Does anyone have thoughts or experiences with Paraguard (copper, non-hormonal IUD)? I'm curious about them (I'm on the pill now, have been for about 5 years) but I've heard of people have significant bleeding, muscle pain and rejection issues.

The rhythm method, based on basal body temperature and cervical observations, is free (besides the cost of the thermometer) and has been practiced for ages. You need to be diligent about tracking and it can take a few months to learn how to identify when you're ovulating, especially if you have irregular cycles, but it works. Whatever you do, GET OFF THE PILL!

Jumping Jacks after sex... it works great and it's extra exercise!!!

Disclaimer: This will probably not actually work.

I went off the pill after about 10 years, and it was the best decision I could have made. I can't say exactly how I felt better, I just did. It also helped me control my weight, I think. I thought condoms would be a big fat pain to use, but really once you start, it's not that big of a deal. Except if you go away for a weekend and forget to take them!

Really, your options break down into the following categories. They are roughly in the order of their effectiveness. The different techniques, methods, formulations, etc. within each category vary in effectiveness, too.

Contraception (not getting pregnant)
1) abstinence
2) physical barrier methods
3) hormonal manipulation
4) chemical barrier methods
5) timing

Birth control (becoming un-pregnant)
1) surgical
2) chemical
3) hormonal

Using these definitions, most women prefer "contraception" to "birth control". I understand your question to say that you'd like to avoid the hormonal and chemical methods and that abstinence is undesirable, too. That leaves physical barriers and timing.

If you have a latex allergy and can't use regular condoms you can find polyurethane condoms. (Female condoms are also polyurethane, I believe.) Many condoms come with a spermicide called nonoxynol-9 to which some people are sensitive but you can get them without. Barrier methods work better when used in conjunction with spermicidal/chemical barrier methds. (The study Melissa cites says the condom failure rate was ~2% where as perfect withdrawal - iffy at best! - runs at a 4% failure rate. I'd want to see how they controlled for that!)

I put both withdrawal and the rhythm method in the timing category though obviously the time scale is different. Both rely on probabilities like how much sperm is in the pre-ejaculate (> 0) and how long sperm can remain viable (longer than you think - the probability drops off rapidly but doesn't reach zero for quite a few days). The withdrawal method has the added disadvantage of relying on the man to retain self-control at a point when self-control is least available. (Think paleo for a minute: Our bodies are set up to increase the chance of pregnancy!)

Assisted timing (like Persona/Clear Blue - I don't know anything about these) would be ways to improve the odds but can not reduce the odds to zero.

I hear the safest and easiest medical intervention is for the man to get snipped, not the woman. (sorry guys..) The males I have known had no side effects except for a short recovery period. -Eva

Did you know withdrawal is just as effective as condoms? If I were married (IE getting pregnant would not be the end of the world) I would use this + Clear Blue (and ALWAYS withdraw, just don't have sex at all when Persona says not to).

There has never been a study finding sperm in the pre-ejaculate that I know of.

Birth control pills were a disaster for me - I got migraines along with other fun side effects. I had very few issues with progesterone only pills. You do have to take those exactly on time and consistently, or they don't work, since they don't always prevent ovulation, just implantation.

I used to use a cervical cap, which I loved, but they don't make them any more. All the current options bear no resemblance to the Prentif cervical cap. I mostly use sponges now, and they beat the heck out of condoms.

While spermicide isn't "natural", condoms are coated with the same chemical (nonoxnol-9)

My wife and I used Persona (Clear Blue in the US). It's 95% effective, according to the box. She pees on a stick each morning and presses some buttons at certain times in the month on the main device and it tells us when it's safe to get busy. You do have to get used to the idea that this will only be a fraction of the time - but you can just use condoms or other approaches the rest of the time. It's not the cheapest mothod around - those sticks are not that cheap. But it's hormone free.

tubal ligation- some people are saying it worsens perimenopause/menopause, but i haven't seen evidence of it. i had it 13 years ago. still use condoms for protection from stds.

How about "outercourse" (no vaginal penetration)? It takes a little self-control but it's very effective. It could be combined with fertility awareness methods or that persona/clear blue thing.

