I'll be honest- i'm scared of the pill. I don't want to go on it, ever. From what I've seen with my friends, it makes you fat, makes you all pimply, messes up your periods and on top of that increases risk for blood clots... also i just don't like the idea of taking hormones when I'm only 18. The only benefits I see in taking it are getting rid of my excruciating cramps and well, not getting pregnant is good too :) lol.

Anyway.. what other types of effective birth control are there that don't involve the pill? I've heard of an IUD but I've also heard that it can scare the uterus so i can't have children later... is that true?

How about fertility awareness? Taking Charge of Your Fertility is an excellent book.

Honestly the pill is one of the best ways to go drug wise for birth control. I have been on the patch, the shot, and now the pill and its the best. The worst was the shot! I have been on birth control since i was 16 to stop my massive bleeding and it works well and the cramps go away. There wont be too much weight gain unless you let yourself. Me on the other hand was on the depo shot way too long and yea...well its bad for you if you dont wanna gain weight. But I don't really think there is anything else that will help much with cramps unless you have some type of hormone and low dose hormone pills would help.

If you're 18, places may be hesitant to give you an IUD, but there ARE places that will (i.e., planned parenthoods in urban areas). I have a paragard and I like it. Im 25 and have no kids, and in NY, and they were more than willing to give me one. I wanted to go the no-hormone route too. plus, its good for 12 years, and I dont plan on having kids until those 12 years are up (i'll be 36 when its time for it to come out).
But most doctors are hesitant to give it to someone who hasnt had kids, but the best thing you can do is get as much info about it as you can. They dont cause scarring unless you develop pelvic inflammatory disease, which is mainly caused from an STD, so they want to make sure you're in a monogamous relationship. And theres always the chance you'll expell an IUD and need another one put in (and they can be expensive). But in general, IUDs have a bad rap from the ones they used in the 70s and 80s, which had serious design flaws. the ones today are so much safer.

but there are lots of other way to avoid hormones. You can be fitted for a diaphram, and use spermicide with it, and have a partner use a condom.. you can use the today sponge, which are available again (but should be used with condoms since they are only like 92% effective on their own).

I also think fertility awareness method (fam) is a good idea, but theres a lot to it, and I dont know a whole lot about it.

before I got my paragard I used condoms + spermicide for 4 years, and never got pregnant.

I had an IUD inserted when I was 23 and my next GYN was shocked that my previous doctor allowed it. It is recommended for women who have already had one child, but even beyond that, an IUD astronomically increases your chances of infection since it sits in the uterus and has a string hanging down which can draw bacteria inside (My GYN described it as a "wick" -- if you light one end, it will follow the string). Even though I was in a monogamous relationship, it's really not recommended for young women, unless they are married (so your chances of exposure to STDs are virtually non-existent). I had a whole lot of other side effects with the IUD, like 10 day periods and only two weeks between them. Anyway, I also did not want to be on BC because of blood pressure issues. I'm on nuvaring now, which has a significantly lower dose of hormones and, therefore, fewer side effects. You just slide it up there, leave it for three weeks, and take it out for a week. It has made my periods lighter and my breasts and little bigger, but other than that, it hasn't really effected me.

I recommend this option if you're ambivalent about the pill. Hope this helps!