Birth Control

There are many options!

iud - There are two general kinds of iuds: those with hormones, and those with copper in them. Both serve the same purpose of preventing pregnancy. The copper coil iud is an excellent choice for women who respond badly to hormonal birth control. The iud with hormones is great for women who can use hormones and want a form of birth control almost as good as sterilization. You can't skip periods, though the hormonal iud may cause them to lighten. The copper coil iud often causes heavier periods.

nuvaring - Hormonal. The nuvaring (and other similar products) is a ring coated in hormones. It is inserted high into the vagina and stays in place for 3 weeks. The nuvaring is great for women who can use hormones but have a hard time remembering to take a pill every day. The nuvaring can also be removed for up to 3 hours in order to have sex. It protects you even during this time. You can skip periods by simply not taking a week off without the ring. Just put another one in.

the patch - Hormonal. It's a sticker you place on the skin in areas of high blood flow, such as the stomach, lower back, etc. Great for women who can use hormones, but have trouble remembering to take a pill at the same time every day. It is replaced once a week. You can skip periods using this method by simply not having a patch-free week. Just put on another patch.

pills - Hormonal. There are hundreds of kinds of pills. Some have two kinds of hormones, some have one, some have a kind others don't have, some are high dose, some are low dose, some have varying doses... the list goes on. Some women do not react well to hormones, and some women react better to some pills and not to others. This form of birth control may not be for you if you react badly to the hormones. It is however, fairly cheap. Depending on the pill, you can skip periods. There are pills that give you a monthly period, and others that make it so you only have a period 4 times a year.

diaphragms and cervical caps - Non-hormonal. These are both small cup-shaped objects that are placed over the cervix just prior to sex. They are often coated in a spermicide, and are left in place for 6 hours after sex before being removed. They are a nice alternative to condoms for women who can't use hormonal birth control, and don't want an iud or can't get one. They don't protect against stds however.

condoms - Non-hormonal. The classic form of birth control! A male condom slips over the man's penis, trapping sperm upon ejaculation and preventing it from entering the uterus. There is also a female condom, which slips up inside of the vagina and is held in place by a ring. Some condoms are coated in spermicides. They are quite effective when used properly. They're easy and fast, and as a bonus, condoms are the only form of birth control that also protects against stds.

Cycle-planning - Non-hormonal. In this form of birth control, a woman carefully monitors her cycle, and observes her body. She learns when she is fertile and when she's not, and plans sex around these fertile days to prevent pregnancy; that, or she uses another form of non-hormonal birth control during these fertile days. This method takes the most effort from the woman to carefully monitor her body to reduce the risk of having unprotected sex while she's ovulating.

There is also the depo shot, but there's really far too many risks associated with that method for me to recommend it.