Do you think men should take birth control pills?

[Anonymous]

I do, but I’m biased because being on the pill did nothing but lower my libido, make me depressed/angry all of the time, and weight gain. My body just doesn’t respond well to artificial hormones, so I clearly wasn’t one of those women who boast about how they experienced nothing but benefits from hormonal contraceptives. Haha.

If a man could take the pills instead of expecting me to, that’d be awesome for me. What I don’t understand, is women who claim that we “can’t trust” men to take the pill everyday. Doesn’t that depend on the individual’s sense of responsibility? Not to mention that there are some women who lie about being on the pill, in order to manipulate a guy into fucking them raw and conceiving a baby.

[ABoyNamedSue]

YES. I’ve always found it odd that the mainstream responsibility is on women. Saying that there isn’t a reliable way for men to do it is like saying “the reason why I didn’t win the race is because I didn’t fancy running”. If a patriarchal society focused on birth control for men, it could be argued that we would currently be asking the reverse of this question.

Wheter that’s waffle or not. Women, carry the child, give birth to the child, feed the child, and they are also expected to tend to the child. Even if they aren’t pregnant they pay a price each and every month. Regardless of blood, it’s the crippling cramps and hormonal imbalances. The least men could do is try and ease the turmoil by being the ones who are responsible for contraception.

NOW before I get a ton of words like, apologist, brown noser or weak; thrown at me. I am not talking about you (man) as an individual. It’s not your fault, it’s not mine. It’s society as a whole that has been patriarchal for millennia. The odd micro society counts not of course.

TELL ME I’M WRONG IN AN INTELLIGENT WAY IF YOU DISAGREE. Trust me, I won’t acknowledge pathetic comments.

[Asker]

Agreed. Women can’t even carry babies in the first place without the man’s sperm, so birth control should be a shared responsibility. If not a pill, then another reversible method that has minimal side effects. Also, don’t worry. I created this post as more of a hypothetical discussion. So I won’t be argumentative. Maybe some people will be, but those that are have missed the entire point of the question and have taken it way too seriously.

[Asker]

Actually, taking it too personally would’ve been a more appropriate evaluation of such a matter.

[NEOTUNIA2U]

Good response.

[ABoyNamedSue]

Haha. I certainly didn’t mean to imply that those “Pathetic” comments would be coming from you. It’s more the knuckle draggers that believe a women should cook and clean. Hopefully we have a social left majority on G@G.

[Freiburger]

What pill? Until scientists and pharma companies create a safe pill for men, this is an abstract discussion.
1) Condoms are extremely pricey unless you are a member of a class that gets them for free. They also have an efficacy rate of zero over a long enough time period.
2) Vasectomies aren't guaranteed to be reversible. That's flirting with long term infertility right there.

The pill was created to empower women by giving them control of their reproductive system. Hostility towards men for not taking the pill, when no pill exists for us, is utterly misplaced.

[Asker]

What hostility? This discussion was hypothetical from the start. The only hostility I have is towards people who trivialize the negative side effects of hormonal contraceptives, because “it’s not that big of a deal”.

[Freiburger]

Maybe not by you but I have met many women who were resentful that men did not take the pill. The side effects of the pill are well documented and shouldn't be trivialised. BUT many women have pre-existing menstrual problems, like painful periods and PCOS, which can be reduced with combination birth control pills. So there's that too...

[Asker]

I guess, but I don’t have PCOS or endometriosis. The pill only treats the symptoms of those conditions, it doesn’t cure the root cause of said conditions. As for the women who resented men for not taking the pill, I don’t understand why. Getting angry over something that doesn’t exist yet is pointless.

[Freiburger]

I agree that it doesn't cure those conditions, but those conditions are without cure.
The pill is a blunt instrument, not a precision tool. It's highly effective at stopping pregnancy, but it always has side effects that range from trivial to beneficial to highly unpleasant and life threatening, depending on your lifestyle and genetics. Regarding the latter, hopefully personalised medicine will improve matters: medium.com/.../genetics-and-the-contraceptive-pill-e97e0e3977bc

[Anonymous]

No. I don’t like hormonal contraceptives. I am not accepting lack of sex drive, pimples, tiredness, dizziness, moodiness, etc as side effects for myself and I would never want my man toneat that kind of poison. I use a lady comp, temperature method, combined with a diaphragme. Because I hate how condoms feel and I have tried pills, copper iud, hormonal iud and the injection, I am done with this poison. But of course it is easier to use these mire natural methods if you are in a comitted relationship, we also already have two kids, and no it was not a whoops because these methods didn’t work, it was before that.

