DISCLAIMER: while i understand there is a stigma around topics of this matter, i believe it's important to have them to educate people. if you're planning on acting like this post is evil incarnate for talking about reproductive healthcare, then leave. you dont have to read it. i am not forcing you to read this. i can regocnize that this can be viewed as a somewhat mature conversation, so i will say this: if you think that you, regardles of age, are not mature enough to handle this conversation, click on a different post. this is obviously not the post for you.

the goal of this post is to educate people on the fact that birth control is not solely used as a contracpetive. if you arent ready for that conversation, i suggest clicking off and finding something else to read. thank you for reading this disclaimer.

i'm not sure if ive mentioned it before, but in june of 2024, i started birth control due to health reasons. two years prior, i was diagnosed with low iron anemia and was put on a prescription for iron supplements. around a year and a half later, i began experiencing debilitating symptoms during my period: cramps bad enough to make me miss school and work, and nausea that made me actually scared to move sometimes. i had been thinking to ask my mom about possibly starting birth control, but i didn't know how to bring it up without sounding awkward- because it goes without saying that the conversation around birth control is mainly about it as a contraceptive, and it's hard to start conversation about it without being assumed to want it for contraceptive use. thankfully (as in, unfotunately), things eventually got to a point where i came home, miserable from cramps and nausea, and immediately asked her because there was no room for misinterpretation- and she agreed!! shortly after, i was put on the Depo Provera shot.

my experience with Depo Provera was somewhat mixed. on one hand, it did prevent me from experiencing the symptoms i was having issue with by preventing menstruation altogether, but on the other hand it did so by essentially stacking my period, sending it towards the end of the three-month period (pun not intended) in which it did what it was meant to do, and basically having me experience debilitating cramping and nausea anyways. fun fact, one time this happened while i had the flu, which is a fate i wouldnt wish on my worst enemy. it's worth noting that the Depo Provera shotis meant to be a short-term prescription that youd take for at most a couple years, and that long-term use can result in life-threatening problems, such as brain tumors. learning this was enough to convince me to switch prescriptions, and in may of 2025, i was officially switched over to Nexplanon.

it should go without saying that Nexplanon is a bit different than the Depo Provera. rather than a routine shot, it's an implant that's put in your arm, and sends hormonal signals through the blood stream. the downs of this one is that it causes irregular bleeding, not no periods outright, but that doesnt matter to me, because the upside is that it's really just a matter of managing the bleeding, and the cramps and nausea i once dealt with are gone. one of the major concerns with Nexplanon is that on somewhat rare occasions, the implant can move around from where it's supposed to be a typically within few days of insertion, and cause a lot of problems if it does. thankfully, mine is right where it's supposed to be in my arm- i was nervous about this when i got it, but can still feel where it is. i've only been on Nexplanon for a little over a year, and it can last for three to five, so i have less experience with it. but so far, that experience has been overwhelmingly positive.

there's a lot of stuff spreading around about birth control, mainly misinformation, in response, i felt i had the responsibility to share my own experiences with it. whether you're not interested in raising kids but could be at risk of getting pregnant, or indifferent about having kids but experience debilitating sympotmps along with menstruation, talk to a doctor and see if birth control is a good choice for you. do your research and dont fall for people who only ever demonize birth control while insinuating childbirth is a necessary experience- theres a reason those come hand in hand.

thanks for reading :)

Hey!! this blog is available on other platforms of mine. go check it out :)

Spacehey

Napo

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