Contraceptives and Stigma

So in our last blog, we talked about oral contraceptives and their history! In this one we're going to discuss, are they really worthy of being painted red the way society often does?

Personally, I'd say both a yes and a no.

Why a no? First things first, it is the least painful way to avoid pregnancy and live a happy life where pleasure doesn't come with responsibility.

The use of contraception has rather been boiled down to 'avoiding pregnancy', whereas contraception has more use than just this. Levonorgestrel, a hormone in contraceptives, known to have some teeny tiny side-effects like nausea, lightheadedness or sometimes lower abdominal pains, but no 'threatening' side-effects have been found.

Rather, this very hormone, along with a few others do more good than just the minor side effects.

1. It sets your period right. Yes, no irregular periods anymore.

2. Also significantly reduces cramps on periods. Although for such a thing, there are separate contraceptives that suit each individual.

The stigma around contraception could be mostly blamed on the 'conservative mindset' of women being the 'purest' when they don't have sex unless for procreation. And the whole idea of having pleasure without a lifetime of responsibility is where the stigma stems from. Because, women wanting contraception are 'promiscuous' and 'careless'.

This ideology has also been essentially used to not only control women's behaviour but also to deprive them of quality healthcare in terms of their menstrual health because when Barack Obama said that 'there should be a restriction to young women accessing contraceptives because of the "side-effects"', it not only depraves women of quality healthcare, it also posits the idea that a woman should be more 'responsible' with her sexual behaviour, which is basically just that 'don't have sex if you don't wanna conceive".

The hush around menstrual health is equally a contributor to this mindset. It was evident enough when Republicans from the US stood up against birth control, calling them "abortion-inducing pills", they fundamentally ignored the uses of contraceptives for irregular periods, for not spending days beside the toilet seats, throwing up.

In India, though the stigma stems from this very place of 'purity' and 'no sexual needs', the stigma is rather social.

It is important that we talk about the association that menstrual health has with contraception and the improvements that have taken place in the lives of women due to contraception. It is equally important to break the stereotype that women can't have sex for pleasure, because the same excuse has been used by men to control us and our lives for years. It is time we stop letting that happen.