I haven't tried this, but have girlfriends that swear by it. Have used it for years without any "accidents". Once I have a regular lover again I fully intend to use this method :)

http://raxmedical.com/pearly.php

I obviously can't comment from personal experience and don't have any more details of non-hormone alternatives that others have suggested.

The pill you are taking is a combined pill containing both an oestrogen and a progesterone hormone. As most of the side effects are due to the oestrogen you could try switching to a progesterone only pill. They are equally effective it taken correctly.

It is also possible to get a progesterone only implants that last 3 years or injections that last 3 months. They have the advantage that you can't forget to take them.

A vasectomy sounds like a good idea to me!

Though I originally answered it here, I'm going to put this here, too, because the LadyComp was so useful and dependable for us:

I've never gone on the BCP - I had malignant melanoma as a teenager and when the time to find birth control came, I concluded that my body had already shown that it was predisposed to cancer, so through that filter of perhaps fuzzy logic (I had no BCP/melanoma correlation studies, just going on a hunch), I went searching for more natural options and found LadyComp, a cute little alarm clock with attached thermometer that takes basal body temp every morning and assesses your fertility with a very high degree of precision. (I'm not a LadyComp shill, just a satisfied user!) It worked terrifically for us, and when we finally DID decide to "go for it" during a time the LadyComp said I could be fertile, I conceived right away. The only catch? I haven't used it since becoming the mom of young kids because my kids' sleep schedules / nursing schedules plus lactational amenorrhea (no ovulation/period while nursing) made it impossible to have predictable sleep for a while, OR to enter a dates of having a period (which the LadyComp also uses in its logarithmic assessments of the user's fertility). SO, that said, I think it is a great best-of-natural-fertility-awareness-plus-modern-technology option for those who have fairly steady sleep schedules (or at least three hours of undisturbed sleep prior to waking in the morning) and are menstruating.

Personally the pull out method always worked. Till my husband didn't pull out (a few times in one month) and I now have a bouncing 5 month old baby boy :) I don't ever think I've been a very fetile girl because this has worked for years and years but I know once being pregnant sometimes can make it easier to get pregnant again so I think I will be doing a combo of the FAM method and bringing a shot gun to bed- so he pulls out.

I had a terrible reaction after going back on the pill for 1 week (after not taking it for about 6 years) - so I highly recommend FAM but in my much easier way which is to use LadyComp or BabyComp! Great for travel and has been an asset for myself and my husband.

Withdrawal seems like the most natural.

It was definitely known in the ancient world.

It is mentioned explicitly in the Bible: Genesis 38:9

It is unclear whether the sin was the act of withdrawal itself, or more likely the motivation behind it.

Early Jewish sources are varied, but according to mystical cabalistic schools it is a very big no-no. Later Jewish code books go on and on about how bad it is, so Rabbis direct women to oral contraceptives! A big shame, IMHO.

I don't think that it would have been so widespread, and so sternly opposed if it wasn't very effective.

IUD is not counterindicated for nulliparous (women with no history of pregnancies) - this is an idea that doctors still spread because: 1- they don't know otherwise 2- they are not used to implant IUDs and are afraid to do it on someone who has never had kids 3- there is indeed 1 in 1,000 chances to have a rejection, incident after insertion which can eventually lead to infertility (so the stakes are higher on nulliparous)

I have been off the pill for about a year now and uses condoms in the meantime, but i am planning on getting an IUD soon (not planning on having kids for the next 4 years so I think it's worth it)

The chances of something wrong happening are slim, especially because I did some research and found a place where they insert IUDs very regularly and have very good feedbacks on forums.

Another rhythm method practitioner here. Actually, we used a combination of rhythm, condoms, and withdrawal. I've never used oral contraceptives. I have four children and all except the first were conceived when I wanted to conceive them. That being said, I've always had a very, very regular menstrual cycle and knew when in the cycle ovulation normally occurred - ie I listened in biology class. ;-)

Look up Natural Family Planning. It's not the rhythm method of old. It's highly effective when followed. Couples who use it also report better, and more frequent sexual encounters. It also works as a means to get pregnant with high accuracy.