Welcome to Gaia! ::

Yet I've met far too many people (not you, per se) who panic over the slightest restriction on abortion because they see that as the perfect solution to unwanted pregnancies. Yes, birth control, in any form, is cheaper than an abortion (and sterilization is arguably less invasive). But would unethical gynecologists rather tell a patient to use condoms, or have her keep coming back for abortions? It may not be common, but the testimonials are out there.

Point is, no matter how many women are, as some would see it, "liberated" to believe that abortion is always a-ok, some will just not want to go through with it themselves. So it's not a solution to their unwanted pregnancies. Birth control, in any form, is a solution to every woman's. (I'm counting education about natural family planning, etc.)

So why get mad and sign petitions and wave signs when "partial-birth" abortion is banned, when kids aren't educated about condoms, when birth control isn't free, and when doctors are scared to sterilize people?

Why insist on being the minority, when a large majority of Americans could agree with you, and you could accomplish the same goal: women not getting pregnant when they don't want to be?

There is a reason they don't just hand out birth control.

People have to see a doctor before taking it cause it can effect people in different ways.
Though I was told that it was rare, some women have gotten blood clots from it and some loose their libito (spelling?), some have gotten sick from taking it,ect....
Doctors have to an examination first before allowing someone to take and to see which one is better for that person to use.

There is a reason why partial birth abortion is banned (at that point in time, the fetus may be able to survive out of the womb. They preform a C-section in order to do all they can to save both the women and child, so partial birth abortion isn't necessary and techically most people see it has murder since the fetus is at the stage where it's about ready to be born).

I consider condoms more as protection but yes, I was mainly talking about the side effects of pills (i'm taking them for hormones so I know about some of the side effects).

And yes, teaching sex education (real education) is the best thing we can do to prevent unwanted pregnancies and dieases.

3nodding It's the same in the uk.

Our school nurse used to give free condoms to anyone who asked because if they asked, chances are they'd have had sex anyway and they might aswell do it safely. After a while she started handing them out by leaving them in little paper bags outside her office etc, so those who were too embarassed to ask might still hopefully pick some up and no just have sex without. Pregnancy rates at school went from low to pretty much none.

She also used to put people on the pill, the school decided that you had to have parental permission which really pissed her off as her office was in a separate building that was NHS property and the NHS usually have patient/doctor/nurse confidentiality and never tell the parents unless the young person chooses to. To the best of my knowledge she told them where to stick it and did not ask for a signed parental form for anyone over 16 which is our legal age of consent. I have known her also to give the depot injection to students who for medical reasons could not have the combined pill such as those with migraines.

The morning after pill if you get it from an NHS centre is free but you are asked a few questions about your age, where you live etc so they can get an idea of it's usage. You can buy it from a pharmacy no questions asked for about £25. If you go to the NHS place then usually there is a nice lady there who doesn't get all huffy and judge a person for having sex, and then they give you free condoms afterwards to make sure you will continue to be safe in the future. ^_^

I agree with Miyo on this one. I think whether it is selfish to put the lives of your family above an existing child is a matter of opinion, it is also a matter of opinion on whether that selfishness would be a bad thing. After all, the human race did not evolve and survive to the point it is at today without self protection and that of ones strongest offspring above all else.

If I had children, and I knew that having another would cause financial problems or care problems so that those children would suffer, obviously I would use birth control, I'd probably use condoms and the pill, but some people still get pregnant even with the most careful precautions. If that were to happen I would seriously consider abortion, and most likely go through with it. Throwing one child into the adoption system when I already had some just isn't an option. That kid could get put into a great home but the existing children would be traumatised, the adopted child would be hurt when it found out it never knew its siblings. I love my sister, I think I would rather have not existed than not been able to know her.

At the end of the day I would rather have two healthy well adjusted children than three deprived ones, there are enough mentally scarred people wandering around without adding to that number two which could have been saved.

People will do extreme things to save their children and without abortion in the early term where an unthinking unfeeling potential human being is removed people will go back to the other ways of getting rid of an unwanted child. Sure some of them may get lucky and end up in a basket on the doorstep of an orphanage, but in the past new born babies were left to die in alleys alone, thrown into rivers or just drowned.

When people are scared or trying to protect their families they could go to extremes to protect them, and many do. If thousands of groups of stem-cells get aborted I see that as far less of a tragedy than born, conscious, pain feeling children being killed, left to freeze with no food or never knowing why they couldn't live with their brothers and sisters .

Very few people like the idea of abortion, I think it's a terrible shame myself, I'd rather it didn't have to exist. It would be wonderful if no-one was ever in a situation where they had to consider it, but this is the real world and quite frankly I'd rather stay where we are now than go back to the post birth "abortion" that was chucking the weakest child into the ravine.

eek Pharmacists in the U.S. are required to counsel patients on every new prescription. Giving a woman a high dose of levonorgestrel without taking into consideration her medical history is incredibly irresponsible.

I'd ask a patient if they had an allergy to latex before handing them a condom, too. You never know who's lawsuit-happy...

Maybe for Plan B but they usally only counsel medication that requires a prescription (like regular birth control).

Every time I need medication, they won't let me take it or leave until they get the doctors ok and explain to me how I should take it (as La Veuve Zin said, it's to help avoid law suits and complications).

As for OTC, out here they don't seem to be as strict about it.