Reproductive Health

Ugh! We are right there with you! Perimenopause (the time before, during, and right after menopause) is a normal and expected process for ~50% of the human population. Nevertheless.The.Symptoms.Can.Stink. 🔥Studies show between 50-85% of us experience hot flashes during the late menopausal transition and early postmenopause. For most of us, these are mild to moderate. Read more…

Signs point to yes. Previous small studies suggested a link between COVID-19 and ED, but we now have… firmer evidence. A large study using US insurance claims data compared men who were infected with COVID-19 between Jan 2020-Jan 2021 (so pre-vaccine) to men with similar characteristics without an infection. Men with a COVID-19 infection were Read more…

Those Nerdy Girls are thrilled to re-introduce our Reproductive Health Squad, a group of contributing writers with expertise in all things reproductive health. This includes birth control, pregnancy, menstruation, menopause, sexual health, lactation, and abortion, among other topics. Don’t forget to submit your questions! Submit questions to our question box here! Link to original Those Read more…

Some groups in this country do not know they are at risk of getting HIV. Knowing your risk is an important step in preventing infection. Here are the stats from 2019*: Although the overall number of new cases is going down, there is still work to be done. 36, 801 new diagnoses of HIV in Read more…

To answer this question we need to discuss three different things: Biological sex (body characteristics), Gender expression (how we communicate our gender to the world), and Gender identity (our sense of self). Biological sex refers to the different types of body parts (anatomy), chromosomes , and hormones present in a person. Typically, most folks are Read more…

Yes, the morning-after pill, also known as the Emergency Contraception pill, is still legal in all 50 states. The morning-after pill is contraception, not abortion. It works by delaying ovulation and will not harm a pregnancy. And your right to *contraception* was not changed by the Supreme Court decision that overturned the constitutional right to Read more…

“Wait, that’s a thing?” Yes, National Condom Week is celebrated every year from February 14-February 21. “Why, for goodness’ sake, do we need to celebrate this?” Well, condoms help prevent the spreading of sexually transmitted infections, and sadly in the US, many sexually transmitted infections are on the rise. So to honor National Condom Week Read more…

A: Actually, humans come in a variety of X and Y chromosome combinations (not just XX and XY) and body parts (i.e., anatomy). TL; DR: Most people that have XX chromosomes develop what is considered “typical” female anatomy and most that have XY chromosomes develop “typical” male anatomy. But not always. Other sex chromosome combinations Read more…

TL, DR: No. Emergency contraception prevents pregnancy. It does not end a pregnancy. For a person who doesn’t want to be pregnant, it helps *prevent* the need for abortion. There are two types of emergency contraception, pills and IUDs (intrauterine devices). The hormonal pills that contain only the hormone levonorgestrel are available over the counter Read more…

Don’t panic. It’s unlikely that Thinx or other period underwear pose a risk to your health, but there are still some unknowns. A recent U.S. class action lawsuit against Thinx claimed its advertisement that Thinx are “organic, sustainable, and nontoxic” was misleading. This news has understandably made a lot of people who use these products Read more…

A: “Missed period pills” are the same medications used for an at-home abortion, but are taken much earlier and without confirming an actual pregnancy. If you are a few days late for a period, it could be due to a very early pregnancy OR to a variety of other things. Stress, illness, and hormonal fluctuations Read more…