Are birth control pills as effective as the shot?
When taken at the same time, every day, as directed, yes. But, for a lot of people life gets in the way. You drop one down the sink, or run late and take it two hours late or have the flu and throw one up or have to take antibiotics (which makes the pill ineffective for that whole month!) With the shot it is four times a year and you just go see the doctor and get it done. No remembering at all. However a lot of women put on more weight or find that they feel moodier or just not as good when using the shot instead of the pill. There are a lot of options including patches, rings, impanted, shots, pills and IUDs. Most of these use hormones to control your ovulation. No egg = no baby. Talk to your doctor about which one will work best for you, personally. But, no pill, patch or shot can protect you from HIV, herpes or a host of other things (you can get a shot to protect you from two strains of Hepatitis AND now you can get vaccinated against the strain of HPV that causes cervical cancer.
