--my fiancee and I don't want kids either.

We use condoms and I am on the Pill.

When he is old enough for a vasectomy (he is only 23) he plans on getting one

Neat thread, BTW!

I have had a Mirena IUD for over four years. I am 35 and never had kids. I think the Mirena is about the best thing ever invented!

I cannot take any type of birth control pills. They all give me horrible migraines. Even though the Mirena has a small amount of hormones in it, it goes directly into the uterus so does not have the same effect and I don't get migraines. I also don't hardly get any kind of periods at all.

When I first got it I was about 30. I told my doctor I didn't want kids and she was really cool about it even though she is a mom. She offered to give me a tubal but I was only 99% sure about not having kids as opposed to 100% and also I have heard there can be hormonal issues and problems people can have after a tubal ligation. Also, I used to have my period every other week due to the meds I am on. (I have PCOS). The Mirena stopped that.

The only downfalls are that it was VERY painful being inserted, and it's not cheap. I was lucky that when I got it I had great insurance and it paid for 80% of it. Of course that is a thing of the past and it might be like $1000 to replace, but break it down over five years or so and it's really not that much and definitely cheaper than having a child.

I've also read somewhere that the IUD is more effective than a tubal, so it's definitely a good form of BC.

Originally Posted by Zophie

I have had a Mirena IUD for over four years. I am 35 and never had kids. I think the Mirena is about the best thing ever invented! I cannot take any type of birth control pills. They all give me horrible migraines. Even though the Mirena has a small amount of hormones in it, it goes directly into the uterus so does not have the same effect and I don't get migraines. I also don't hardly get any kind of periods at all. When I first got it I was about 30. I told my doctor I didn't want kids and she was really cool about it even though she is a mom. She offered to give me a tubal but I was only 99% sure about not having kids as opposed to 100% and also I have heard there can be hormonal issues and problems people can have after a tubal ligation. Also, I used to have my period every other week due to the meds I am on. (I have PCOS). The Mirena stopped that. The only downfalls are that it was VERY painful being inserted, and it's not cheap. I was lucky that when I got it I had great insurance and it paid for 80% of it. Of course that is a thing of the past and it might be like $1000 to replace, but break it down over five years or so and it's really not that much and definitely cheaper than having a child. I've also read somewhere that the IUD is more effective than a tubal, so it's definitely a good form of BC.

Are there any risks of weight gain? I really hate to admit this, but that's seriously a paranoia of mine...which is why I don't like using the Pill.

Personally, I like condoms. I'm still pretty young so no ligation for me.

I have a friend who doesn't use ANY form of protectin at all besides "pulling out" and I swear that with the amount of sex she has, she's just a pregnancy waiting to happen. In fact, I'm amazed that she hasn't gotten pregnant yet!

There is VERY little risk of any side effects from the Mirena IUD. While it does contain hormones, they are released only locally and not systemically; in fact they can barely be detected in a blood test, if at all. So there aren't the risks of blood clots, weight gain, mood swings and other side effects from the pill.

I had one and had no pain with insertion. The ParaGard is a copper IUD and is good for 10 years instead of Mirena's 5 years. I think IUDs are the best way to go for long-term birth control.

Honestly, with the number of things we can be exposed to daily, I think the health "risks" from never being pregnant are negligible. However, there are very real risks to giving birth, even in a first world country like the US. So I'd dismiss anyone who wants to talk up the supposed "risks" of never being pg.

I find the use of an IUD enhanced my sex life because there was nothing to think about. Of course, that's only an option with a spouse or committed partner.

