Waiting ’til the morning after
WHILE the emergency contraceptive pill – or the morning-after pill, as it is more commonly called – should be used only in cases of emergency, a number of women have admitted to using it as an alternative to regular contraceptive methods. There are no statistics available in Jamaica to tell the rate at which this is being done, but local gynaecologist Dr Michael Abrahams believes that the practice is becoming worryingly popular.
“The pill is supposed to be used only for emergencies, like if the condom slips off or somebody has been sexually assaulted, but people have been deliberately having unprotected sex and just taking it after,” he told All Woman.
He said it is a practice which he highly discourages.
“You shouldn’t just take it because you know you can take it on a regular basis. If you want contraception, the best thing is to go on something long- term like the (contraceptive) Pill,” he said.
Emergency contraceptive pills are hormone pills meant to be used for the prevention of pregnancy after sex, hence the name “the morning after”. In order to be effective, they have to be taken up to 72 hours after sexual intercourse.
The pill – sold locally as Postinor 2 – prevents the implantation of an egg in the uterus or may prevent the sperm from fertilising the egg. While the hormone found in this pill is the same as that in birth control pills, the content is much higher.
Most of these pills are sold over the counter, which makes it accessible for women who chose to bypass other birth control methods.
“It’s not that I plan to use the pill, it just happens,” Lisa B shared with All Woman. “My situation is unique, in that I’ve tried most of the birth control methods and nothing works for me. The Pill makes me nauseous, the patch makes me spot, the injection makes me bleed and honestly, sometimes we just forget to use a condom. It got so bad at one point that the pharmacist practically chased me away one time, because I’d been there so many times for the [morning after] pill and he got upset because he had warned me before about misusing it.”
Added Annie F, “I’m in no position now where pregnancy is an option, so when there’s an ‘accident’ – which happens more often than it should – I head for the pharmacy, because I don’t want another little mistake in my life nine months later!”
Said Dr Abrahams: “Some women just can’t commit to anything, or they just can’t bother take anything. At other times a situation comes when they are about to have sex and there is no condom and they just figure that they can use the pill.”
But counsellor at the National Family Planning Board Marge Roper lists another reason why some women may misuse emergency contraceptives. She said this may be because there are still not enough contraceptive methods on the Jamaican market.
“It seems like the pharmacies don’t stock a wide range of contraception. A lot of them don’t have the cap, they don’t have the coil, they don’t have some of the Pills, they don’t have the progesterone-only Pill and I think maybe they need to stock a wider range of contraceptives,” she said.
Although she does not support the abuse of emergency contraceptives, Roper believes it is better than using nothing at all after unprotected sex.
“If people don’t have contraception handy and there is some reason why they can’t use it, I don’t know, I personally would rather they use the emergency contraception rather than get pregnant,” she said.
She said instead of being judgemental of those who continue to abuse the pill, society needs to educate them more about its use.
Using emergency contraceptives come with limited side effects, including headache, tummy ache, breast tenderness, spotting and dizziness.
Postinor 2 is 75 per cent effective in preventing an unwanted pregnancy and is not suitable as a regular contraceptive method which should be at least 99 per cent effective in preventing an unwanted pregnancy with proper usage. Postinor 2 should only be taken about twice in a month and the more often it is taken within the month, the less effective it will be in preventing an unwanted pregnancy.
– Nadine Wilson
