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Good News!

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The Male Pill may soon be a reality:

For the first time, a safe, effective and reversible hormonal male contraceptive appears to be within reach. Several formulations are expected to become commercially available within the near future. Men may soon have the options of a daily pill to be taken orally, a patch or gel to be applied to the skin, an injection given every three months or an implant placed under the skin every 12 months, according to Seattle researchers.

Several men interviewed for the story, however, think it’s a great idea — for other men — but are afraid to take hormones.

Sack up, fellas, women have been doing it for decades. Your balls won’t fall off.

35 thoughts on Good News!

  1. Leaving aside any safety issues, I can tell you that men, in the aggregate, won’t be motivated to use this for the same reason that they’re less motivated than women to use birth control in general: They’re not the ones who get stuck having the baby.

    Sure, there are all kinds of unpleasant consequences to unwed or unplanned fatherhood: child support, guilt, forced lifestyle changes, etc. But none of these have the immediacy (read: physical pain) of pregnancy and childbirth.

  2. Your balls won’t fall off.

    “But…but….what if they DO?” (Curls up in a small, sniveling ball.)

  3. House of Mayhem stole my comment.

    How often does the patch have to be changed? I’m not so good about taking once-daily pills on an actual daily basis for any length of time (to the consternation of my former psychiatrist), and an implant spuicks me out.

  4. “But…but….what if they DO?” (Curls up in a small, sniveling ball.)

    Are you the kind of guy who has trouble getting his dog neutered?

  5. I’m not sure how many men will use this birth control, especially since they would need a perscription and would have to make a doctor’s appointment just for it (so do women, but there is also the yearly exam thing and a doctor that kind of specializes in reproductive stuff.) Personally, I’m excited because having me and my boy both on the pill means my protection is doubled.

    But I think it would be very interesting to see how this plays out in the political atmosphere. Would as many pharmacists refuse to give male birth control as female birth control? What sort of differences would there be in the FDA rules? Would insurance companies deny coverage? Possibly the male birth control would result in easier access for both male and female versions. I find it fascinating.

  6. Unfortunately, I’m as forgetful (ok, more forgetful) as my girlfriend, but if this increases the odds of at least one of us having taken the pill that day, I’m gonna do it!

  7. Sweet! i would have been all over that previously, though at my age I’ll just get snipped soon.

    I think it’ll be quite popular among the wealthy/educated set, i.e. those who are most aware of and have the highest desire to avoid “unpleasant consequences to unwed or unplanned fatherhood: child support, guilt, forced lifestyle changes, etc.”

    The man who have the least to lose from unwanted fatherhood are going to choose the “cheap” option (condoms) or nothing, I think.

  8. I think that plenty of my guy friends would be “for it” in theory (“of course guys should have a birth control pill, it’s only fair and PC blah blah!”) but not actually pony up and use it themselves. I think plenty of guys would be scared that the pill would have side effects like a decrease in desire or an inability to father kids later (yeah, ha ha…). Or their balls falling off. Plus, hormones are, like, totally a girl thing dude…

    To be fair, the side effects concern is legit and I’d like to see some information on that. But mostly I think lots of guys will have no problem with the pill being available, and see no particular reason to take it themselves, because “she’s already taking one, and I use condoms and

    As DDay says, the political side of this should be fascinating.

  9. As I said in the corresponding thread over at pandagon: I would be absolutely thrilled at the chance to use a non-surgical male birth control. I really don’t get the objections from other men to this: what’s the problem?

    Currently, my wife takes the pill; she’s not thrilled with some of the side effects, but given the currently available options, it’s the best choice for us. If I could relieve her of having to take it, I’d try it in a second. If it turned out to have unpleasant side effects, we’d have to have the two of us sit down and figure out who’s side effects were less of a problem. And if that were me, I’d be willing to live with it. Hell, she’s lived with it for years, what kind of asshole would I be to refuse?

  10. heh…. goodies now if I ever have a son I can make him go on the pill/patch/implant/injection too*….bwahahahaha!

