Caps Allergy
Which barrier method of birth control would you recommend?
I am so done with hormonal birth control. The side effects for me are horrible! I have tried them since age 18 and am 25 now and still hate them! Which of the barrier methods would you recommend: Cervical cap, Diaphram, or Today Sponge? I know that the sponge has spermicide already in it, but with the cap and diaphram, do you have to use the spermicide, or can you just use it as a barrier? Note: Condoms are not an option - latex allergy. Facts that might help: I have had one child who is 7 months old, am married, and it wouldn't be the end of the world if I ended up getting pregnant. We're just trying to wait until next summer to give a little space between children. I also am aware of the FAM method, and am a fan of it, but would like something that takes a little less work.
just wanted to give you my two cents on the sponge. i tried it recently since hormonal bc doesnt do well with me either and we just downright hate condoms lol. when i tried it, i slit the sponge the first time by accident. tried number two and be warned: it is QUITE sudsy. put it in over the toilet or a towel or something. it worked alright for us the first time but the second time we tried a different position and he could feel it and it hurt him. it made me a bit dry, but not too bad. the second time using it, we finished and you need to keep it in for at least 6 hrs. after 2 hrs i started getting an itchiness which i assumed i was allergic to it- very uncomfortable. i had to take it out before the recommended time. i dont really recommend it after my experience with it, but give it a try if you want. its about $14 for 3 sponges. you can keep one in for up to 24 hrs and use it as many times as you like during that period, however the final time you use it has to be a minimum of 6 hrs from when you need to take it out. experiment with different things... we're still trying to find something thats right for us.
oh yea! it doesnt work as well if you;ve already had a child too (we had a baby 4 months ago) as its harder to position over the cervix which was another reason we scrapped the idea.
