When I was 19 years old I had my first serious boyfriend. He was 8 years older than me and I knew that he would be the one with whom I would have my sexual debut. When I was ready to share my body with him we had a frank conversation about how we would be protecting ourselves from any unplanned pregnancies. I told him that I was happy to use condoms as a means of protection. He was happy for us to use condoms too, but he wanted an extra layer of protection and so we started looking at other forms of birth control that we could use. I use the word ‘we’ very liberally here, because as you will find in the next few paragraphs, current forms of easily accessible birth control are mostly geared towards the person who is able to carry children. 

The next day I made an appointment at Student Health and went to see the nurse. She asked me why I came and I told her that I had never had penetrative sex before, that I was ready to become sexually active and needed her advice on what birth control would be best suited for someone like me. ‘Someone like you?’ she asked, ‘What do you mean by that?’ I told her that I did my own research and knew that the traditional form of birth control, known as The Pill wouldn’t work for me, because you have to take it every day at the same time for it to be effective and I didn’t trust myself to remember that. She smiled, took out a book and showed me all the other forms of birth control that she had available for me to use. 

She suggested I go for the injection, the injection is a hormonal birth control that works for between 1 – 3 months depending on which injection you get. I chose the 3 month injection. I liked the injection because I didn’t have to remember to take a pill every day, at the same time. However, I did gain quite a lot of weight on the injection. Gaining weight is not a problem in life, in fact it is normal, but I decided to stop using that form of birth control after 6 months because if I was going to gain weight I wanted it to happen naturally and not because of my chosen birth control.

After I went off the injection my boyfriend and I decided to keep using condoms while my body regulated itself after being on hormonal birth control for 6 months. Condoms are a great protection, because it protects you from Sexually Transmitted Infections as well as pregnancy. At the time we mainly used external condoms. An external condom is also known as a ‘male’ condom. We don’t use that terminology anymore because people with penises aren’t always male. An external condom goes over a penis, or a sex toy before sex or masturbation takes place. An external condom is good to use during vaginal penetrative sex, anal sex and blowjobs. There are many other condoms that are effective like the internal condom, dental dams, finger cots or gloves. 

After three months of only using condoms, I made a consultation at Marie Stopes in Cape Town and met with a nurse named Thabo. I asked him if he had any non-hormonal birth control available for me. After making sure that my monthly periods aren’t heavy or painful, he suggested I look into getting the Intrauterine Device (IUD) also known as the Copper T. The IUD is a small device that is inserted through the vagina, through the cervix until it comes to rest in your uterus. The copper T uses copper to fight pregnancy. Copper is extremely toxic to sperm, so once the sperm enters the vaginal canal and goes through the cervix, the copper will kill it off before implantation can occur. The Copper T (depending on what model you get) can last for between 5 and 10 years. This IUD also needs no daily maintenance like the pill does. It does require you to return to the clinic 6 weeks after insertion to see if your body accepted it. After that you will return to the clinic once a year to ensure that the IUD is still in place and safe. The Copper T may cause some cramps and/or a heavier period, so it is not advisable to get one if you already have a painful or heavy menstrual flow. 

I haven’t tried all forms of birth control, so below you will find a non-exhaustive list of other forms that could be of use to you:

The Pill:

The pill is a round pill taken daily at the same time to prevent pregnancy. This means if you took your first pill at 10 am, you need to continue to use it at 10 am in the future. 

Insider Tip: set an alarm daily to remind you. 

Mirena

The hormonal IUD releases hormones into the uterus to ensure that the balance is not favourable for implantation to occur. Hormonal Intrauterine Devices last for 3 years and require no daily maintenance like the pill does. It does require you to go in for an annual check-up to ensure that the IUD is still in place. Many people state that their periods stopped after having the Mirena inserted.

The Morning After Pill

The morning after pill is not to be confused with an abortion pill.

The morning after pill is a pill that must only be used in emergencies. It can be used up to 72 hours after the unprotected sex has taken place. However, it is advisable to take it as soon as possible after unprotected sex has taken place as that is when it is most effective. Please remember that this is not a reliable form of birth control and should only be used in emergencies. 

Taking care of your sexual health can be a daunting task, but you should feel proud of the fact that you are doing your own research to find the best birth control for your body. Remember, in South Africa there are many free forms of birth control at public clinics and hospitals.

What advice would you give to someone who is nervous about discussing birth control with a partner or healthcare provider?

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