As a 36-year-old woman with no children, I expect to be without my ever-present birth control pills next year. I have the typical insurance which allows for only one month prescription at a time. I haven't seen this addressed on this forum yet. Honestly, how many condoms can one buy?!!

I have recently considered buying some "baby" items, in case we are facing an 8+, and I do get pregnant.

Do others see an explosion in unplanned pregnancies due to Y2K? I would think this is a reasonable expectation.

-- dakota (none@thistime.com), September 04, 1999

Answers

Funny, as I recall, the Great East Coast Blackout of the 70's, something like 9 months later there was a mini-baby-boom, (if memory serves me)anyone else recall this?

-- Billy-Boy (Rakkasn@yahoo.com), September 04, 1999.

dakota: why don't you just pay for your birth control pills yourself and forget the insurance? Or you might consider being a little more careful in your sexual activity.

-- cody (cody@y2ksurvive.com), September 04, 1999.

dakota(none@thistime)

Hey-- it is Sat. Nite-- you bet I'm prepared-- "hold on Honey,I'll be right there, just let me finish this last thread".

Oh-by the way-my wife and I discussed this and came up with. (I swear,her calculations!)

"honey how many condoms should we store up for? (realizing that if the s--- hits the fan, there aint gonna be no zesties for a while)

answer: "well twice a week times 6 months (relative guess) equals 24 weeks times 2 equals 48 condoms. Twelve to a package times 4 times $6.00 equals $24.00. P.O. given!!

-- David Butts (dciinc@aol.com), September 04, 1999.

I'm on a posting frenzy- hate it!!

Hey KoS where are you on this one? let me guess!!!

-- David Butts (dciinc@aol.com), September 04, 1999.

My answer to contraception is an I.U.D. (Intra Uterine Device). It stays in for up to 8 years. I've had it in for 4 years so far with no problems. I figure in another 4 years I can barter with a gyn. to pull it out (has a string attached) or do it myself if I have to LOL. Basically, for all woman out there, NOW is the time to go to your gyn. and get your last check up and discuss birth control that would be right for you. Gosh, why can't life be simplier? (uh oh...better not say that).

-- Debi (LongTimeLurker@shy.com), September 04, 1999.

Deb,

Had a relative who gave 30years to the Food and Drug Administration, (before David Whats his name)

Are though things still legal??

-- Dave Butts (dciinc@aol.com), September 04, 1999.

Dakota, I use the birth control shot(Depo Provera) which you might also want to consider. (There's also NorPlants which are good for five years if you can bare the expense) With the shot, you can get four preloaded syringes after each yearly exam. My husband gives me the injection, (in the butt, it doesn't hurt, ya don't even feel it) but the needle is sorta long and scary looking. It's good for 13 weeks each. Besides being really convienent, it also has a pleasant side effect. After the second shot, you stop having periods, and they don't come back till you stop taking it. Downside, it isn't covered by most HMO type health plans,..I pay $55 per "dose". Compared to the price of the pill though, it's still cheaper.

-- kritter (kritter@adelphia.net), September 04, 1999.

Careful Kritter - without the first two sentences as an explanation, the activity described would have been illegal in most countries!

-- Hey (th@really.hurt), September 05, 1999.

dakota this may sound a liitle starnge but you can learn your ovulation cycle and your husband can learn the Tao for male health. Now your ready for the best sex of your life.

-- Will (sibola@hotmail.com), September 05, 1999.

Dave, Many years ago certain brand of I.U.D.'s were banned because they caused infections and problems. There are new and safer ones on the market today which have a better track record and are FDA approved.

-- Debi (LongTimeLurker@shy.com), September 05, 1999.

Deb,

Why so shy??

well---wait a minute--I should have been to, but after seeing His Highness postings. (That would be none other than Our own in house WWF-mudwrestling champ) post and I knew all was safe!

-- Dave Butts (dciinc@aol.com), September 05, 1999.

Dave, I've been lurking on this forum for oh...so...long but recently have gotten up the courage to pipe in when I feel the courage come on and have something I feel might be worthwhile to say. I'm a doomer 8 and have learned so much from this forum. I feel everyone here is my family (pollies too because I learn from their viewpoints). I can feel King of Spain lurking about...actually...I like his sense of humor and his posts. WWF...now you've done it. My daughter forces me to sit beside her on the couch and watch the darn thing...now I will be forced to visualize the mud that is disguised as a mushy ring.

