In conjunction to my article Sweet Sixteen or Recipe for a Better Life, I am continuing the recipe for a bitter life series with this question…..birth control or recipe for a bitter life?
When I was pregnant with my first child a group of female co-workers and I started a discussion about birth control. The question was “whether to put your teenage daughter on birth control or not?” I listened intently to the pros laid out by the other women. Some said they did it because they were too old to raise their kids kid. A few said their daughter's were going to have sex regardless. So, why not make them have safe sex. Words like “prudence” and “plan B” were thrown around.
Now, I was one of two women that argued against putting a teenager on the pill. I hold my religious faith in high regard and couldn't in good conscious promote teenage sex. Promotion is the only thing I could call taking my teenage child to get put on the pill. It would be just as absurd to say “here are the keys to the car, but don't drive it.” If you want to play the abstinence game, but deal the cards for the sex game….what game will you actually play? The actual prudent decision is to arm your child with all of the information, but not sway the child toward having sex.
Put the religious and moral issues aside. Putting your child on birth control as a plan B is asking for trouble. First of all, plan B (birth control pill) will soon replace plan A (condoms). In the back of that teenagers head they will inevitably think “its okay if I don't have a condom. I am on the pill.” Then that little pill will not protect your child from AIDS and other STD's.
In conclusion, I see few advantages to putting a teenage child on the pill. Sure, you may ensure you don't have kids having kids, but at what cost. Are you willing to see your child become sexually active out of convenience or watch them suffer with a STD? To me, this is just another ingredient in the recipe for a bitter life.
