Rethinking contraception as lifestyles change

USA Today (Society for the Advancement of Education), Oct, 1996

Despite the fact that today's mother has had seven jobs, moved eight times, and had an average of two children by the time she's 35, there is a 50-50 chance that she never has changed her birth control method or even thought about doing so. Nevertheless, "contraceptive needs change as women's life situations change," indicates Anita Nelson of the UCLA Harbor Medical Center, Torrance, Calif. "What was right for a woman when she was 21 and single may not be her best choice when she's 31, married, and has two children. There are many options available to women and it's important that they regularly take a new look."

A survey of 1,002 women by the Wirthlin Group for Ortho Pharmaceutical Corp. says that today's women want three children ideally spaced 2.6 years apart, but their contraceptive choices indicate that they may not be aware of the best birth control methods to reach those goals. Other key findings of the Family Planning and Contraception Survey include: * Mothers most frequently cite the desire to reduce sibling rivalry and allow offspring the time they need to develop self-esteem as the determinants of the ideal number of years between children. Financial concerns are prominently mentioned as well. * Seventy-three percent of women surveyed said "reversibility" was important in a contraceptive, yet national statistics show that surgical sterilization is the most frequently used method among those who have completed their families. * Ninety-five percent said convenience was important, but two-thirds use contraceptive methods that require daily attention.

"There are many contraceptive options available to women today, but one of the most appropriate for mothers spacing their children - the copper - T intrauterine device - is frequently overlooked," Nelson notes. "It has an excellent safety profile and its effective, the two features women surveyed say are most important. But it also delivers the reversibility and convenience they say are important when they're planning their families." The copper-T IUD can be used continuously for up to 10 years, requires no daily attention, and is the least expensive contraceptive option after two years of use. It is appropriate for women who are in mutually monogamous relationships and who have had at least one child and no history of pelvic inflammatory disease.

Surgigal sterilization, the most commonly used method of birth control by American women, has a finality to it that women might not want. Because they may not know of other longer-term, reversible options like the copper-T IUD, they may not be considering their options fully. The IUD can not only help them space their children, but it can take them from the end of their child-bearing years to menopause."

"Considering that half of all marriages end in divorce and that about 46% of all marriages are re-marriages with many couples beginning second families, it is not surprising that 47% of the survey respondents were interested in a long-term, reversible alternative to surgical sterilization," points out Ruth Westheimer, a psychosexual therapist known to millions as "Dr. Ruth" through her syndicated newspaper column and radio talk show.