Grace Burke
Associate Editor
For some freshmen, contraception might never cross the mind, but by senior year it could develop into a hot topic amongst friends, boyfriends/girlfriends and even parents. Whether or not someone is having sex, pregnancy prevention always draws out opinions.
Information about contraceptives is everywhere—online, in magazines, and on television (a convenient commercial always seems to come up right when your parents walk in). But how and why do we choose what type of birth control to use, if any at all?
“Talking with my mom about birth control pills was awkward, but I’d rather be awkward for one conversation than be pregnant,” junior Kim said. “I never want to be in a situation unprepared and then worried. A lot of the times you aren’t really sure which person is supposed to have ‘that’ covered, so I decided to be smart.”
The majority of sexually active students polled uses the birth control pill and/or condoms. 49.7% out of 57 female respondents use the birth control pill, and 86.7% out of 39 male respondents use condoms.
“It’s pretty much a known thing that unprotected sex can get you into trouble,” Kim said. “We have shows like 16 and Pregnant on re-run on MTV, a health class packed with sexually transmitted disease talks, and my parents who are always telling me to make good choices.”
Senior Joe also uses protection when it comes to sex. “I’ve never had unprotected sex,” he said. “I always use condoms. When the relationship got more serious we became more and more careful. I was a responsible partner.”
However, teenagers can sometimes make immature choices. In the heat of the moment is easy to understand why protection isn’t the first concern. “My friends don’t always use condoms because a lot of guys think that it’s the girls job,” Joe said. “Plus they don’t really see the direct result so it’s less of a problem.”
While girls do have a lot to be worried about, they aren’t always the pro-active ones. “I know some girls can sink under the pressure of a boyfriend or even an older guy, which is an issue if the girl isn’t on birth control,” Kim said. “It depends on the situation for the couple, but I know sometimes contraception goes un-talked about.”
Another issue is the “awkwardness” factor. Teenagers generally care about what people think of them. No one wants to be uncomfortable, and sometimes waiting to cross the condom-talk bridge when you get there is less stressful than those painful conversations.
“I know my friends don’t love talking about sex,” Kim said. “So bringing it up with your boyfriend and parents is a situation some of my shy friends would do anything to avoid.”
Each relationship is different, because every couple looks at sex and contraceptives differently. “Sex is different to everyone,” sophomore Jane said. Some people think it’s embarrassing and other’s think of it as nothing at all. Pregnancy prevention is the same thing.”
While Jane hasn’t had sex, she is still on birth control. “Birth control cleared up my skin and I had virtually no other side effects, so why not?” she said. “Plus, when I get older and eventually have a boyfriend, I won’t have anything to worry about when it comes to birth control.”
