There's been a lot of hoopla about the withdrawal "method" of birth control lately. Being someone who has worked within the family planning and women's health jungle for quite some time, I wanted to find the facts. Personally, I don't feel like anything that has over a 5% failure rate should be considered a reliable method of birth control. If you're relying on something that isn't reliable... well, you get my point.

Withdrawal or “pulling out” is certainly a better method than nothing at all to avoid unintended pregnancy- however it is not as reliable as other contraceptive methods such as condoms, birth control pills, hormonal ring, IUD, etc. The most recent edition of Contraceptive Technology states that with typical use, withdrawal has a failure rating of about 27%. This means that out of 100 couples using withdrawal as their only method of birth control, 27 of them will get pregnant within one year. It’s also important to remember that withdrawal does not provide effective protection against STI’s, so unless you like the way the word Chlamydia rolls off your tongue, wrap it up!

That being said, withdrawal does have its perks: it’s free, convenient, you don’t need a prescription and it is non-hormonal. It may be a good back-up to other methods of birth control – such as condoms or pills- for those couples who want to be extra careful to avoid an unintended pregnancy. There certainly are risks when using this as your only method. Communication and trust between partners is essential when using withdrawal because you are relying on the male’s self-control, which can (understandably) be clouded just before orgasm.

In order for a woman to be fully in charge of her life, she needs to be taking the steps to protect herself from unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. If you’re concerned that your partner did not pull out in time, talk to your health care provider about Emergency Contraception or visit http://www.gotoplanb.com/. In many states (Maine included), adults can access Emergency Contraception over the counter at popular retailers such as Target or a local pharmacy.