Birth Control Myths That Many Still Believe

Learning about safe sex in high school has been priceless information that I will forever thank my health class teacher for. If you never attended a high school health class, or maybe you forgot some things, there are some myths about birth control that many people (somehow) still believe.

• Birth control pills are 100% effective which is not true at all! No form of birth control is foolproof. Condoms, the patch, an IUD, birth control pills, all of them (and more) have closer to 90% effectiveness with typical use. So it's always smart to use condoms with other forms of birth control to help up the odds of not getting pregnant (and always use condoms if you or your partner have not been tested for STDs).
• Most women are on birth control which is not something anyone should assume, and before you sleep with someone new you need to have a conversation about birth control (if you can't talk to someone about their birth control choices, should you really be sleeping with them?).
• Emergency contraception is an "abortion pill" is so untrue, and likely believed because of falsehoods spread by anti-choice groups. Emergency contraception is not the same thing as the abortion pill. Emergency contraception blocks ovulation (to prevent the egg and sperm from even meeting) versus the abortion pill that induces a miscarriage (once you're already pregnant).

Sex is great, and safe sex is even better! Knowing the truth about birth control (and not making assumptions) can help you make smart choices if you're not ready (or never want) to be a parent.