12 Things Guys Would Understand If They Had To Take Male Contraceptive Pills

I hate it when guys expect women to be on the pill. If you tell them that you’re not, some of them are so quick to judge despite the fact that they have no idea what we go through on birth control! If they had male contraceptive pills, they’d be much more understanding of these struggles.

  1. How crappy the side-effects are You’re talking headaches, nausea, mood swings, decreased libido, weight gain, and even weird AF things like changes to your eyesight if you wear contact lenses. This is not even a comprehensive list. You never know what symptoms you’re going to experience.
  2. The fear of taking them You don’t have to be a hypochondriac to fear taking the pill, especially not when it comes to the potential risks associated with them. They can cause blood clots, loss of vision, and severe headaches to mention just a few. Long-term effects are also pretty scary, and they include heart problems and cancer. Of course, these won’t happen to all women taking them, but they’re still a worry at the back of our minds.
  3. Having to set an alarm to remind you to take your pill Is there anything more annoying than having to set a daily alarm so you remember to take that damn pill? It has to be taken at the same time every single day. You can’t just be blasé about it.
  4. Forgetting to take your pill Hey, sometimes those cell phone alarms fail. Now you’re saddled with the drama of worrying that you’re pregnant or wondering how on earth to figure out what to do next. Do you take another pill right away or do you wait? Do you double your dosage? Argh!
  5. The potentially disastrous effects of missing a dose Guys might laugh off the idea of women missing a pill some days and figure it’s NBD. They’d really understand the importance of this if they had to take male contraceptive pills. With most types of the pill, even just missing one dose of it can cause its effectiveness to drop quite a bit. While the pill is generally 99% effective, making a mistake when taking it, like taking it too late in the day or forgetting to take it, can make it only 91% effective. That’s a huge drop!
  6. Getting the meds just right You’re basically playing around with hormones here, and sometimes one contraceptive method just doesn’t work for your body. That means you have to go back to the doctor and try something else. This can be a real drama that takes forever, but  guys don’t have that problem. They just grab a pack of condoms from the pharmacy shelf and they’re done. SMH.
  7. Still being terrified of getting pregnant Birth control pills aren’t 100% effective at preventing pregnancy even when you take them diligently every single day. Nothing will give you that guarantee except for abstinence. But try explaining to a guy that you still worry you’re going to fall pregnant even though you’re on the pill. He’ll probably think you’re obsessing.
  8. Guys chiming in with their opinions Yes, we know it’s our body and we can decide if we want to keep the baby or not, but guys shouldn’t feel that they can just remind us of that fact flippantly as though they’re not invested in the problem. They helped us create the baby, after all! They’d understand why we’re heated about this if they had to take the pill and then still got pregnant.
  9. The expense of staying childfree We’re talking up to $50 every month, and usually guys won’t even think of sharing that expense with their partners. Condoms sell for about $1 each. Hmmm, I wonder how they’d feel if the roles were reversed and they had to buy contraceptive pills for themselves.
  10. Needing a doctor to get them You can’t just get birth control pills by snapping your fingers. Again, it’s not like running to the pharmacy to buy condoms. We have to see a doctor and get a prescription for the pill in most places and because we want to be sure we’re being responsible for our health, we have no other choice. That’s a big mission.
  11. Having to make lifestyle changes when taking the pill It’s really not a case of popping a pill and then continuing to live as normal. There are certain things that can interfere with the pill’s effectiveness. These include some medications like antibiotics, some herbal treatments, and even activated charcoal that can be added to foods. This is because activated charcoal can actually absorb some of the pill’s (and other medication’s) active ingredients before they get into your body.
  12. The fact that you can’t just go off it and go back to normal FYI, it can take a few months for a woman’s natural cycle to go back to normal once she decides to quit taking the pill. It’s definitely not an easy ride.
Giulia Simolo is a writer from Johannesburg, South Africa with a degree in English Language and Literature. She has been working as a journalist for more than a decade, writing for sites including AskMen, Native Interiors, and Live Eco. You can find out more about her on Facebook and LinkedIn, or follow her on Twitter @GiuliaSimolo.
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