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8 Birth Control Methods Ranked from WORST to BEST! Doctor Explains · Vasectomy Clinics Of Chicago with Dr George Tsoutsias

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: If you absolutely do not want a pregnancy right now, you need to know not all birth control methods give you the same amount of protection.
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: Some methods require daily effort.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_00: Some methods require perfect execution.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: Let's talk about pressure.
• 0:12
  SPEAKER_00: Others require almost no day-to-day effort at all, but still need medical procedures at regular intervals.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: And the methods that work best on paper are not always the ones that make the most sense for your stage of life.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: I'm with Vasectomy Clinics of Chicago.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: Our practice focuses exclusively on vasectomy, so we spend a lot of time talking with couples who are trying to figure out what they want to rely on for birth control, especially once they know their family is complete, or for couples who are choosing to remain child-free by choice.
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_00: I'm going to rank eight common methods from worst to best based mainly on real-world pregnancy prevention, how much ongoing effort they require, and whether they make sense as a temporary or permanent solution.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: And number one is probably not the right choice for everyone, even though it can be an excellent choice for the right couple.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: Let's start with number eight, withdrawal.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: Pulling out is easy to understand.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_00: It's free, there are no hormones, and there's no planning ahead of time.
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: But you're relying on timing and self-control to do all the work.
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: So if pregnancy would only be an inconvenience, maybe you're comfortable with that risk.
• 1:13
  SPEAKER_00: But if a pregnancy would completely derail this plan that you have for your life, maybe something more reliable would suit you.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: So as far as we're concerned, withdrawal definitely goes at the bottom of the list.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_00: Let's go to number seven, which gives you much better control that has one advantage nothing else in this list has, and that's condoms.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_00: Condoms are inexpensive.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: They're hormone-free, mostly easy to find, and they can also help protect against sexually transmitted infections.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_00: And that makes them especially useful if you're dating or have a new partner.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: But for pregnancy prevention, you have to use one correctly every single time.
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_00: It sounds simple until you remember we're talking about real people having sex, not a lab experiment.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: In the heat of the moment, are you going to remember to interrupt the mood and put one on?
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: A condom forgotten, used late, used incorrectly, broken, or not used at all changes the effectiveness very quickly.
• 2:06
  SPEAKER_00: So condoms can be a great temporary option, but if you're trying to avoid pregnancy for years, you might want something that doesn't require decision every time you're about to have sex.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: Let's go to number six, the pill.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_00: The pill solves one of the problems condoms have.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to stop and do something during sex.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_00: But now your partner has to remember to actually take the pill every day.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: Now, for many women, that works perfectly well.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_00: The pill is familiar, it's not permanent.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: And some women also use it because it helps with heavier painful periods.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: The drawback is that birth control is only as consistent as the person taking it.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: So in the heat of the moment, do you trust the phrase, I'm on the pill?
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_00: Miss pills, take them inconsistently, your projection drops.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: And some women simply get to the point where they don't want to take hormone or birth control anymore, whether it be for health reasons or due to weight gain.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: So the next option takes away the daily hassle, but it still keeps you on a schedule.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_00: So number five is the shot.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: With the shot, you and your partner are thinking about birth control every few months instead of every morning.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: For some women, that's a much easier system.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: But you still have to stay on a schedule, and it still is hormonal.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: So if the problem is remembering a daily pill, the shot can be a nice upgrade.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: But if the problem is that your partner doesn't want to put hormones in her body anymore, the shot doesn't really solve that issue.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_00: Now, let's get into the birth control methods where human error drops way down.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_00: Number four, the IUD.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: An IUD can give you years of very effective birth control without having to remember anything on a daily basis or right before sex.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: There are hormonal IUDs, and there's also a copper IUD that doesn't use hormone.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_00: And if you decide later that you want to have a child, it can be removed.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: That makes an IUD a very strong option for someone who wants excellent pregnancy prevention, but isn't ready to make anything permanent.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: Now the downside is pretty straightforward.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_00: It has to be placed in the uterus.