-- Debi (LongTimeLurker@shy.com), September 05, 1999.

Ladies: try obtaining a Diaphram. These things used to be called a Dutch Cap, at least by the British! They have to be fitted to size by a gyno, and they slip over the mouth of the womb.

-- David Harvey (vk2dmh@hotmail.com), September 05, 1999.

If it is bad enough that you can't go to the store to get birth control (over a period of a few months, say) then we are probably talking about a descent into third world scenario. In that case you will need to pop out a lot of kids to work the farm--unless you plan on doing manual work deep into your old age.

-- cgbg jr (cgbgjr@webtv.net), September 05, 1999.

I'd say stock up on condoms and contraceptive foam. A 36-pk of condoms is $12 from Walmart. Cheap insurance.

DO what you think you need to do, and screw the insurance companies. Pay cash for the BC pills if you need to. See 2 gynecologists if you need to. Get 2 6-month or 1 year prescriptions for the Pill and use different pharmacies. Pay cash, and no one will care about it.

Look at this way, it's cheap to get these things, and if SHTF, do you really want to have to give birth in someone's basement, and care for the child with serious social unrest going on? Not at all fair to the child I'd say, not to mention the reduction of your survival chances.

-- Bill (billclo@msgbox.com), September 05, 1999.

we'll need gi's to have babies to offset the millions that die.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), September 05, 1999.

you know,as the president would attest,you can't get pregnant through your mouth.

-- apokoliptik (apokoliptik@large.com), September 05, 1999.

IMO this is one of the most serious long term effects of Y2k. Condoms need to be at the very top of everyones' prep lists. Not only do we need to be concerned about preganacy, we also need to contemplate the unchecked spread of STDs. Even if you don't need condoms yourself you will wish you had them for other members of your community. Plus they will make great barter items.

I started a sex and Y2k web site some time ago. The URL is on my AOL home page. There are links on there to birth control info sights as well as lots of info about alternative menstrual supplies etc...

Enjoy!

http://members.aol.com/Y2ksex2000/sexy2khomepage.html

-- R (riversoma@aol.com), September 05, 1999.

If your family is pretty much done by now, and you haven't done so already, think seriously of getting a tubaligation (tubes tied shut), especially if you're over 35. We should let the younger healthier crowds replenish the depleated population. Past 35, a woman runs greater risks for her health and the health of the baby (think down syndrom etc.) Then forget about contraception and enjoy worry-free sex on cold, dark nights as much as you want.

-- Chris (%$^&^@pond.com), September 05, 1999.

Riversoma is right ofcourse, but my post was meant for married, monogamous couples.

-- Chris (%$^&^@pond.com), September 05, 1999.

Chris,

I know you would never have meant you post above to mean spirited, but I just couldn't pass up a chance to share something here.

You mentioned the greater possibility of women over 35, heving Down Syndrome children.

This is a story of my downs kid:

A couple of days after Kit was born, we found out that he had Down Syndrome, but we didn't know exactly what that meant for his future, or ours. Doctors told us he would be deformed, that he would be mentally retarded, that he would be a burden on our family, emotionally and financially. They told us about "homes" where he would be taken care of.

I guess, looking back, that everything they told us was true. Kit has had open heart surgery, five eye surgeries, and several dental jobs. He's worn leg braces, eye glasses, special shoes, and just about every kind of bandage imaginable. We've sat by his bed in hospitals through recovery, through pneumonia, through some very long nights. We've had meetings about Kit with doctors, educators, lawyers, and even one heart-wrenching time, with funeral planners. And so, twenty-two years ago, we cried for him (and for ourselves) because he wasn't "perfect".

But what we didn't know then, and what no one told us, was that we would cry many more times; one night when we discovered him whistling a little tune, while still in his crib, one morning when he held his head up the first time and smiled, one day when he ran through the house giggling after pulling a trick on his dad. We cried when he started school, and again this year when he graduated. We've wept with him in hospitals, but also at his baseball games. We've waited breathlessly while doctors stitched up his heart, and later, as he learned to lace up his shoes. And all along, we knew what the doctors didn't; that as a person, Kit was just perfect.

