The contraceptive injection

The injection only works on females and other people with vaginas. But this does not mean that getting one is only the female’s responsibility. Getting pleasure from sex is something that both partners enjoy so contraception should be the responsibility of both partners. If your partner is thinking of getting the contraceptive injection, it’s important to support them and is a good way to show you care.  
 

From a healthcare professional, either at a sexual health clinic or your local health facility. You might also be able to get it from a community-based programme. For example, some youth-clubs work with youth-friendly nurses to provide sexual health services. 

It releases a hormone into your body that stops an egg being released (known as ovulation), and this prevents pregnancy.  

You can have a contraceptive shot as long as you're not pregnant. 

If you have the injection during the first five days of your menstrual cycle, you'll be immediately protected from pregnancy. If you have it after that, you should use condoms for seven days or you may get pregnant. 

Advantages include:  

• you will not have to think about birth control for 8-13 weeks 

• you are in control of whether you get pregnant or not 

• you can use contraceptive injections any time after giving birth if you are not breastfeeding. If you are breastfeeding, the injection can normally be used six weeks after giving birth. 

Disadvantages include: 

• you need to remember to have another injection after the time ends, or switch to another type of contraceptive, or you can get pregnant 

• it doesn’t protect you or your partner from STIs, including HIV – only condoms prevent pregnancy and STIs 

• it can affect your periods – they may become more irregular or heavier, and this can carry on for a few months even after you stop the injections. But the injection can also make your periods shorter, lighter or stop them altogether. 

• you might get side effects, such as tender breasts, mood changes and weight gain, but not everyone will. These can continue for as long as the injection lasts and possibly after  

• some medication can make contraceptive shots less effective. This includes some HIV treatment. Check with your doctor about having the contraceptive injection if you're taking any other drugs.  

Every 8-13 weeks, depending on the type of injection. 

Don’t panic. You might want to consider taking emergency contraception. It is also a good idea to use condoms if you continue having sex, at least until you get a new injection or swap to a different birth control method.

Condoms are the only type of contraceptive that protect you and your partner from HIV and STIs. So if you want to relax and enjoy sex it is important to use them even if you have an injection. 
 

If you are happy to wait for at least a year to have a baby then the injection is fine to use. Once you stop using it, it shouldn’t take longer than a year for your fertility (the ability to have a baby) to return to normal.

Here are a few questions to help kick-off discussions on the issues you need to talk about! You can share them on social, on WhatsApp or just get talking.

Some injectables can cause some people to gain weight, but not everyone will. Eating a balanced diet and taking regular exercise will help you stay a healthy weight. 

A small amount of people experience hair loss as a side effect of having a contraceptive injection. But this is not normally noticeable, and most people won’t experience this side effect at all.  

If you have an injection and experience side effects that you are worried about, talk to a healthcare professional as there are plenty of other birth control methods you can try. 
 

The best thing you can do is to give them clear and accurate information. You should also: 

• Respect their decisions: this means their decision to have sex and the type of birth control they choose.  

• Be open: be prepared to discuss any type of contraception. And let them know they can ask anything they want; you won’t judge them. 

• Respect their privacy: they might feel embarrassed about discussing things to do with sex. If they are, you could give them details of a friendly healthcare professional, a helpline or factual online resources, like this website.