"Sex—with no worries"

Sex is pleasure. Since time immemorial, people have used sex not only to maintain the population but to gain satisfaction for themselves. Sexuality and lovemaking techniques have been explored in countless cultures since early times. In fact, one of the most popular sex manuals, the “Kama Sutra” has been written as early as the second century BC in India.

But sex, like most good things, is double-edged. At one edge, a woman derives bliss in being intimate with her lover. At another, you risk getting pregnant.

Luckily, there’s contraception. Contraception, or birth control, is the intentional prevention of pregnancy using any of several means. In the United States alone, around 64 percent of women between 15 and 44 years use some means of birth control. If sexually active couples do not use contraception, around 85 percent of them face pregnancy within a year.

If you’re a woman, you have more choice because most methods are for you. You can choose based on the method’s convenience, reliability, side effects, and reversibility, which dictates whether the method is for one-time use or permanent.

If you want to be guaranteed 100 percent safe against pregnancy, then abstain from sex. But why deny yourself such pleasure?

There are lots of choices for birth control. The first group, called “barrier methods”, work by blocking sperm from entering the uterus. Barrier methods for women include female condoms, the diaphragm, the cervical cap, and spermicides. The female condom is offered without prescription. The closed end of the sac should be inserted to the vagina while the open end remains outside the vagina. Like the male condom, it is disposable. It is 79 percent effective and reduces risk of many sexually transmitted infections (STIs).

The diaphragm is a shallow cup of rubber with flexible rim which is sprayed with spermicide that is used to cover the cervix. It comes in various sizes and is available only from health care professionals. It is 80 percent effective.

The cervical cap is similar to the diaphragm, but it is smaller and fits more tightly into the cervix. For women who have not yet given birth, it is as effective as a diaphragm. For those who have, it is 60 percent effective.

Spermicides could be jellies, creams, foams, suppositories, tablets, or films which block the entrance to the cervix and kill sperms. These could be bought without prescription and used either alone or with a condom, diaphragm, or cervical cap. They are 74 percent effective.

The second group is called intrauterine device (IUD), which is made of plastic and inserted into the uterus by a health-care professional. IUDs need to be replaced every one to 10 years. IUDs are 96 percent effective, but warning: they can increase bleeding and risk for pelvic inflammatory disease (PID).

If you like neither barrier methods nor IUDs, hormonal contraceptives are available, by prescription. Female sex hormones are used to interfere in the reproductive cycle. Many prefer them because they do not interfere with your sexual freedom. The drawback? They don’t protect against STIs.

First type of hormonal contraceptive is pills, which is taken every day for 21 days. Then you have to take a placebo or nothing for seven days. Pills are 95 percent effective. Though they have some minor side effects, they relieve menstrual pain and bleeding.

Hormonal implants are inserted by a health-care professional under your arm. Despite some side effects, they can remain there for five years and are 99.9 percent effective. This is the most effective other than abstinence and surgical sterilization.

The fourth type of birth control—surgical sterilization—is permanent. For women, tubal sterilization entails the cutting, tying, or sealing of the fallopian tubes. It is almost 100 percent effective. But don’t rejoice yet; this does not protect from STIs.

They say prevention is better than cure. The last type of birth control for women—fertility awareness methods—apply that rule. Through calendar charting, basal body temperature measurement, and cervical mucus monitoring, you can avoid sex on your fertile days. And avoid pregnancy, too. These are 80 percent effective.

Of course, if you don’t trust any above, then simply don’t have sex. But then, you’ll be missing a lot. Why suffer, when you can enjoy sex with no worries?