[Opinion Owner]

And if the man were to take the pill. It is just the same as with women. We have to trust it. If in a comitted relationship. If it is fairly new and not thtat serious a barrier method would be preferable.

[Opinion Owner]

But sometimes taking a pill everyday and be hard to remember. Then you can help each other remembering no matter who is taking it. Honey did you take the pill today? Or put a daily alarm to remember taking it.

[Asker]

I use the Today Sponge and condoms, so I understand what you mean. Birth control pills are kind of like a gamble, since some women report not having any negative side effects at all. If the man takes the male birth control pill and doesn’t experience any side effects that bother him, then I don’t see what’s wrong with him taking it. Providing, said pill has the same effectiveness as women’s oral contraceptives.

[Opinion Owner]

Yes then it could be ok if he didn’t got any side effects. But I still feel like it is a gamble and even without side effects it isn’t healthy. I would prefer to find an alternative than to him taking something unhealthy for decades every single day, I just don’t think it is good for the body.

[MlleCake]

There are several methods in development right now that I'm very excited about. The more options the better. Vasalgel is already in use in some countries.

[Asker]

How many side effects does Vasalgel have?

[helva]

First clinical trial was expected to begin in 2018 according to the manufacturer: https://www.parsemus.org/projects/vasalgel/

[Asker]

@helva Thanks. That was a nice read.

[Paige90]

It looks like Vasalgel is a fluid that is ejected into the guys balls that blocks the sperm from coming out when he cums. I wonder if that hurts? A pill (s) would be much simplier.

[MlleCake]

It's a body safe polymer that gets injected into the vas defrens which keeps sperm from being able to leave the testes. It is long term but reversable.

[MlleCake]

No, it doesn't hurt except like getting two shots. Then two shots to reverse it.

[Paige90]

But vasectomies are long-term and reversible too.

[MlleCake]

Vasectomies are not generally considered reversible.

[Roxxy99]

I think a male birth control pill is a wonderful concept. It will allow men to take better responsibility for their own reproduction, which is a good thing. However, It'll be a little surreal the first time a guy says “trust me. I’m on the pill”. But I guess guys have dealt with that dilemma for decades now.

[TrixiePooch]

I think the only thing that could prevent impregnation by a man is a vasectomy or castration. No pill would help.

[TheBobFather]

I'd absolutely be open to taking it. I think it's sad we seem to have so few options. It's hard to lump all men or all women together, I think that kinda thing needs to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis

[AlienParasite]

I don't like those kind of pills either for men or women, they change normal hormonal levels and that affects to body in ways I would prefer to avoid.

So I'm not gonna use female pill ever, I will always use any other method, and because I would never do that to my body I don't expect any man to take any pill. However, if he wants, he is free to try those things, he is an adult and can do anything to his body.

[Asker]

Yeah I don’t expect it either, but if a successful male birth control pill did exist, it would be nice for him to take it if he hates wearing condoms and didn’t mind the side effects. The side effects of synthetic hormones were awful for me, so that’s why I resent when anybody expects me to put that stuff back in my body.

[PlacentaSalad]

I believe that birth control for men should continue to be studied and attempted because I'm sure there's plenty of men who would be willing to be on birth control. But I don't believe there will ever really be a perfect or "ideal" method of birth control in the form of a pill and both genders are just going to have to try to tolerate the possible side effects of birth control. If he has to take it, then so should she and vice versa. Women may suffer from some side effects of birth control but so will men and when it comes to the libido, men are kind of expected to have the higher libido and to be able to perform sexually, so I think there'd be a lot of women complaining if that was also a possible side effect for men. This website would be full of questions like "my boyfriend can't get it up so easily anymore, is he not attracted to me anymore or is it the birth control? I haven't gotten laid in weeks!"

As for women distrusting men (as a whole), this is a separate topic that goes into women not realizing how sexist they can be.

[Asker]

Well if the male birth control pill does give him horrific side effects, then I wouldn’t blame him for not taking it. Especially since the lowered libido side effect is counterproductive for the pill’s cause anyway.

[weasley8]

There is a male birth control pill. But it’s no longer sold, as men didn’t want it, because it made them hormonal, and for some of them it messed up their metabolism. In other words, it did the same thing it does to many women.

