IUDs Now A-OK?

I’ve been looking for a new form of birth control for a while. The pill never really interested me—I was on it for nearly a year in high school, but the side effects, along with actually remembering to take it—made it more difficult than helpful.

I’ve been looking for a new form of birth control for a while. The pill never really interested me—I was on it for nearly a year in high school, but the side effects, along with actually remembering to take it—made it more difficult than helpful. Condoms work, but are expensive and often hampering. And while the withdrawal method has been receiving some good press recently, it still, to me, feels about half a step above crossing my fingers and hoping for the best.

However, Kate Klonick made a suggestion on Slate yesterday that could be a potential solution. The IUD, long out of vogue in the US since a series of studies deemed a certain model dangerous in the 1970s, is apparently very popular overseas, and becoming more widely-used stateside.

“The intrauterine device is a small—roughly 1 inch—plastic "T" inserted into the uterus that hampers the interaction and implantation of the sperm and egg. It has to be placed by a gynecologist, but once in, it’s a practically foolproof method of birth control—99 percent effective—that can last up to 10 years. While daily or monthly forms of birth control can cost up to $60 a month, an IUD is a one-time cost between $300 and $500—though it’s often covered by insurance.”

Not only is it effective, but I can’t mess it up—unlike almost every other form of birth control out there, which is subject to my own human deficiencies. Sounds ideal. Hopefully more women looking for hormone free, safe and reliable birth control will find that IUDs aren’t just for our second-wave mothers anymore.