TIGER TV ONLINE REPORTER
BATON ROUGE, La.– Unwanted pregnancies and premenstrual symptoms can be frightening or uncomfortable experiences for young women, but various forms of birth control can be effective in preventing pregnancy and making menstrual cycles less painful.
Some forms of those contraceptions include vaginal rings, pills, Ortho Evra patches, Depo-Provera shots, and cervical caps.
An over the counter sponge containing spermicide is even available as a form of birth control, said Kathyrn Saichuck, Wellness Education Coordinator at the Student Health Center.
The sponge is inserted into the vaginal tract and pushed into the cervix where it kills sperm. But the sponge has it’s risks: if a women leaves the sponge inside the vagina for too long, their risk of acquiring Toxic Shock Syndrome or vaginal infections increases. The spermicide inside the sponge can also be an irritant which increases susceptibility to sexually transmitted diseases.
The sponge is not sold at the Student Health Center, Saichuk said.
Effectiveness in preventing pregnancy and easing pain is important, but the cost of birth control is also an imperative factor, Saichuck said.
“If you choose contraception make sure it’s compliant,” she said. “Make sure it’s one you can afford. The key to contraception is compliance. You can discuss it with your partner if you’re in a relationship and it can depend on age, health and risk.”
Lindzee McCain, mass communications junior, chose to use the Depo-Provera shot.
The Depo-Provera shot is an injection received every 3 months. The shot is as effective as other means of contraception like the patch, pill or ring, but ovulation can be delayed for up to a year.
“I get migraines with aura [migraines with visual symptoms] and it constricts blood vessels in my brain,” she said. “If I were to have a blood clot from the pill then it would clot against the constricted blood vessel and I would die.”
Different methods of contraception have been around for centuries. Originally, women assumed male withdrawal before ejaculation prevented pregnancy, according to the Health Resource Center’s Web site ourbodiesourselves.org.
Around 3,000 B.C. sexually active individuals used condoms made from fish bladders, linen and animal intestines. However, sexually transmitted diseases permeated through animal skin, Saichuk said.
Spermicides and rubber condoms followed soon after, she said.
However, in 1873 the Comstock Act prohibited advertisements, information and distribution of contraception. The post office was even allowed to repossess birth control purchased through the mail.
Margaret Sanger, an advocate of birth control, opened the first birth control clinic in 1916. She was sentenced to 30 days in jail for “maintaining a public nuisance.” Later in life, Sanger raised $150,000 to create the first birth control pill created by Frank Colton.
“When contraception first came out the dosages [of hormones] were through the roof,” Saichuck said. “It’s unbelievable to what the dosage is now. Now women have less side affects.”
Plan B, an emergency contraceptive to prevent pregnancy, delivers a larger dose of hormones than typical birth control.
“It causes a sluffing off of the wall of the uterus so nothing can attach or grow there,” Saichuck said.
However, the Catholic Church has always maintained opposition to birth control, said Deacon Mike Chiappetta from the Department of Marriage and Family Life of the Catholic Student Life Center.
“Generally, contraception is intrinsically wrong,” Chiappetta said. “The church promotes natural family planning.
Family planning should revolve around the natural rhythms of a woman’s cycle to allow birth regulation within a marriage without contraception, Chiappetta said.
Julie Mickelberry, Director of Public Affairs for Planned Parenthood, said contraception is beneficial for medical reasons as well as preventing pregnancy.
“I got it for medical purposes,” Lindzee McCain, mass communications junior said she uses the Depo-Provera shot. “I didn’t get it for contraceptive purposes.”
Contraception can help with skin problems like acne and controlling a woman’s menstrual cycle, Saichuck said.
“In some cases, contraception helps with endometriosis,” she said.
Endometriosis occurs when the tissue that lines the uterus grows on other areas as well, such as the fallopian tubes, ovaries or tissues lining the pelvis. The tissue thickens and bleeds down each month, but is unable to exit the body and irritates surrounding tissue, according to the Mayo Clinic Foundation’s Web site mayoclinic.com.
Currently, Louisiana has no law that says a minor cannot obtain birth control without parental consent, Mickelberry said.
Saichuck recommends a young person still understands their medical background and potential risks.
“Make sure you give your doctor a good medical history for your own protection,” Saichuck said.
Birth control — such as the patch, pill, ring or shot — is available at the Student Health Center or Planned Parenthood.