[Asker]

That doesn’t surprise me. I agree with them, but at least their issues weren’t trivialized for “not being a big deal” when they were hormonal. I don’t think it’s right how women who have experienced no negative side effects on artificial hormones treat those that have. Everyone’s body reacts differently to medication, you know?

[nathanp97]

Ya, but women are likely more use to those changes as they have periods, men aren't use to it. + condoms work just as well, why would a guy want side effects when he can wear a condom and have non.

[Asker]

@nathanp97 Well yeah, that’s my argument. Why should I use a pill that directly diminishes my mental and physical health when I could just use condoms and keep both in tact? Lol. I’m saying this for all women, since not everybody experiences the negative side effects, but for me personally.

[nathanp97]

Out of curiosity did you get it prescribed from a doctor?

[Asker]

@nathanp97 Yep. My doctor just kept insisting that my body would get used to the pill. It never did. I’ve never felt happier or hornier getting off of that thing. Lol.

[nathanp97]

Okay, I was just wondering because lots of women apparently don't go to the doctor to get the proper does for them figured out, and then complain when they have problems, but that obviously isn't in your case

[weasley8]

There are a lot of women who are only on birth control because their partner doesn’t want to use condoms. I’m not saying that that’s the case with all men. But it is with some. And in those cases, I think he should be the one taking it. And in the United States, you need a prescription for birth control pills.

[nathanp97]

Or she could wear a female condom. It sounds like you are trying to say that guys should always be responsible for the birth control.

[Asker]

@nathanp97 Both share responsibility. Also, a female condom would be counterproductive for a man who dislikes wearing condoms.

[nathanp97]

Not as much as you would think.

[Asker]

@nathanp97 But it would be. If the guy didn’t want to wear a condom, yet she does, he’s still going to experience the same issues that he complained about with the male condom.

[nathanp97]

Look it up; they are more comfortable and can cause less skin irritation.

[weasley8]

I’m simply saying that whoever complains about condoms, should be the one taking the pills. No one should be forced to use something that messes with their hormones. So if one partner has an issue with condoms, that partner should be the one who takes the pills. Not the one who was perfectly happy with the previous arrangement. Based on what I’ve heard, it’s usually guys that complain about condoms, and tell their girlfriends to take the pill.

[nathanp97]

Yes, because the girls have the option of a condom or pill, while guys don't currently.

[weasley8]

I know that. My point was that they used to, and none of them took it. She asked if people thought men should take birth control, and my answer is that it should be available for the cases that I listed. The technology exists. The issue is that no guys were willing to have those symptoms. So why do many (not all, but many) of them insist that their girlfriends do?

[nathanp97]

So your saying that if you could convince someone else to do something that had some side effects while you both reap the benefits you wouldn't want to? Why wouldn't you put the responsibility on someone else if you could. if the guy doesn't want to where a condom the girl can, she can go on the pill, or refuse to have sex. The better question is why would a girl take the pill instead of wearing a condom or getting the guy too.

[weasley8]

She can wear a female condom if she wants. Although I’ve heard guys complaining about those. And again, I’m not saying that it’s always the case that the guy, or anyone for that matter, needs to be on the pill. The only thing I’m saying is that no one should be forced to use it. If one partner has an issue with other methods of birth control, be it male condoms, female condoms, abstinence, or whatever, they should be the ones pumping the chemicals into their bodies, rather than pressuring their partner to.

[lilaqua]

Yeah it would be great. I've been mucked around by the pill too but it's a matter of getting on the right one, like any medication.

[Astoriana]

I just think it's funny that there are a bunch of blue accounts bitching about side effects who would still expect their girlfriends to be on the pill... which comes with those exact same side effects.

[Sucram]

Not the same side effects. It maybe got the same amount of side effects as at the time when the pill for women first got developed, but since then pharmacies had nearly sixty years to improve and to reduce side effects, to check for long term problems and so on. These drugs for men are still quite new, and thus are more problematic. And we have no idea about long term effects.

[Astoriana]

@Sucram no, dude, they’re literally the same side effects that women are told and expected to just deal with. You are really showing a total lack of empathy and a complete lack of self-awareness that would be hilarious if it wasn’t so incredibly common.

[Sucram]

@Astoria where from are you taking these informations from? And by the way I know a girl who takes the pill while not sexual active because it reduces her menstrual problems. All on her own ant at her free will.

[Astoriana]

@Sucram the literal pages of side effects of every form of oral contraception that I have ever taken compared to the scientific journal article that described the men’s birth control clinical trial. Also, I went on bc for menstrual problems and threw a clot and almost died, so, yeah, they have the same side effects. Please realize that you are not an expert in everything.

