E.J., a 32-year-old who lives in the greater Seattle, Washington, area and works as a communications director in the investment and finance industry
Why are you open (or not open) to using male birth control?
I’m open for a number of reasons. The main one being that sex is a two-way street. If both partners in a relationship would like to prevent pregnancy for the foreseeable future, the responsibility of contraception shouldn’t have to automatically fall on the female.
Second, and this probably only makes sense to me, but sperm count is another reason I’m very open to the use of male birth control. I know this is one of the reasons that it’s been difficult to study and create a male birth control option, but the average sperm count is 20 million to 40 million sperm [per ml]. Compare this to the single egg produced by females and the responsibility of birth control ― or at least the options to consider ― should reflect that. If I were having a potluck with a bunch of friends, but I was bringing the most friends and relatives, I wouldn’t tell my friends, “Hey, make sure you bring and make more food than you intended so that we can eat all of it.” I would make sure I brought enough for everyone I’m bringing.
Do you think other guys would take it?
I’ve never personally had a pregnancy scare, but know a number of friends who have and seen the amount of stress and anxiety they experienced over it. If there were more birth control options, it would hopefully prevent more of these scares and help couples focus solely on the things they enjoy about sex, while maintaining greater autonomy over their body.
That said, it doesn’t surprise me that most men are hesitant to use hormonal contraception. It’s literally something that men haven’t used before. On top of that, I’m also sure there is a pervasive mindset of “Well, most women just use the pill, so why do I have to do anything?” or “if it ain’t broke … ”
What if male birth control was approved, but it had some unpleasant side effects?
I would like to say it’d have no impact, but depending on the side effect, it likely would have an impact. For example, if the side effects were weight gain, I am on the higher BMI side, so I may not want to use it if it will affect other aspects of my health. However, if the side effects did have any effect on my long-term health, I don’t see it impacting my decision to use it at all. For example, if the side effects were headaches, I’m more than happy to take Tylenol or Advil to compensate. Or if it were nausea, I am happy to take Bonine or Tums to compensate. If it were mood-related, such as mood changes or lower sex drive, it wouldn’t impact my decision to use it. However, it may impact my decision for long-term use, assuming these side effects cause issues in other areas of my relationship.
Has the overturning of Roe v. Wade made you more inclined to think about this subject on the whole?
It definitely has ― if access to abortion is going to dwindle based on where you live, then contraception for both men and woman becomes all the more important as it relates to how woman make reproductive health decisions. I would imagine and hope more options, access and development is on the horizon. It feels silly to bring up this common saying when discussing human and woman rights, but “necessity breeds creativity.” If banning abortions only stops safe abortions, and not abortions in general, and doesn’t change people’s sexual habits and tendencies, then contraception is the one thing that can change to help support reproductive rights.
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