Scarleteen

Hi, I’m currently thinking of letting go of birth control pills and just stick on using condoms. I currently don’t have a source of income due to what’s going on right now and my insurance doesn’t cover the pills. Do you think it’s a good idea? What are the side effects of getting off of the pill? Is the condom just as effective as the pill?

Hi kiiiimibela,

It sucks in a big way that something as basic as your access to healthcare has been hit during the pandemic. So, if you're finding the pill is working for you, we can talk about some ways to maybe find a lower-cost option so you can stay on it. Too, until the pandemic passes, the recommendation is to only be sexual with partners you live with, so you may have more time to sort all this out.

A concern to keep in mind is that you have a history of anxiety both around pregnancy and around birth control effectiveness. So if you do end up having to go off the pill, you'll need to think about how to manage that anxiety going forward, and whether relying on condoms would be enough to make you feel comfortable, or if you'd need to abstain from certain sexual things until you were able to add another birth control method.