Birth control was easy when you were younger, probably. You just headed down to the student health center and picked up cheap birth control pills or a strip of like 20 condoms for $1.

Fast forward however many years, and the options are way better than we had back in the day: IUDs! Essure! The ring! The patch! But of course, with more choices comes more confusion. Which is the right birth control for you?

Dr. Logan Levkoff tackles the issue in the latest episode of Mom-Ed: In the Bedroom. She runs through several questions you need to ask yourself if you're considering your birth control options. Read on, below:

1) Are you interested in growing your family in the next few years? If so, short term methods are probably best. You can use hormonal methods, like the Pill, the ring, or the patch, or barrier methods like the cervical cap or a diaphragm.

2) Are you concerned about STDs? If you're in a non-monogamous relationship, you need to use a method that prevents STDs as well as pregnancy. It's a common misconception that the diaphragm or cervical cap do that, but they don't. Good old condoms (female or male) are the only things that do.

3) How often am I having sex? If you're not frequently having intercourse, you might want a method you use only when needed like condoms or a diaphragm, versus one that is "always on" like hormonal methods or an IUD.

4) Are hormonal methods right for me? Health history, family history, and your own comfort level might make non-hormonal methods a better choice.

5) Am I 100 percent done having kids? A permanent sterilization method like a tubal, Essure, or your partner's vasectomy frees you from worry.

For the lowdown on each method, check out the video below.

 

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What birth control method do you use? And do you like it?


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