happyhoix
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Post by happyhoix on Aug 1, 2012 11:55:26 GMT -5
Interesting article in Slate about a 40 % drop in teenage pregnancy since 1990.
After considering other factors the researchers think the drop was caused primarily by two things - 1) girls choosing to remain virgins longer, and 2) girls using BC pills rather than condoms for BC.
Apparently BC pills are much more reliable than condoms for teens, but not completely reliable since teens are more likely than adult women to forget and skip a day - 1 in 10 teens still get pregnant while on the pill.
The study suggested giving teens free IUD's rather than BC pills would cut the unwanted pregnancy rate by HALF, because the IUD doesn't require the teens to remember to do anything. Of course it does nothing against STD's.
The article asks "if there was a new treatment that would reduce the unwanted pregnancy rate in this country by half, what possible reason would anyone have to oppose it?"
I can answer that from down here in the Bible Belt. It would be because teens would then not suffer any consequences from pre-marital sex. Traditionally, girls have been threatened with shame and humiliation if they get pregnant, and that is supposed to keep them chaste. (Doesn't matter what the boys do, just the girls).
Personally I think IUD's are a fabulous idea, with, of course, a lot of parental discussions about being old enough, being safe, STD's, etc. Anything that reduces abortions is great. What about you?
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Aug 1, 2012 12:05:27 GMT -5
So does the depo shot. My GAL clients foster mom would only take in girls who had it done. She said she had enough to do to turn them around and get them set on the right path and didn't want a pregnancy getting into the equation.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 1, 2012 12:06:43 GMT -5
I think a huge, huge problem that we have right now is that the only two "consequences" we can imagine from having sex is pregnancy and STDs. But, I believe that sex has many consequences, and we don't talk about them because (a) they aren't universal and (b) they are much less concrete than pregnancy. I hope to be able to discuss birth control and STD prevention with my kids (both of them) and get them past that, and then talk about all the other things they will have to deal with. There is so much more to sex than pregnancy.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Aug 1, 2012 12:07:36 GMT -5
Seriously, where is there any shame in premarital sex anywhere? When I was in high school, yes, but even then BOTH sexes were looked down on. Nice girls weren't allowed to date the guy who got some girl pregnant and, of course, the girl was DOOMED! Doomed, I tell ya!
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 1, 2012 12:08:19 GMT -5
Depo is up there on my list of things I would suggest to my daughter. My doctor told me it has a higher rate of depression and suicide than the pill. I don't know if anyone can confirm that. That doctor told me several things that I have since found out are untrue. So, yeah, quality doctor!
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 1, 2012 12:09:39 GMT -5
Shotgun weddings have been around for a long, long time. Premarital sex is nothing new. We are just trying to talk about it, instead of doing it anyway, but being afraid to talk to anyone about it, so you don't have good information.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Aug 1, 2012 12:09:53 GMT -5
Geez, she had 4 girls and they all seemed as normal as any teenage girl, which isn't saying much...sigh.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 1, 2012 12:12:00 GMT -5
I'm sure it isn't a 100% depression / suicide rate. I'm pretty sure 4 isn't a great sample size. But thanks for the talk.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Aug 1, 2012 12:14:16 GMT -5
If anyone has a right to be depressed, it'd be those girls. Poor things. At least they were in a stable home environment. Finally.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 1, 2012 12:19:34 GMT -5
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Sam_2.0
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Post by Sam_2.0 on Aug 1, 2012 12:25:30 GMT -5
There are risks with the IUD and the depo shot too. Those alone would make me not consider those as viable options for my daughter. Even the bcp makes me nervous - adding in additional hormones while they are so young really concerns me.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 1, 2012 12:44:58 GMT -5
Although, I will say that I went on the pill when I was 18, and it improved my life vastly. My periods were lighter, mood swings went way, way down, and cramps went from 3 days of constant heavy pain to 1 hour of back ache. I know there is a big difference between a 15 or 16 year old and an 18 year old - but I would definitely explore it. Now that my husband has had a vasectomy, I really miss the pill. I'm back to the heavy flow, pain and one day per month of wanting to set the building on fire.
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Sam_2.0
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Post by Sam_2.0 on Aug 1, 2012 12:55:02 GMT -5
I started on it when I was 14 due to heavy periods. I was on it for 12 years, and I experienced a LOT of the side effects you see in those class-action commercials, including having my gall bladder removed at 24. I just don't know that the long-term side effects are well known, and I am hesitant to agree to something that might end up bad for DD. Once she turns 18 she can do what she wants.
