The Best Birth Control for You Now part 2

Thinking about getting pregnant in the next year or two

Your best bet: A barrier method or a hormonal contraceptive
You’ll want a method that’s easily reversible—you can stop it with little hassle—and doesn’t cause a long delay until you ovulate again. Condoms are an obvious choice, but hormonal contraceptives also fit the bill. "Most people resume ovulation within two to three cycles after stopping a hormonal method," Dr. Mass says.

A new mom who doesn’t want to get pregnant again soon

Your best bet: An IUD or Implanon
"With an IUD or Implanon, you don’t have to think about birth control," says Sarah Prager, MD, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle. Plus, they won’t reduce breast-milk production the way estrogen-containing methods can. (The progestin-only mini-Pill is also nursing-friendly.) If you’re not breast-feeding, you can use the Pill, patch, or ring starting about six weeks after childbirth (but not before then because of the risk for postpartum blood clots).

Totally done having kids

Your best bet: An IUD, Implanon, or permanent birth control
How sure are you, really? If you’re at all on the fence, IUDs and Implanon are good long-term, highly effective (but still reversible) options. But if you’re 100 percent positive your baby-making days are history, you have a couple of choices for sterilization, including tubal ligation or the nonsurgical options Essure or Adiana (implants that are placed in your fallopian tubes). And of course, there’s always the option of a vasectomy for your guy.

Heading into perimenopause

Your best bet: A progestin-only or hormone-free method
While many healthy nonsmokers may be able to safely use birth control pills through perimenopause, until we know more about the role of estrogen in perimenopausal and postmenopausal cases of breast cancer, the safest option is to go with a progestin-only method such as the Mirena IUD, Depo-Provera, Implanon, or the mini-Pill.

Other perimenopausal options

Sterilization or the ParaGard IUD are also options if you don’t want to take hormones at all. If you use a method (such as the mini-Pill) that masks whether you’re still getting your period, your doctor can do a blood test to determine whether you’ve officially gone through menopause—and don’t have to worry about birth control any more.

The pope disapproves of it. Teenagers are confused by it. And it may be one of the world's most politically charged health issues. Though most people associate birth control with the advent of the Pill in the '60s, contraception is an age-old concern.
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