As you’ve probably heard by now, a birth control option exclusively for men is in the works. You’ve also probably heard laments about how the drug is being sent back for more testing because, simply put, “men can’t handle the symptoms women have faced for years.” Three percent of the men in the trials decided to withdraw from the study, citing unpleasant side effects such as altered libido, mood swings, and depression. As a result, the drug company has decided to delay its release in order to develop a drug with less side effects.
As someone who knows first-hand exactly how rough mental health struggles can be, this feels like the right move. The drug poses a threat to many people’s mental health. Trust me, mood swings and depression aren’t pleasant, and they have even been known to be fatal.
However, since this drug affects men’s mental health, the results of this study are being treated like a joke by most progressive news outlets. Apparently, men are “little bitches” for not being able to handle the depressive side effects. As someone who struggles with depressive episodes, I can tell you that there’s nothing more ineffective than being told to suck it up. Men should be forced to accept a drug that still hasn’t been approved by the FDA because hey, why should women be the only ones to have to use birth control?
Male birth control would offer men the empowering choice to control their own reproduction and provide more options to couples looking to avoid unplanned pregnancy. However, the side effects of the drug aren’t minor. To suggest that side effects that could be detrimental to your mental health should be ignored is more than just laughable – it’s a sign that we still have a long way to go when it comes to destigmatizing mental health.
The idea that men should “suck it up” when it comes to potentially dangerous side effects contributes to our society’s sense of hypermasculinity. We have such a narrow perspective on what the appropriate, acceptable male experience is. If a man refuses or is unable to conform to those standards, then we use the concept of “manning up” to suggest that non-conformity is the result of weakness or character shortcomings. This is just an example of how we demonize men who don’t fulfill our standards of “manhood.” We don’t like the fact that men don’t want to take a non-medically necessary drug at the cost of their own health, so we demonize them by suggesting they’re leaving the responsibility of contraception to women to handle all by themselves.
More severely, it contributes to our stigmatization of men’s mental health issues. Men already face a much greater likelihood of committing suicide than women. Just like we don’t need a study to tell us women have negative side effects as the result of birth control, we don’t need a study to tell us that millions of men feel unable to discuss their mental health or seek out help. As a society, we view everything, from men showing their emotions to admitting their own vulnerability, as “weak” and “un-masculine.” We only reinforce this by shaming them for making the incredibly wise decision to stop using medications that increase their risk of depression.
These news reports do have one thing right: women have faced these symptoms for years. Between three to six percent of men in the trials for male birth control stopped taking the drug due to negative side effects, whereas somewhere between fifteen to thirty percent of women report mood changes as the result of taking birth control. According to the media and thousands of social media users, this comparison is somehow a sign that both genders should “suck it up” in the name of safe sex. In my opinion, that’s a load of B.S.
We have to remember that male birth control is new, only first being tested in 2016. Hormonal birth control has remained pretty much the same for decades. America’s first birth control clinic, which would later become Planned Parenthood, was opened in 1916. Back then, mood swings were “hysteria” and depression was “exhaustion.” People didn’t value mental health the way we do now. In fact, only recently has a study linked contraception to depression. This doesn’t mean that it doesn’t matter that women face negative side effects as the result of birth control. It just means that, if this drug were seeking FDA approval in 2016, it likely wouldn’t get it. The answer isn’t to hold both drugs to the more medieval standards of the early 20th century. The answer is to continue further research on both drugs.
Also, it’s important to note that women have many more options than men do. Some women find that side effects are worse among birth control methods that involve taking hormones more frequently, such as the pill (which is taken daily) or the patch (which is weekly). Options that inject hormones slowly over time lessen side effects. Others find that options like the birth control shot or the hormonal IUD introduce too much of the drug into their system at once. Either way, women have lots of options to explore until they find the hormonal option that works best for their body. There’s the pill, the patch, Nuva Ring, the implant, the IUD, the shot, and the “mini pill” (known for having less side effects because it doesn’t contain estrogen). Women can also choose a copper IUD, a long-lasting, non-barrier method option that contains no hormones.
On the other hand, men only have the option of a shot every three months, which means that if this method doesn’t work for their body, then they’re out of luck. Male birth control isn’t even the most effective option out there for men; 96% may seem impressive, but that makes it one of the least effective options on the market. When used correctly, the method of pulling out is about as effective as male birth control — without any costs or side effects. Condoms, which also protect against STDs, are 98% effective.
Also, it’s important to note that birth control for men is in no way medically necessary and offers no medical benefits aside from lowering sperm count. On the other hand, female birth control is frequently used to treat a wide range of conditions, including PCOS and endometriosis. Accepting the risk of female birth control makes sense when it offers you relief from horrifically brutal period cramps or helping your fertility down the road.
Maybe we need to reassess women’s birth control and fund real research. The problem is, there was very little feminist dissent surrounding this issue — until, of course, men decided for themselves that they didn’t want to deal with said symptoms. Women have spent so long fighting for access to contraception that we’ve almost never discussed improving it, which is understandable, but no excuse for shaming men for demanding what we should have demanded decades ago: a better drug.
Regardless of any research, it’s more than likely that both male and female birth control will remain imperfect. These drugs mess with our hormones, which is what they’re designed to do. Some of us might be lucky; they might mess with our hormones in a way that leaves us with clear skin and regular periods, but it could also leave us facing headaches, dizziness, depression, weight gain, and a number of other symptoms. That’s why there’s nothing wrong with turning to barrier and non-hormonal methods. No one has any place shaming another person for their contraceptive choices. If you truly believe that it’s an injustice that a guy would wear a condom, but not take a birth control shot, then your solution is simple: no one is making you sleep with them.
The reality is that both male and female birth control should get more testing, and hopefully, more improvements. No one, whether male or female, should have to choose between family planning and their mental health. No one should be shamed for valuing one over the other. When we lump serious side effects like depression in with minor ones, like tiredness and bruising, we invalidate the seriousness of mental health. When we decide that men are childish because they choose their wellbeing over their desire to have sex, we reinforce the idea that men don’t experience mental illness the way women do and men should be sex-obsessed animals whose libidos come first — and that’s not a good thing for anyone.
