In 2023 in the United States, around 3.6 million babies entered the world. Some day, you may add to that number, or perhaps you’ve already contributed because you have children. Whatever your circumstance, you’re here because you don’t want to get pregnant at this point in your life, and you're researching your family planning options.
The good news is that there are plenty to choose from, which is also the bad news — the sheer number of choices in birth control can be confusing.
To help with your decision-making, the team here at Women’s Clinic of the Rio Grande Valley, under the direction of Dr. Fernando Otero, focuses on one popular birth control method — the birth control shot.
Let’s take a look at how this option works to prevent pregnancy and how you can maximize the effectiveness of your birth control shot.
The main way we differentiate birth control methods is by category, and there are four main ones, including:
The birth control shot, which is also called Depo (short for the brand name Depo-Provera®), was first approved by the FDA in 1992. The active ingredient in the Depo injection is progestin, which works to prevent pregnancy in two ways:
This double protection is why the birth control shot has a 96% efficacy rating — it acts as a hormonal birth control as well as a barrier one.
Before you get your first birth control shot, we make sure you’re not pregnant, then we administer the shot during a quick in-office visit. For the first week after your initial Depo shot, it’s important that you use another form of protection or abstain from intercourse. After seven days, your pregnancy protection should be ready.
From there, you need to come back to see us every 12-13 weeks for another birth control shot — about four times a year. After each of your subsequent shots, you don’t need to wait a week as your protection is uninterrupted.
So, keeping up with your birth control shots is, far and away, the most important way to maximize your protection against pregnancy.
If you do miss a shot by more than a week, you should come see us as soon as possible to get another one, and then you’ll need to wait a week for it to take hold again.
Outside of keeping up with a regular schedule for your birth control shots, there’s nothing more you need to do, which is one of the reasons why this method is so popular.
If you have more questions about the birth control shot or you’d like to go ahead with this family planning approach, please contact one of our offices in McAllen or Edinburg, Texas, to schedule an appointment.
