IF (a big if) the male contraceptive implant Adam ends up working comfortably, I think it could be a good thing (article attached)

[Carla786]

In a hypothetical situation where Adam works well & without any bad side effects (which is by no means guaranteed right now), I think it could be really positive.
I definitely don't think women having ONS or other kinds of casual sex should rely on a man saying 'I've got an Adam implant, don't worry about condoms ', (which obviously should be worn for STD protection anyway) but I do think it could work well for women in relationships. Obviously the side effects of the pill that we've heard about increasingly recently don't affect everyone, but ideally I think it's best for women to be able to regulate fertility without pills which disrupt hormones
. IUDs are a good solution for women but can also have side effects. Condoms too but risk of breaking and of course affects sensation. The 'reactionary feminist' (mainly Mary Harrington) line has been to promote cycle tracking, and it's true that that CAN work well - provided it's done perfectly.

Obviously Adam might not be fully effective (likely not) and would probably be used by lots of couples along with something else.

Previous male contraceptive trials I've heard about were for pills, I think an implant is much better given it only takes one mistake for the man to potentially get his partner pregnant, and clearly he wouldn't bear the physical consequences.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2025/apr/24/non-hormonal-male-contraceptive-implant-lasts-two-years-trials

I must admit I'm chuckling a bit at the thought of how manosphere types might react to a successful Adam implant. I think a lot would think it was a victory against 'devious, sperm-stealing women' (since baby trapping is a major thing they moan about). Others would probably say that sperm shouldn't be suppressed for masculinity reasons.

I think the availability of the implant would allow men to have more control over their fertility (after all, even if a man uses condoms they can fail) and that should go hand-in-hand imo with CMS reform. The more agency men have to decide whether they become a father, the more onus there should be for them to provide for the resulting kids.

Given how many women fail to take precautions I can't imagine that men would be any better at doing so. There's been a way for men to take responsibility for their little soldiers for centuries, not a reliable way I admit, but quite a lot of men won't use condoms, it would take a complete change of mindset for this to have any meaningful impact.

Surely men in committed relationships might hopefully be a bit more likely to cooperate? Though of course lots of horrible men are in committed relationships...

But viewing it cynically even, men in LTRs are more likely to have to take some kind of paternal responsibility, the woman will hopefully have a bit more leverage. Whereas in a ONS, the man will be prioritising his sexual pleasure, there are few other big factors, and depending on how much information the woman has about him, it may be very hard for her to track him to down later if she realises she's pregnant.

There's also the fact that Adam would not alter the sex act in the way condoms do. Obviously people can have good sex with condoms but unwise men who avoid condoms for that reason wouldn't have that reason to avoid Adam.

Don't get me wrong this is a scientific advancement that is to be applauded if it does what it says on the tin, it will be good to have such an option. I could see in an ideal future how this will help, I don't know the science but maybe in the future the strength of the pill for women could be reduced if the men are also taking a pill of their own, which is good for women because the pill does have side effects.
But that's in an ideal world, and in the real world expecting men to take responsibility for their reproduction is a big, insane ask. Like I said it would take a major change in attitude from the men for this to be a preferred option for them, the men in LTR aren't the problem.

I agree...Adam though is a non hormonal implant,, not a pill.

I saw, I was just using the colloquial term, I think most women now-a-days are using the Depo rather than taking actual pills, contraception for both sexes is a step forward, it'll just require both sexes to take them.

Handy for men who will have one more reason women can't say 'no' to sex with them. Handy for STDs with none of those nasty barriers limiting transmission.

So yes, good news for men and for diseases.

It’s a great idea. I think (like pp said) it needs to go hand in hand with a reform on child maintenance. I’ve never understood why child maintenance can’t be linked to NI numbers and a percentage of all income goes to the child / person looking after the child.

Having a child would then become the choice of both people and not the responsibility of the female. No ‘baby trapping’ , no ‘accidents’. The only issue might be a rise in STDs.

That, exactly. There should also be emphasis on need for condom use.

It's fair to note that Gen Z overall aren't having as much casual sex, though Gen Alpha might (or might not) be different.

I can see what you mean, but that seems a bit pessimistic. It could be very positive for women in trustworthy LTRs who don't want to keep using barriers or hormonal methods. Why shouldn't men bear part of the burden for a change?

As to men pressurising women to say yes to sex - why do women acquiesce to sex they don't want? Well, a big reason in relationships is feeling they need to keep the peace, men's needs come first. This must change. Otoh in LTRs, the man could use condoms or other contraceptive methods to pressurise.

In ONS situations: women shouldn't have sex with men who push them when they don't want it. But obviously it's unfair for men, the ones in the wrong, not to change. That might be a while coming....

In LTRs, men can get vasectomies.

That's true. They can't do that if they do want to TTC but later on, though.

But often they don’t 🤷‍♀️

You regularly see women on here saying that they’re struggling with the side effects of contraception, but their DP/DH “doesn’t like” condoms and is too scared to have a vasectomy. This could work well as a halfway house in those situations.

Also, when men don’t want a 2nd/3rd/4th child with their partner, but the woman would be happy to, it would then be up to him to ensure contraception was in place (because again, men in these situations often still don’t want to use condoms and blame the woman for getting pregnant 🙄).

I think that shift in responsibility is a positive one (although I would personally still use condoms with any new sexual partner).

Too scared to have a vasectomy? The wimps! The worst part of the procedure is the alcohol cleansing which feels very cold especially if the nurse gives no warning. Then there is some swelling and bruising for a week or so until it heals. No need even for the rest of the day off work if in an office job. Waddling is slightly embarrassing but that's as much as anyone else is likely to notice.

I know that, you know that and any woman who has given birth knows it’s a very simple procedure by comparison, but some men get precious about their dicks 🤷‍♀️

If dicks (literal ones, not metaphorical ones) were involved in vasectomies there would be good reason to be scared!

This 'Adam' involves being injected in the balls (or very close by) right?
Same issue as vasectomies then.

It's not an injection, it's an implant. Surgery is of course not something to be taken lightly but it sounds like the trials went well. We shall see.

As others have said, it has potential for women in LTR, but also horrendous potential for controlling men in those relationships.
The only contraception a woman can totally trust is the contraception she controls or can see.

There's about a 2% rate of chronic testicular pain, which can be debilitating in some cases. It's fairly rare, but definitely a real risk.