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_00: And not every woman wants that or has had a good experience with.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_00: We talked to couples where the wife has already had an IUD and says, I'm not doing that again.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_00: So for someone who likes the idea of long-term birth control, but doesn't want an IUD, there's another option that works in a similar way.
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_00: And we go to number three, the implant.
• 4:18
  SPEAKER_00: The implant is a small hormonal rod.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_00: It's placed under the skin of the arm.
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: And once it's there, you don't have to remember a pill or do anything before sex.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: And the implant can be removed if you want to become pregnant later.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_00: That combination puts the implant very high on our list.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_00: So if you told me we absolutely do not want a pregnancy right now, but we might want to have a child in a few years.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_00: An implant or an IUD would be hard to beat.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_00: But if you tell me we are completely done having children or we're choosing to be child-free by choice forever, then I'd start looking at the next two options because now reversibility is no longer important.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: That brings us to number two, female sterilization, also known as getting your tubes tied.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: And it's a highly effective and permanent method.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: Depending on the procedure, the fallopian tubes are blocked or removed so sperm can no longer reach an egg.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_00: For some women, it makes a lot of sense.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: So if she's already having a C-section or another abdominal procedure, adding on a tube ligation at the same time might be something she wants to discuss with her surgeon.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: But if a couple has no upcoming procedures planned and simply wants permanent birth control, then either one of them could potentially undergo a procedure.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: And the obvious question becomes who has the simpler option?
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_00: We did a full video comparing female sterilization with vasectomy, so I won't repeat that whole conversation here.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: But that's five vasectomy takes the number one spot.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: For a man who's completely sure he does not want more children, vasectomy is my number one choice.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: Vasectomy is extremely effective.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_00: You are no longer dependent on what your partner is using to prevent a pregnancy.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_00: You've had a vasectomy, you've confirmed sterility, and you're permanently covered.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: And at our practice, your vasectomy is done in our office with local anesthesia in less than 30 minutes.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: But the word permanently is doing a lot of work there.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_00: If there's a real chance you may want another child someday, I would not put vasectomy ahead of an IUD or implant.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: But if you know you're done, that changes the calculation.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: There's also one mistake that can make a very effective method fail, you're right at the beginning.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_00: The one thing that men get wrong right after a vasectomy.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: You are not sterile the minute the procedure is finished.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: There can still be sperm remaining afterwards, so you need to keep using another form of contraception until a semen analysis confirms that you're sterile.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_00: Feeling healed doesn't tell you if you're sterile.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: Having a specific number of ejaculations doesn't tell you if you're sterile.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_00: Waiting a certain number of days doesn't tell you either.
• 6:40
  SPEAKER_00: The test tells you that you're sterile.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_00: And at vasectomy clinics of Chicago, we don't confirm sterility until your testing is negative.
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_00: We don't consider the process complete until we know the sperm are all gone.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_00: So even the number one method only earns that ranking if you actually finish the follow-up.
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_00: So which one should you choose?
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_00: Well, if you're dating new partners, condoms definitely still have a role because they can help protect against sexually transmitted infections.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_00: If you want children later and you want very strong pregnancy protection now, IUDs and implants move towards the top of them.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_00: But if you know you're done having children or are remaining child free by choice, then permanent options make more sense.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're a man who is completely finished having kids and wants to take permanent pregnancy prevention into your own hands, you know, vasectomy is hard to beat.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: The ranking really comes down to one question.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_00: Are you trying to prevent pregnancy for now or are you trying to prevent it for good?
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're in that second group, schedule consultation with vasectomy clinics of Chicago.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: We'll answer all your questions, examine you, and help you decide whether vasectomy is the right fit for you.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're done having children and you're deciding between vasectomy and female sterilization, watch this next video.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: We break the two procedures down side by side so you can see the differences in anesthesia, recovery, cost, and effectiveness before you decide which one makes the most sense for you.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: We'll see you there.