[Losalt]

Hum.
If there was a pill that allowed me to *temporarily* reduce my sperm count to next to nothing without significant side effects I'd probably want to use that.
It would both allow me to have sex with girls on the pill without any other protection then her being on the pill too (you need two forms of contraception to be relatively risk free, just one always have a fairly high risk, even condoms)
As a male I'm already much less likely then a woman to get a infection and not having a condom is more enjoyable.
So yes, I'd like that even if there might be some side effects (there always are when you play with the body like that).
Of course it depends on the side effects.
If it influences my ability to have a hardon for instance that would obviously defeat the purpose of the pill...

[CharlieBadger]

Male birth control pills is a bit of a tricky one. You have to turn off the testes production of sperm. Shutting off a function of the body can have major problems down the road.

With the female pill you are not shutting down production of eggs you are tricking the body into thinking its pregnant so that it does not drop eggs already produced.

The egg supply is set early on in a woman's life while sperm production continues throughout life.

The plugs make more sense for male contraception. They are working on an injection that will block the tubes the sperm travel through and then a later injection will break the plug down.

Bottom line is the mode of contraception used should be whatever works best for the people involved. For my wife and me it was a vasectomy. She has problems with condoms and the pill.

[Asker]

I suppose. However, the female pill does alter the woman’s endocrine system in a way with the synthetic hormones being introduced into her body, which replace her natural ones. That is why depression is a possible side effect. I’m all for the injection, but I’m curious about how many men are okay with a needle going into their testes.

[CharlieBadger]

The female pill definitely has its issues. And they get worse when women get older or if they smoke. Plus there are a lot of drugs that reduce its efficacy, including most antibiotics. It also interferes with some anti-seizure meds which is why I had to use condoms with with the girl I was with before my wife. Any prescription is going to have potential side effects. It is not a simple subject and needs to be discussed by everyone involved.

[sunsweet]

Right now side effects for Male birth control are worse than women's. It depends on variables right now like in your case it sucks but I think in the future when that's worked out any guy who doesn't want a baby should do that for certainty. Otherwise if it's the girls choice to keep the baby there's not much he can say on his defense. But I think guys should have the ability to opt out of raising the kid if the women insists on having it despite his wishes.

[PondyPand]

I think it's up to each person engaging in sex to make sure either partner is on birth control to practice safe sex. It's up to neither gender to specifically do it.

[Asker]

That’s how it should be. Unfortunately, not everybody thinks that and some people put 100% of the responsibility for birth control on the other person.

[PondyPand]

Well either the other person agrees and decides to have the responsibility or they shouldn't have sex. It's not the most difficult concept in the world.

[yasii]

I think they shouldn't depend on the women when it comes to contraception. Wheter they take condoms or anything else. I wouldn't risk my peaceful childless life by assuming my girlfriend won't forget to take the pill

[Asker]

Agreed. It takes two to tango, so why do some guys claim that only the woman is responsible for preventing pregnancy and STDs?

[weysally]

I think should use birth control but only in a deep relationship would I trust them, I prefer to be in control of that at least I would know if I'm protected

[Logorithim]

I'd be willing to give it a shot. Side effects like what you described, though, would send me back to condoms.

[Asker]

Lmao. Hopefully the male birth control pills won’t have those side effects.

[JulieXO]

I think it doesn't matter who takes it, as long as the couple agrees on it (if there were a male birth control pill ofc). I myself only experienced positive side effects of the pill, so I'm good the way thing are.

[OlderAndWiser]

When it is available, why shouldn't both guys and girls take those pills? It's not an either/or choice.

[Asker]

Maybe if they could both tolerate the pills. I can’t, because my body doesn’t adjust to the synthetic hormones. That’s why I use barriers.

[ManFrom1982]

... I mean can't he just go get a snip job done? Or wear a rubber now? I've never understood this whole thing about men not handling the bc. What idiot man leaves it up to the woman entirely? Barrier methods make the most sense if you're planning to conceive at some point anyway or have an STD or trust concern with the woman you're sleeping with, and if you're not worrying about procreating... I mean seriously why worry about remembering to take ANYTHING when you can go in and out of the doctor's once and be done with it and just climax however you like with your lady friend?

[SarahsSummer]

I would love if they successfully created a pill for men!

[summiter]

I would have no issues taking a male BCP. If it made my girl more comfortable it would probably lead to more and better sex!