Mommyish Poll: How Do You Handle Postpartum Contraception?

After giving birth, the last thing I worried about was contraception. I pretty much assumed that my plumbing would be closed due to renovation for the foreseeable future. Obviously, I wasn’t planning ahead long term, since you can start having sex after six weeks, but you can’t take birth control as long as you’re nursing. If you nurse for the first year, that’s a whole lot of time when you need to consider your contraception. Or be ready for another beautiful bundle of joy.

Reuters is reporting that very few women are choosing to try IUDs, which provide five to ten years of contraception. Apparently 1 in 37,000 has the device implanted shortly after pregnancy. On the other hand, 1 in 13 new mothers choose tubal sterilization, a much more permanent and serious procedure. Doctors are questioning why so few women would try the device that doesn’t last forever and doesn’t cost nearly as much. Are hospitals pressuring new moms to have their tubes tied to get more money? Are women misinformed about IUDs and their side effects?

I think the answer is much more simple. If women decide that they never want children again, they are going to go for a permanent solution. If they want more kids, they don’t want to put themselves out of commission for a decade. IUDs last too long (5-10 years) for mothers who want more kids. But they if you’ve decided that you’re done having children, why would want to keep going back and getting the device inserted and taken out for the rest of your childbearing years.

Maybe I’m missing something, but I’m not surprised that IUDs aren’t the contraception of choice. What about you guys? How did you handle contraception after child birth? And feel free to explain your choices and how they worked out in the comments!

(Photo: Sarycheva Olesia/Shutterstock)

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(Photo: Babble)

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