‘You Don’t Have to Settle.’
- Comic Whitney Cummings is critical about contraception speak.
- Cummings is encouraging girls to have candid conversations about their reproductive well being, together with contraception.
- Your physician may help you discover the very best contraception to fit your medical historical past, way of life, and preferences.
Vagina is one thing comic Whitney Cummings isn’t afraid to say throughout her standup, on her podcast, and in all features of her life.
“I simply don’t need younger women not having the ability to establish a fairly necessary a part of their physique as a result of nobody would say what it’s. I believe greater than ever we should be pushing again in opposition to any sort of disgrace in opposition to girls’s our bodies, particularly within the reproductive space as a result of there’s a lot vagueness round it,” Cummings advised Healthline.
She added that many ladies nonetheless really feel like they must apologize for saying phrases like vagina, vulvar, and clit or really feel compelled to interchange them with an alternate phrase like “tulip.”
“Everyone seems to be so afraid to speak about it. Everyone seems to be so afraid to get in bother. In silence, that’s the place shady stuff occurs, so I’m simply going to yell [vagina] from the rooftop till somebody pushes me off the roof,” she stated.
To assist unfold her message, she teamed up with ANNOVERA’s “I Un-Apologize” Marketing campaign to encourage girls to have candid, direct, confident, and trustworthy conversations about their reproductive well being, together with contraception.
“I’ve struggled my entire life to discover a contraception that isn’t a full-time job,” stated Cummings.
She’s not alone in her quest.
Dr. Kate White, affiliate professor of OB/GYN at Boston College College of Medication and creator of Your Sexual Health, stated it’s regular to change contraception strategies, even a number of instances, over the course of 1’s life.
“What works for you at one level, will not be a superb match at one other time. Consider this as your ‘contraception journey,’ she advised Healthline.
After years of trial and error, Cummings now makes use of ANNOVERA, an annual ring that ladies can insert into their vagina and depart for a yr. It can be eliminated at any time to manage fertility.
“I’m at a spot the place I would unfreeze my eggs sooner or later or have a 9-month opening in my schedule, or seize a soccer participant’s sperm and go for it,” Cummings stated.
Utilizing humor round critical matters comes pure to her and on the subject of sexual well being, she stated girls all the time welcome her jokes, regardless of there being numerous ache and frustration across the subject.
“I discover that ladies aren’t mad once I joke on this space,” she stated.
For her 2016 HBO particular, “I’m Your Girlfriend,” she spent 20 minutes breaking down accessible contraception and the way inhumane they’re.
“[Like] an IUD. In the event you stated to a person, ‘that is what we’re going to do for contraception; we’re going to take a metallic rod and put it up your wiener, then depart it there for six months,’ it’s simply form of mentioning, we’re not there but,” stated Cummings.
Lately, comedians have been hit with numerous criticism round making jokes out of significant matters. Slightly than being scared to hold on, Cummings stated she is pushing again by nonetheless addressing controversial matters, however is being extra conscious and difficult her craft.
“We simply must be somewhat extra respectful. Individuals are pushing again on racism and sexism; I believe that’s truthful. I believe good comedians suppose this is a chance to be extra artistic and a possibility to be extra conscious or elevate and play on the prime of our intelligence,” she stated.
Whereas there are individuals who use comedy to degrade, insult and hurt others, she stated they’ll’t be allowed to silence comedians who wish to use humor as a optimistic software.
“Once we say the issues we’re not alleged to say, jokes have a really sort of cathartic really feel…it’s medication, it’s therapeutic, it’s enjoyable,” stated Cummings. “After I sit round with my girlfriends and we’re speaking about contraception, we’re dying laughing.”
Selecting a contraception methodology might be overwhelming.
“There are such a lot of strategies of contraception accessible, greater than most individuals notice. And most of the people can select from all of them. So, when you’ve had awful experiences with contraception up to now, speak along with your gyno — the fitting methodology is on the market someplace for you,” stated White.
She stated to think about contraception strategies by the way in which you entry them — the way you get them, and the way a lot management you may have overusing them. She breaks the classes down this fashion:
- Strategies you can begin and cease by yourself with out a physician’s go to or prescription, embody condoms, spermicide, withdrawal, fertility consciousness strategies, and plan B emergency contraception (EC).
- Strategies you want a prescription to start out utilizing, however can cease by yourself, embody capsules, patch, ring, injection while you give it to your self, Phexxi, diaphragm, and ella EC.
- Strategies you want a go to to start out utilizing however can cease by yourself are the injection (when given by a nurse) and the IUD, when you’re comfy eradicating it your self.
- The implant requires an workplace go to to start out and cease its use.
“Tablets and condoms are essentially the most used strategies of reversible contraception, however they’re not proper for everybody,” White stated.
Dr. Maura Quinlan, obstetrician and gynecologist at Northwestern Medication, stated the very best sort of contraception for any lady is the one she is going to use.
“If I speak about IUDs, there are girls who say ‘I simply can’t do it as a result of it weirds me out to consider one thing in my uterus’ then I say ‘nice, let’s speak about one other methodology.’ So be trustworthy with your self and take into account what you’ll most definitely use,” she advised Healthline.
Whereas your physician will assist you determine what’s most secure for you, Quinlan stated be open about your medical historical past and present situations. For example, whereas many ladies can use annual rings, she stated there are a couple of who should not good candidates.
“As a result of they’ve estrogen and progesterone girls shouldn’t use them if they’ve any contraindication to estrogen like historical past with blood clots, migraines with aura—a migraine the place they see visible modifications earlier than the onset of head ache. So, it’s necessary to double-check with suppliers to ensure there’s nothing that may not make it unsafe,” she stated.
After security issues are addressed, White suggests asking your self the next questions to assist slender down your selections:
- Do I wish to see month-to-month bleeding or would I relatively skip bleeding altogether?
- Am I okay with recognizing in between my intervals or would that be a nightmare?
- Do I want contraception to assist with menstrual cramps or pimples?
- Do I have to maintain my contraception non-public from my companion, mother and father, or roommates?
- Do I want the best methodology?
- Do I need contraception that I solely have to make use of once I’m having intercourse with a sperm-producing companion or do I desire a methodology the place I can “set it and overlook it”?
- Do I desire a methodology that may additionally scale back my threat of STIs?
- Do I need my fertility to return again instantly after I cease utilizing it?
Moreover, Quinlan notes your faith can also play an element in your alternative.
“Scientifically we are saying a being pregnant hasn’t began till it’s implanted within the uterus and rising, but when your spiritual custom says life started when that sperm and egg get collectively then that particular person of that spiritual custom wouldn’t assist utilizing plan B,” she stated. “[In this case,] I’d say ‘let’s take into consideration what contraception matches with that.’”
Cummings stated to ask your physician a number of questions and permit your self to strive completely different strategies till you discover a good match.
“You don’t must settle. There’s a number of choices on the market,” stated Cummings. “There’s sort of nothing extra essential in life than what contraception you’re on as a result of it dictates a lot of how your time is used, how you are feeling, and the way comfy you are feeling having fun with your relationship.”
