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There are several methods of male contraception but I'm going to tell you about mine, the ring, and my experience with it. I will summarize a lot but feel free to ask me if you want additional resources.
The concept is simple: spermatogenesis, i.e. the creation of spermatozoa in the testicles, takes place when the testicles are at 35°C. This is their normal temperature when they are quiet in the scrotum. If they are raised to 37°C, however, spermatogenesis stops and not enough sperm are produced to fertilize an egg.
As spermatogenesis lasts about 3 months, if you keep your testicles at 37°C during this period, you stop producing spermatozoa and you are therefore infertile, and therefore contracepted! A fertile individual produces about 50 million spermatozoa per milliliter of semen. Below 15 to 20 million, one begins to have difficulties to fertilize an ovum. This still sounds huge, but in reality most sperm are not mobile or well formed enough to reach the egg and fertilize it. For successful contraception, we try to get below one million sperm per milliliter.
There are many ways to keep your testicles warm, such as using heated underwear, but I opted for a particularly simple item: a ring.
I had made an appointment with my doctor and even though he didn't know much about this area, he said no worries. I did a first spermogram in a laboratory, a strange experience since they ask you to ejaculate in a little pot in the middle of town, but in a good laboratory there are dedicated rooms and the staff explains everything well so you don't feel particularly uncomfortable.
Results before the contraception: 68m/ml of sperm, so I was quite fertile. You should think about doing a test before starting contraception, in case you are already infertile…
A contraceptive ring is a small silicone ring. It is used by placing the penis and scrotum, but not the testicles, through it. A diagram is worth a thousand words:
Mechanically, the testicles come up closer to the body, where they are kept at a high enough temperature to stop spermatogenesis. It is recommended to wear it 15 hours a day to be effective, so basically from the morning to the night. It's not too bad to miss 2 hours one day if you make it up the next. I used the free Track & Graph app to keep track of my wear time.
I wanted to buy an Androswitch (a ring made by a nurse) a few years ago but they were taken off sale because it's a medical device without CE certification. Fortunately there is Sam who proposes workshops in Paris (near Porte de Bagnolet) to make rings yourself. The method is simple, it takes 3 hours including explanations, and people are very nice! You can test several of them to know the size that suits you, and there is a lot of glitter to make them pretty.
On his site, which I will link to, Sam explains everything and even how to make your own rings. You need silicone, silicone gel, molds that can be made with a 3D printer and a vacuum pump, so it's within the reach of the most modest hackerspace. It is important to make a ring with the right elasticity (silicone gel content) and the right size. A good ring is good enough to hold the testicles without being in the least bit uncomfortable to wear.
So I've been wearing mine for a little over 3 months. It fits pretty well: I could run, bike, go to see Fange in Nantes, drive the car, dance, do the garden and the housework, all without any problem. Sometimes I get into a particular position where one of the testicles is pushed through the ring, which is not unpleasant but you can feel it, so you have to go to a corner to put everything back in place. It happens to me especially if I squat without paying attention when I pick up things in the garden.
And here we are 3 months later, after a new test at the lab and I am at 700k/ml, which is considered infertile. So I'm on birth control, woohoo!
Q : Isn't it annoying?
A : You have to be careful because you are responsible for your contraception, but it's no more annoying than girls who have to remember to take the pill every day.
Q: Is it reversible?
A: Yes, you just have to stop wearing the ring for 3 months.
Q: Is it unpleasant?
A: Personally, I don't find it unpleasant. It takes a few days to adapt but after that you forget about it most of the time. You have to choose the right size though, to avoid feeling too tight. The worst issue I have is, from time to time, a light itching, even though I'm usually sensitive to eczema.
Q : Can you wear it while sleeping?
A : It's not recommended because we don't know if the testicles are always well placed during the night. However, I sometimes put it on early in the morning and go back to sleep for an hour or two...
Q: I have more questions!
A: Send me an email!
« Contraception masculine thermique » on the Low Tech Lab Wiki
A study done between December 2021 and March 2022 on ring users
