5 Useful Online Resources For Your Sexual Health
This article was declined by my primary publisher, so here it is on Medium instead
The 2020s is proving to be a very confusing decade filled with uncertainty in several facets of life. In the U.S, rumors of Roe v. Wade being overturned has gotten everyone worried about what could happen to women’s reproductive freedoms in the long run.
Prohibiting abortion could have a negative effect on Planned Parenthood itself, leaving people with fewer ways to access forms of birth control, STI testing, and other important resources for their sexual health.
Here are five great online resources you should know about that provide access to all these important services.
1. Planned Parenthood Direct
Planned Parenthood has an app for both iOS and Android to provide easy access to birth control, emergency contraception, and UTI treatments. The app will guide you through a health questionnaire with the same questions you would answer at a doctor’s office, then you provide insurance information, and you get your birth control or UTI treatment delivered to your nearest pharmacy or discreetly to your door.
Mobile apps like this are incredibly important to reach as many people as possible who need these services. When several important healthcare websites are difficult to navigate and ask for confusing information, it discourages us from pursuing treatments further. Planned Parenthood Direct is a welcome change.
Download: Planned Parenthood Direct for iOS | Android
2. Favor: The Pill Club
Favor, previously known as The Pill Club, is an online service that provides access to birth control, skin care, menstrual care, and other sexual wellness products delivered discreetly to your home with or without insurance. It is a licensed pharmacy, U.S medical provider, and accepts most health insurance.
Favor also has a section of its website that aims to debunk sexual health myths, educate on the effectiveness of Plan B, and more, which is incredibly helpful for young adults navigating this path on their own.
Favor has an easy-to-navigate website and is also available on the iOS App Store.
Download: Favor: The Pill Club for iOS
3. National Network of Abortion Funds
This is an incredibly important organization to expand the access to safe abortions to as many communities as possible. NNAF states that it takes the funds it receives through donations to “remove financial and logistical barriers to abortion access.” The members who are a part of the organization work with clinics, such as Planned Parenthood, to help pay for individual abortions, while others help with more logistical issues such as child care, transportation, and somewhere to stay if traveling a long distance to a clinic is needed.
NNAF educates users on how to find a clinic, provides contact info for individual abortion funds across the United States, and lots of other useful information about the abortion process. Visit the National Network of Abortion Funds for more information.
4. Hey Jane
Hey Jane provides discreet abortion pill delivery to Americans in New York, Washington, Illinois, California, Colorado, and New Mexico. The website states that safe abortion pills will cost as little as $249 with no clinic visit needed.
Since health insurance providers are not required to cover abortion services, Hey Jane helps users get access to financial assistance through HSA and FSA, as well as provides information for abortion funds throughout the state, which we explored above with the National Network of Abortion Funds.
Hey Jane has an extensive FAQ page with answers to any questions you may have.
5. Nurx
Nurx discreetly delivers STI test kits to your home and provides additional resources for birth control, skincare, mental health, and migraine treatments. Nurx prides itself in offering affordable treatments whether or not you have insurance, automatically refills your prescriptions, provides free shipping, as well as unlimited messaging with licensed healthcare providers.
Nurx is a fantastic website to look through to educate yourself about any of these services. Health insurance can be incredibly confusing when it comes to exploring mental health services, which can then throw you into a never-ending cycle of feeling too anxious to try to find a provider, so Nurx helps with this too. For $55 per month, Nurx’s mental health service includes:
- Initial consultation to determine which psychiatrist-designed treatment plan is right for you
- At least 6 check-ins per year to ensure that treatment is working and adjust as needed
- Unlimited messaging with the medical team about your treatment plan
- Resources for online therapy services or mental health apps
- Prescription refills and free shipping
Your Health Should Always Come First
Never settle when it comes to your health, whether it’s for birth control, mental health issues, or feeling uncomfortable in your own skin. No matter what governments do to attempt to take away your rights or health insurance providers making access to important services more confusing and less affordable, there will always be an online resource to help.
We’re really proud of this article and hope it helps you find a service that fits your needs.