I remember the first pregnancy test I ever took. I read the instructions four times (like it’s difficult to pee on a stick) and made myself count to 100 before looking at the results. And there it was - that beautiful plus sign that said I was pregnant. My husband and I had been trying [...]
As a young girl, I remember standing in the grocery store line looking at magazine covers with bodies plastered on the front, hoping I could look like that one day and as I got older, that comparison became more prevalent through the media I digested. There’s no doubt our culture is body centric, and while [...]
It’s been eight months since the COVID-19 pandemic began and there’s still not a clear rule book on what to do, especially when it comes to sexual and romantic partnerships. Just like with the millions of other things in our lives we’ve had to change this past year, the pandemic has made us look at [...]
In 2020, you helped Bridgercare… Provide 8,201 visits. 4,921 patient visits received a discount on the sliding fee scale, which provided $310,073 worth of medical services at no cost to the patient Insert 539 IUDs and Nexplanons (which are >99% effective birth control methods) Pivot to offering care via telehealth throughout the stay at home [...]
You’ve probably have heard of Pap smears, and that it’s important to get them on the reg. But lots of us don’t know why this test is so necessary! Although it seems a little mysterious and definitely a bit daunting, Pap smears should be on the radar for anyone who has a cervix. Knowing the [...]
Full transparency - this is a straight up fundraising blog post for our Peer Education/Sexual Health Education program, BUT BEFORE YOU LEAVE THIS PAGE, please know it was written by one of our Peer Educators Lily. Lily is truly an incredible young person and we really hope you will take a minute to listen to [...]
Welcome to Part 2 of Gender Identity 101: Kids Want Pizza Rolls, Not Gender Roles! Every time I take my three year old to pretty much any store, we have to have the same conversation about how silly it is that there are separate aisles for “boy toys” and “girl toys.” Our world pressures kids [...]
I’ve always cared about righting what I see as injustices. But once my daughter, Lucy, was born, it became deeply personal. In the 3 ½ years since she was born, every time I hear of a child being harmed, neglected, bullied or mistreated, I think, “What if that was Lucy? She deserves better.” All children [...]
To say my daughter was planned would be an understatement. When we were still dating, I told my now-husband that my greatest dream was to be a parent and if my nieces and nephews didn’t like him when they met him, it would be a signal that he wasn’t the one for me. Thankfully for [...]
The holidays can be stressful. From unpredictable weather to the art of gift giving, coordinating school events to plotting out travel plans – managing the festivities can turn into quite the balancing act! Coupled with a child going through puberty, some frustrations may come out during the “most wonderful time of the year.” The following [...]
The route’s planned, the gear’s packed, and the great outdoors are calling. But… what if you or your kid gets their period on the trail? Everybody’s (okay, nobody’s) favorite monthly visitor can be anxiety-producing in many occasions, but if you’re far from modern plumbing, periods pose additional challenges. There are lots of options for navigating [...]
What is HPV? A not-so-fun fact: Virtually every person who is sexually active will get Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) at some point in their life if they do not receive the vaccine. HPV is definitively THE most common sexually transmitted infection in the United States, with 79 million people currently infected. Every year, about 14 [...]
Despite not having any kids (thanks to the wonderful information about contraception I received as a Peer Educator with Bridgercare!), I am familiar with how intimidating “The Talk” can feel for everyone involved. However, the benefits of establishing an open line of communication from an early age are so compelling that I would encourage parents [...]
Starting with… what the heck is a LARC? Long-Acting Reversible Contraceptives (whew, it’s a mouthful) are birth control methods that last for years, are super effective, and require no action whatsoever aside from insertion and removal. It’s basically a long-term relationship with your birth control (that you can break up with whenever you please, because [...]
As everyone knows, Bridgercare stands with Planned Parenthood! Bridgercare and Planned Parenthood work closely together and fully support one other, so we get a lot of questions as to who does what, where, and why. As family planning and reproductive healthcare are highlighted in the national spotlight, we figured we’d dig in into what makes [...]