As for whose responsibility birth control is, I'd love to say it is both, but reality says that if it fails I pay a higher consequence than he does. So I prefer to take charge of my own fertility! Of course, a condom in addition to ANY other method of birth control never hurt, either!

i have no advice on contraception but i wouldn't rely on timing or pulling out !!!

i think you need to take responsibility as well if you know you don't want to get pregnant. it's a tough question of HOW to do so since the pill has a lot of side effects and IUD sounds scary ...

some time back i heard about how someone we went to school with got tricked into getting pregnant even though she had said she wasn't ready but her husband wanted to start a family...

her husband apparently was doing something to the condoms so they were essentially ineffective. i don't know if he cut a hole in them or what. anyway she got pregnant, found out what he had been doing and was very upset about the whole situation.... i don't know what happened eventually

BUT moral of the story : you can't rely on the guy especially if there's a difference in opinions...

but since hearing that story, i've kept it in mind and someday i'll probably bite the bullet of nasty side effects and go on the pill so i don't "accidentally" get pregnant... i'd actually probably divorce the guy if he did that!!

Originally Posted by Liz_x3

I have a friend who doesn't use ANY form of protectin at all besides "pulling out" and I swear that with the amount of sex she has, she's just a pregnancy waiting to happen. In fact, I'm amazed that she hasn't gotten pregnant yet!

With my boyfriend of a year, I'd occasionally rely on the timing of my period to see when was a "safe" period to have sex without contraception (because I wasn't ovulating). My period has always been pretty normal and regular, so it worked. I would NEVER go that route again though. It's really irresponsible. I know he was "clean", but now that I look back on it, it's just not worth risking getting pregnant over.

When my next relationship comes around, I'm not sure what kind of contraception I'll use. I know there's so many different types of pills, the shot, the patch... It gets confusing!

I've never heard of Mirena...but I need to look into it. Sometimes I get so frustrated because my BF couldn't care less about us using something, and he apparently believes that withdrawal is effective every time.

I too, didn't like the weight gain while on the pill, but I always keep a couple of packs of pills on hand to use as emergency contraception. My doctor has always prescribed them to me when I need them, which is rare. I've probably used emergency contraception three times in the past five years, but the peace of mind that having the pills around brings is priceless!

My favorite type of birth control of all was a very expensive nasal spray called Synarel (I think, it's been ages since I've taken it). My former gynecologist gave it to me to stop my periods before I had surgery for endometriosis, and it had the added effect of rendering me temporarily sterile. My period took about two months to come back after I used it for almost a year.

I'd always wanted to consider an IUD; I heard long ago that they were dangerous, but I'm sure they've improved by now. I know that a lot of forms of contraception have their side effects, but when compared with carrying a baby to term and delivering, contraceptive side effects, to me, are much easier on the body and less damaging, so I'd be willing to consider many different types of birth control regardless.

Originally Posted by bubbleliciousis

some time back i heard about how someone we went to school with got tricked into getting pregnant even though she had said she wasn't ready but her husband wanted to start a family... her husband apparently was doing something to the condoms so they were essentially ineffective. i don't know if he cut a hole in them or what. anyway she got pregnant, found out what he had been doing and was very upset about the whole situation.... i don't know what happened eventually BUT moral of the story : you can't rely on the guy especially if there's a difference in opinions... but since hearing that story, i've kept it in mind and someday i'll probably bite the bullet of nasty side effects and go on the pill so i don't "accidentally" get pregnant... i'd actually probably divorce the guy if he did that!!

Ugh. Now that is just the LOWEST behavior possible. I'd thrash my BF if he tried that crap with me! I've actually heard of guys doing things like this, though. Most know that a baby is a way to keep a woman dependent on you for a long, long time (not too many people want to go through single-parenthood to my knowledge) and keep a woman in your life. In fact, I've known of women who get pregnant for the same reasons: too keep a man in her life, and both are equally distasteful! I believe that unless both parties want the child, contraception should be used religiously and left untampered with.

I'm currently not sexually active, but I'm still on the pill as it helps my current medical condition.

Soon I won't have to worry about an accidental pregnancy - I'm having a hysterectomy end of Aug . Even after that though if I entered into a relationship I would use condoms for my own sexual health.

Originally Posted by riffraff

I'm currently not sexually active, but I'm still on the pill as it helps my current medical condition. Soon I won't have to worry about an accidental pregnancy - I'm having a hysterectomy end of Aug . Even after that though if I entered into a relationship I would use condoms for my own sexual health.

I kind of envy you. You'll NEVER have to worry about having an "accident"!