May we never be without people like Kit. We would be much the poorer.

-- Lon Frank (lgal@exp.net), September 05, 1999.

Lon, ofcourse I didn't mean it in a mean spirit, and I apologize if I stirred your emotions. I'm simply going for the practical here, for the future. Your success story happened within the frame of a functional world and hospitals.

I simply wanted to add another alternative and point out the risks of having children at an older age, both for the mother who could develop life threatening conditions, and child.

-- Chris (%$^&^@pond.com), September 05, 1999.

Chris, NO appology necessary. I fully realize that technology has kept Kit here for me. He's the light of my life, my everyday joy, my best friend, and I just wanted to tell you about him.

-- Lon Frank (lgal@exp.net), September 05, 1999.

Here's one solution: get yourself fixed. I did it 28 years ago, and lemme tell ya, it was the smartest thing I ever did. No more having to tell all the girls, "don't worry, I'll pull out". You can even get a little pin which informs the sweeties that you shoot blanks.

Girls, same thing, more or less, works for you. Get your tubes tied BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE! If you already have two kids, it's time to get tied off anyway. And if you want more, you can adopt--there's lots of sweet little babies out there just waiting for somebody like you to take them home.

C'mon, join the team! Think about our planet! Think about our environment! Think about your fellow man (woman)! Think about your future grandchild!

Al

-- Al K. Lloyd (al@ready.now), September 05, 1999.

Dakota and others: Don't you recall somewhere that insurance is for UNEXPECTED AND MAJOR CASUALTIES?

You have insurance for birth control pills? That's like insurance to have your teeth cleaned twice a year. Why not insurance to pay for your weekly groceries? IDIOTs!!

-- A (A@AisA.com), September 05, 1999.

um...A...I DO have insurance to have my teeth cleaned twice a year. It's called PREVENTION. Same works for birth-control pills.

Careful who you call idiots.

-- Chris (%$^&^@pond.com), September 05, 1999.

There are two IUD's on the market: The Progestsert which is only good for 1 year and the Paraguard which is good for 10 years. Depo-Provera, the contraceptive shot, is good for 12 weeks. Some people have significant side-effects however.

-- lparks (lparks@eurekanet.com), September 05, 1999.

Chris -- so getting your teeth cleaned is a major and unexpected calamity that is so potentially destructive of your finances that you can't budget for it? Let's see, instead of paying the dentist $50 or $75 or whatever, you pay $25 a month to an insurance company or an HMO to pay for their salaries and buildings and computers, and incidentally pay the dentist. I am careful who I call idiots. I can make a random selection, and 95% of the time, I'm right. Sounds like you fit the description.

-- A (A@AisA.com), September 06, 1999.

just a note about the Depo Provera shot,it can DRASTICLY affect libido (what good is being able to have sex if you don't want to).Also,many woman who have used it had a hard time geting pregnant later when tryiong to get pregnant.Depo can be great,but it can have drawbacks and it's not for everyone.Life's a crap shoot.

-- zoobie (zoobiezoob@yahoo.com), September 06, 1999.

A., it just doesn't work that way with insurance. You're looking at it on MY side, look at it on THIER side. Most people get packaged insurance from their employers. In the case of dental/medical insurance, a company like Blue Cross will throw in benefits like twice yearly teeth cleaning and birth-control pills to prevent themselves even greater expenses in the long-run. Fail to have your teeth checked and cleaned regularly and you'll develop gingivitis and cavities, leading eventually to surgery. A birth in a hospital is extremely costly, and the resulting new dependant adds expenses to the insurance company. Paying for birth-control pills is very cost effective to the insurance company.

Insurance companies are more and more into prevention, it saves them money and ultimately benefits the insured in the long run. Another example is Blue Cross who will reimburse you up to 50% of the cost a yearly gym membership (the gym has to be aproved and use BC's telephone "checkin" system), if you went to the gym at least 120 days during the year. Fit people don't have as many heart attacks and obesity related expensive complications.

I don't want to argue this with you, I just wanted to point out why insurance companies will indeed pay for birth-control pills.

-- Chris (%$^&^@pond.com), September 06, 1999.