I wish I never took The Pill

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Two months before my wedding date in January 2002, I started taking The Pill.

I don't remember feeling particularly conflicted about it. Most everyone I knew was on it. The OB/GYN at the college health clinic handed me a script without blinking; she probably wrote dozens a day.

The tiny discs of pastel pills promised confidence - 99% "effectiveness." I took it for four years (said with a whisper).

Looking back, I wish that I...hadn't.

I wish I never took The Pill 1
In Mazatlan on our honeymoon

I didn't have any scary side effects (not even the weight gain that some friends warned me about). Nor did I have trouble getting pregnant afterward (I got pregnant within a month of stopping). BUT - something inside of me just isn't okay with messing with the chemistry of my body like that.

[I also don't think the Pill is as safe as people make it out to be].

I haven't been on any hormonal birth control since the birth of my first daughter. I don't ever want to be on it again. We plan to look into Natural Family Planning for in between babies. For now, we use artificial contraception.

But what about when we're "done"? You know - done, DONE. (Will we ever be "done"? How will we know? Will we want to make it final?) I used to think, "Sure. Tim will go in get the surgery. The end." Right? It's so...effective.

But we're rethinking that. How does one reconcile the beauty of modern medicine with trust in God? Don't get me wrong - I'm not the kind of person who doesn't go to the doctor. I think it's awesome that people can get vaccines and heart transplants and all of that. I'm grateful that women have options now for giving grace to their bodies (I can't even imagine being pregnant every year for the entirety of my childbearing years).

But I also wonder if birth control has taken something away from us. Hope? Trust? Sacrifice? The beauty of bigger families and saying "yes" to...life.

This post isn't mean to be an answer. It's meant to be a question and a discussion starter. Because these issues weigh heavily on my mind (and in my prayers).

What kind of birth control do you use and why?

©2024 Stephanie Sheaffer - All Rights Reserved
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