Avoiding pregnancy during intercourse requires planning. With family planning and contraception skills available for sexually active people today, pregnancy doesn't have to happen if you are careful and perceptive. You can prevent pregnancy by avoiding penetration, using contraception if you are sexually active, or talking to your doctor about hormonal birth control or surgery.
Step
Method 1 of 4: Avoiding Penetration
Step 1. Learn what abstinence means
Abstinence is a method that many people use to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. Abstinence can be practiced in various ways and for various reasons. There is no correct definition, but the general motive and goal for abstinence is to prevent pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs).
- Sex without penetration (outercourse) is a form of taboo, ie they do not do or avoid penetration. This means that any form of play or other sexual intercourse is allowed.
- Abstinence can also be defined as not having any sexual activity with a partner.
Step 2. Only have sex without penetration
Avoiding sperm from reaching the vagina is an effective way to prevent pregnancy. Instead of having sexual intercourse that involves vaginal penetration with the penis, try:
- Kissing
- Masturbation
- making out
- groping
- Doing sexual fantasies
- Using sex toys
- Oral sex
- anal sex
Step 3. Talk to your partner about the advantages and disadvantages of abstinence
Many people find this difficult to do, but from a pregnancy prevention perspective, abstinence is the cheapest and most effective way to avoid getting pregnant. Abstinence also has no medical or hormone-related side effects compared to other methods of preventing pregnancy.
- The benefits of abstinence actually go beyond just preventing unwanted pregnancies. Abstinence can be done until you are ready to have sex or until you find the right partner to have sex with. Abstinence can be a way for you to have a romantic relationship without being sexually active. In addition, abstinence can be practiced to symbolize a moral or religious choice.
- The disadvantage of abstinence comes from people who find it difficult to avoid sex and who engage in sex without properly educating themselves or protecting themselves from pregnancy and STDs.
Step 4. Find a partner who respects your choice to abstain
It may be difficult to establish or continue to be in a relationship with someone who doesn't accept taboos. It would be a good idea to talk to your partner about your options and explain to them what abstinence means and why you chose to do so.
- Talk to your partner before your relationship gets intimate. It is very important and useful to talk with your partner about what you expect from a relationship and the boundaries you may or may not have. Determining what is allowed or appropriate in your relationship can help clarify and prevent misunderstandings when you engage in sexual activity.
- Abstinence doesn't last forever unless you want to. Your relationships and beliefs may change with time or experience.
Method 2 of 4: Using Pregnancy Control Method
Step 1. Use a condom during sexual activity
If used correctly and consistently, condoms can help prevent pregnancy while still enjoying sex. Condoms are available in a variety of colors, flavors, and textures. You can buy them at drugstores or get them for free at health clinics.
- Female condoms can also be used. Just like regular condoms used for the penis, female condoms contain pre-ejaculate fluid and semen.
- If used and used directly, condoms are 98% effective at preventing pregnancy. It is very important that you learn how to use condoms, read expiration dates, and check that they are suitable for use.
Step 2. Use a spermicide to help prevent pregnancy
Spermicide is a gel, foam, or thin layer that is applied to condoms and works to block the entrance to the uterus with chemicals that kill sperm. These products can be purchased at drug stores, pharmacies, and retailers or are already contained in certain brands and types of condoms.
- When used alone, vaginal spermicides are only 78% effective but when combined with condoms, the effectiveness increases to 95% or more.
- Women who use spermicide should lie on their back for a while after sex to make sure the spermicide remains on the cervix.
- Spermicides can cause infection, both in the vagina and penis, and can cause irritation. Consult your doctor if you experience any irritation or discomfort after using spermicide.
Step 3. Use a contraceptive sponge
The contraceptive sponge is a small donut-shaped sponge that contains spermicide and is placed inside the vagina and along the cervix. You and your partner will not be able to feel the sponge if it is inserted correctly. These sponges are not often encountered like condoms and spermicides, and usually these sponges are more expensive. Talk to your pharmacist if you can't find one. To use the contraceptive sponge:
- First, wet the sponge with 2 tbsp (30 mL) of water to activate the spermicide. Squeeze out the excess water.
