Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Infertility vs. Birth Control

I know I can't be only person to ever think of this. So I think in the next few days I will do a little research and see if there are any statistics. After experiencing three excruciating years of infertility and hearing other women's painful stories I have begun to wonder if there have ever been studies done that show a rise in infertility coinciding with the rise in the use of birth control. As a reasonable responsible person I see the necessity of birth control. It gives women freedom that previous to the 1960's they never had. I like to think it also helps keep the number of abortions performed down further than the atrocious numbers already show. However, I also wonder if the creation of the pill has ever been considered as causing harm unknowingly to women who plan to have children eventually but aren't ready yet. By taking the pill, doctors will tell you, (if you ask because it seems to me doctors aren't very forthcoming with information anymore assuming that if you want to know you will ask or read the minuscule writing that comes on the little paper in the little tiny box), that after stopping the pill it could take up to a year to conceive. In fact, doctors won't consider you as having any fertility issues until you have tried getting pregnant for at least a year. Why have we accepted this fact as being acceptable? Men don't take Viagra and wait a year for results. So why do women who are trying to be responsible have to wait a year to 'see if there are issues other than having been on a contraceptive'? Now some women have no trouble at all. But it seems anymore that if I were to go into a room of women I'll bet that one in five AT LEAST would have a story to tell about the difficulty getting pregnant or the inability to get pregnant at all. And while I would never feel comfortable asking, I have always wanted to ask, did you take birth control? And if so, for how long? Because it is my opinion that if birth control is affected a women's fertility (other than temporarily) then it is not being advertised openly. I also see that young girls, the poor, the uneducated, and all other subset of women that would be less likely to be on birth control (or use it properly) seem to not have any issues having child after child. I'm not even saying this to be judgemental socially but I wonder if there is a science behind it. This is an issue that I have thought about in great detail. I think I will revisit it in a few weeks after actually doing a little research to see if it has any substance. Until then, Mommies out there enjoy your little ones and say a little prayer for those who want a child more than anything and may never have their deepest wish.

No comments:

Post a Comment