Patricia Holden MD|

Getting pregnant at a critical period (like on your last year of law school) wouldn’t be a pleasant thing to happen. You’ll be stressed out just from thinking about what’s going to happen that you’ll find it difficult to continue with your regular activities. Most likely, you’ll be opting for an abortion afterwards - which isn’t a good thing in my opinion.

Man (I mean humans, not just males) have thought of a lot of ways to prevent women from getting pregnant. There have been natural methods like the rhythm method, and artificial ones like condoms. There have also been beliefs that have been passed on through generations and of course, some are true while most are not. Let me tell you of seven myths regarding birth control.

Having Sex During a Woman’s Period - Many people thought that having sex while a woman is on her menstruation period wouldn’t get her pregnant. Although it is true that women are much more likely to conceive during their midcycle, studies have shown that a woman can conceive at any day of the month (except for the so called safe period, which I’m not going to talk about here). Aside from that, sperm can live up to 5 days inside a woman’s body.

Having Sex For The First Time - A lot of people believe that a woman won’t get pregnant during the first time she will have sex. This is not true. A woman can get pregnant as soon as ovulation occurs (read: when she begins having periods). Girls, don’t believe your boyfriend when he says otherwise. Guys, you know who you are…

Birth Control Pills Are Effective Immediately After Taking One - Oh no, it’s not…well, for most women. Usually, it takes one full cycle for the hormones in the pill to work with the woman’s hormones to prevent ovulation. The best way to go about using one is to follow the directions indicated on the product itself.

A Woman Can’t Get Pregnant Without An Orgasm - Seriously, what does having an orgasm have anything to do with the sperm reaching the egg and forming a zygote? None. Well for males, maybe since orgasm usually follows ejaculation. A woman, as long as she’s fertile and sperm enters her cervix and uterus, would get pregnant no matter if she’s had orgasm or not during sex.

Using The Withdrawal Method Wouldn’t Get A Woman Pregnant - False. That’s why there’s something called premature ejaculation. Sometimes a man releases his fluids even before reaching climax. With that said, it’s near impossible to tell whether sperm has already entered the cervix or not. Men should use condoms to be sure.

Douching After Sex - Once the sperm reaches the cervix, it’s nearly impossible for any douching method to fix that. With that in mind, douching cannot be considered a good method of contraception. Taking a bath afterwards also won’t help as the sperm has almost reached its destination (if not yet).

A Woman Can’t Get Pregnant While Breastfeeding - Not really. Although it is true that menstruation stops when a woman is on her breastfeeding stage, ovulation may happen without warning and could get you pregnant. Use birth control to be safe. Also, it is recommended by doctors to wait for a year before getting pregnant again.

Looking for current news online, I encountered this particular article about improving the chances of whether a new mother will conceive a boy or a girl. According to the article, a high energy diet would boost the chances of having a boy while the opposite would most likely yield a girl. After reading through the entire thing, I’m still unsure whether to believe the findings of the survey or not, but unless they are able to explain the details of how it works, I wouldn’t agree to the research just yet.

While we’re on the topic of pregnancy, although there are clinical methods of knowing the gender of an unborn child (I had ultrasound myself), there are also popular myths on how to find out.

Heart Rate - If a baby’s heart rate is below 140 then it’s a boy. On the other hand, if the baby’s heart rate is 140 and above, then it’s a girl.
Belly Shape - If you’re carrying low then you’re having a boy, but if you’re carrying high then you’re having a girl.
Urine - If your urine is bright yellow then it’s a boy, if it is clear then it’s a girl.
Breast - If the right breast is bigger than the left then it’s a boy, otherwise it’s a girl.
Chinese Calendar - By matching your conceiving age and month of conception, you can figure out if it’s going to be a boy or a girl. Here’s a link to the chart.
Ring Test - Tie a ring on a piece of string. Hold the string so that the ring hangs down in front of your belly. Gently swing the string and take note of the motion. If the ring moves in a circular pattern, you are having a boy, but if it moves in a straight line, you are having a girl.