Help! For the next few months my husband and I are going to have to use condoms for birth control. They keep breaking!! I can't get pregnant now - I'm having health issues and a pregnancy would be dangerous for me and the baby. I've always used other forms of birth control so we aren't that familiar with condoms - is there something we could be doing wrong that is making them break?
Breakage ( at least that much breakage) is usually due to improper storage or due to age of the condom. Go to a different store, chances are the store you shop at lets them get too hot or cold and it had degraded the latex.
Llama:
I am sorry you are having health issues. I hope they are remedied soon and you are back to good health!!
Condoms break for a number of reasons:
1. too small - no room for the ejaculation so it breaks - if there is NOT a "tip" at the top - there is no room.
2. too much friction - not enough lubrication
3. poor storage (wallet or purse)
4. poor choice in lubrication - anything that is petroleum-based - can break the latex or rubber down. If you use baby oil, Vaseline or anything like that - you are setting yourself up for failure as well as infections...oil-based items do not absorb in our system and can stay in our vagina - making nasty bacteria...
5. staying in the vagina after ejaculation. Once your husband ejaculates, or feels like he is going to ejaculate, he can hold on to the base of the condom and pull out after he ejaculates.
Talk with your OB/GYN and find out if there is another form of birth control you can use - diaphram, the sponge (is that still around?) or even an IUD?
I hope this helps. I hope you are better soon!!
Added info about when and how they are breaking would help a little.
I would suspect the biggest culprits for breakage are improper storage, not using water-based lubricant, poor fit, or not putting it on properly. I would not trust condoms (especially ones that keep breaking) to prevent pregnancy if I had medical concerns that would make a pregnancy a high risk situation. If hormones are not an option and you want it to be short term (ruling out an IUD), I would do condoms with a diaphragm, with a spermicide while I monitored my cycle and abstained during my fertile days. You can never be too careful when your health (and the health of your potential child) is on the line. Best of luck to you.
If you cannot risk pregnancy for health reasons you really should be on more reliable birth control. Some doctors even suggest two methods of BC just to be sure. Condoms are not the most reliable way to prevent pregnancy in the first place, yes, they are better than nothing - but if it's a life or death matter not to get pregnant, they are not sufficient.
As for breakage, how do they break? Do they slip off? In this case you DH should hold on to them before he pulls out.
Do they "explode"? In this case he is likely not putting them on correctly, there should be no air in the reservoir.
Holes and such may indicate that they have been improperly stored and the latex is degraded.
Please speak to your doctor about better options of birth control... If you are having sex and are not reliably protected you will end up pregnant.
Good luck
Why can't you get an IUD? That's what I have, super effective, don't have to think about it and no hormones.
I would NEVER use condoms for birth control, way too risky.
They may not be the right fit, they could be expired/old, they could be too thin or if they are ribbed they could be compromised etc. I suggest you try lambskin vs laytex and see if that helps.
OR you could decide that abstaining is what is best right now and find other ways to be intimate with out intercourse. I understand the need to ensure no pregnancy, there are other ways to be intimate if that is you concern.
He isn't leaving enough space at the tip.
Tell him to pinch an inch of condom at the tip between his thumb and forefinger.
If he's well endowed - they do come in larger sizes.
Sounds like they're too small (congrats, mama LOL!) Or you need to change brands.
Talk to your gyn about it. I'll bet they know the answer.
Dawn
Add a diaphragm to the condom. I know they're not so often used nowadays but they will decrease your chance of getting pregnant. Add a spermicide to the diaphragm. Condoms are the least safe method of birth control. Unless there's a medical reason to not have an IUD, I'd do that. There is one without hormones.
He is prolly puting it on wrong some guys think it goes like a sock. Tell him to leave space at the end. Plus it could be the kind lifestyles break easy so use the trojan ones.
It could also be the lubricate you're using (if you're using one), or the condoms are old.
How old are they and where have they been stored? They should have an expiration date so check that.
Hi, Mama:
Write the company that makes them.
Good luck.
D.
