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TBH (To Be Honest) is a monthly newsletter dedicated to learning about our bodies, talking about sex and relationships, and challenging health inequity and injustice.

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IN THIS ISSUE:

Title X + Fertility Awareness-Based Birth Control + OB-GYN Shortages

"People don't realize how much these clinics hold together the local health system until they're gone. For thousands of patients, that was their doctor, their lab, and their lifeline."

- George Hill, president and CEO of Maine Family Planning, a group forced to close three clinics in October.

Learn more about the impact of attacks on care here.

From the blog…

Yes, it is safe to take Tylenol when you’re pregnant! Here's what you should know.

From the Experts: I won't be having sex for several months. Are there any negative effects of going on and off the pill?

Your frequently asked questions about vasectomies = answered! Learn more about risks, recovery, and what to expect.

Learn more >>

What we're watching, reading, listening to, and taking action on:

🚨ICYMI: In October, the Trump administration essentially shuttered the office in charge of Title X. All but one person at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Population Affairs (OPA) were fired and suddenly removed from their roles.

- Title X is the nation's only federal program dedicated to providing affordable reproductive and family planning health care services.

- The closure of the OPA is the latest in a long line of attacks on reproductive care across the country, including budget cuts, mass firings, and other hits.

- Learn more about the harmful consequences of attacks on Title X—a vital program that 4,000 providers across the country rely on to deliver affordable, essential care like birth control, cancer screenings, and STI tests.

- We are waiting to see whether OPA staffers who were laid off during the shutdown will be reinstated.

Some Good News: Jarod Adkison went viral this summer after he was severely beaten while defending a trans woman in Texas; now, strangers have chipped in to cover the cost of his reconstruction surgery and recovery.

Iowa is facing a severe shortage of OB-GYNs. The state's strict abortion ban, one of the harshest in the country, coupled with too many patients and not enough doctors, could be part of the problem.

Ask the Experts:

Does tracking my menstrual cycle and ovulation work as a method of birth control?

Tracking your ovulation — the release of an egg — in order to prevent pregnancy is also known as a fertility awareness-based method (FAM) of birth control. It works by keeping sperm out of your vagina in the days near ovulation, when you’re most likely to become pregnant.

Like all birth control methods, FAMs are more effective when you use them correctly. But unlike many other birth control methods, FAMs can be tricky to always use correctly, especially for teens. That’s because teens' menstrual cycles are more likely to be irregular and more unpredictable. The effectiveness of FAMs depends on how accurately you can predict ovulation, which can be really hard to do.

The 3 main methods are:

The temperature method: you take your temperature every morning before you get out of bed.

The cervical mucus method: you check your cervical mucus (vaginal discharge) every day.

The calendar method: you chart your menstrual cycle on a calendar.

Combining 2 or 3 methods is called the symptothermal method—this is the best way to use FAMs to prevent pregnancy. This method generally means using both the temperature method and the cervical mucus method. .

Learn more about fertility awareness-based methods of birth control.

*Note: Planned Parenthood is not responsible for nor does it endorse any legal, medical, or other advice or information provided by any of the entities identified or referenced herein or by any other third parties, whether referenced herein or not.

Check out Ask the Experts for more Q&As on a ton of different health topics.
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