Have you ever missed class because of period cramps? You’re not alone. “The number one cause of missing school and work under the age of 25 happens to be painful or crazy heavy periods.” (Yen).
Her Campus U-M recently had the chance to interview Dr. Yen, a professor at Stanford University, on her birth control company—Pandia. Pandia is the only women-owned and doctor-led company that provides birth control right to your door and telehealth visits options.
Dr. Yen found the start of this company through her love of science. She said, “I like science, I like people, and then [I] wanted to make people’s lives better.” But, Dr. Yen was also a teenager with her own active sex life, “being a pre-med, I couldn’t get pregnant or shouldn’t get pregnant, you know, in college, or residency or fellowship.” Dr. Yen understood through her experience the importance of having the “ability to prevent unplanned pregnancy.”
Dr. Yen realized another need for a birth-control company with a friend of hers: automatic refills. Women are incredibly busy: between school, kids, and work, many women don’t simply have time to go to the pharmacy each month. With Pandia, that problem is erased. Your birth control comes to your door each month, giving you the time to focus on your daily life with no more trips to the pharmacy. Plus, Pandia’s access to Telehealth doctors means that for as little as $20 bucks a year, women can have Pandia’s doctors prescribe birth control directly, meaning an even greater convenience to obtain birth control.
No more going to the pharmacy, spending “10 weeks [of your life] going pharmacy waiting for the joy of coming back home.” No more going to the OBGYN. No more being distracted in school or exams due to bleeding, potentially sacrificing a high mark. While this is all amazing, birth control offers another amazing benefit: “a 50% less chance of getting ovarian cancer.”
Pandia’s birth-control service is in the interest of women by having lower prices than most alternatives. If they don’t have insurance, Pandia bills just $15 a month. That’s less than $.50 a day for birth control. And, if you have a prescription, just give it to Pandia and find a birth control box at your door—with a freebie! Past items have included condoms, stickers, and even vibrators.
Dr. Yen’s #PeriodsOptional is an amazing opportunity for students. Want to hear more? Come to Dr. Yen’s soon-to-be talk in February (more information coming soon). So, here’s to raining birth control!
Here is Pandia’s website, where you can find more information about Dr. Yen and birth control.