    *This is my plan for my daughter. Tried to get my dad to do that with my sister, but he thinks scaring her into abstinence is the best way to go… *palm to forehead* He just doesn’t want to think of his daughters as having/had/wanting to have sex (despite the fact that I have a daughter, therefore must have had sex at some point…lol.)

  12. “An injectible or an implant (similar to Norplant for women) will be the first to be approved. The big studies are now under way,” says Dr. Christina Wang, who is heading up the clinical trials of MHCs at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.

    lol wang

    Uh, the article. Right. This is the zillionth (or maybe fourth) article I’ve read on male hormonal birth control becoming available “soon,” within the next few years, etc etc. These folks need a deadline.

  13. Are you the kind of guy who has trouble getting his dog neutered?

    Actually I’m a woman. : ) I don’t have a dog, but I have a brother and sister cat comedy team. The last straw was when Prince Kiko was trying to nail his sister when she was in heat. I had absolutely no prob with teh snip snip. (I got her fixed too, of course.)

    Besides, I’ve never been a member of the Church of the Sacred Balls.

    ***”Balls,” said the Queen. “If I had two, I’d be King. If I had three, I’d be a pinball machine!”***

  14. How often does the patch have to be changed? I’m not so good about taking once-daily pills on an actual daily basis for any length of time (to the consternation of my former psychiatrist), and an implant spuicks me out.

    Once a week. And I like it much better than the injections or the implants because it uses the same combination of hormones as the pill. (None of the nasty side-effects from synthetic progestin only birth control)

  15. The real question is:

    When the male pill is approved, will they start calling ours “the lady pill” or do we still get to keep “the pill”?

  16. Katryn: Knowing guys, we’ll probably keep calling yours “the pill” and call ours “silver bullets” or something.

    We place great store by names. I read of a spa for men where they called manicures and pedicures “hand detailing” and “foot detailing,” like our extremities were ’57 Chevys or something.

  17. Yeah, the hormones thing will probably freak alot of guys out. They will have visions of bursting into to tears some Sunday when Tom Brady gets sacked or having urges to go to the ballet….class.

    Terribly inconvenient for the insecure.

  18. And yet they’ll gobble down pills to get their dicks up and take testosterone and steroids. Which . . . are hormones.

  19. And yet they’ll gobble down pills to get their dicks up and take testosterone and steroids. Which . . . are hormones.

    Manly hormones, apparently.

  20. Actually, I’ve never been a fan of the expectation that the women I sleep with should dose themselves up with sex hormones and like it. In turn, I’m not entirely comfortable with the idea that I should dose myself up with sex hormones and like it. I’m thrilled by the idea of male contraception, but suspicious of what’s used to accomplish the end.

    Plus, condoms work, and vasectomies work if I were in a long-term relationship where one seemed indicated. I don’t feel the need to beta test sex hormones therapy on myself.

    And if going to ballet class meant that I’d have a body like male ballet dancers have, I’d live with the snide comments. And then KICK THEIR ASS WITH MY LEGS OF DOOM.

  21. I agree with Nerdlet that I’m tired of seeing identical articles recycled every few months about how it’s gonna be Real Soon Now. I love how at the end of the article they admit that FDA approval is unlikely for at least 5 years.

    I for one want it now!

  22. Several men interviewed for the story, however, think it’s a great idea — for other men — but are afraid to take hormones. Sack up, fellas, women have been doing it for decades.

    Yes, but women have hormones. Men are normal and don’t have hormones.

    Actually, more seriously, I *did* get an “ick” reaction to the idea, which suggests I better do some heavy thinking about my attitudes towards gendered contraception. I guess I’d go for the male pill procided I did some research into side effects.

  23. Back when my worst fear in life was that my wife (or earlier, girlfriend) would get pregnant, I’d have taken this pill even if it did make my balls fall off!

