Those of you that know me well know that I have never wanted a to have a child nor do I want to at any point in the future.  This has caused tensions with members of my family who all throw out the now cliché phrases of, “You’ll change your mind” and “You’ll find your maternal instincts” and “Babies are the best thing that can happen to you.”  While I have come to expect these reactions from my grandparents, aunt and at times my mother, I would never have expected that these attitudes and statements would come from the mouths of gynecologists and their nurse practitioners.

The first time I brought up the idea of getting Essure sterilization done was my first ever trip to a gynecologist when I was 19 for ovarian cysts.  She promptly shut me down, would not answer my questions and told me that I would change my mind in the future.  I was in shock that she would not even discuss the option with me.  Was she a doctor or my mother?  Being that it was my first trip to a gynecologist I was too nervous to press the issue and walked away from the appointment with no information.

At each appointment there after I kept asking and she kept denying me.  She said she would give me hormonal birth control and that was it, which had proven itself not to be compatible with my body even though I had tried multiple kinds.

When having a conversation with a friend, this occurred: (He is marked out in black, I am marked out in light blue)

While the person I was talking with is a good friend he assumes something that is far too common — women don’t realize that they can’t get the procedure reversed.  If someone has taken the time to research permanent birth control options she is more than likely aware that they are. . . permanent.

Toygirl and I had a great little conversation about this when I showed her another conversation I had with a male friend in which he said that denying a woman the surgery does not imply that she cannot make her own informed choices about her reproductive health:

In conclusion to my rant, there are 50 doctors within a 20 mile radius of my apartment who perform the procedure.  I’m hoping one of them will respect my choice.

Feel free to share your experiences with people dis/respecting your reproductive choices.  I’d love to have a discussion going.