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Tiny
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Post by Tiny on Aug 1, 2012 12:59:07 GMT -5
NOT to spin this thread onto another topic - so this is just a rhetorical question: Why are you assumimg it's teenage girls getting all the abortions? I think the last time I looked at statistics for abortions the majority of women who had gotten an abortion were over the age of 25. I'm all for BC for boys and girls. Why does 'shame' need to be involved with sex - premarital or marital? Don't get me started cause I'm eventually gonna wind up at the conclusion that ALL boys and men should be leash and muzzled and kept in cages when they are unattended - cause if I as woman have to keep them chaste AND I'm responsible for any pregnancy that occurs -- well then I think it's only fair that I as a woman should have 100% complete control and authority over boys and men - and the best way I can see to do that is leashes, whips, chains and cages.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Aug 1, 2012 12:59:36 GMT -5
I would be hesitant to get my daughter an IUD as a teen. There are some pretty big risks that come with an IUD as opposed to the pill or the shot. I wouldn't choose for a teenager a method of BC that could possibly prevent her from ever having kids .
I would not be opposed to birth control pills coupled with using a condom. Birth control pills can be stopped at any time and dosages adjusted as needed.
Now I am all for handing out free IUDs to grown women who have already had kids. PP did a program doing just that but I haven't seen it since, I have no idea how successful it was or if a lack of funding is why they haven't attempted it again.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 1, 2012 13:09:00 GMT -5
I don't see where anyone said that. The fact that I don't want my daughter to get pregnant as a teenager and how she and I will handle that has no impact on the statistical analysis that her unwanted pregnancy could come when she is 27 years old.
Discussing pregnancy prevention in teenagers is a viable subject and it doesn't need to be halted because there are also people a decade older who have unwanted pregnancies. If you would like to discuss that crowd, we can start another thread.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2012 13:09:35 GMT -5
I read somewhere that while teen pregnancies are going down, unplanned pregnancies for people in their early 20's are going up. Something like 30% of pregnancies are unplanned. In one of my girl magazines I read that 50% of women under 30 have sex without protection sometimes.
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ontrack
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Post by ontrack on Aug 1, 2012 13:10:35 GMT -5
I believe they have redesigned IUDs so there is no risk of permanent sterility anymore.
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Aug 1, 2012 13:11:12 GMT -5
I am on the depo shot, and I LOVE it. I tried switching to the patches for a while,and OMG hormone issues. I cried at EVERYTHING. Want to make a change to my spreadsheet? Tears. It was awful. BUT, I probably wouldn't recommend the depo shot for teenagers because of the way it works. My high school BFF had the birth control that gets implanted in your arm. 5 years of BC, on doctor visit. My childhood BFF went on the pill very early because of the way her period interacted with her kidney disease. Before the pill, she was on bed rest 3-5 days every month. I would certainly consider an IUD or other type of long term BC for my teenage daughter (if I ever have one). I'm not on the pill because I can't remember to take it every day.
That said, I do have some concerns the side effects of hormones in young girls, and I also think doctors need to educate women more about the possible side effects of BC. I know one woman, religious, so no sex before marriage, no BC before marriage, got married, went on BC. It had such a drastic effect on her mood and overall emotional health that it ended up being a leading cause of her divorce a few years later. She went off hormonal BC after the divorce and slowly started feeling and acting like her old self again. Even the exH (they were still on pretty good terms) noticed the change. Now, that's an absolute extreme example, but she had no idea that BC could have that much of an effect on her, so she never talked about the changes with her MD. Everyone just assumed it was adjusting to married life, stress, etc. I didn't even realize that the patch BC was at least partially responsible for my crazy moods until I went back on depo. I made the BC change around the same time some other really stressful things happened in my life, so I blamed stress. When I switched back to depo, the stress was still there, but the random crying jags disappeared. It means that in a couple years when I go off depo for a year again, I need to figure something else out. (I go off depo for about a year once every ~5 years because depo has a side effect of making you more prone to osteoperosis, which was a contributing factor in both of my grandmothers' deaths. Going off of it for about a year allows me to repair the "damage" done.)
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ontrack
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Post by ontrack on Aug 1, 2012 13:11:50 GMT -5
The unplanned pregnancy statistics are a bit misleading, because it appears at least a third of those are not NOT trying to have a baby, they're just not actively trying to (tracking ovulation, etc).
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on Aug 1, 2012 13:12:18 GMT -5
Why does 'shame' need to be involved with sex - premarital or marital? I would be really hesitant to get my daughter an IUD. I used the depo shot and would recommend that/something similar.
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NomoreDramaQ1015
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Post by NomoreDramaQ1015 on Aug 1, 2012 13:13:51 GMT -5
I believe they have redesigned IUDs so there is no risk of permanent sterility anymore.
