Campus Talk: Condom or pill? Many young people are skipping. ‘Sounds better than swallowing hormones for years’

More and more young people are having unprotected sex. This is according to research by Rutgers & Soa Aids Netherlands. One in five young people in the Netherlands say they do not use contraception. In 2017, the figure was one in ten young people. “In the heat of the moment, sometimes you forget.”

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Even at the Erasmus University, students do not always have sex safely. Almost everyone knows someone close to them who doesn’t always protect themselves or their sex partner. “Sometimes I really think, why didn’t you use something!”

But why? One student says he does understand the trend: “Women are only fertile for four days a month. I can understand taking that very small risk.” Someone else says: “If you’ve been drinking, you might be looser and be more likely to make the decision not to do it.” Yet another student actually thinks it’s due to social pressure: “I can imagine that people are embarrassed to bring a condom or to ask their partner to put one on.”

Students recognise that image: “I see this happening all the time, that men in particular don’t really feel the need for condoms.” Another student agrees: “I did experience once that my partner and I each felt differently about it. Then I said: ‘if you don’t want to do it with a condom, we won’t do it at all’”.

It’s hard when both parties look at the use of contraception differently. “But the most important thing is to talk to your partner about what you both like.”