As a registered nurse myself, I am aware of the tons of options for birth control. And I am an active supportive of contraceptives, though our Religion discourages it.
I am a new mum. My son is only 6 months at the time of this writing, so naturally, I wouldn’t want to give him a sibling yet. I’d like to provide him with all our attention first, and everything else we can give, before maybe thinking of a new baby. My partner and I was thinking to maybe we will think about it when our son is about 5-10 years old.
So out of all the birth control methods out there, why did I choose for depo-provera injection, or what is commonly known as depo shot? Well I provided my reasons below in effort to at least help in the decision making of some other moms out there. 😀
In choosing the method, I crashed out all the natural method. Simply because I don’t find it reliable for myself. Such as the Calendar method. The method works well and is simple. Indeed it is. But that is if you have a regular menstruation, and a good memory. It has a longer formula for those with irregular menstruation, like mine. And I am a veeeerrryyy busy woman. I forget things. So this is a NO-NO. Withdrawal doesn’t work with my partner. LOL. He doesn’t have that much discipline in him. Symptom Bases (cervical mucus, basal body temperature, or both) is a NO for me too as I personally doesn’t trust my body. Hahaha.
So next would be using condoms. Anyone has access to this, right? But the reason we don’t like it as a couple is because it is a hassle (buying and keeping) and it doesn’t have the same sensation for the both of us.
Another common birth control method is using pills. This is actually good and is pretty reliable. That is, if you yourself is also reliable in taking them in religiously. Pills has to be taken every day. And as I said, I am a busy woman and I think it would be a hassle trying to bring these every day and remembering to take them.
IUD is also a common choice, specially for those who has just given birth. It also offers long term protection. The problem is, I don’t like the thought of a foreign object inserted into my body. Yes, I am a nurse. But I’m afraid of all the possibilities of having that IUD inside of me. So it is still a NO.
Another one that crossed my mind was the patch. It is also long term. It is hormonal but it had to be surgically inserted into your skin. And as I said, I don’t like anything inserted in my body for that long period of time. So that’s a NO.
There are other birth control methods available but I won’t be discussing it here at the moment. I now want to focus on Depo-Provera.
Depo-Provera is a hormonal contraceptive that will be injected to your muscle. Chosen site would be on the arm. This gives protections for 3 months already. So I had to get one every 3 months. Not bad, right? I mean you just spend a few minutes for someone to inject it for you and you’re done. You don’t have to think about it. No daily routines, don’t need to check for anything or such. That’s just it. You just schedule your next visit after 3 months.
How this works? It is hormonal, specifically progestin is put in your body. This hormone works in 2 things. One would be to prevent ovulation (releasing of your egg cell). So if you don’t release your egg cell, naturally, there’s no way for you to be pregnant right? The other one is it thickens your cervical mucus. This is like a plug in your cervix. It would serve as a gate telling the sperm cell that they cannot pass. LOL. But yeah, double protection. Yay!
As this is hormonal, the side effects depends on how your body took that hormone. I believe everyone reacts differently. Common side effects would be the following:
Irregular menstruation or none at all
Weight gain
Nausea
Dizziness
Hair loss
Headache
Depression
Loss of mineral density (i.e Calcium)
What I listed above is the common side effects, meaning, if you ever got this, it could be the effect of the depo shot. But not necessarily to have them all. As for me, I only have the first one. I do have irregular menstruation. I sometimes get up to 3 months without me period, then get heavy bleeding the next month. Or get spotting in between.
But as for the other side effects, I don’t have them. And it’s all good for me. I think my body likes it. My body might have given the hormone a welcome party. Hahaha.
So it is important to talk to your doctor which contraceptive would suit to you best. What’s good for others might not be good for you, after all.