Kinda. I am on the Mirena right now and even with being re-designed there is still the chance of etopic pregnany, the IUD attaching itself to my uterine wall and a couple other unpleasant things that can result in my being unable to have kids again.
Also if it gets knocked loose and a sperm manages to swim by and fertlize an egg there is very serious risk of miscarriage.
That's why they made me take apregnancy test before they inserted it.
I chose it for myself after careful considering and discussion with my OB. It's not something I would choose for my daughter.
If she wants to get one herself later that's her decision, but as a teenager an IUD would not be my first choice.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 1, 2012 13:15:18 GMT -5
What about it, except the osteoperosis, makes it inappropriate for teenagers?
(I was really hoping that there would be a clear winner by the time my daughter was a teenager - but she seems to be growing up faster than medicine is advancing in this area.)
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shanendoah
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Post by shanendoah on Aug 1, 2012 13:16:57 GMT -5
The article referenced is specifically about unplanned pregnancy in teenagers. So I don't think anyone was assuming that the majority of abortions are gotten by teenagers, just that teenagers were the starting reference point.
Unplanned pregnancies in older women are up, but some of that is reporting bias. A lot of people currently assume that unless you are actively trying to get pregnant, you should be on BC. I know numerous women who are in stable relationships who don't use BC. They are not actively trying for another child, but would happily welcome one if it came along. Those pregnancies are labeled as unplanned (because they are) but are also not what most of us think of when the media talks about unplanned pregnancies.
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on Aug 1, 2012 13:17:59 GMT -5
I worry more about my son at this point (which is comical since he's a toddler and dd is still in utero).
I will be that mother buying condoms and spermicide and leaving them in his room all the time. (Along with many long talks about being stuck with someone for life if you end up having a kid together).
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Post by BeenThere...DoneThat... on Aug 1, 2012 13:18:43 GMT -5
...was the article talking about teenager pregnancy rates dropping? or incidents of teenage pregnancy? ...I ask, because I'm thinking we have fewer teenaged girls since 1990...
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Aug 1, 2012 13:21:08 GMT -5
I believe they have redesigned IUDs so there is no risk of permanent sterility anymore. I had my IUD removed when we started trying for #2 in December. I would not want a teenager to have any IUD. There are still issues with it. I had mine removed earlier than planned because I started having issues. The first year was great and then it started causing me problems. Not only that, but they are much more difficult to insert in a woman who has not had children. I would not want a teen to go through that. Every form of birth control has its risk and benefits. I would want my teen to use a condom every single time and to have the female on another form of BC (pill, implanon, Depo, even a diaphram).
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Aug 1, 2012 13:21:49 GMT -5
I'm worried about my son too. My daughter is thoughtful, and not boy crazy. She has some common sense - so I don't see her doing anything without thinking it through. My son, however, could make the ultimate frat boy in a few years. He is spontaneous and passionate. He also is very charming and just sweet enough. I'm afraid he will know what to say to girls to get what he wants, and not be too concerned that he will have to ignore their calls tomorrow. So, yes, he and I will have many, many talks.
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Sam_2.0
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Post by Sam_2.0 on Aug 1, 2012 13:22:32 GMT -5
The depo shot can have some serious consequences for future fertility. My sister had to be on it for 6 years starting when she was 11 (was undergoing cancer treatments, can't have periods when your platlet counts are down, at least that was the Dr's reasoning). They did tell her it came with an increased risk to her future fertility, and the only reason my parents agreed to it is because she needed to continue with her cancer treatments (obviously the more pressing issue at the time).
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Tiny
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Post by Tiny on Aug 1, 2012 13:26:56 GMT -5
I don't see where anyone said that. The fact that I don't want my daughter to get pregnant as a teenager and how she and I will handle that has no impact on the statistical analysis that her unwanted pregnancy could come when she is 27 years old. Discussing pregnancy prevention in teenagers is a viable subject and it doesn't need to be halted because there are also people a decade older who have unwanted pregnancies. If you would like to discuss that crowd, we can start another thread. Sorry, there's abit at the end of the OP that I was responding to: Personally I think IUD's are a fabulous idea, with, of course, a lot of parental discussions about being old enough, being safe, STD's, etc. Anything that reduces abortions is great. What about you? Since this was in relation to BC for teens, it seemed to me the OP was impling that the teens who do become pregnant choose abortions versus having the baby. And yes, if fewer teens have unwanted pregnancies then fewer of them will have to make the decision to have or not have an abortion. Since I believe teens choose to have a baby versus getting an abortion... better BC for teens would result in fewer teens with babies - not necessarily fewer abortions. Guess I'm splitting hairs... ADDED: and no I don't really want to get into the whole abortion debate. I should have given myself a time out before posting as the wording of the OP's statement pushed one of my buttons (unintentionally).
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