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How Not to Get Pregnant: Hysterectomy as a Birth Control Method

How Not to Get Pregnant: Radical and Total Hysterectomy

Hysterectomy is an abdominal surgery; a doctor removes your entire uterus, or, if you have a subtotal hysterectomy, only part of your womb. It is one of the very rare how not to get pregnant methods that are absolutely 100% safe. At least, radical hysterectomy and total hysterectomy are safe, unlike subtotal hysterectomy. Both radical and total hysterectomy means that you have your womb removed, so a fetus will not have a place to grow in your body. It is a how not to get pregnant method that will last for the rest of your life. It is irreversible. There is one option of having a child without having a womb: in case your doctor has left your ovaries intact, you can produce an egg and a surrogate mother can bear your biological child. For medical and legal reasons, this alternative is not very feasible, so think twice before you decide to get this abdominal surgery. First of all, consider the possible disadvantages. Gynecologists usually do not recommend hysterectomy as a how not to get pregnant method – they perform this kind of abdominal surgery to cure serious conditions or, at least, problems like excessive bleeding.

Hysterectomy as a how not to get pregnant method is quite rare and unusual. It is a major abdominal surgery that has its risks.

On the other hand, women who have had hysterectomy are less likely to suffer from ovarian cancer, even if their ovaries were spared.

Types of Hysterectomy

Your uterus can be removed through your vagina or through your abdomen, and there exist laparoscopy-assisted hysterectomy.

If you undergo radical hysterectomy, your doctor will remove your ovaries, too. Many doctors are reluctant to remove them. Ovaries produce hormones that contribute to bone density and your general health and well-being in your old age. If you do not have your ovaries anymore, you might be prone to osteoporosis, fragile bones in old age. You can suffer other unpleasant hormonal changes, from migraines to fatigue or dizziness, and you can reach menopause much earlier. You can undergo hormone therapy to cease these symptoms.

Total hysterectomy means that a doctor removes your entire uterus but leaves your ovaries intact. Your ovaries still can produce hormones, which is beneficial for your sexual health.

Subtotal hysterectomy means that only a part of your uterus will be removed. One still can conceive a child after a subtotal hysterectomy.

Once you get your womb removed, you will not have your period anymore. There can be some bleeding, however, it will be considerably lighter and more convenient than your period.

Possible Disadvantages

Doctors avoid this abdominal surgery, they say it is not a how not to get pregnant method. There are a couple of disadvantages of this abdominal surgery. Some of the patients who have undergone a hysterectomy reported that they had pelvic pain afterward. There is a higher risk of urinary incontinency and vaginal prolapse many years after the surgery. It means that when you have your womb removed, you might not have these unpleasant symptoms right after the surgery, but you might have problems ten or twenty years later. After a hysterectomy, some patients have health issues like adhesions (forming of fibrous bands between tissues) and bowel obstruction.

 

How Not to Get Pregnant: Facts and Myths

Probably you want to know how not to get pregnant in a certain state of your life: you are still a student, you are young and single, you do not have a steady income, or you just do not feel ready to have children. There is nothing wrong with that. You do not have to explain yourself. Nobody has the right to make this decision for you. However, probably you are not interested in methods of how not to get pregnant, because you believe that you cannot get pregnant.

How Not to Get Pregnant: Myths

Lots of girls have become pregnant because they did not know how not to get pregnant. They thought they could not conceive a child when making love for the first time. How wrong they were. There are several myths about how not to get pregnant. Perhaps you think you cannot get pregnant, since you have had sex only one time. You have been on your period. You did not have an orgasm. How not to get pregnant myths are false and dangerous: you believe that you are safe, while you might very well get in trouble. Once you reach fertility age (you have your period) and you have sex with a male, you can get pregnant anytime. You have to think about using protection.

You might think that you cannot get pregnant, because the days when you have sex are not the days when you are most fertile. However, there are so many factors that can affect and alter your hormonal balance: your mood, your health, your weight, changes in your environment, changes in your diet or in your workout program – anything can disturb this very sensitive balance.

You may think that you will not become pregnant, because you are anorexic, or you have been in the past. According to experts, anorexia may cause infertility. May, mind you, not will. Anorexia may cause infertility in rare cases. In reality, anorexia scarcely contributes to infertility. You might be rail thin and still might get pregnant, even if you did not have your period for several months or your anorexia was extreme. As long as you do have your period, you can get pregnant.

You may believe that you are safe, because you have a partner “whom you can trust” and he uses the coitus interruptus as a how not to get pregnant method: he retreats before he could ejaculate. This option is absolutely unsafe. You can never know when your male partner’s self-control will wear off. Should you trust him blindly? Even if he is extremely disciplined and stops before ejaculating, semen could already enter your vagina, so you can get pregnant.

Do not believe that you cannot get pregnant only because you have taken birth control pills for a long while. To tell the truth, as soon as you come off the pill, you can get pregnant at once, and you have more chance to get pregnant than you would have if you had not taken any pills. If you stop taking birth control pills, do seek for other means of protection immediately.

How Not to Get Pregnant Methods that Work

Never trust alternative natural methods like coitus interruptus or body temperature method. They have very high failure rates.

Always prefer hormonal birth control methods over physical barriers. Many people believe that condoms – even female condoms – are just as good as hormonal methods. This is not true. Hormonal methods have much lower failure rates. Condoms are against STDs and not against pregnancy.

Trust your gynecologist. Doctors have graduated from the University of Medicine for a reason. They know what they are doing. Always ask your doctor before you decide on a how not to get pregnant method. A doctor will know what is best for you. Every system is different – one method may work for one person and may not be the perfect option for the other. You do not want to roll the dice when your sexual health, future, and well-being are at stake.

