Oh god not female contraception!

I'm just going to come out and say it guys. This entire blog post is going to be about the pill. 

That terrifyingly tiny pill that has the power to regulate and control lady bits and by the reaction of many people one of the most terrifying things ever created since tampons. 

Melodrama aside, I was reading and article by the Huffington Post today basically stating that Ontario doctors should not be forced to prescribe the pill if they don't want. Now I'm not talking about just medical reasons, this is also because of personal ethics, religion, etc...

Now I have some major issues with this, the first being that Docs in Ontario are government funded through OHIP. While we don't have to pay for our medical visits government tax dollars are used to subsidize the cost of our care. This means that, in part, the tax money you pay also pays for Canadians healthcare. Breaking it down farther, that means that Canadians of all backgrounds and religions help pay for Canadian healthcare. So why then, when these people are publicly funded are they being allowed to instil religious beliefs on their patients. 

The main arguments to this are from people saying, "well if you don't like the care you're receiving be proactive and find a new doctor." That's not the point though, yes people change doctors because they don't like the care they're getting but why should a doctor collect money from the government to then treat his medical office like a church? I realize that this sounds insensitive because doctors are human beings with beliefs and religions that belong to them but there has to be a line in the sandbox in which they can stop providing care based on personal beliefs. To top that off finding a doctor isn't always as easy as just going to another medical office. Depending where you live the process can take upwards of a year before you're seen and in that time all of your medical needs are handled at walk-in clinics (with many limitations) or the hospitals emergency rooms (driving up healthcare costs). 

I truly believe that if a doctor will not prescribe a medication solely of personal ethics or religious reasons then that doctor needs to belong to the private practice sector. If you want your medical dictated by someone relying and following religious or personal ethics then you should be required to pay for that care outside the scope of government funding.

It's the same way that current separate schools (like the public Catholic school system - I'm just using this system because this is what I was in) while still Catholic cannot refuse students of other religions from enrolling. 

If something is in any way government or publicly funded then there should be absolutely no religious influence involved. 

I'm such a heavy proponent of this because for the most part female contraception is still such a taboo topic. Having gone through the Catholic school system it was completely ignored with a "just wait till you're married" statement. 

Thanks for the words of wisdom there,Coach

What's almost always completely ignored is that the big scary pill is NOT solely used as a form of contraception. It's never mentioned in high school sex-ed that this also exists for medical reasons which results in people hearing "THE PILL" and covering their ears in a LALALAICANTHEARYOU as a response. 

I mean what's worse than having your doctor, who is just as much an advocate for your health as you are, judge the fuck out of you for not wanting children at that moment while still not wanting to bleed Niagara Falls every 2-4 weeks while cramping. I found it terrifying to go and talk to my doctor because it was so pushed on us that you shouldn't be having sex therefore you should not be using birth control for such a long time. Going to that office to get the pill felt like was walking around with a giant "FLOOZY" sign strapped to my chest. In reality it's one of the most common, all around medications out there. Family planning is one of the things it's used for but for the most part it's for hormone regulation, PMS relief, acne for god sakes. 

I'm not knocking religion at all in this, you have the freedom to practice and believe in whatever the fuck you want. The moment that your religious beliefs have me lying on the floor with a hot water bottle requiring prescription strength painkillers or have attempted to lay claim to my lady bits we got a problem. 

Of female contraception

I’m mad. My friend Shannon can attest to this because every couple of weeks I whip out my soapbox and rant until my face turns blue or my fingers cramp. I figured it’s about time for me to give her a break from my bitching and just make a blog post about this.

First off, a warning. This post is going to talk about birth control and because of that the word “period” will be mentioned. If that word inherently offends you or makes to vomit uncontrollably please click the little red fuckity-bye button to get off this page. Also if you haven’t already noticed, there’s swearing…gobs of it.

Alright, yes. I’m mad. I’m pissed as fuck. The reason? Birth control, or rather the lack of birth control and the idiocy of drug coverage. First off, birth control for women, and no I’m not talking about condoms. Female birth control (oral, injection, intra-uterine) are all not free unless you have a drug plan, hell you want female condoms? Pray your bank account isn’t empty because that’s coming out of your pocket. Have an allergy or sensitivity to latex? Enjoy the chaffing and irritation because you are shit out of luck my friend! I find it so completely backwards that the person responsible for actually growing a human being has to go broke trying to prevent that situation while everyone thinks sticking a balloon on the end of the watering can solves everything.

Honestly, people wonder why pregnancy rates among young people are not going down by leaps and bounds. It’s not rocket science, when you make the most effective means of stopping pregnancy unavailable to anyone who doesn’t have a full-time permanent job with drug coverage, you are going to have unwanted pregnancies. When someone goes into their local health unit they’re immediately slammed with condoms, which seem to be handed out like bloody candy. No, I don’t want your latex fun bags, I want an affordable option for birth control that doesn’t involve the significant others baby-making anatomy, thank you very much.

I’m a recent University graduate. I have a mountain of student debt and because I’m a recent graduate I have a job that doesn’t allow me to spend money whenever I feel like it. I’m broke, basically. So taking into account a very tight budget, there is no room for the cost of birth control. When it was brought up to my doctor at a recent visit I was giving these as options: suck it up (basically) because you can’t afford it, find some way to come up with $300.00 up front for an IUD that may or may not work or go to the health unit for their cheaper birth control option. The cheaper birth control option being one that, having already tried it, doesn’t work at all – and they are almost always too busy pitching condoms at you really sit down and go over your options.

What I want to know is that if we have the money to bulk purchase latex condoms, which, if we’re being serious, are not all being used as they’re intended , why can’t we have proper female birth control options as well. We are not all successfully 30-somethings who have been working for years and have health plans – a lot of are just attempting to really start our lives.

Don’t be silly, wrap your willy? Let’s try, don’t be an asshole, offer female contraceptives as readily as male contraceptives.