We’ve all been there and asked ourselves, what birth control method is best for me and my family? Well, we thought would be a good idea to give you some perspective on three different birth control methods. You will hear from Lauren of Dallas Moms Blog on Family Planning, me on the Birth Control Pill and Allison on the IUD.
Lauren: Family Planning Method
I took the pill for several years before doing some research and realizing I wasn’t crazy about what it was doing to my body. It just felt so unnatural. I decided to try out the Family Planning method of tracking your cycle (and other things) to determine my fertile and infertile days. If trying to prevent babies, just use a form of contraception on your fertile days.
Although after only a few months of this, a baby was conceived, I am still a strong believer in this method. It helps a woman become really in touch with her body. It is much more natural than pumping my body full of hormones. I loved it, and will continue to do this after I give birth to my second (which was planned- kind of). Editors Note on Lauren’s 2nd “planned” baby…Lauren and Cody decided they were open to trying for another baby mid-April, so they stopped preventing…she is due in February…you do the math!
Allison: Intrauterine Devide (IUD)
I have used many forms of birth control over the years and like Lauren from Dallas Moms Blog, there was something so unnatural about the pill so I decided to get off it. After 10 years of being on the birth contol pill I thought I was free and clear of a pregnancy. I was pregnant with Lincoln within 2 months…whoops, I guess I needed to educate myself a bit more on my body and ovulating and all that jazz. Post Lincoln, I looked into several options and decided on a hormone free IUD. I didn’t do a lot of research about it, but my doctor assured me it was safe, hormone free so I could continue breast feeding, and 99.9% effective.
Pro: I learned that when we were ready to have baby #2 I could have the IUD removed and instantly start trying. Con: The IUD “irritates” your cervix, which is what keeps you from getting pregnant. This was the doctor’s word not mine. I wasn’t concerned about the word so much, but what resulted from having an “irritated” cervix was just ANNOYING! For all you people who get grossed out easily or who don’t want TMI about Allison, STOP READING HERE! Basically it caused an extreme amount of discharge ALL the time. It was like being pregnant all over again and as Jenny McCarthy from “Belly Laughs” would say, “Niagra in my pants”! Hey, she said it…not me! Anyway, enough said… it was gross and again, I felt like this foreign object in me needed to be removed immediately. So after 1 successful year of non-pregnancy, I had it removed and now we’re using the family planning method.