  24. “condoms work, and vasectomies work if I were in a long-term relationship where one seemed indicated”

    I don’t think the current options are all that. The snip will often prevent you having children for good and condoms don’t work very well – if you have a relatively normal sex life using them chances are you’ll impregnate someone at some point.

  25. No fuckin’ way.

    Anyone who takes dope right after it hits the market is an idiot. And with this stuff you are, literally, putting your balls in the hands of the FDA.

    I’ll wait five years and see how many guys’ nuts really do fall off before I’ll ever consider it.

  26. Sack up, fellas, women have been doing it for decades. Your balls won’t fall off.

    Because if there’s that anyone can be trusted to withhold drugs from the market until they’re 100% safe, it’s Bush’s FDA.

  27. I can’t say enough good things about snippage for men who have made up their minds. For us it turned out to be not only way more convenient and pleasant that other forms of bc, but actually cheaper in the long run as well.

  28. If I wasn’t celibate due to not wanting to be in a relationship, I’d be all over these. Yes, agreed that women will always feel a more visceral need for birth control due to the fact that the lion’s share of the effects of pregnancy fall on them, but any sane man wants to avoid having a child when they don’t want one. I have one, I want no more, and should I ever decide I actually want to date again, I’ll be all over these…which should time out well, as I’ll be in my sixties then, anyhow. 😛

    (P.S., snippage also works, and had I avoided divorce, I would have had it done by now. Still might, all things considered, just no pressing need.)

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  31. I dont mind the idea, but two questions must be asked.

    1) Guys, do you trust drug companies when they tell you something is safe? drugs can be on the market for 5 years before they realise that it cause depression and suicide (Roaccutane), that births still happen and it causes MASSIVE side effects (the female birth control implant recently pulled off the market) or indeed it may just makes your balls fall off (or at least not work at all in the future if you want kids, or cause mutant sperm with 3 heads) Dont trust the “testing” and “safe” label, wait 10 years and see what happens.

    2) Ladies, are you crazy enough to trust men to take the pill? This your health we’re talking about, your body, and you’re trusting a man to take the pill? I’m male and I think that’s crazy talk!

    I think the male pill will be a double up fail safe at best, not the reliable first point of call.

  32. I don’t think they’d be developing this stuff if they think there is no market for it.

    A weekly patch sounds a lot less painful than a vasectomy.

  33. I would trust my husband to take it, no doubt. He’s far less forgetful than I am (hence why we currently use condoms until I can get an IUD, no chance of forgetting that) and we are both on the same page about children (we may or may not have more at some point, although it’s doubtful, but we both agree that right now is NOTthe time). However, by the time this is approved, he’ll have had a vasectomy and this won’t be an issue anymore.

  34. A weekly patch sounds a lot less painful than a vasectomy.

    Okay, I cannot speak from first-hand experience here but my husband swore it was no worse than getting fillings. He spent the next day sitting on an ice pack watching DVDs while I brought him things, then he was fine. He didn’t even milk it to get me to bring things for him a second day

  35. Heheh. My Dad regailed me with the story, once, of his return to work, post-vasectomy. Dad is going on 56 now, and got the snip sometime between confirmation of my conception and my birth, so that’d be about 23 years ago. At any rate, his tale is that when he returned to work, his male coworkers all gathered around and demanded to know–was the process safe? Did…did it still work? Could he still have sex? Could he still masturbate? Did it hurt? Did they use needles?

    Supposedly, after his reassurances and obvious satisfaction with the operation’s results (woo hoo! no more kids!), others amongst his peers were convinced that ‘no really, it’s safe to go get one.’

    At any rate, I actually talked last night about this (MHC) with my husband. Randomly getting pregnant is a bad idea with the meds I take, and I don’t want to start taking the BC pill if I can avoid it, for multiple reasons–for the affect it’ll have on my mood, for the affect it’ll have on my other meds, and for the weight gain. He’s wary, which is reasonable for a drug whose long-term effects and side-effects are ill-known, but since we both enjoy sex as well as controlling conception, he shares my interest in its development.

    Merciful cats, though. Five to seven years, huh?

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