3 Commonly Asked Questions People Have About Sexual Activity and Pregnancy

Congratulations! You just found out that you’re going to have a baby.  While this should be your happy time, you may have questions about your sex life. Is it okay to have sex while you’re pregnant? Should abstain from having sex for a period of time or the entire pregnancy?

Well, you’ll be delighted to know that your sex life doesn’t have to stop the fun in the sack, so long as your doctor doesn’t advise against. That’s right! You can have sex anytime of the day or night you want.

In fact, unless there is some kind of medical issue you’re suffering with, having sex and experiencing in orgasm while you’re pregnant will not put the baby in danger. The reason is that your body’s amniotic fluid, which envelops around them, protects the baby in the uterus.

If you’ve suffered miscarriages in the past, your doctor may advise you to refrain from sex early on in the pregnancy.  You may also be unable to have sex if you suffer pregnancy-related complications: bleeding, pre-term labor, etc.  It’s imperative that you talk to your doctor to clarify what he/she means when they tell you no sex.

  • Does it mean no penetration?
  • Does it mean no orgasms?
  • Does it mean no sexual arousal?

The reason is that each pregnancy-related complication has its own restrictions.

How To Be Comfortable With Sexual Activity While You’re Pregnant?

As you go through the pregnancy trimesters, you may notice that one sexual position doesn’t work near as well as it did before.  Switching positions is common during pregnancy. You may notice that lying on your back makes you feel sick or dizzy after you reach the fourth month in your pregnancy. This stems from the fact that the growing uterus’ weight is pressing on the key blood vessels.

You may also feel drier than normal, meaning you may need the assistance of a water-based lubricant while you have sex.

Pain is not normal during sex. Yes, your uterus is going to contract when you have an orgasm. However, if you notice regular or painful contractions, stop all sexual activity and call the doctor right away. If you notice your water has broken or you see heavy vaginal bleeding, call the physician at once.

Be sure you and your partner talk about how each one feels about sex during pregnancy. Address the concerns you have and how you can best stay comfortable while having intercourse. If you see your partner’s responses to you change, make sure you talk about them. Communication is essential in helping each other understand the desires and feelings of the other partner.

Does Pregnancy Affect Sexual Desires?

Your hormones are going to fluctuate wildly when you’re pregnant. Therefore, how you feel about sex before you were pregnant could be dramatically different afterwards.

For instance, some women who didn’t mind the occasional romp in the bedroom may want to have sex more often during their pregnancy. Some women who were sex maniacs may find they are not as interested in the act after getting pregnant.

It’s not uncommon, in the first trimester, for many women to lose all interests in sex because they’re uncomfortable and drained of energy (tired). This doesn’t affect all women, but it can happen to many of them.

How Can You Keep A Partner Happy When You Don’t Feel or Can’t Have Sex?

If you’ve been told by your doctor to refrain from having sex or limit the amount of sex you have, or you just don’t feel like it, you still need to be intimate with your partner. Intimacy doesn’t just mean having sex – you can express your love and affection in various other manners including but not limited to:

  • Backrubs
  • Foot rubs
  • Candlelight dinners
  • Walks on the peach
  • Walks in the park
  • Movies

Yes, it’s possible your pregnancy will change things in the bedroom, but it doesn’t have to lead to a decline in romance.

Recognizing the First Signs of Pregnancy

Pregnancy can be recognized even in the earliest stage if you know some of the signs. It is very important to find out if you are pregnant because this state requires special regime (diet, physical activity etc.)

Those who practice unprotected sex should be aware that there is a relatively high possibility that they can conceive a baby even if the male partner pulls out (pull out method) the penis before he reaches an orgasm (ejaculation). Of course, the most obvious sign that a woman is pregnant is the absence of the menstrual period or some irregularity during the menstrual period – short and weak bleeding. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the woman who is experiencing these things is necessarily pregnant thus there is no room for panic. Absence or weak menstrual period can be caused by many things such as stress, unhealthy diet, excessive physical activity, certain types of birth control pills etc.

Besides absence of menstrual bleeding there are few other signs that you need to e aware of if you think that you may be pregnant. For example, unexplained fatigue is a common condition in the early stage of pregnancy. This fatigue can also lead to fainting and feeling of dizziness. Some of the physical changes can cause pain in the back and headaches. Pain in the back is something that can occur during the whole pregnancy while headaches are result of the hormonal changes. Another physical change happens in the breasts. The breasts during early pregnancy are usually very sensitive and they can even change their physical appearance (the nipples can appear darker). Some women describe this condition as a feeling that their breasts are heavier. Another common sign of early pregnancy is the well known morning sickness. Despite the words used to describe this phenomenon these sicknesses can happen throughout the whole day. Women during this period are more sensitive to smell and flavor and any specific aroma can cause sickness. Frequent urination is another common sign as well as cramps in the abdominal area. Finally, during this period women experience not only physical changes but psychological changes too. Something that happens often is mood swings. Although they are a sign of premenstrual syndrome, similar behavior can be noticed in early pregnancy too.

All these signs can point to pregnancy. If you have only one of these signs or even more of these signs that suggest that you might be pregnant, it is time to take a pregnancy test. These tests are usually reliable. If you want to get the best results wait for one week so that the level of hormones is increased and the test will be more precise. Even if the test indicates a negative result that doesn’t mean that you are not pregnant. These tests are correct in most cases but exceptions are possible. That’s why it’s best to take another test few days later if the period is still absent. If the test shows a positive result visit your gynecologist.