If you don't want to get pregnant - or get your partner pregnant - you need to use birth control, also called contraception or family planning. There are lots different types of birth control methods. Another way to avoid getting pregnancy is abstinence.
There are a lot of factors that affect your choice of birth control method. How old are you? Can you get the method in your country? How acceptable is the method in your culture? How do you and your partner feel about it?
The Copper-T IUD, which is often sold under the name 'Multiload' is a non-hormonal birth control device that sits in your uterus or womb. It’s a t-shaped piece of plastic wrapped with a coil of copper-wire. That's why some people call it the 'coil'.
The hormonal IUD is a small cylinder about as long as a matchstick that is put inside the uterus or womb. It's put in place by a doctor, and can stay in the body for up to five years. It works by giving off a steady low dose of the hormone progestogen (levonorgestrel).
Withdrawal is when a man pulls his penis out of a woman’s vagina before he ejaculates – the moment where semen comes out of his penis. It’s also known as the pull out method or coitus interruptus.
Outercourse can mean different things to different people. Some people consider outercourse as any sex play without sexual intercourse (when a man inserts his penis into a woman’s vagina). For others, outercourse means sex play without any penetration (oral, anal, vaginal).
You’ve had intercourse without using contraception, even though you don’t want to be pregnant. Or you think something could have gone wrong with your contraception – perhaps you forgot to take your pill, or a condom burst. What can you do?
A condom is a thin, tube-like cover worn over the male penis during sex (in case of male condoms) or inserted into the female vagina before sex (for female condoms). Let's find out more about them.
It’s a pill that women swallow every day. Combined birth control pills contain two hormones, estrogen and progestin. 'Mini-pills', or progestin-only pills, only contain progestin.
It’s one thing to know about condoms but another thing actually to use them. If you’re worried about talking about condoms with your partner, there’s a good chance that your partner is worried too.