- Insert the sponge into the vagina by sliding the sponge along the back wall of the vagina until it reaches the cervix. The curved or concave side should be facing the cervix and the string around the sponge should be facing the outside of the vagina to make it easier for you to remove it.
- Leave the sponge in the vagina for 24 hours. You must leave it in the vagina for at least 6 hours after intercourse (penetration).
- Remove the sponge by first washing your hands and holding the string wrapped around the sponge and then carefully pulling it out of the vagina. Make sure the sponge is intact when you take it out.
Step 4. Perform diaphragmatic contraceptive insertion
Diaphragm contraceptives work in the same way as contraceptive sponges. However, diaphragm contraception is made of rubber with flexible edges. Unlike the contraceptive sponge, the diaphragm contraceptive is available in a variety of sizes. Your doctor will measure your pelvis and order a diaphragmatic contraceptive that you can put in before sexual activity to prevent pregnancy. You can remove the device within 6 hours after sexual intercourse or after 24 hours.
Diaphragmatic contraception does not protect you from all sexually transmitted diseases. It can protect you from gonorrhea and chlamydia, but it doesn't protect you from HIV or herpes
Method 3 of 4: Using Prescribed Hormonal Birth Control
Step 1. Talk to your doctor about a prescription for birth control pills
Birth control pills work to prevent eggs from leaving the ovaries or cause cervical mucus to become thicker, preventing sperm from reaching the egg. There are various brands of birth control pills that your doctor can recommend, the doctor will prescribe the one that is best for your health and sexual activity.
- Discuss the side effects and risks associated with the birth control that was prescribed to you. For example, women who smoke over the age of 35 are more prone to developing blood clots if they take birth control pills.
- Birth control pills require you to be disciplined in taking the drug at the same time, every day. A missed dose can potentially increase the chances of pregnancy if you have sex during a time when birth control pills are not being taken.
Step 2. Ask for birth control injections
Birth control injections, or Depo-Provera, are synthetic hormone injections that protect you against pregnancy. You should get this injection once every 12 weeks.
- Depo-Provera releases a hormone called progestin which prevents the body from releasing an egg into the uterus and thickens the mucus lining the cervix to prevent sperm from entering the uterus.
- Always discuss the health risks and side effects whenever you decide to use birth control.
Step 3. Use emergency contraception if your primary methods of birth control don't work
Known as the Morning-After Pill, this emergency contraceptive works in preventing the egg from leaving the ovary for a longer time than usual. This is to ensure that any sperm die or are removed from the body. It can take up to 6 days for a person to become pregnant. Emergency contraception cannot be used routinely to prevent pregnancy.
- Buy emergency contraception in the form of pills that are sold over the counter without a doctor's prescription at pharmacies. If you are 17 years old or older, you can buy it without a prescription at the nearest clinic.
- Take the pill as directed. Some contraceptive pills recommend 1 pill for one dose, while others recommend 2 pills for one dose.
Method 4 of 4: Consider Sterilization
Step 1. Make sure sterilization is the right choice for you
Make sure you never want to get pregnant before opting for surgery as a form of birth control. You should not have surgery to prevent pregnancy if you are likely to have more children in the future.
- Many people get sterilized because they don't want to put their health at risk, or don't want to pass on certain genetic mutations or diseases to their offspring or children.
- Sterilization is a serious problem that affects not only you and your body, but also the people around you. If you have a partner or family, it is very important to discuss the decision to go ahead and have sterilization. In the end, of course it's your body and you should be able to do what you want with it.
Step 2. Try a non-surgical sterilization method
Essure is a permanent contraceptive procedure that creates a natural barrier to pregnancy. This procedure can be done in the doctor's office in less than 10 minutes. A device will be inserted into each fallopian tube (the tube that connects the ovary to the uterus) to form scar tissue, which will block the fallopian tubes and prevent the sperm and egg from meeting.
- You will be required to use an additional method of contraception for 3 months after this procedure. It takes about 90 days for scar tissue to form in the fallopian tubes and for the procedure to produce results.
- This procedure is permanent and cannot be undone.
Step 3. Perform surgical sterilization
In this procedure, commonly known as a tubal ligation or "tubal ligation," a woman's fallopian tubes are surgically tied, cut or closed.
